Cobra Kai Beat 'Em Up Game Headed For Consoles In October

The decades-old rivalry between Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence is evolving once again when “Cobra Kai: The Karate Kid Saga Continues” gets a video game adaptation on Oct. 27.

LaRusso, played by Ralph Macchio, and Lawrence, played by William Zabka, famously clashed in the 1984 classic film “The Karate Kid.” Their enmity was rekindled in 2018 in the first two seasons of the popular TV series “Cobra Kai” with a third season already in production.

It was only natural, then, for the franchise to make a jump to Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on Oct. 27 with “Cobra Kai: The Karate Kid Saga Continues.” Macchio and Zabka will voice their respective characters and will lead playable characters from their respective dojos through multiple levels, Polygon reports.

Newcomers Robby, Miguel, and Hawk are also on the eight-character roster. Each fighter will have a skill tree to upgrade and building out either Miyagi-Do style karate or Cobra Kai style is part of the story progression.

Original Cobra Kai sensei John Kreese appears in the trailer so there’s hope that character actor Martin Kove also lends his voice to the game like when he returned to the infamous role during the second season of “Cobra Kai.”

“Cobra Kai: The Karate Kid Saga Continues” will have more than 28 story missions, with boss fights included. Players will have to complete both dojos’ story arcs to get to the game’s true conclusion.

GameMill Entertainment is publishing the game adding it to a recent batch of licensed adaptations. These include “G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout” and “Nickelodeon Kart Racers 2: Grand Prix.” These titles will also be launched on the same three consoles as the “Cobra Kai” game.

In the original film, LaRusso was bullied by Lawrence and the Cobra Kai dojo until he is rescued and trained by the wise Mr. Miyagi as played by the late Pat Morita. The film culminates in the All-Valley Karate Championship with Daniel winning with his now-famous crane kick over Johnny.

Thirty-four years later, Johnny is still haunted by his defeat at the hands of Daniel. LaRusso turned his notoriety into the ownership of a chain of car dealerships while Johnny is barely able to keep a job. The rivalry is rekindled over a series of events which sees each of them revive their respective dojos.

The immense popularity of the “Karate Kid” franchise saw Macchio star in three films with Hillary Swank starring in the fourth film, “The Next Karate Kid” in 1994. “Cobra Kai” aired on YouTube Premium in 2018 and 2019 and was acquired by Netflix in June.

Those two seasons will join Netflix’s offerings on Aug. 28. The third season is set to air in 2021.