News | Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid - Go Go Power Rangers!

It has been almost exactly twenty-six years since the first episode of Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers first graced television screens, and whilst the franchise may not be quite the juggernaut it once was, it still seems to have a little weight behind it. In the last couple of years the series got a brand new, high-budget film, and received a videogame spin-off, and a series of comic books; and now the Rangers are getting another new game, for consoles and PC this time.

That game will be called, Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid.

Copyright © Lionsgate Games

Now, the first question that pops to mind is whether it will be a mobile title, and it's one the devs were quick to answer. According to statements made by the developers the answer is no, this is a brand-new game being built from the ground-up for consoles and PC. So at the moment, the title doesn't appear to be a quick cash-grab using a fairly well-known license.

So far the only characters to be revealed are the original red ranger, the original green ranger, and the yellow ranger from Super Megaforce. So whilst there haven't been many characters revealed yet, it does at least suggest that the roster will span from the original series, right up until Super Megaforce, which is about twenty-one season's worth of characters to choose from.

With so many characters in the running, it should be obvious that more than a few are going to be left on the cutting room floor. Unfortunately (for me), the original pink ranger (one of my longer time favourites) seems to have been announced as a pre-order bonus … as a skin, meaning she is unlikely to appear as a unique character; at least in the initial roster.

Now the first thing we notice from the trailer is the graphics, which seem to be going for a simpler and less detailed aesthetic. Personally, I think this is a good move, as it is unlikely that nWay will be able to compete with the big boys like Capcom and Netherrealm in terms of raw graphical power. Of course, I've repeatedly said that I favour a strong art direction over raw visual fidelity, and in that department I think the game looks good. The developers seem to be going for an almost comic book style look, rather like the one Marvel vs Capcom 3 used.

Speaking of which, the released trailers also show that the game uses a 3v3 system, rather like Marvel vs Capcom 3 and Dragonball Fighterz, complete with assists from you team-mates. From what little we've seen from released material so far, the came has a heavy emphasis on chaining together combos, again, like the aforementioned two games.

According the Playstation Blog and Destructoid the game is set to launch with three modes, Story,

Online Ranked, and Online Casual. That doesn't sound like a lot, but this is a budget title, and the

Copyright © Lionsgate Games

developers have promised more to come as DLC. The only concern there is what nWay's DLC practices will be like, especially considering their original Power Rangers game was a mobile title; and it is kind of hard to trust any company in this regard in this day and age. However, I shall try not to judge until we have some idea what they're going to do, because one in a blue moon, companies do manage to conduct themselves professionally with their DLC.

One more concern I do have with what we've seen of the game so far, is the amount of hit-stop when a character strikes their opponent. An effect like that is meant to convey a season of power and weight, to make the attack really seem like it hurt; but here there looks like there is too much of it, and it just seems to interrupt the pace and slow things down, which could really become annoying.

One more important thing to note, this will be a budget title, and will retail at about $20 in the United States. So it won't break the bank if nothing else.

So until next time ladies and gentlemen, remember to take care of yourselves.

PhoenixAct.