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Revive the Arcade Classic: Fatal Fury Returns with Fiery Battles!

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Growing up in the 1990s, I yearned for the costly Neo Geo console that offered games like SNK’s iconic arcade fighters, including Fatal Fury and The King of Fighters. It’s delightful to witness a resurgence of this fighting game genre today. Back then, Fatal Fury seemed an intriguing rival to Street Fighter II, and although The King of Fighters took the lead as SNK’s primary fighter, there’s still value in the Fatal Fury title. Remarkably, Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves isn’t just a revival of one of Neo Geo’s finest arcade games; it’s also the first main series installment in over two decades.

In the game titled “Fatal Fury: City of Wolves,” the series makes a comeback with the exciting new REV System. This system provides various offensive and defensive choices, including the revolutionary REV Blows that counter your adversary’s attacks with a powerful strike, and REV Arts that amplify a special move’s effectiveness. The REV Accel feature allows you to chain REV Arts together, followed by a REV Blow, while the REV Guard creates distance, nullifying any minor damage. Overusing REV abilities may cause the REV Meter to overheat, preventing further use until it cools down, so careful consideration is required when deploying them.

In your game, the Special Potential Gear (SPG), comparable to the T.O.P. System in Garou: Mark of the Wolves, can be activated at specific health levels and customized at the start, middle, or end of your health bar. Once active, it boosts attack power and enables REV Blows. There’s also ‘Just Defense’, which lets you perform a perfect block by timing a press backward on the d-pad or joystick precisely, recovering a bit of health, reducing your REV Meter, and providing an opportunity for a guard cancel. ‘Hyper Defense’ allows defense and counterattack against combo attacks, offering the same benefits as Just Defense, while ‘Wild Punish’ gives a chance to push back opponents when they miss an attack.

As a gamer, diving into Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves can feel like a whirlwind at first, but it swiftly turns familiar due to its well-structured and tidy control system. Everything about it just clicks, even though I’ve occasionally found myself in trouble with an overheating REV Meter, failing to notice its warning signs and being puzzled as to why my REV skills weren’t working, despite the meter flashing ‘OVERHEAT!!’. The S.P.G. state can also be easy to overlook if you’re not paying attention to all the different gauges and meters. However, this too becomes second nature with time, thanks to a clean, uncluttered UI. Plus, there’s a thorough tutorial to help you navigate everything smoothly.

Concerning the team roster, having seventeen characters is satisfactory, but it’s hard not to feel a tad frustrated that two spots are filled by football icon Cristiano Ronaldo and DJ Salvatore Ganacci. While the latter seems to blend well with the rest of the group (as I’m unfamiliar with him), Ronaldo appears out of place, and his in-game likeness leaves much to be desired. It’s even more disheartening when classic characters like Joe Higashi and Andy Bogard have been moved to the Season Pass. Despite this, the core game offers a diverse cast for exploration, with Terry Bogard and Rock Howard leading the charge once again, alongside regulars such as Mai Shiranui, B. Jenet, and Billy Kane. Some characters seem to be permanent fixtures in the King of Fighters series, so there’s no sign of Blue Mary or Kim Kaphwan.

In Arcade Mode, the ghostly presence of the deceased Geese Howard continues to dominate, as Rock struggles with his inheritance. Here, you get to experience events from the viewpoint of each of the seventeen fighters in City of the Wolves. However, it is in Episodes of South Town (EOST) mode where you’ll find the longest single-player gameplay, providing a role-playing game (RPG)-like journey where you pick a character and battle opponents under various circumstances, gaining experience points and leveling up as you advance. While enjoyable, it doesn’t quite match the engagement level of Street Fighter 6’s World Tour mode, the drama in Tekken’s Mishima-Kazama storyline, or the depth of the current Mortal Kombat games’ story modes.

Even though it’s great to have a strong single-player aspect where you can improve your skills, whether you prefer the traditional Arcade Style controller layout or the more streamlined Smart Style that lets you execute ‘Smart Combos’ with just one button. A good Training mode and Missions section (which includes Time Attack, Survival mode, and character-specific Challenges) enhance the solo experience, along with the standard local Versus matches and a comprehensive online mode (offering Casual, Ranked, and Room Matches) with cross-platform compatibility and rollback netcode. However, while it covers the fundamentals well, some other fighting games offer a vast array of modes and stunning cinematic presentations, making Fatal Fury seem relatively modest in comparison.

To put it simply, SNK’s KOF Studio brings a unique, vibrant comic-book aesthetic to “Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves,” making the fights pop visually. The action is lively and dynamic, with spectacular ‘Gear’ finishers adding an extra flash of pyrotechnics. This game stands out for its beauty, even surpassing SNK’s other beautiful fighter, “KOF XV.” However, it has a few minor flaws. Despite these small issues, “Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves” is one of the best fighters SNK has ever created, and a delightful revival of an old arcade classic.

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2025-04-21 10:12

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