As a gaming new years resolution I set myself three goals this year; to try and beat over 100 games, buy less than I beat and to try and play at least one game from every system I have access to. So, here is the Super Nintendo Entertainment System entry for the year, Final Fight 2!
I chose this as I beat the original Final Fight on both arcade and Sega CD last year for the first time. To be honest I didn't actually like it that much which was kind of a surprise as both a beat 'em up and Capcom fan. It was a pretty early game in the genre though coming out in 1989 and helped pioneer a lot of later games so I could forgive it a bit for it's rough edges. Final Fight 2 a little less so though overall I do actually like it more.
So firstly the game feels a lot less swarm heavy, perhaps because it's a SNES exclusive (I still haven't played the Final Fight SNES port). Enemies come in smaller groups and don't feel quite as insanely aggressive though they will still try and circle around you which I like. There are three playable characters. Hagar returning from Final Fight, he's a wrestler (you can see him drop kicking a goon flexing his huge muscles on the cover art here), his South American friend Carlos who fights with a sword, (and by that I mean he has it on his back but uses it for 1 move), and Maki, who dresses a bit like a Kunoichi, a student of ninjitsu. They are after Maki's sister and father who have been kidnapped by the sudden re-emergence of the Mad Gear Gang from the first game who have suddenly gained a worldwide presence. This is evidently an excuse for visiting more locations than anything truly plot related.
The characters all play pretty much the same regardless of who you choose. A basic attack combo, a jump and a special move used for crowd control. They can grab enemies in holds when close enough and do throws is about it, it's pretty basic for a beat 'em up. My only real input on the characters is I appreciate them adding a female playable character instead of the three men from the original. My issues really stem that this game feels pretty run of the mill generally. Similar to Final Fight 1 you have seen the few enemy types by the start of the second stage and just beat the same 4 enemies over and over from there onwards with no surprises. Andore is the only memorable enemy and that's mostly because he was in the original Final Fight, is clearly andre the Giant, has a large health bar, and is everywhere. Nothing new appears over the course of the game to make it feel fresh from level to level. The level design itself feels pretty similar in that you go to multiple world locations but the set pieces are all pretty uninteresting and you fight the same 4 guys in each part of the world.
Compounding that is the bosses which all feel like a non event. They feel almost like regular enemies just with slightly higher health bars. a lot of them have really dodgy grab animations and range where you teleport into their hands a few feet away and the worst of these is Rolent, a boss from Final Fight brought back with the same grenades and running around. He can outmanoeuvre and outreach your limited move set and is just awful to fight. He's the only boss I really remember, mostly because he is frustrating. Weirdly the music doesn't change during a boss fight either to the point it's just tracks like this which is ok for a stage but not a boss. The first boss I fought I didn't even realise was the end level boss due to this uneventful feel.
Speaking of music, it's fine but I don't think a single track stood out from the whole game and I guess that sums up Final Fight 2. Nothing about it really excels and when it's been 4 years since the first game and it feels exactly the same is a bit disappointing. All that said though I had fun playing through it and don't want to sound too negative as I don't think it's a bad game, it plays well, sounds decent and looks nice, it's just forgettable.
Also, I always thought Maki was an SNK character when playing Capcom vs SNK 2 back in the day. Gaming knowledge increase. (+1exp!)
+ Maki as a playable female character.
+ It's fun enough and well made.
- Feels uninspired. Seen all enemies by the start of level 2.
- Bosses feel like a non event with huge hit pools.
- Some questionable grab detection.
I chose this as I beat the original Final Fight on both arcade and Sega CD last year for the first time. To be honest I didn't actually like it that much which was kind of a surprise as both a beat 'em up and Capcom fan. It was a pretty early game in the genre though coming out in 1989 and helped pioneer a lot of later games so I could forgive it a bit for it's rough edges. Final Fight 2 a little less so though overall I do actually like it more.
So firstly the game feels a lot less swarm heavy, perhaps because it's a SNES exclusive (I still haven't played the Final Fight SNES port). Enemies come in smaller groups and don't feel quite as insanely aggressive though they will still try and circle around you which I like. There are three playable characters. Hagar returning from Final Fight, he's a wrestler (you can see him drop kicking a goon flexing his huge muscles on the cover art here), his South American friend Carlos who fights with a sword, (and by that I mean he has it on his back but uses it for 1 move), and Maki, who dresses a bit like a Kunoichi, a student of ninjitsu. They are after Maki's sister and father who have been kidnapped by the sudden re-emergence of the Mad Gear Gang from the first game who have suddenly gained a worldwide presence. This is evidently an excuse for visiting more locations than anything truly plot related.
The characters all play pretty much the same regardless of who you choose. A basic attack combo, a jump and a special move used for crowd control. They can grab enemies in holds when close enough and do throws is about it, it's pretty basic for a beat 'em up. My only real input on the characters is I appreciate them adding a female playable character instead of the three men from the original. My issues really stem that this game feels pretty run of the mill generally. Similar to Final Fight 1 you have seen the few enemy types by the start of the second stage and just beat the same 4 enemies over and over from there onwards with no surprises. Andore is the only memorable enemy and that's mostly because he was in the original Final Fight, is clearly andre the Giant, has a large health bar, and is everywhere. Nothing new appears over the course of the game to make it feel fresh from level to level. The level design itself feels pretty similar in that you go to multiple world locations but the set pieces are all pretty uninteresting and you fight the same 4 guys in each part of the world.
Compounding that is the bosses which all feel like a non event. They feel almost like regular enemies just with slightly higher health bars. a lot of them have really dodgy grab animations and range where you teleport into their hands a few feet away and the worst of these is Rolent, a boss from Final Fight brought back with the same grenades and running around. He can outmanoeuvre and outreach your limited move set and is just awful to fight. He's the only boss I really remember, mostly because he is frustrating. Weirdly the music doesn't change during a boss fight either to the point it's just tracks like this which is ok for a stage but not a boss. The first boss I fought I didn't even realise was the end level boss due to this uneventful feel.
Speaking of music, it's fine but I don't think a single track stood out from the whole game and I guess that sums up Final Fight 2. Nothing about it really excels and when it's been 4 years since the first game and it feels exactly the same is a bit disappointing. All that said though I had fun playing through it and don't want to sound too negative as I don't think it's a bad game, it plays well, sounds decent and looks nice, it's just forgettable.
Also, I always thought Maki was an SNK character when playing Capcom vs SNK 2 back in the day. Gaming knowledge increase. (+1exp!)
+ Maki as a playable female character.
+ It's fun enough and well made.
- Feels uninspired. Seen all enemies by the start of level 2.
- Bosses feel like a non event with huge hit pools.
- Some questionable grab detection.
3 Comments
@CrystalPixel - I've bought 23 and beaten 18. +5 to the backlog so far but hoping to gain ground if my willpower holds!
I would recommend them. There are much better beat 'em ups but they are still solid games you can finish in 90 minutes. The original especially I think was quite influential on the genre.
I would recommend them. There are much better beat 'em ups but they are still solid games you can finish in 90 minutes. The original especially I think was quite influential on the genre.
I have similar goals. It never happens for me though haha.
CrystalPixel
2 months ago
Great review too, I've never played Final Fight but sounds like it would be a fun way to spend an afternoon!