"An excellent and very underrated game"

The Last Blade 2, the sequel to another excellent, and completely unheard of Last Blade, is another fighter developed by the famous SNK company. Made for the Neogeo, it has all the trademarks of fast, detailed play that SNK is known for.

Story - Perhaps surprisingly, the Last Blade 2 actually has a story, the overarching one involving seals and demons being unleashed on the world, etc. However, each of the characters has their own storyline that (usually) are deeply engaging and yet very human at the same. Not exactly essential to a fighting game, but a definite bonus.

Graphics - Standard 2D fare, yet remarkably well drawn and silkily animated. The stage backgrounds, in particular are widely varied and interesting. Perhaps not quite up to the standards of Garou: Mark of the Wolves, but it's pretty darn close. 7/10

Sound - Excellent. Featuring a nice melodic, classical soundtrack that sounds very Japanese (I wouldn't know), it fits in remarkably and gives a dept to the experience of the game. Voices are also well done for the many characters, the clashing of steel on steel, etc. Just marvelous to listen to. 10/10

Gameplay - Utilizing the Neogeo 4 button layout, the gameplay is a bit simpler than say, SNK's King of Fighters series, as one of these buttons is turned over for use as an auto-counter. The other three are utilized for light slash, heavy slash, and kick, respectively. The countering is easy to get a hang of, but, perhaps frustrating to the average gamer, is the ease as to which people can counter each other.

Another aspect of the game is selection of characters, which is pretty diverse. However, in addition to just choosing your character, you also select a style, either Speed or Power, depending on your playing style. With Speed, characters are capable of large damaging combos, with a super resembling the V-ism system from the SF Alpha series. Power on the other hand relies on small chains of heavy damage, with "standard" auto supers. Giving each character more than one way to be played is a nice touch.

Aside from that, it's much like a standard fighter, with normal attacks that combo, special attacks that can be added in, unblockables, throws, and supers. Excellent gameplay if you like fighters. 8/10

Overall, The Last Blade 2 is an excellent game that did not receive not nearly enough fanfare or attention that it deserved. If you're lucky enough to find a copy or an arcade machine of this game, you won't be disappointed.

Overall: 8/10

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/11/07