Games

Most manga fans' idea of heaven, this beat 'em-up brings together an extensive roster of 52 characters (39 of whom are playable) from 32 different stories that have been serialised in the best-selling Weekly Shonen Jump anthology magazine in Japan. So, if you're the sort of person who lies awake at night wondering who would win in a fight between Dragon Ball's Son Goku and Fist of the North Star's Ken Shiro, then this is surely the next-gen arena brawler you've been waiting for.

However, once the initial thrill of seeing Assassination Classroom's Koro-sensei sharing screen time with Hell Teacher Nube's Meisuke Nueno has worn off, what you're left with is a rather basic fighting game that is unlikely to hold the attention of seasoned joystick junkies for very long. Nor does this PlayStation 4 incarnation really live up to its next-gen billing when it comes to visual prowess. The character models look great and their special moves deliver plenty of fireworks, but the arenas themselves suffer from muddy textures that betray the game's origin as a PS3 title.

So, while J-Stars Victory Vs. + is undoubtedly a pleasure to dip in and out of, it's not quite the bombastic gaming experience we'd hoped for.

J-Stars Victory Vs. +, Namco Bandai, PS4/PS3, £40 Approx
HCC VERDICT: 3/5