This Month's Most Popular Games Tagged 'fighting' on The Great Games Experiment http://www.greatgamesexperiment.com/games/popular/month/fighting/?utm_source=feed&utm_medium=rss ]]> This Month's Most Popular Games Tagged 'fighting' on The Great Games Experiment http://www.greatgamesexperiment.com/css/logo.jpg This Month's Most Popular Games Tagged 'fighting' on The Great Games Experiment http://www.greatgamesexperiment.com/games/popular/month/fighting/?utm_source=feed&utm_medium=rss ]]> en-us Mythic Blades Ares, the god of War, has challenged his father Zeus for control of Olympus, and now the war of the gods must be fought in the arenas of mortals. Heroes and monsters of Greek myth must come together in a clash of deadly combat to determine the fate of Olympus!

Mythic Blades is a visually breathtaking 3D fighting game which places you in the role of a legendary hero or terrifying monster. It's a fast-action brawl across ten different arenas, with twelve different playable characters. While the gods may not be the ones fighting, you can invoke their powers through special Divine Attacks that cause devastating combos on your opponents.

In addition to four levels of difficulty to challenge you in single-player, you may also play against a friend in "Versus" mode, and you can unlock secret characters and special bonuses as you play.
]]> 23 Nov 2006 03:44:49 Determinance A multiplayer sword-fighting game in development for three years.
]]> 29 Nov 2006 10:50:06 Tekken 3 The saga of the Iron Fist Tournament continues with TEKKEN 3. Fight with or against more than 20 characters, each with unique moves and special full-motion video endings. In addition to the standard Arcade and Versus modes, Namco has added a large number of extra modes like Survival, Ball, Force, Team Battle, Time Attack, Practice, and Theater. Can you defeat the opposition and become King of the Iron Fist Tournament for a third time?
]]> 04 Dec 2006 12:47:55 Toribash Toribash is a turn-based fighting game. Create your own martial arts movies in single player sandbox mode, or join the competition in the multi player modes. Focus is on tactics rather than reaction and button mashing.

The game features physics, full dismemberment, decapitation and comic style blood.
]]> 04 Dec 2006 10:55:41 Ragdoll Masters Ragdoll Masters is an experiment in the world of 2D beat 'em' ups with the use of ragdoll physics. In this game you control a stylized martial arts master, making his way through stronger and stronger opponents with spectacular moves and impressive blows. It features some of the most sophisticated physics ever used in 2D games and plenty of other neat effects.
]]> 10 Dec 2006 05:40:12 Rumble Box Rumble Box is a fast paced 3D action beat-em-up with a unique premise: all of the characters are made of simple objects which stay around in the level even after the character is defeated. The objects pile up, changing the gameplay landscape and altering your combat tactics.

The game takes place inside a giant box, and the ultimate goal of the game is to pile up enough defeated enemies to get out of the box.
]]> 12 Dec 2006 01:17:32 2D Knockout Box competitors from around the world to become the greatest boxer.
]]> 13 Dec 2006 05:07:08 Alphasix Alphasix is a 1 vs. 1 overhead shooter. It was made in Game Maker by RinkuHero and Orchard-L, and released on August 20th, 2006.

The game is a hybrid of several genres, it's best described as a mix of Street Fighter II, Shoot the Bullet, Spy vs. Spy, and Smash TV.
]]> 17 Dec 2006 09:09:43 Powerfox Help PowerFox save the world with his mighty fists. Face Zorro's Ninja Horse and Hannibal using your mighty fists and other power-ups. Fun action game with a little humor attached.
]]> 19 Dec 2006 12:32:29 Grabbed by the Ghoulies Grabbed by the Ghoulies was released in 2003 by Rare for the Xbox. It was historic in that it was the first Rare game to be released under the Microsoft banner after being bought out from Nintendo. It also has the dubious distinction of being the biggest flop in Rare's history. The name is a pun on the British slang goolies, meaning testicles.

Ghoulies starred a young teenager named Cooper who set out to rescue his girlfriend, Amber, from Ghoulhaven Hall. This mansion was full of supernatural and otherwise unpleasant creatures, and Cooper would receive help along the way from the many hired hands that worked there. Ghoulies also had a mini-crossover with another Rare franchise, Banjo-Kazooie, via the small cameo by Roysten the goldfish.
]]> 20 Dec 2006 09:26:16 Naruto: Ninja Way CURRENT VERSION: VERSION 3

