Above: Killer Instinct’s original arcade release comes with the Ultra and Ultimate Edition, which is a pretty enticing deal.
What you won’t like
Lack of modes
Developers Double Helix and Rare are promising extra content down the road, but as Killer Instinct stands right now, it’s pretty bare bones compared to most major fighting games.
It doesn’t even have a story mode, and that’s a real shame considering how ridiculous the canon fiction’s been over various games and comic books.
Extremely limited multiplayer
Killer Instinct’s online offerings aren’t going to impress very many hardcore players, and there’s no telling if there’s any future expansion in the works. Only random matches and 1-on-1 fights are available, but you can at least search for ranked and unranked players.
It almost makes you wonder just how invested the developers are about building up the Killer Instinct community, and it’s not like the stripped-down free-to-play model can’t support the extra content. Most damning of all is the lack of a lobby system, which is going to be an utter outrage for tournament-level players who expect it.
Conclusion
Killer Instinct is a budget-priced title that looks better than most next-generation projects we’ve seen so far. Once the rest of the add-ons are actually finished, this could even be one of the best titles in fighting games.
Unfortunately, the weird pricing structure and noticeable depth of features holds back the screaming, rage-filled “Powerthirst” of fighting games from really making a statement. It’s no Street Fighter competitor this time around, but it’s good enough to measure up against the rest.
Score: 80/100
Killer Instinct comes out for the Xbox One on Nov. 22. The publisher provided GamesBeat with a digital copy for the purpose of this review.