‘Path of Fury’ Got My Heart Racing, and I Need More of It (Hands-on Preview)

Virtual reality is one of those places where dreams can become… well, reality. The on-rails Kung Fu movie could only be in VR, really. Or, in the worst timeline, with the Microsoft Kinect. And that’s exactly what Path of Fury – Episode I: Tetsuo’s Tower is aiming for. I had the delight of giving this one a try, and I suggest keeping a watchful eye on it. No matter if I want to introduce a new workout into my life, or just want to feel like a martial arts master in my living room, I was pleasantly surprised to find out how much fun this one could turn out to be.

‘Path of Fury’ May Be On Rails, but It’s All Action, All the Time

I had access to two levels from the upcoming Path of Fury – Episode 1, and by the end of my session, I was sweating and wanting more. Like literally, actually sweating. Path of Fury is all action, all the time. There are short breaks for dialogue. But I spent more time punching baddies and nailing martial arts moves than I did listening to long expositions. And that feels perfectly ample, as long as there are more dramatic scenes in the final game.

Combat is simplistic yet exciting. At its heart, Path of Fury is a high-score game wearing a martial arts skin. I would be moved into a room, approached by up to three goons at a time, and would need to block and smack my way to victory. Enemies carefully telegraph their attacks. This allowed me ample time to push their arms back and deliver a blow to stop them. A recommended area of attack is shown on these enemies, usually starting with a quick hit or two to the head, followed by stronger strikes to the kidney and liver. However, if I wasn’t quick enough, they could recover slightly and attempt to hit me once again.

Speed and efficiency were the name of the game here. While I do hope that freestyle combat makes its way into the final game, it was very entertaining finding out the best way to dispatch these enemies quickly. I felt powerful and ready to take on anything that could get in my way; just as the protagonist of any martial arts flick should.

The Lo-Fi Style Is Great, but I’m Hoping Things Are More Refined in the Final Build

After blazing through a few levels of Path of Fury – Episode 1, my excitement grew tenfold. It feels great to play, but it also looks great in action. Path of Fury does a great job of telegraphing where players should hit, and what they need to do to block attacks. The basics are all here and done extraordinarily well. I’m just hoping that the final product has this type of flair in the rest of the package.

Seeing as the game is still in active development, there are some things I’d love to see improved. The transitions between spaces, currently, is a quick jump to black with more enemies in front of our faces. I’m hoping in the final game, we’ll see all of the action unfold. It’s meant to be on rails, not on scene. It would be like playing House of the Dead and just popping into the next location instead of seeing what happens in between.

I also hope to see some settings for accessibility in the full game, as well as full subtitle support. Currently, the game is only playable in Standing mode — which makes sense. But some players in wheelchairs or with mobility issues may want to throw hands and feel like a martial arts master. I think that height settings could be a great thing to enable here, just for the sake of every player.

These Hands Are Rated E for Everyone, and Early Impressions of ‘Path of Fury’ Are Good

Even though two levels went by in what felt like the blink of an eye, I’m very excited to see what Path of Fury has to offer in the full game. The combat and the meat on the bones are already solid. And I’m glad that I can return to these levels in the future and see if my skills have improved. I’m already trying to plan my “No-Hit” run, but that may be more taxing than I originally planned.

The on-rails premise of Path of Fury – Episode 1 has a lot of potential, especially if Leonard Menchiari can nail the presentation fully. The lo-fi aesthetic mixed with a gritty crime drama plot had me intrigued from the start. As long as the game can tighten everything up and deliver it with a beautiful bow on top, I may be looking at one of my new favorite VR experiences.

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Path of Fury – Episode 1: Tetsuo’s Tower will be available on March 13, 2025, on Meta Quest.