Naruto: Ninja Way is a fun, smash brothers-influenced fighting game featuring Naruto characters duking it out in a 2-4 fighter fest. Play as your favorite Naruto characters in several different modes against both players and A.I. Or if you feel like taking on challenging missions, play Adventure mode! This fighting game has a unique and appealing, giving countless hours of fun.
]]> 23 Dec 2006 04:33:24 Small Arms
From Gastronaut Studios Website: said,
Small Arms™ is the frantic multiplayer brawling game with the action and precision of an arcade shooter. Up to 4 players can join in the battles across many dynamic and richly detailed levels. Choose from a cast of awesome fighters like cyborg tabby cats, assassin truffle pigs and mutant chimney sweeps. Jump from platform to platform shooting each other to pieces with 360° aim. The side-scrolling action is easy for anyone to pickup, and hard to put down.
]]> 27 Dec 2006 07:56:52 Zombie Smashers X2 A side scrolling zombie fight fest. Take on the roll of one of the Zombie Smashers and find out why zombies are back in town. Lots of intense action with a great soundtrack.
]]> 03 Jan 2007 07:23:54 Soul Calibur 2 Soul Calibur II is the third entry in Namco's "Soul" fighting series and the first real sequel in the series. It was highly successful due to its release on all three major systems at the time: Xbox, PS2 and GC. In addition, each version of the game included a character exclusive to that system. Xbox users got to play as Todd McFarlane's well-known antihero, Spawn (McFarlane also designed the character Necrid for all three versions). PS2 users were allowed to use Tekken veteran Heihachi, the only character who uses no weapon other than his fists. Finally, and arguably of most signifigance, GameCube owners could play as Nintendo's greatest swordsman, Link from the Legend of Zelda series.

This, combined with the tried and true fighting system and other features from the Dreamcast port of Soul Calibur, led to the game being a staple for the fighting game library of any console owner.
]]> 16 Feb 2007 12:43:48 River City Ransom "River City Ransom has been described as a cross between a beat 'em up and a role-playing game. The game follows a more or less linear path from start to finish, and fights take place in the style of Double Dragon (another Technos hit), with the player moving Alex (Kunio) or Ryan (Riki) around the screen using the directional pad, and pressing buttons to punch, kick, or jump. However, the characters' effectiveness in battle is determined by several statistics and their knowledge of fighting techniques, such as Acro Circus, Stone Hands, and Dragon Feet, which are purchased like items in shops throughout the city using funds recovered from defeated gang members. This loot may also be spent on various food items and spa treatments which serve to revitalize the player's stats while displaying a funny animation." ~Wikipedia

While playing the actual game is fun enough, other activities such as playing stickball in the park or simply beating each other up in a 2-player game add to the charm of this relatively unknown NES title.
]]> 10 Jan 2007 12:26:17 Jump Superstars Jump Superstars takes everyone's favorite anime heroes, and shoves them all into one convenient package. You can play as Goku from Dragonball Z, Luffy from One Piece, Naruto, and even the prince of tennis.

Characters are created with "comic panels" which can be put together to form support cards, help cards, and playable characters. The game boasts a total of 150 playable anime heroes.
]]> 12 Jan 2007 12:22:26 Star Wars Battlefront Star Wars: Battlefront is a first-person shooter/third-person shooter (interchangeable) video game based around battles featured in the Star Wars films. It was developed by Pandemic Studios and LucasArts, and released on September 21, 2004 for Xbox, PlayStation 2, and Microsoft Windows, the same day as the release of the Star Wars Trilogy DVD set. Aspyr released a Mac port in July 2005. People can either play Battlefront online with up to 32 players on PC, Mac and Xbox, and 16 players on PS2, or offline with up to 2 players. The Xbox version is backwards compatible with the Xbox 360.

A sequel, Star Wars: Battlefront II, was released on November 1, 2005 for Microsoft Windows, Xbox, PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable. In late 2004, LucasArts released the Star Wars Battlefront BFBuilder, an unsupported mod that allowed fans to create new battlefields for Battlefront.

A second sequel, Star Wars: Battlefront III, is in development for the Xbox 360 by the developer Free Radical.
]]> 31 Jan 2007 06:19:13 Clans The year is 2839. Earth has been decimated by a near-by star explosion, two space colonies are all that survive. Six years pass and the groups become hostile against each other. They begin to build armies just in case things take a turn for the worst, and they do. The armies start to claim each nearby planet and use it as an empire. By now there are millions of people fighting on each side. Planets are surrounded by their teams capital ships and on the ground, there are anti-orbital cannons ready to blast any possible attackers away. Once the whole galaxy has been occupied evenly by both teams, they strike.

You play as your own character with hundreds of people on your team at the same time as you. You go from planet to planet trying to take over the galaxy. There are two types of combat, ground combat, which is similar to the gameplay of Starsiege: Tribe's "Capture and Hold" missions. Then there are Orbital Battles. Up to 5 capital ships on each team fight each other with mac guns and automatic AA guns. They can launch waves of bombers and fighters to take out the ships a little faster.

To take over a planet one must stay in the capture zone for up to 6 minutes. This is 3 minutes to remove the other team's influence of the planet, and 3 minutes to make it yours. If the planet is unoccupied, there is no need to take 6 minutes, 3 will do.

The galaxies fate is in your hands.
]]> 27 Jan 2007 08:04:44 Double Dragon Billy Lee's girlfriend, Marian, has been kidnapped! Billy and his brother Jimmy must fight through legions of street toughs to win her freedom, and her heart.
]]> 29 Jan 2007 07:40:30 Gwabs Gwabs is the first desktop-to-desktop combat game where you can fight your friends in real-time over the Internet. Use your skills, weapons and intellect to survive this Gwab vs Gwab battle royale. The desktop is your arena: use the windows to gain the high ground, utilize icons in the battle for victory, break off a piece of the start bar to use as a deadly weapon!

