There are plenty of fighting game players who just sit around and beat opponent after opponent at arcades. The one thing none of these players have is the strength of powers to take on real-life opponents who have the same fighting abilities or even powers seen in their favorite game. Comic writer Dylan Burnett took this idea and created a comic called “Arcade Kings” with colorists Walter Baiamonte & Sara Antonellini.
Joe, a masked fighting player who spends his time in arcades defeating every opponent who challenges him is not only fighting people in video games but in real life. After helping the arcade owner’s son, Joe’s past comes back to haunt him, forcing him to return to searching for a person he needs to see.
While the plot isn’t original, the writing and characters more than make up for it. If you’re a gamer, you’ve seen a person like Joe hanging out at an arcade taking on all opponents and beating them. Another reason is Burnett made the story fun and fast-paced by not taking the plot too seriously and sticking with what would make this story work: a fighting game player who’s great at fighting games and fighting. Not to mention it gives off a major manga vibe.
Speaking of manga, that’s what the artwork looks like. The characters have the usual big yes, small mouth aesthetic, the typical manga facial reactions and the action scenes have the effects that are more common in manga than in Western comics. One of the best instances of this is when Joe fights an opponent whose facial expressions are always over-top-top, especially her mouth and her pupils are exes instead of being round. The colors also bring out the entire comic nicely to where it is pleasing to look at.
Issue one of “Arcade Kings” gives the reader an interesting story with likable characters and art that will appeal to manga fans.
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