Death and aging are a central gameplay system in Sifu. When the player dies, they can come back to life at the cost of aging a number of years. As the player's character ages, aspects of their character change, such as their health, damage output, and the abilities they can learn. The whole structure of the game is informed through this unique lives mechanic and game over system.
Sifu is a beat 'em up game inspired by martial arts movies like The Raid and Dragons Forever, going so far as to have Sifu's own live-action adaption. The player plays as the child of a sifu (or martial arts teacher) who was murdered by a group of five people. On a quest for revenge, the child uses their years of training and a pendant of coins that can magically revive them to take down those responsible for the murder.
Though aging is a crucial component of Sifu's game design, there are many pieces to the system that are not explicitly told to the player. Understanding how the age system works will be highly beneficial to the player's success when taking on Sifu's challenging difficulty. This guide will go through how the age system in Sifu works and all the gameplay components it affects.
The Aging System in Sifu
The age system of Sifu is directly related to death and the lives system. When the player dies, they will have the option to use some of the power from the coin pendant to rise and continue fighting. If the player chooses to rise, they will grow in age. The number of years they age is the same as their Death Counter. For example, if the player dies and has a Death Counter of two, they will age two years when they rise. The Death Counter in Sifu is increased by dying and decreased by taking down special enemies, like mini-bosses, enemies with a yellow aura, or beating the first phase of a boss. The Death Counter can also be reduced to zero by selecting the 'Death Counter' reward at dragon shrines; however, this will cost the player 1000 XP.
Once the player character has aged, the only way to revert their age is to replay a previous level and beat the level with fewer deaths. When the player beats a level, their age and Death Counter will transfer to the next level. For example, if a player beats the Squats without dying in Sifu, they would be able to start the next level, the Club, at the youngest age, 20, with a Death Counter of zero. The player can revive as long as they have enough coins, but once the player reaches age 70 or above, all the coins will be broken, and the subsequent death will result in a game over.
Every time the player character ages a decade, the damage they do increases, but their health also decreases. With age, the character progressively becomes more of a glass cannon: able to do lots of damage, but more susceptible to death. Along with these changes, the player will be cut off from obtaining certain rewards and skills as they age. The left-most rewards can only be acquired at dragon shrines before the player is at ages 25, 40, and 60, respectively. Additionally, unless an upgrade has been unlocked permanently, certain skills have ages requisites, and the player must learn them before they become unlearnable.
The first set of skills (at the top) is always available for the player, regardless of age. The second set will be locked at 59, the third set will be locked at 49, the fourth at 39, and the fifth at 29. If the player has learned that ability before the cut-off age, they will keep that ability as they grow older. Understanding this, players will be able to make the most of each run
Sifu is available for PC, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5.