Take on your friends or Gwab community members through the Battle Manager portal. Challenge opponents using a built-in messenger. There are three rounds in each match with three different fighting modes: a fun match (no stakes), a wager match (bet your gwablets), or a death match (pinks slips for your character). Gwablets (the game's currency) are used to resurrect dead characters, purchase new ones, weapons, and for entry into feeding tournaments. Climb to the top of the world wide leader board to become the ultimate feeder. Challenge anyone within the Gwabs worldwide network for immediate desktop to desktop battles.

This game concept is brought to you by Cory_Ross and _Matt_, Cambrian House community members, and is being developed by Cambrian House in partnership with Hothead Games, along with community members dubbed The Angry Mob.

This game contains mature content and has not yet been rated.

For more information on this casual online multiplayer fighting game, visit our website at http://www.gwabs.com
]]> 30 Jan 2007 09:55:48 Cyber Gladiators Cyber Gladiators is a 3D fighting game similar to Virtua Fighter or Battle Arena Toshinden. There are 8 characters to choose from that each have around 50 moves to execute. There are a few features that make the game different from others, however. The game will keep tack of your fighting styler, and computer opponents will change their style accordingly. So if you repeatedly punch your enemies in the face, they will eventually learn your style and counter you in the future. There are also certain weapons that you can use depending on what arena you are fighting in. For example, in some of the levels there will be spears thrown into the ring that you can pick up and throw.
]]> 30 Jan 2007 05:43:08 Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! Classic 8-bit NES boxing game, pitting you (Little Mac) against a colorful cast of the worlds greatest fictional heavyweight champions. After a long 13 man battle to an epic 8-bit sound track, and across 3 ranked circuits, Little Mac must ultimately come face to face with Mike Tyson/Mr. Dream in The Dream Fight. With a little help from Doc, your insightful trainer, you might indeed become the heavyweight champion fighter!

Use the D-Pad to dodge left and right, to aim high or duck down low to block oncoming punches. A and B jabs left and right, while pressing Select makes use of your Star-powered uppercut!
]]> 31 Jan 2007 06:18:35 Viewtiful Joe Welcome to the world of Viewtiful Joe! Capcom's innovative super hero action game that mixes funky cartoon-style visuals with classic side-scrolling gameplay and introduces the world's quirkiest million dollar action hero... Joe! More than just any ordinary dude, Joe must transform into the ultimate superhero. It's up to you to activate the correct view mode like "Slow" or "Zoom In" in order to clobber your enemies with beautiful style! You can also speed up or slow down your visual effects for even more "viewtiful" moves. Viewtiful Joe redefines action games by mixing innovative "viewpoint" fighting into amazing cartoon meets noir environments.
]]> 31 Jan 2007 08:49:56 Xeno Fighter MMO turn based fighting game.
]]> 01 Feb 2007 02:10:33 Soul Calibur Soul Calibur is actually the second game in Namco's "Soul" series that began with the arcade game Soul Edge, later release as Soul Blade on the PlayStation. It features 19 characters in all, including almost all of the characters found in Soul Blade, with the exceptions of nunchuck expert Li Long and the Korean fighter Seong Han Myong. The Dreamcast port of the original arcade version is easily one of the best games ever made for that system, if not one of the best fighting games of all time.

The only thing this game lacks compared to others in the series is the popular feature of unlocking different weapons for each character. It did, however, introduce the Mission Battle mode and several key story elements and characters that made subsequent games even more popular.
]]> 16 Feb 2007 12:17:57 Bleach: Heat the Soul It is the first Bleach game for the PSP, and has only been released in Japan. The theme song for the game is Asterisk by Orange Range, which was also the original opening theme for the anime.

According to V-Jump magazine, this, and every other Bleach: Heat the Soul game, are based on the manga. This is very rare in video games.
]]> 07 Feb 2007 11:23:43 Bleach: Heat the Soul 2 Bleach: Heat the Soul 2 is a video game for the Playstation Portable based on the Bleach manga. It is the second Bleach game for the PSP, and has only been released in Japan.

According to V-Jump magazine, this, and every other Bleach: Heat the Soul game, are based on the manga. This is very rare in video games.

The theme song for this game is CHANCE! by UVERworld.
]]> 07 Feb 2007 11:27:26 Bleach: Heat the Soul 3 Bleach: Heat the Soul 3 is a cel-shaded 3D fighting video game for the PlayStation Portable based on the Bleach manga. It is the third Bleach game for the PlayStation Portable, and has been released in Japan.
]]> 07 Feb 2007 11:36:33 Virtua Fighter 5 It was released on July 12, 2006 into Japanese arcades. Virtua Fighter 5 is due for release on PlayStation 3 on February 20, 2007, and will be a launch title for the European release in March. The Xbox 360 version is due in the summer of 2007, as confirmed by Sega on December 21, 2006 [1] It is rumoured that the Xbox 360 version will benefit from the additions and refinements that will be made to the 'Version C' arcade revision, while the PlayStation 3 version will be based around the imminent Version B.

