Jason Savio

Sometimes the best way to enjoy a game is to turn your brain off and have fun. Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn is one of those games.

For those who may not know, this isn’t the first videogame to call former NBA player Shaquille O’Neal its star. A Legend Reborn is actually a reboot/quasi-sequel to the 1994 cult classic Shaq Fu. Like its predecessor, the Indiegogo funded Reborn is a bonkers fighting game that is way over the top in the best way possible. 

You play as the one and only Shaq against an evil force’s attempt to take over the world by using demons who look like celebrities to brainwash people. Yes, it’s that crazy.

Crazy and hilarious.

The humor in Reborn is the best part. You’ll square off against enemies who resemble, among others, a particular president and an annoying Canadian pop star, in settings that range from China to Hollywood to Hell. Shaq’s quips and observations (he provides his own voice) are priceless. When battling it out in China, he runs across an area named China Town, prompting him to ask, “Why is there a China Town…in China?”

What’s even better is the fact that you replenish your health using Icy Hot, one of the many products Shaq endorses in real life. Gold Bond, another Shaq-approved product, is also prominently featured.

The gameplay itself isn’t anything to really hoot about; it’s basically a button mashing, side-scrolling fighting game. You often get swarmed by hordes of enemies and have to punch and kick your way out, sometimes using special moves like the Shaq Wave. The controls aren’t necessarily great either: Shaq’s movements can be slow and clunky, causing you to get yourself stuck in tight spots, but one can figure that’s what it would be like if Shaq was trying to move around and fight evil mystic ninjas in real life, anyway.

All of this might sound like nonsense — a retired NBA player fighting off forces bent on world destruction—and it kind of is. But that’s the charm and wit of Reborn. It doesn’t take itself seriously and instead has a good time poking fun at itself and everyone else.

At one point in Reborn, you get a metallic suit that runs on diesel, transforming you into Shaq Diesel, the same name as Shaq’s debut rap album. While throwing punches at a rapid pace, Shaq yells, “Hell, yes! I’m a diesel engine. Come get some!” before overheating. It basically sums up Shaq’s music career in a nutshell, and it’s great. If only more public figures had the same sense of humor.

For more information, visit alegendreborn.com.