Even moving around is a little spastic–it looks like your input doesn’t control the rig directly, but rather nudges it off-balance. The physics ragdoll rigs are self-balancing, so they’re in constant autonomous motion whenever they’re off balance (which is 100% of the time as soon as you engage your opponent). The control system in Sumotori is once removed. It’s great fun to watch them smash things in their desperate attempt to right themselves.
If you let the ragdoll men stagger around a bit after a match they’ll usually end up in the walls, too. I spent a few minutes just destroying them in the game’s hidden mode (shoot between the right-most slat to destroy the near corner wall on the title screen). The destructible walls provide a great sense of impact. Even ignoring its miniscule size, the physics engine stands alone as innovative.
It’s worth mentioning that Sumotori is a technical masterpiece.