Story
All of the sought after invitations for the Fifth World Fighting Tournament have been sent and now the 17 best fighters in the world begin their final phases of preparation. They must learn from their prior mistakes and perfect every aspect of their mind, body, and soul - for there is no room for mistakes in this competition. Little do they know that J6, the organization funding the tournament, has sinister ulteriour motives for the contest and the company's top secret Dural program is already well underway. In the organization's quest for world domination, the scientists at J6 are creating the ultimate fighting machine with human features. Their first model was defeated in the Fourth World Fighting Tournament, which drove them to kidnap Vanessa. She was able to escape with the help of an insider, but not before they captured her combat data and transferred it to the new advanced Dural model named V-Dural.

J6 is determined to find out who the inside traitor is that released Vanessa and more importantly, if V-Dural is indeed ready to defeat the world's best fighters. The Fifth World Fighting Tournament will reveal both - let it begin.
]]> 08 Feb 2007 12:18:46 Bleach: Heat the Soul 4 Bleach: Heat the Soul 4 is the fourth Bleach game for the PSP, and is to be released in 2007.

Not much info is currently available.
]]> 08 Feb 2007 12:38:03 KwonHo KwonHo: The Hero of Fist is a Korean online fighting game developed by Radio Games and is currently hosted by Hangame but is in the process of being translated and serviced for North America by their American counterpart ijji (Both of them owned by NHN). In Kwonho, the player has the role of creating his own character, choosing a fighting style and buying (or acquiring) clothing and/or items (such as tatoos, guitars, teddy bears and other miscellaneous items). A player's goal is to gain experience by fighting other players in a variety of game modes, or by fighting computer-controlled opponents in the Mission Mode. By winning these fights, a player acquires credits, which he can use to buy new techniques or items, and train to become the best fighter there is. However, there are items in the game that can only be purchased with Hangame/Ijji coins. These coins are available for purchase in the My Account section of the Ijji website.
]]> 08 Feb 2007 01:09:58 Guilty Gear XX Slash The Guilty Gear series takes place around the year 2180, in a chaotic, mystical future world. In 2010, mankind discovered an unlimited energy source of incredible power, which was fittingly labeled as Magic. Even with the various energy problems solved, wars still continued. With the power of Magic and science, living weapons known as "Gears" were created. These Gears eventually turned on their masters, beginning a century-long global war known as the Crusades where the Sacred Order of Holy Knights (Seikishidan being the Japanese name), fighting for the human race, was able to defeat Justice, the leader of the Gears. Justice having been locked away in a dimensional prison, all other Gears seemingly ceased to function, bringing an end to the Crusades.

In this latest edition of the game we find the addition of two characters "Holy Order" Sol, and ABA. Many tweaks, moves, and other bits have been added and/or changed to make this the most balanced and challenging Guilty Gear to hit consoles yet.

Take command of over 20 bizarre characters with devastating moves and combos. With a fighting system that can be as simple, or technical as the user wants the game never gets old.

(First segment taken from the Guilty Gear Wiki)
]]> 08 Feb 2007 11:48:52 TH07.5 - Touhou Suimusou - Immaterial and Missing Power A collaborative effort between two doujin creators, Tasofro (Tasogare Frontier) and ZUN, this game puts the characters from ZUN's Touhou danmaku shmup in a fighting game. As such, to carry the shmup feeling, most of the game's characters make heavy use of projectile attacks but can also graze enemy projectiles by dashing. Also taken from the shmup games are spellcards. Every round, each character can activate their spell card once which restores a large portion of their life (indicated in red on the life bars) as well as lets them use the spellcard specials. In Story Mode, the computer players will also make use of infinite repeating spellcards that aren't available to the players, often using projectile patterns that look similar to what you might find in the shmup games. The game also introduces a new character to the series, Suika Ibuki.

The game later included the character Hong Meiling against ZUN's wishes, and other fans added multiplayer functionality to the game as well.
]]> 09 Feb 2007 04:43:33 Ehrgeiz: God Bless the Ring Ehrgeiz: God Bless the Ring (German: lit. "Ambition" Japanese: エアガイツ Eagaitsu) is a fighting game developed by Dream Factory and released by Namco in 1998 for the arcade platform. It was ported to the PlayStation by Squaresoft in 1999.

Ehrgeiz differs from most 3D fighting games by drawing heavily from the concepts of wrestling games and Dream Factory's own Tobal series, which allow for full 360-degree movement and do not require fighters to be facing each other at all times. This restricts the camera to a more or less fixed position, zooming in and out with the action, but not tracking around the arena as would be common in most other 2D and 3D fighting games. The fast-paced fighting allows for characters to move freely in a 3-dimensional stage which is filled with many interactive objects and changes in elevation, allowing characters to leap on top of crates or use them as weapons, for example.

