Power Rangers: Battle For The Grid Season 1 & 2 Review
Fast Facts
Title: Power Rangers: Battle For The Grid Season 1 & 2
Developer: nWay Games
Publisher: nWay Games
Website: https://battleforthegrid.com
Genre: Fighting, Action
Platform: Nintendo Switch
Age Rating: PEGI 12
Release Date: 26/03/2019
Price: £14.99 for each Season Pass – Rapid Reviews UK was very kindly provided with review codes for this title.
Go Go Power Rangers!
As a 90’s kid, I have to tell you, Power Rangers was an absolute cultural phenomenon! First broadcast in the UK on Sky One in 1993, 7 year old me absolutely lived to watch this show. I remember climbing all over the sofa, battling with friends using our arms as swords and excessively shouting, “it’s Morphin’ Time”. Oh, and I always got to be the Green and then White Ranger (Tommy was the best!).
You Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers!
It’s through this lens of nostalgia, I get to review Battle For The Grid, as its biggest critic for authenticity and potentially its most forgiving for the style in which it presents itself. Our very own Editor In Chief Mike O’Hara already reviewed Battle For The Grid back in April 2019, however grand kudos to nWay Games, who have provided so many updates since and have lovingly built on the platform established early last year that it deserves a revisit.
The additions have seen a brand new story mode added to the game with an original adaption conceived by renowned Power Rangers and Batman: Gates of Gotham comic book writer Kyle Higgins. It also includes original artwork that leads the narrative by Eisner-Award winning illustrator Dan Mora. I think they’ve done a really wonderful job of pulling the story together, with it based around the Shattered Grid Comic. There are some small detail changes however but I feel they enhance the experience for the game.
Let’s face it – we all have our dark sides
The story itself tells the journey of Lord Drakkon (who is an evil alternate timeline version of Tommy Oliver) as he travels time and space collecting Morphers and attempting to destroy all Power Rangers that stand in his way. It’s a simple narrative, done well, and offering a depth of storyline rarely seen as an accompaniment to a Beat-em up game. Still, waters run deep and with the story itself split across 3 acts, pretty much every character you’ve ever experienced across the Power Rangers world are present along the way and include original voice acting from David Frank (Tommy Oliver), Austin St. John (Jason Lee Scott), David J. Fielding (Zordon), Kerrigan Mahan (Goldar) and Meghan Camarena (Kimberley). Great attention to the details and a very nice touch here. It took me right back to the ’90s!
The story is well-paced and takes clever steps to keep you engaged by switching out the story and allowing you to fight stages as the good guys and the bad guys with Power Rangers on both sides and some clever character weight, move, size and style dynamics on show. This is a really smart approach to storytelling in fighting games I wish others would take note of.
May the Power protect you.
For me, the story mode is the absolute best way to experience Battle For The Grid, and even for novices like myself that only really know the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers its a great way to become a little better educated around the franchises that followed such as Time Force. Not to say it does a brilliant job of introducing everyone with a background story, but hey this is fast-paced action so strap in and keep up.
The story mode also serves as a great shop window for the developer to showcase the wide variety of characters included in Season 1 and Season 2, which are vast packs that include some really fun additions.
Season 1 includes the following characters:
Jen Scotts – The Pink Ranger from Time Force
Trey of Triforia – Zeo Gold Ranger
Lord Zedd
And also the Dragon Shield Skin for Jason Lee Scott
Season 2 includes the following characters:
Anubis ‘Doggie’ Cruger – SPD Shadow Ranger
Eric Myers – Time Force Quantum Ranger
Dai Shi – Jungle Fury Villain
And for me, most awesomely the Tommy Oliver White Ranger Skin. I can still remember the moment Zordon floated him down to join the team. #nostalgia
These Season Pass additions absolutely enhanced my experience with the game. It feels like they’ve been expertly selected to provide a real variety of play that freshens the game and offers a new challenge to the player. There is a such a contrast between some of these characters in how they plan, Doggie vs Zedd for example and this makes it a whole new learning experience to really get your teeth into.
Graphically the game continues to look stunning both docked and handheld on the Switch, and has received patch after patch to keep the gameplay buttery smooth, even with Megazord attacks all over the screen and clocking up to 30-40 combos in fights. Bravo for the steady frame rate that accompanies this visual beauty, as well as the atypical yet expected Heavy Rock soundtrack that accompanies this kids TV show adaption.
Battle for The Grid transforms the fighting game genre into a nostalgia fuelled, visually spectacular and frankly fun and moreish game that I cannot put down right now.
With little more to add, I must ask, so nWay Games, when’s Season 3 coming out?
Rapid Reviews Rating
You can buy Power Rangers: Battle For The Grid from the following store:
eShop
