Killer Instinct: Spinal Gameplay First Impressions (Video)

It’s the end of January, and both Double Helix and Microsoft have stuck to their promise. Spinal has just been released as a Killer Instinct character, and I’ve gotten the chance to play around with his moves both online and off.

(Please forgive the audio quality; voice-over was recorded after the fact using the Kinect and Upload Studio)

There are several aspects that make Spinal so unique compared to the rest of the Killer Instinct cast.

• Has a divekick.
• Can use his shield to absorb special attacks (which create skulls).
• Floating skulls can be used as projectiles.
• Being hit by skull projectile will result in your shadow/instinct bar being drained to your opponent.
• Very slow.
• First character to be released as a free update.

It’ll be interesting to see how Spinal is balanced in the game’s tier list. After playing several matches with the character, I found Sabrewolf to be quite the formidable opponent due to his speed. Additionally, I saw that Sadira’s instinct moves were trumped partially by Spinal’s projectiles, thus reducing her abilities’ usefulness.

Check out our video as I tinker around with some of Spinal’s moves, Ultra combo and more. Spinal is available now as a Killer Instinct character for those who purchased the $20, $40 and $60 SKU’s. Those who have not paid for Killer Instinct and are using the free-play model will have to wait until he becomes a roaming character.

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