Perhaps the most noteworthy feature of the game is the inclusion of characters from Final Fantasy VII. Cloud Strife, Tifa Lockhart, Sephiroth, Yuffie Kisaragi, Vincent Valentine and Zack are playable fighters, although the last three must be unlocked by various means. In fact, Ehrgeiz is sometimes affectionately known as "The Final Fantasy Fighter" by its fans due to the appearance of these characters. Ehrgeiz is highly sought after by Final Fantasy game collectors, due to it not making the Greatest Hits list and not being re-released.
]]> 10 Feb 2007 01:44:40 ClayFighter Published by: Interplay
Developed by: Visual Concepts / Ringler Studios

Number of Players: 1-2
Release Date: December 31, 1994

Platform(s): Sega Genesis, Nintendo 64
]]> 12 Feb 2007 04:25:05 Double Dragon II: The Revenge Double Dragon II: The Revenge is the second game in Technos Japan's Double Dragon series of side-scrolling beat-em-ups. The original arcade version of the game was distributed in North America and Europe in 1988 and in Japan during the following year. The game was made specifically for the Western market, where the original [url="http://www.greatgamesexperiment.com/game/doubledragon"]Double Dragon[/url] enjoyed tremendous success.

Technos Japan developed a home version of the game for the Famicom/NES in 1989, which was drastically different from the arcade version. Other home versions were released for the Mega Drive and PC Engine.

Plot

Double Dragon II drops the rescue premise of the original game in favor of a revenge theme (hence the subtitle). Whereas in the original game, Marian was merely kidnapped, in the sequel she is shot to death by Black Warriors' leader Willy right in the very beginning of the game, giving the game a much darker tone than the original.

[edit] Gameplay

The arcade version of Double Dragon II was essentially a reworked version of the original Double Dragon, using the same engine and recycling most of the game's graphics. The main change in the game was the replacement of the original game's punch and kick buttons in favor of a two-way attacking system (Left Attack and Right Attack) similar to Renegade. Pressing the attack button of the direction the player is facing will perform the standard left/right punch combo, whereas pressing the opposite attack button will make the character perform a rear kick. Most of the techniques from the previous game are carried over, with the exception of the headbutt. Double Dragon II also marked the debut of the Whirlwind Kick, which would become the series' trademark special technique.

Virtually all of the characters from the first game were brought back for the sequel. Most of them were given facelifts in order to represent the passing of time between the original game and the sequel, while a few kept their original appearance. The changes are more than superficial though, with some of the enemies being given new techniques to go along with their new looks. Each stage also features a new enemy who serves as the stage boss.

The overall stage layout of the arcade version is almost exactly identical to the first game, comprised of four missions including the enemy's base at the end of the game. Mainly the scenery was changed, although new traps were added as well.
]]> 15 Feb 2007 02:49:58 Armored Core 4 Armored Core 4 is a video game for the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. It is the 11th installment of From Software's Armored Core series, despite being titled Armored Core 4. Armored Core 4 is set in the near future in an alternate universe where a great war has left the nations of Earth devastated and corporations have taken over the role of the government. The game features a system for personalized customization of the player's mech and an online mode where players can battle each other over the PlayStation Network and Xbox Live. The game is similar to the MechWarrior series and is the spiritual sibling to From Software's other mecha-based game, Chromehounds. An OAV due out this spring entitled Armored Core: Fort Tower Song is based on the game and its history.
]]> 19 Feb 2007 12:27:55 Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes Considered one of the most fun fighting games of all time, this massive clash brings together the best fighters from the Capcom fighting games (such as street fighter) to fight super heroes straight out of Marvel Comics.
]]> 19 Feb 2007 09:29:32 Tekken 6 Little is currently known about Tekken 6. It will Be released for the Playstation 3 and in the Arcades. It is published and Developed by Namco.

Release date: TBA 2008
]]> 19 Feb 2007 12:17:43 Def Jam : Fight For New York Def Jam:FFNY is the sequel to Def Jam Vendetta, though apart from sharing the Def Jam label you wouldn't know it at all. There are 40 odd characters to choose from ranging from the well known,(Snoop Dogg, Redman, Sean Paul, Xzibit) to some I had no idea existed (Crazy Legs, Fat Joe, Bone Crusher). If you like your beat-em ups fast, furious and incredibly visceral then this is game is for you. The fighting system is so simple yet so very deep. You start by learning just one fighting style from a choice of 4, Kickboxing, Streetfighter, Martial Artist and Wrestling. As you progress and level up in the gym, you will be able to learn up to 2 more styles, allowing you to create a totally customized style suited to you.
While violence in videogames is nothing new, FFNY takes it to whole new levels with the Blazin' moves. Once your special bar is full, you are then able to finish your opponent (providing there energy bar is in the red),with a bonecrunching, face smashing, arm twisting, leg breaking finisher, these bad boys are guaranteed to make you wince at least once (Balls to the Wall springs to mind), also certain arenas in the game have special Blazin' moves which are unique to that stage. The bulk of the game is taken up with the story mode, two rival gangs fighting over the New York underground fight scene, not that it matters really, its just there to give you something to fight for.
I highly recommend this game to anyone who says they truly enjoy a fighting game, and the same goes for those that dont.
]]> 21 Feb 2007 09:23:47 Blades of Steel Blades of Steel is an ice hockey video game released by Konami for the arcade in 1987, and ported to the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) in 1988. All teams are fictional but based out of real Canadian and American cities. The game is known for its fast paced hockey action and especially for the fighting. It is a one or two player game. When playing against the computer, there are three difficulty levels to choose from: Junior, College, and Pro (with pro being the most difficult and Junior being the easiest). Each team consists of three forwards, two defencemen, and a goaltender.

