Fatal Fury 2

Introduction:

One cannot overstate the impact the success of Capcom’s Street Fighter II had upon Fatal Fury 2’s development. The original Fatal Fury had proven itself a woefully inadequate alternative to Capcom’s offering, and SNK was doubtlessly keen on replicating Street Fighter II’s winning formula. Whereas Fatal Fury had borrowed heavily from the first Street Fighter, Fatal Fury 2 (which will be referred to as FF2 for the remainder of this review) would do likewise from its sequel, and the result proved itself a largely worthwhile effort.

As with the previous title, fighting takes place on a pair of two-dimensional planes, one in the foreground, and another in the back. Moving between the planes is as simple as pressing a couple of buttons simultaneously or, if your opponent is already in the other plane, one single joystick or button input. The existence of a second plane makes it slightly difficult to pin your opponent down as it’s a valid escape route from pressure. In beginner play, this leads to players spending an inordinate amount of time chasing each other down, but fortunately this doesn’t carry over to more advanced play. To those who dislike it, the plane-switching can be a deal-breaker, but to its credit, it does help differentiate the game from others of its ilk.

Graphics: 👾

Graphically, FF2 is quite good. The character sprites are large and animated just-well-enough, but the exquisitely detailed backgrounds really steal the show and, remarkably, there’s one for each of the game’s twelve characters. In addition, nearly all have a palette swap that appears after the first round, so SNK definitely one-upped Capcom in this area. If there’s one real issue to be levied against the visuals, it’s the character designs themselves. They weren’t particularly good in the first game, and, unfortunately, things haven’t improved much here. While some, like newcomer Mai Shiranui’s, are striking, many others are not. Particularly uninspired is incoming boxer and Michael Max replacement Axel Hawk who is somehow even more forgettable than his predecessor. It should be noted, however, that both Mai and Kim Kaphwan, who also makes his first appearance here, would go on to become staples of not only Fatal Fury, but The King of Fighters series as well, so diamonds are definitely to be found in the rough.

Sound: 🔊

FF2 is no slouch in the audio department either. The music in the game is excellent throughout with a few now-classic tracks sprinkled in. Most fall short of the likes SNK would later be renowned for pumping out, but that’s a mighty high bar to clear, so the effort here is absolutely commendable. As for the sound effects, they are also of high-quality. Nearly everything is beyond reproach, though one may find the sounds for tallying points mildly grating.

Gameplay: 🕹️

Gameplay has definitely seen a major overhaul. The two-plane system has evolved to include strikes which send the opponent to the other plane while you remain in your own. Counterattacks are available when opponents make attacks which don’t connect. You can also dash backwards by rapidly tapping back twice on the controls, an excellent addition lifted from SNK’s own Art of Fighting. Then there’s the crawl, done by holding the controls down and towards your opponent – a rather strange mechanic that wouldn’t be reused in many other 2D fighters. Desperation moves have also been added. These powerful blows can only be unleashed when your health is low and flashing increasing the likelihood of come-from-behind wins. The most obvious change from the previous game, however, is that you’re now allowed to play through the game with any of eight characters rather than the paltry three as before. This alone significantly increases replayability, but when considered in connection with all of the other gameplay additions, FF2 is clearly a quantum leap past is precursor.

Despite all this praise, FF2 is still a product of its time, and as such, it doesn’t benefit from some of the additions and refinements standard to later fighting games. To start with, there’s no practice mode, so you’ll either have to learn as you go or plug in a second controller and set it to versus mode. It’s also slow and lacks a combo system, so gameplay is a bit sluggish and unsophisticated. Furthermore, a couple moves use the archaic “Tiger Knee” motion, which ends with the user inputting a jump command. Needless to say, if you don’t perform these correctly, you’ll find yourself jumping instead. FF2 received an upgraded re-release titled Fatal Fury Special which fixed some of the most glaring issues, so it tends to get recommended over this title.

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Conclusion: 📊

Taken on its own, one might believe FF2 a worthy purchase for a Neo Geo fan’s or fighting gamer’s collection. However, Fatal Fury Special has all of the content of this game plus more, plus refined gameplay mechanics. So in the end, FF2 is something of a hard sell. Still, it’s capable of providing some decent action for those willing to seek it out.