One Must Fall 2097

The Good
I positively LOATHE fighting games. I can't stand all the Street Fighters, Mortal Kombats, Tekkens, and other assorted quarter-munching, 30-seconds and you're dead games.

But OMF:2097 is different. I can't put my finger on it, but it's different from the other games.

The graphics are good for its time. But it runs really smooth on my old P233. Th fact that you can adjust the speed of the game jsut goes to show the amount of thought that went into the games design. Another great graphical/gameplay touch is the interactive backgrounds. In each stage there are objects that can cause damage to your robot in the background. For instance, the desert level has jets that do fly-bys and strafe the arena with gunfire. It you get caught in the line of fire, you take damage. But you can also knock your opponent into the strafing run, damaging your opponent further.

The sound is good. Lots of clanging. ;)

The control, for me, is near perfect. I use an old Gravis-style gamepad, which is probably the best gamepad ever made. The game responds very well to the gamepad, which is great during intense fights.

And the gameplay in itself is superb. The entire pacakage of the game is well thought out and easy to learn.

The Bad
Not much. And considering I can't stand fighting games, that's a mircale in itself :)

The Bottom Line
It's a free game now, so there is no excuse for gamers not to enjoy one of the only great Fighting games ever to grace the PC Platform.

Go to the website and download it. I guarantee you'll love it.

The Good
This game simply rocks!!! alhtough it's published six years ago, this game is still much better than a lot of the other games that are out there...

Each robot has its own special moves, and each has its own extremely different aptitudes. Adding ot that is the pilots, who vary in speed, stamina, and strength...This gives a huge combination of playing styles...You can play it over and over again, and still there will be enough variety for you to come back for more...

The tournament mode is innovative...you can win matches to earn money, and with the money, you can upgrade your robots or your pilots...this way, you can customize your robot to your own playing style...

It runs great on any system!!! Unlike many old games that don't support the computers of today, OMF runs smoothly, with no tinkering needed...

The graphics and music are all pretty good...the animations of the moves and scraps are well done...

The Bad
Some bugs in the AI...ie you can do some combos over and over again, and the computer never seems to be able to block them...but these are so few, so it has basically no effect on the gameplay...

The Bottom Line
Defnitely better than most of the fighting games out there...download it now, and you'll be sucked into this awesome game...

The Good
This game is one of the very few 2D arcade fighter for the PC that really shine. It's original, fun to play, and still holds it's own after all these years. The graphics were very good and still work nowadays, but the real winner in this game are the tournament modes which are a great way of extending gameplay and were a first in 2-D arcade fighters. You can customize your 'bot in lots of ways, and offers an unique challenge that lasts a lot more than the standard "arcade/story" game mode.

The Bad
There are a lot of flaws with this game that will make it a not-so-hot game to the eyes of fighting aficionados. Mainly the lame special moves, the lack of scrolling arenas (which REALLY cramps up the action) and a strikingly slow-paced action, when compared to other beat 'em ups. Plus some of the bots are really lame.

The only other gripe I have with the game is a love or hate thing. Quite frankly giant bots are cool if they tear up cities and cause nuclear explosions when they fight. If you take stuff like that away the premise then gets really lame and I'm guessing most fighting veterans like me prefer the good 'ol "in your face" fist fights between humans than this "light" version of bot mashing.

The Bottom Line
For a PC gamer this is as good as it gets. It's original, it's got more gameplay and re-playability in it than those lame console ports and it delivers some serious fun. For those already versed in the world of "Sho-Ryu-Kens" this is no masterpiece, but it's still quite good and offers a nice change of pace.