The Teams

There are a total of eight teams, four from Canada and four from the United States. The four Canadian cities are Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, and Edmonton. The four American teams are from New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Minnesota. Each team sports a different coloured sweater, but some team colours are very similar making it difficult to distinguish between them. Presumably this is because of the limited capability of computer graphics in 1988.

The game

At the beginning of the game, the gamers can select either "Exhibition" or "Tournament" matches. An exhibition match is just one game played against either the computer or another player. Tournament matches are similar to the NHL playoffs. It starts out as one team of the player's choice going against other teams in a playoff style tournament. The team that is successful in beating all of the opposing teams is awarded the Konami Cup.

Fighting in the game occurs whenever two players bump into each other three times in a row without hitting another player. The fight screen appears and the gamers take control of their players. The loser is given the penalty and sent to the penalty box. If a fight occurs close to one of the nets, the referee may break up the fight and call a "penalty shot".

During the second intermission, either a video game will appear for Player One to play or a Konami ad will appear featuring a bear shooting the puck into a net mouthing the words "Nice Shot!" The video game is modelled off an old arcade game, Gradius, in which a little spaceship is trying to destroy a much larger spaceship.

If the score is tied at the end of the game, a shoot out (similar to a penalty shot) is used to determine the winner. Each team gets five shots. The team with the most goals after five shots is the winner. If, after that, the game is still tied, each team keeps getting one more shot until a winner is determined.
]]> 22 Feb 2007 01:47:22 Virtual On Virtual On : Ortario Tangram is a 3D beat em up featuring giant robots (Virtuoids)zipping around arenas in fast paced battles requiring reasnobly fast reflexes.
With 12 Virtuoids to choose from, there are plenty of variations in tactics availible to players willing to try different tactics. Also the game can be controlled using the unique Twin Stick controller, perfectly emulting the original arcade experience.
The game is developed and published by SEGA.
]]> 26 Feb 2007 01:49:39 Killer Instinct Killer Instinct is a fighting game by Rare and Nintendo. Initially released in arcades in 1994, and claiming to use an "Ultra 64" hardware engine. The game received a high profile launch on the Super Nintendo, as well as on the Game Boy. It led to a sequel, Killer Instinct 2.

Unlike many other fighting games, especially its contemporaries, Killer Instinct takes place in a modern/futuristic setting. Ultratech is a very powerful company which organizes a tournament called Killer Instinct. Along with regular participants, experimental creatures created by Ultratech also fight in the tournament. Ultratech also discovers a technology to make bridges between dimensions, and to also release from his dimensional prison a two-headed monster called Eyedol, an ancient warrior that was locked away along with his rival.
Developed using SGI computers and 3D modeling software from Alias, Killer Instinct was considered a graphical leader when it was released. It featured animated backgrounds that were pre-rendered movies which changed angles depending on the character location. This technique causes the backgrounds to have an unprecedented three dimensional look — a look far better than was possible at the time in real time 3D rendering.

Killer Instinct plays like many other typical fighting games, in which the player controls a character in order to beat an opponent in a one-on-one encounter. The game borrows Street Fighter IIs attack set (a weak, medium and strong attack for punches and kicks, respectively), but also is inspired by Mortal Kombats graphic violence and finishing sequences. There are several features that distinguish it from other franchises: A double energy bar; Automatic combos; Finishing moves; Ultra Combos; Combo Breaker.
]]> 02 Mar 2007 12:42:09 Killer Instinct 2 Killer Instinct 2 is a 1996 arcade-only fighting game developed by Rare Ltd., licensed by Nintendo, and manufactured by Midway. KI2 is the sequel to Killer Instinct (1994), an arcade game which was also ported to the SNES. Like its predecessor, the game features two 8-way joysticks with six buttons each for attacks (three punch and three kick), allowing for both a single player mode or a two player versus mode. A modified version of KI2 appeared on the Nintendo 64 as Killer Instinct Gold in 1997.

KI2 follows on from the plot line that the previous installment ended with. Eyedol's death at the hands of Orchid accidentally sets off a time warp, transporting some of the combatants back in time and allowing the Demon Lord Gargos to escape from Limbo. Now, trapped 2000 years in the past, the warriors that survived Killer Instinct, along with several new faces, fight for the right to face Gargos in combat. Each character that survived the journey from the first game has a corresponding background story, while new characters on this installment are native inhabitants of this past time period. Some fighters, like T.J. Combo who survives from the original, just want to get home. Others, like new character Tusk, want to bring an end to Gargos and his reign of evil. This time there is no tournament or prize money, just a fight to the finish with the fate of the future hanging in the balance.

As with most fighting games and indeed its predecessor, two characters square off with the goal of depleting the opponent's life bar. As with the original Killer Instinct, when a player's original life bar is fully depleted, s/he will fall the ground, and immediately begin on their second lifebar.

