The Retrospective 05.17.07: SNK Season, Garou Densetsu (Part 1 of 3)
Posted by Sean McCabe on 05.17.2007
Never feed a hungry wolf, if you don’t want bitten.
Well, I'm now back and here to stay for a while. Last week was Exam week and of course meant I didn't have much time to do anything other than study. I think things went well, but right now I just want to put work behind me and start having fun. Since one thing that is very fun to me is playing SNK's marvellous fighting games, I thought it's time to do a season exploring SNK's four most famous fighting game franchises, King of Fighters, Ryuoko No Ken, Garou Densetsu and Samurai Spirits. Oh, you haven't heard of those last three? Well they also tend to be named Art of Fighting, Fatal Fury and Samurai Showdown respectively. Garou Densetsu, roughly translating as "Legend of the Hungry Wolf" but given the rather less interesting Fatal Fury name in the West, was SNK's first crack at the fighting game genre, and thus, where this season is starting.
The Introspective
For a few months now us Wii owners have been feeling the squeeze with the lack of really decent games to play on the Wii. But over the last few days, announcement after announcement has padded out the Wii's future library quite nicely. Sega's Ghost Squad, Tecmo's Rygar, Namco's Soul Calibur Legends, and that's just a start. Added to what we know about already, and the Wii's library is starting to look stacked… at least in the future. Doesn't help us much now, does it? However, I think part of the problem is people not giving enough Wii games a chance. For example, the mediocre reviews that Cooking Mama: Cook Off received. Whilst I won't pretend that it will appeal to anyone but fans of the DS version, the reviews were way too harsh. Or maybe the European version got fixed up, I don't know. I just know I bought it and am pleased with the purchase, and the control problems that supposedly plague the game are not there. I also checked out The Godfather and Heatseeker, and the latter in particular is a lot better than I expected. The controls are perfect, visceral, and the game itself is far more than just the GTA knock off that I assumed it was. Heatseeker is a good exhibition of what the Wii can do for the dogfighting genre. It's not an amazing game but it's not bad.
For my weekly shill –
Bubblegum Crisis
Yeah, I'm going old school anime here. Nowadays people are all about Naruto and Bleach and other newfangled pop stuffs, but Bubblegum Crisis remains to this day, the anime that revolutionised how music is used in anime, has the best OST of all time, and those mecha… God the mecha…
They don't make em anymore like that.
VG Babe of the Week: Morrigan
Yeah, I know I'm repeating a lot of girls, but I keep getting five star artwork of them that I feel I must share, so what are you gonna do?
The Breakdown
Garou Densetsu/Fatal Fury
Developer: SNK
Format: Neo Geo/SNES/Genesis
Release: 1991
Notes: Fatal Fury would be SNK's first fighting game, and feature both the Southtown setting and the King of Fighters tournament that would become synonymous with their fighting games.
Fatal Fury would, being built on Neo Geo hardware, be arguably the most impressive fighting game at the time of it's release, boasting graphics and memory specs quite in advance of the Streetfighter 2 cabinet. The game therefore was more complex, using an interesting 2-plane system within which fighters battle, and can switch in and out of to dodge attacks. The versus mode featured a 2 on 1 match option to which was unusually for the time.
The story chronicles the exploits of three fighters in Southtown, Terry Bogard, a legendary combatant known and feared around the world as the "Hungry Wolf" hence the series' original name. Also his less accomplished brother, Andy Bogard who is pout to prove himself, and their good friend Jo Higashi, who tails them wherever they go. The three enter a King of Fighters Tournament, the first one ever held, where they fight against various competitors until one of them comes face to face with the champion of the tournament, Billy Kane, named for his vicious combat style with a chained cane. After besting him, it becomes apparent that Billy Kane was merely a representative for the organisation behind the tournament, a criminal organisation with dubious aims. The organiser of the tournament, Geese Howard, would be the game's final boss fight.
In Retrospect: Although much like it's successors, the 16 bit ports would be poor due to the hardware differential and thus inhibit the series reputation with the majority of gamers, the original Neo Geo version was a respectable first effort from SNK in a genre that they would eventually one day make their own. Definitely a good game to check out if your ever interested in experiencing the rich history of the fighting game genre.
Garou Densetsu 2/Fatal Fury 2
Developer: SNK
Format: Neo Geo/SNES/Genesis
Release: 1992
Notes: Fatal Fury 2 would imitate Streetfighter 2 in various ways. Well, you know what they say about imitation and flattery.
Fatal Fury 2 added several new features to the series, as well as several new characters. This time the arcade mode was not limited to a choice of three characters but the full roster. It would also be the first fighting game of it's kind to feature "super moves" to complement the "special moves" introduced by Streetfighter, known as the Deadly Rave, a name which would eventually denote the ultimate move of Fatal Fury villain Geese Howard.
The game's antagonist however would be a Wolfgang Krauser, Geese's half-brother, who has organised a second King of Fighters tournament to prove himself the greatest fighter in the world. The game would see the creation and debut of SNK mainstay of Mai Shiranui, need I say more. The game would achieve great popularity in Japan thanks to the appeal of it's characters and gameplay, but the lack of success of the Neo Geo, as well as the arcade market in general in the West meant it never got as appreciated as it deserved. Once again, the SNES and Genesis versions hurt the series' rep, seeming to be more of an inferior knock off of Streetfighter 2 rather than a game of equal quality as it was on the Neo Geo hardware.
In Retrospect: A great game still even after all these years, offering balance and charm as much as Streetfighter 2 still does. Of course, the similarities with Streetfighter 2 don't stop there…
Garou Densetsu Special/Fatal Fury Special
Developer: SNK
Format: Neo Geo
Release: 1993
Notes: Fatal Fury Special would be the equivalent of Super Streetfighter 2 for the series, adding more characters, one of whom was Ryo Sakasaki, the main protagonist of the Art of Fighting series, a move which would result in the creation of the King of Fighters series.
Fatal Fury Special was simply an upgraded version of Fatal Fury 2, but would add enough to make it seem like a fresh proposition. There's not a whole lot to write about otherwise, but to say Fatal Fury would continue to grow in popularity in Japan and SNK would ride that popularity to further heights.
In Retrospect: Well, if you've ever played the upgrades of Streetfighter 2, you should know what to expect here. SNK would seek to redefine and create the ultimate version of Fatal Fury 2. The thing is, SNK succeeded in one attempt what took Capcom many.
And that's it for this week. We got a long battle ahead of us, so keep things in perspective, and we'll continue this Season of brawlers next week. I also intend to, for the first time ever, try the legendary Fallout, so I'll also probably let you know how that goes to.
