Will This Be The Summer Of 2D?

While I was gone, I had planned on some serious game time. As it turned out, I didn't get a ton in. I'm not saying that's a bad thing, dad just needed a little help doing some yard work. Simple, but time consuming. My gaming was relegated to short bursts, mostly during Mariner games, which they lost by the way. So I really got down on some Neo-Geo fighting action in the form of Art of Fighting 1-3, Fatal Fury 1-3, Garou: Mark of the Wolves, King of Fighters 94-2003, Ninja Masters, Real Bout 1-2, Samurai Showdown 1-4 and SVC Chaos. I fell in love with the SNK fighters all over again.

I never owned a Neo-Geo in it's heyday. How could I? I was a teenager when it was released, and convincing my parents to plunk $600+ on a console with $150+ games was not an option. I already had several systems at that point, and could buy nearly three Super Nintendo's for the price of one Neo-Geo. So playing SNK fighters was either done in the arcade, or the rare inferior SNES port, but I always liked them very much.

I quickly found myself scouring the web for Neo-Geo game FAQ's and movelists and came upon a wealth of information. I also found something very interesting that was old news that had slipped under my radar. King of Fighters 98 Ultimate Match is coming to XBLA. Really!?!? Yes, really.

So I focused on playing King of Fighters 98 in hopeful anticipation of the XBLA release, scouring the web for more info in between bouts. I remembered that Marvel vs. Capcom 2 was announced recently, and that King of Fighters XII was coming soon(minus Mai most likely, BOO!), and with KoF98UM I noticed a trend. I also read a rumor somewhere on the web, that I haven't been able to find again for the life of me mind you, that Capcom vs. SNK may also be coming to XBLA. A rumor to be sure, but it doesn't seem that far fetched with the recent success of titles like SSFIITHDR and SFIV. If that indeed happens, could SNK vs. Capcom be far behind? I would surely hope not.

Believe me when I tell you, owning these games is a foregone conclusion for me. I love my 2D fighters, and as much as I love the Capcom games, I want X-Men: Children of the Atom and Darkstalkers like no one's business, the SNK fighters strike a chord in me like no other. I surely hope the already announced titles are successful, because that will only mean more are surely to come. Heck, Japan is getting alot of love, why can't we? This truly could be the summer of 2D.

Top 10 Fighting Games

It's time yet again to bring you an irrelevant listing of games for an utter lack of creativity on my part. So here we go, get ready to be completely unfulfilled by my incessant rambling.

#10 Karate Champ
It may not be the absolute first fighting game ever created, but it's certainly the one that planted the seed of inspiration for other developers to push the genre to new heights.

#9 Mortal Kombat
Certainly not my favorite franchise, but there is no denying that along with Street Fighter II it brought millions of fans to the arcades, truly ushering in the era of fighting games.

#8 Samurai Showdown II
You can't have a list of fighting games without a mention of SNK. Here in the U.S. SNK always seemed to live in the shadow of Capcom, but their games were always just as good. And there is no finer example of SNK's handiwork than Samurai Showdown II.

#7 Marvel Vs. Capcom 2
2D fighters by Capcom have always been some of the best on the planet. When you add Marvel Comics characters into the mix fighting Capcom characters, you get an instant classic.

#6 X-Men: Children of the Atom
This game is the reason I chose the Sega Saturn over the PS1, and I have never regretted that choice. One of the finest fighters to ever grace arcades. Arcade perfect Saturn port, horrible PS1 port. It goes on the list because it is my personal favorite, and it's my blog.

#5 Soulcalibur
I'm referring to the Dreamcast port of course. Don't get me wrong, the arcade was great, but the DC version had far superior visuals and still stands up quite well. I personally find this to be Namco's best franchise. Tekken never did it for me like this could.

#4 Dead or Alive 3
The Dead or Alive series has always been simple to pick up and play, but very rewarding to master. The third in the series helped usher in a level of detail never before seen on a home console at the time. It also set the graphics bar so very high early in the X-Box's lifespan, and few developers were ever able to attain it's level of detail over the consoles lifespan.

#3 Virtua Fighter 5
The finest example of one of the deepest fighting franchises ever created. From the onset of the first, we knew we were in for something special. This is one game that you really don't want to jump from character to character, you really need to find one that fits you, and learn them inside and out.

#2 Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix
A beautiful remake of one of the best fighters ever created. The balance is there. All the characters you know and love are also. Gorgeously redrawn in 1080p glory.

#1 Street Fighter II
The fighter that really started the craze in the early 90's. Mortal Kombat as I said before helped, but it didn't posses near the grace of this gem. If you like fighters, odds are this is where it all started for you as it did many others. To this day, a discussion about the genre cannot be had without mention of Street Fighter II.