Originally released in Japan, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure All-Star Battle released August 29, 2013 exclusively for PlayStation 3. Hirohiko Araki’s long running story of the Joestar family and their many friends and foes came together to give a great fighting game experience. Now it has been remastered for modern consoles and PC with JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure All-Star Battle R.
The new remaster features upgraded visuals and runs at a silky smooth 60fps for fluid motions and menu browsing. More than just the previous downloadable characters, this features over 50 characters from across the current 8 parts of the JoJo franchise. Find out what other new improvements have been added and what we think in our review.
This is a review coupled with a supplemental video review. You can watch the video review or read the full review of the game below:
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure All-Star Battle R
Developer: CyberConnect2 Co.
Publisher: Bandai Namco
Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S (Reviewed)
Release Date: September 2, 2022
Players: 1-2 (local/online)
Price: $49.99 USD
Previously, All-Star Battle had a very limited Story mode of just main story fights and it ended. A fully reworked story mode introduces more fights in varying difficulty with the same story fights from JoJo Part 1 to Part 7.
While I can’t spend all day talking about Araki’s series, fans of the franchise will know immediately all that there is to know, but don’t worry, there is a Glossary in the game to detail people, places, and things in the story.
I was really digging the new story mode, especially with refinements to the secret missions to unlock cosmetics for various characters but also the new Support Effect system. If you start off on the right foot and use the Support Effects you can breeze through the story with ease. Completing the story doesn’t unlock characters or stages, but rather cosmetics, and you acquire Gold to use for Support Effects or to use in the in-game shop to buy Gallery items.
Banter between characters is either ripped from the manga or is brand new for characters to talk to their future selves or long beaten foes. Boasting an already impressive roster, All-Star Battle R added more characters to play as like Mariah and Ghiaccio to name a few. The story mode being revised to include the things it does is a treat that anybody can enjoy, and I most certainly enjoyed reliving these stories in this game once again.
Fighting in a 3D environment, you are almost required to make every attack connect if you want to succeed. Gameplay is very simple, beat your opponent; However, given this is a JoJo game, you have the abilities such as Hamon and Stands at your disposal. Assist characters have been introduced in this remake that adds another layer of danger to whoever gets caught by them.
Things that carry over into this remaster is the Rush Mode that acts like a minigame in the middle of a match where characters like Jotaru Kujo and DIO can use their stands to trade punches while the players attempt to gain more of a bar to beat the other.
Three different gauges are on screen most of the time; one for health, guard, and the Heart Heat Gauge which is for your Heart Heat Attack and Great Heat Attack special moves. Performing taunts to downed opponents can deplete this gauge and give you an advantage. After beating your opponent, if you’re located near a certain part of the stage, you can trigger a Dramatic Finish which plays a cutscene from something that happens in the Part it is from.
Some characters you can fight with can only be used either indoors or at night due to being a vampire like DIO and the Pillar Men for example, while everyone else can be in any stage. There are a number of stages from each Part that you can fight on, including some new ones. Sadly though, one stage I can remember that is removed is the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral from Stone Ocean.
Besides just normal fights in Story and Versus, there is an online portion that I attempted once but quickly dropped due to its exclusion of rollback net code. It’s delay based and doesn’t play like a fighting game in 2022 should, so this is a major step back to me.
Included in game modes, you can play an Arcade mode that lets you fight enemies one after another to get a high score. From the main menu, players can use acquired Gold to buy items from the Shop & Gallery section.
Things like 2D art, 3D models, and more are available to purchase for the game if you’re dedicated enough. The whole game is welcoming to everyone and you can play at your own leisure and get a feel for what your favorite thing to do is.
Since it’s release almost 10 years ago, All-Star Battle R is playable in 4K which means that, naturally, character models, environments, and UI have all been updated to take advantage. Keeping Araki’s character designs intact has always been the mission and it keeps that same manga feel in everything.
Colors feel more vibrant and it’s joined by the improved framerate and loading times. Previously, All-Star Battle ran at a locked 30fps but now with current technology it runs at a silky smooth 60fps with no compromises.
These improvements were much needed and very welcomed. One thing I feel is overlooked is the UI and how refreshed they are over their previous counterpart; they now have more information and style to them versus a regular brown box that has names on it. I love everything this visual refresh of the entire game showcases and now it can exist with modern capabilities.
In 2013, after the anime started airing, voice over was done for certain characters ahead of their showcase on television. New audio was recorded for characters like Yoshikage Kira and, most importantly, Part 6 characters to coincide with Stone Ocean releasing previously this year.
Some sound effects in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure All-Star Battle R have added bass that doesn’t sound bad; most special moves have rumbling bass that sounds better than it ever has.
While I couldn’t find much to be upset over, I feel like it was a bit of a missed opportunity to not include music from the anime series. Most songs are just video game original tracks, which can still be earned or purchased in the Shop.
From it’s time in the Sun in 2013 up to now with JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure All-Star Battle R, this has been one of my favorite fighters from a series that I was more or less exposed to in Jump Super Stars for the Nintendo DS.
This is a game that was worthy of a rerelease via JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure All-Star Battle R with upgraded everything for every modern platform. The mystifying visuals and proper adjustments to audio all around make this is one that should be played with your friends.
I cannot recommend the online portion due to it’s lack of rollback net code which is featured in most modern fighting games. It’s a huge negative that brings down this otherwise excellent fighting game celebrating the 35th Anniversary of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure.
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure All-Star Battle R was reviewed on Xbox Series S using a copy provided by Bandai Namco. You can find additional information about Niche Gamer’s review/ethics policy here. TJoJo’s Bizarre Adventure All-Star Battle R is now available for Windows PC (via Steam), PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S.