As with the first game, Killer Instinct 2 relies on an automatic combo subsystem in its matches. Additionally, a Super bar has been added to the game (similar to Street Fighter Alpha or King of Fighters). This super bar fills as players take damage. After the bar reaches a certain point, the player can use a multi-hit super special move (normally referred to as Super Move,) which is usually an extended version of a normal special move.
]]> 02 Mar 2007 01:16:12 Batman Forever Batman Forever is a beat 'em up game based on the movie of the same name. The Super NES, Sega Mega Drive, and Game Boy versions were developed by Acclaim Studios London and published by Acclaim Entertainment the Sega Game Gear and PC versions were developed by Probe Entertainment. The player plays as either Batman or Robin. There is also a fighting game mode called "training mode" where the player can play as Batman, Robin, or any of the enemies found throughout the game against either a computer-controlled opponent, against a second player, or cooperatively against two computer opponents.

Unlike most beat 'em up games, Batman Forever's controls are largely based on move lists and key sequences more common in fighting games. Some gadget moves involve moving away from the enemy right before pressing a punch or kick button, which creates problems since the game only keeps the players facing enemies if they're close enough to each other. Those moves would often just turn the player around and cause the move to not execute at all, and while most are close-range abilities anyway, this presents a more major problem with Robin's Heat Gun, which would appear to be intended as a long-range projectile attack to complement Batman's Electric Pellet.

The gadget list is selected by the player each level, with three standard gadgets for each character and two gadgets selected from a list. There are also four hidden "blueprint" gadgets.

The Super NES and Genesis/Mega Drive versions of the game present very glaring differences. The two most prominent ones are the constant load screens (where the game will display "HOLD ON") on the Super NES version, and the much more forgiving controls on the Genesis version. Many reviewers cite such difficulty with the Super NES controls that they couldn't even figure out how to use the gadgets, even with the move list in the manual. The PC version is the same as the SNES and Genesis versions but has superior graphics.
]]> 02 Mar 2007 04:25:01 Weaponlord Weaponlord (sometimes WeaponLord) is a 1 or 2 player fighting game originally designed for release on the Super Nintendo by Visual Concepts, and published by Namco. During the inception of the title, the development team also began work on a Sega Mega Drive/Genesis version and both were released in October of 1995. Unlike the many other two-dimensional fighters that were being released at the time such as Mortal Kombat 3 and Street Fighter Alpha, WeaponLord introduced many groundbreaking gameplay aspects that many fans of the genre take for granted today. Also unlike other titles, WeaponLord was intended to replicate an arcade fighter, but built from the ground up on home consoles. This was a reverse of the normal trend, which had arcade versions being developed first, then getting ported in home consoles.

At its core, WeaponLord was a standard 2D fighting game experience when it came to its various modes of play and feature sets. Where it differed was in its gameplay mechanics, and in some of its aesthetic choices and presentation. Some of WeaponLord's more original features were: Thrust-Blocking, Multiple Endings, Weapon-To-Weapon, Two-in-One, Weapon Breaking, Deflect, Take Downs, Hair/Clothing Trim, Password System, and Death Combos.

One major aspect of 2D fighting games that WeaponLord really distinguished for itself were its special moves. In most 2D fighters, a character possessing 5 special moves was considered overly-plentiful, but all of WeaponLord's fighters possessed between 9-12 special moves each. This was a huge number of options for a player to have available to them, and really gave WeaponLord its complexity. In addition, special moves were done in 3 completely different ways.
]]> 02 Mar 2007 05:26:18 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tournament Fighters Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tournament Fighters is a fighting game, for the Nintendo Entertainment System, Super NES and Mega Drive/Genesis by Konami. While the title is the same, the game is different for each console. Like many competitive fighting games of the era, Tournament Fighters borrowed heavily from elements contained in the Street Fighter II video game. The Japanese Super Famicom version of the game was retitled Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Warriors, whereas the Japanese Mega Drive version retained its North American title. The NES version was the only one not released in Japan.

In the Super Nintendo version, a tournament has been organized and many fighters have entered, Shredder being one of them. The turtles decide to participate in order to stop their nemesis as well as proving their strength in the tournament.

This game, instead of following a 6-button attack control like most of Capcom's fighters, uses a 4-button scheme (weak and strong attacks) like most SNK fighting games. A particular feature is the possibility to use a super special attack. In order to achieve this, the player must fill a green bar under the life bar, by hitting their opponents. Once full, the player must press the two strong attack buttons simultaneously.

There is also the option of enhancing the speed of the game, making the fights more intense but also harder to follow.

In addition to the main and versus modes, there is a story mode in which to turtles must rescue April O'Neil and Splinter. Only the four of them can be playable whereas the other characters (as well as a turtle clone) are the bosses. There is also a watch mode, which basically makes the computer control the characters. There are ten characters available, and two bosses.

In the NES version, the turtles (Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael and Michelangelo) have been challenged by Shredder, but in order to confront him, they decided to have a tournament between themselves in order to see who is fit for the encounter. There are seven characters. Aside from the turtles, Casey Jones, Hothead (a samurai dragon from the original toy line, based on the Warrior Dragon character from the Archie comics. Nintendo Power magazine once cited his Archie origin, where he was a fireman who later mutated into a dragon like creature) and Shredder. It is the final game made by Konami for this console and the last game made by a third party developer as well. It is also one of the very few versus fighters made for the NES.

