It’s not uncommon for a company to put its classic games together in a compilation. Nintendo gave them NES Mario games in a 16-bit makeover Super Mario All Stars on the SNES. Namco bundled enough of their arcade games to 5 . to produce Namco Museum volume for the PS1. Then in the early 2000s a lot of collections with Taito Legends, Midway Arcade Treasuresand the Sonic Mega Collection among other things.
They are still there today with Sonic Origins, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Cowabunga Collectionand the Capcom Fighting Collection. The last one brought darkstalkers out of the safe next to some hidden gems. So it would be nice to see other companies bring their fighters together as well. Like SNK. Their larger series have received compilations, and some of their more obscure entries have appeared as single entries on digital storefronts. But if SNK put together one themselves Fighting Collection, what underrated gems would appear on it? Here are a few suggestions.
8 Real Bout Fatal Fury Series
SNK is no stranger to digitally re-releasing their old games. The problem is that they tend to lose steam half way through. Fans have been able to grab fatal anger, King of Fighters ’94and the original Samurai Shodown easy and legal since the PS3/360 days. Then Fatal Fury Special, KOF ’95and SamSho 2 could show up. KOF ’96 actually appeared on PS3, but Fatal Anger 3 and SamSho 3 got no sniff till the ACA Neo Geo series.
However, while the early fatal anger games can still be fun that old-fashioned way. Their Real match successors have aged much better. They play much smoother and have some lavishly bold and colorful graphics. They can be a good backbone for a collection, such as darkstalkers did for the Capcom Fighting Collection. It even has a PS1 exclusive title for Japan, Real Bout Garou Densetsu Special: Dominated MindThat might just be the icing on the cake. All together they would warm up the crowd for the coming Garou: Mark of the Wolves continuation.
7 The Last Blade Series
Samurai Shodown is SNK’s main weapon fighter. Still, they produced a sequel series in 1997. The last knife let players choose from a range of characters, such as the Shinto priestess Akari, the Jet Li-inspired Lee Rekka or the series hero Kaede. They then choose between a ‘Power’ style (building meter for a super move) or a ‘Speed’ style (connect Tekken-style hit strings in a big attack).
Then they get a stunningly beautiful game that rivals Capcom’s Street Fighter 3and arguably plays better than its pre-third trick entries. All this while running on the old Neo Geo MVS hardware. The game got a sequel and a Neo Geo Pocket Color title before going dormant. With his most popular character, Hibiki Takane, appears in Samurai Shodown 2019, it is unlikely that a new game is coming today. But the first two would feel right at home in this collection as crown jewels.
6 Attackers of Dark Kombat
ADKs world heroes series is more likely to end up in a collection like this. However, ADK also produced a more quirky fighter than their main series. Attackers of Dark Kombat (do you understand? ADK?) was a strange combination of a beat ’em up and fighting game. It has the life bars and one-on-one battles like the last one. As with the first, players could step aside and pick up weapons that were either thrown into the stage or hidden behind objects.
The game rewards aggressive play by restoring health with each hit. It also fills a ‘Crazy Meter’ for a ‘Crazy Attack’. Like schoolgirl Kisarah Westfield who breaks her opponent’s heart by cuddling with her boyfriend. Or the giant German fighter Leonhalt Domador calling his white tiger for help. The controls are a bit strange, with weird commands and 3 buttons: punch, kick and jump. But you have to see it to believe it.
5 Savage Reign
Oddly enough, this post-apocalyptic brawl takes place in the same timeline as fatal anger. One of the characters, an old man named Chung Paifu, even has Terry’s cap as a memento of his childhood. Otherwise, the story is that the standard big strongman holds a tournament to see if anyone can take him out. The game plays as a strange combination of Samurai Shodown and fatal anger.
Each character has a weapon, but they can also throw it at their opponent and continue bare-fisted. They can also get around by jumping between planes. It makes for a fun throwback to SNK’s heyday, especially when paired with the tag-based sequel Kizuna Encounter. Both are hard to find legally, with only a few digital reissues released only in Japan. It would therefore benefit from a collection.
4 Waku Waku 7
Waku Waku 7 is easier to find alone, being part of the ACA NeoGeo series through HAMSTER Corporation and D4 Enterprise. However, it can be harder to sell that way because it’s weirder than both Attackers of Dark Kombat and Savage Reign composed. Gameplay-wise, it’s a fun little fighter, albeit with a rather small roster of 9 characters (only 7 of which can be played in Arcade mode).
But what a bunch of characters they are! They are all anime parodies in search of the wish that WakuWaku balls fulfill. The Joseph Joestar-esque Dandy-J swings his whip around in search of treasure. Unity bunny girl Arina is looking for love. Mauru is a purple version of My neighbor Totoro. Next, to make their dreams come true, they must defeat a large, ball-shaped monster with a dope grin named Fernandez.
While SNK and Capcom have teased a future partnership, they have recently collaborated. Albeit only for the digital reissue of their Neo Geo Pocket Color collab SNK vs. Capcom: Match of the Millennium. It is essentially a mini version of Capcom vs SNKplaying like an 8-bit king of fighters game, but with a 2-on-2 tag option à la Marvel vs Capcom.
Small as it is, it may well be the best of SNK and Capcom’s showdowns. It has a more diverse cast than the Capcom vs SNK spell. Their cartoonish looks also offer more expressive animations. In addition, there is an Olympic mode where players can play a series of mini-games featuring characters from Ghosts N’Goblins, Metal Slug, and more. Nintendo Switch and PC players don’t have to wait for this hypothetical collection to become a reality to get it. It is worth playing as soon as possible.
Still, if SNK wanted to match with the Capcom Fighting Collectionthen this would be their equivalent of Super Puzzle Fighter 2 Turbo. It is a collectible card duel game originally released on the Neo Geo Pocket Color where players build decks with a variety of SNK and Capcom characters. Although the game is not as deep as Magic: The Gatheringit’s a fun, simplified take on the genre.
Big names from Street Fighter, King of Fighters, Resident Evil, Metal Slugetc., appear, like more obscure of cyber bots and Buriki One among other things. It got a sequel, only in Japan in 2001, and a less-than-stellar DS edition in 2006. Fortunately, Switch owners can pick up the original game digitally. But it would be nice if it got more attention on more platforms.
1 Neo Geo Battle Colosseum
If all else fails, SNK can always re-release this Arcade/PS2 gem. When their collaboration deal with Capcom ended after that SVC: SNK vs. Capcom Chaos, SNK decided to let their characters fight among themselves instead. characters from King of Fighters, Fatal Fury, Art of Fighting, Samurai Shodown, Last Blade, World Heroes, Aggressors of Dark Kombat, Metal Slug, Savage Reignand more compete in tag battles.
The game uses then-new Atomiswave hardware to produce a sleek-looking fighter that’s a step above its predecessor, positively shaming its rival counterpart Capcom fights evolution. It has all new sprites, all new stages and a sense of humor. It would work great as the headpiece uniting SNK’s hidden gems with their big hits in a compilation. But if not, it would be great in digital storefronts. Then maybe it could get a sequel? Just say it.
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