Genesis

Samurai Shodown

Shodown has just enough of the spirit and power of the arcade to satisfy frenzied fighters searching for the only true weapons game available. However, this version has enough missing elements to prompt hardcore fans with deep pockets to take a serious look at the Sega CD and 3DO versions.

I once again find myself reviewing another clone game, only this time the situation is much more dire. Samurai Showdown (referred to hereafter as SS), is a 2D versus fighter from the early nineties, and therefore will probably never escape comparisons to the eternal king of fighters that is Street Fighter II. Go look around at other reviews, and you'll see a slew of such things as “almost as good as SFII,” “a clone that shows its inspiration a thing or two,”“this game is a pretty darn good Street Fighter clone,” and so on. So is SS a clone? Certainly. Are comparisons to Street Fighter legitimate? Of course. Despite that, is it worthy of being judged as a game instead of being balanced against its inspiration?

For those of you wanting bigger fighters than those in the Super NES version, look no further. The scaling is out, but the graphics are very close to the Neo version, with the omission of the fighter Earthquake. There is some slow-down and the voices are poor, but the moves are very easy to execute. An earnest translation.

Of all the Neo Geo games that have come out for the Genesis, Samurai Shodown is the only one I'd consider buying. It's a lot of fun and I'd probably get into less trouble knifing people on-screen instead of in the streets.

After playing the 3DO version of this game, there's really no going back. On the Genesis, Samurai Shodown just looks like another run-of-the-mill Street Fighter wannabe. It's a 2D fighter with Asian-inspired fighters that carry sharp weapons. Some of the characters are pretty cool, but the graphics are nothing special, and the sound is just lousy. The scratchy voice samples are hard to take, and the minimal background music won't exactly have you singing in the shower. The gameplay isn't much better - the action feels very slow and lethargic. Worst of all, the Genesis isn't capable of executing the snazzy 3D scaling that's the trademark of the game (not to mention its one original feature). At least the six-button controller is supported. But only diehard fighting fans will want to try this one.