In the Genesis version, Splinter has been kidnapped by four purple turtles. When the real turtles realized this, Krang appeared and says that he keeps Splinter with him and that the only way to get him back is that the turtles must go to Dimension X and meet Krang. The player must fight the clones of all the playable characters (see below) as well as the bosses - Triceraton, Krang and Karai.

Besides the turtles, the player can also choose between April O'Neil, Casey Jones, Ray Fillet, and Sisyphus.

This game uses a 3-three button scheme. Two of these are used for standard attacks (in order to do a stronger attack, they have to be pressed along with the d-pad). It doesn't take advantage of the 6-button controller. Because of this, it is considered that this version pales in comparison of the Super NES version.

The game also features (somewhat) destructible environments on a couple of stages where you can fall through the floor.
]]> 02 Mar 2007 05:59:37 Mortal Kombat Mortal Kombat was the first entry in the famous Mortal Kombat fighting game series by Midway, released in arcades in 1992. It was later picked up by Acclaim Games for the home version, then later returned to Midway. It centers on the first Mortal Kombat tournament and the ultimate defeat of the evil Shang Tsung by the monk Liu Kang.

Versions of the original Mortal Kombat game appeared on several different formats, most notably the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis and Nintendo's SNES. When the first game in the series was released for the SNES in North America, Nintendo of America had a strict "Family Friendly" policy towards the content of the games released on their systems which required the removal of graphic violence, religious imagery and themes, mentions of death, sexual themes, and other sensitive subjects. Hence, the first Mortal Kombat game on the SNES had the blood recolored gray in an attempt to pass it off as sweat, and the various Fatality moves were graphically changed to be less gruesome. The SNES version was graphically superior to the Mega Drive/Genesis port, but all violence was censored.

The game was a response by Midway to Capcom's successful Street Fighter II, which spawned a number of fighting games. However, it used a distinctly different fighting system from the Street Fighter formula, which was used in all subsequent sequels until Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance. The controls consisted of five buttons arranged in an "X" pattern: a high punch, a high kick, a low punch, a low kick, and a block button, as well as an eight-way joystick. If the two fighters were standing next to each other, hitting any of the attack buttons would result in a modified strike: a low punch turned into a throw, a high punch turned into a heavy elbow, headbutt, or backhand, and either kick turned into a knee strike. Crouching and hitting either punch resulted in an uppercut, which was the most damaging attack of the game. Jump kicking and crouch-kicking were executed in a similar fashion to Street Fighter, although leg sweeps and roundhouse kicks were performed by holding away while pressing the appropriate kick button.

The blocking in Mortal Kombat I by itself greatly changed the flow of fighting in comparison to contemporary games which used Street Fighter conventions. Characters do not block while retreating or crouching, but only block when the block button is pushed. Even then, characters take (reduced) damage from any hit while blocking. However, successfully blocking moves is simple – a crouching block can successfully defend against all moves, even aerial attacks such as jumpkicks – and blocking characters give very little ground when struck rather than sliding backwards. This style of blocking rewarded dodging to avoid damage but also made counterattacks much easier after a successful block, and the ultimate result was an environment which rewards a more furtive playing style than contemporary games.

Another of the game's innovations was the Fatality, a special finishing move executed against a beaten opponent to kill them in a gruesome fashion. For example, one character (Sub-Zero) would grasp a defeated opponent by the head, then rip out the head and spine while the body crumpled to the ground in a pool of blood.

Finally, Mortal Kombat also changed the way special moves were performed. Street Fighter (and many other fighting games) performed most special moves in fractions of circles (usually full, half or one-quarter) on the joystick followed by a button press (such as a quarter-circle forward, plus punch). Mortal Kombat was the first to introduce moves that did not require a button press (such as tap back, tap back, then forward), and only a few of the special moves required circular joystick movement.
]]> 02 Mar 2007 07:14:32 karateka One of the first martial arts fighting games, Karateka set the standard for graphics and sound in the mid-80s. The developer, Jordan Mechner, went on to develop Prince of Persia and its sequels.

In Karateka, Princess Mariko has been kidnapped by Akuma. You play the hero, a karate master, who must fight your way into Akuma's fortess and save the princess. Along the way, you'll have to defeat Akuma's henchmen and his eagle...

High atop a craggy cliff, guarded by an army of fierce warriors, stands the fortress of the evil warlord Akuma. Deep in the darkest dungeon of the castle, Akuma gloats over his lovely captive, the princess Mariko.

You are one trained in the way of karate: a karateka. Alone and unarmed, you must defeat Akuma and rescue the beautiful Mariko.

Put fear and self-concern behind you. Focus your will on your objective, accepting death as a possibility. This is the way of the karateka.

Developer: Jordan Mechner
Released: 1984
]]> 03 Mar 2007 11:38:07 Street Fighter Alpha 2 As the sequel to the successful Street Fighter Alpha, SFA 2 is mostly a cleanup of the original SFA, fixing the many balance issues that had plagued the game since its release. It also introduced several incremental innovations, including the "custom combo" system and the Dramatic Battle, in which two characters could cooperate to attack a third.
]]> 05 Mar 2007 03:13:08