Karate Champ is a different kind of fighting game. A spiritual successor of sorts to old school karate games like Karate Champ, Battle K-Road, and Best of the Best Championship Karate, Karate Master 2: Knockdown Blow puts emphasis on realism rather than fantasy bullshit like fireballs, high jumps, and spinning kicks. Unlike those old school games, this game actually looks and plays well. The game’s graphics area throw back to SNES and Neo-Geo fighters, and the controls are responsive. You are in control of a young martial artist who has a dream of opening his own dojo. You have to master several different styles of combat, increase your fame by competing in tournaments, and earn money by working the forklift. The game tends to get repetitive, but you’ll get into grinding, training, and enhancing your skills. There are several training exercises to unlock, one of them even involves a bull for those of you who played Karate Champ back in the days. The matches themselves utilize real life karate rulesets, and they get brutal. You and your opponents can suffer torn muscles, concussions, broken bones, and other gruesome injuries. While the game could benefit from some customization options, a multiplayer mode, and a bit more variety, the game is still fun, and if you are a martial arts aficionado, you’ll be into its realism. Oh, and it’s on sale for $5.99 on Steam until next Monday.