‘Sifu’ in-depth gameplay trailers revealed, features an ageing mechanic

Ageing is the driving force of this game’s never-seen-before mechanic. Through the use of an ancient magical pendant, players are revived each time they die in battle, allowing you to try again. However, there is a catch. Each time you are brought back to life, you grow older.

In the early stages, you only age by one year at a time. But as time passes, with more deaths, the process gets faster and skips a few digits, ultimately leading to your permanent death. Depending on your age, the character will also see changes in physical appearance such as greying of the hair, wrinkles, and a more slender looking physique.

That being said, the pendant also serves as a boon. With each death, players can unlock new skills and movesets to add a fresh dynamic to their fight sessions, going forward. You can unlock this via XP collected during gameplay.

As part of the gameplay, you have the standard hand-to-hand combat, where you can parry attacks or evade attacks, throw enemies onto a wall, and even lean or jump to avoid high and low attacks, respectively. With a collective moveset and combos of over 150 attacks, the game allows you to stun opponents, push them back, finish them off with knockouts, and do a whole lot more.

The environment is interactive as well, where you can pick up random furniture and weapons to deal more damage. The game also features a focus system where you can analyse your enemy in slow motion to vent precise, destructive damage.

Additionally, Sifu includes a detective board that keeps track of all the leads and suspects in your investigation. You can refer to them when in moments of pickle to help move the story forward. This element surpasses your death as well. Meaning, even if you die permanently, the progress here will be saved when you restart your journey.

Any further updates on Sifu should be expected on 10 December 2021, during The Game Awards.