Burning Fight

"Despite average gameplay and some unoriginal elements - an entertaining beat 'em up is to be found here."

I bought SNK Arcade Classics Volume 1 on the day of release so I could finally get around to playing all those expensive SNK beat 'em ups I missed out on during the NEO GEO era. One of those titles was the largely ignored Burning Fight which hasn't been getting a lot of love on here from the reviews I've seen. Onward..

Story 4/10

Two American cops are investigating Yakuza crimes and wind up in Japan where they team up with a local police officer - thus forming the trio of playable characters. They travel across various 'hoods, warehouses, and shopping districts to track down the boss of all the criminal scum. That's about it - no real introduction sequence or ending, which was pretty flimsy even by 1991 standards. At least the levels have a sort of flow that ties them together rather than being random backgrounds knitted together.

Graphics 7/10

The characters and enemy sprites are a bit pixelated and don't move as fluidly as earlier beat 'em ups (Final Fight, created 3 years prior) - and most of them could have been reproduced on a weaker console like the SNES. The background environments - on the other hand - are surprisingly well detailed, animated, and often have enemies interacting with them (like walking face-forward into battle from an alley, or one boss overturning a fountain). Breakable objects and the explosions you see time to time look pretty good as well. There are a decent amount of enemy designs - although you do fight each boss at least twice during the length of the game (five stages). As the other reviewers have pointed out - there are several instances where Burning Fight seemingly lifts from Final Fight. Two of the three characters are VERY similar in appearance to that of Guy and Cody, and there's also an enemy that functions almost exactly like the Molotov-tossing version of Hollywood from the aforementioned Capcom game. It also doesn't help that the Guy-wannabe character is named "Ryu". Moving on..

Sound 6/10

The music is largely forgettable, the sound effects are strictly average - and while there is a trace of voice acting, it has a kind of tinny digital distortion to it. There is nothing you wouldn't find in any of the dozens of brawlers released in the early 90's.

Control 7/10

There is a grab function in this game, but I rarely found myself able to use it and it wasn't as helpful as it ought to have been. There is also a minor problem in that non-boss enemies don't feel the impact of blows as much as I have come to expect from the majority of 2d brawlers - which can throw the player out of a fluid combo if he isn't 100% on task. Some of the bosses (the wrestlers) and enemies (fat men) tend to use cheap tactics to prevent you from getting a breather or landing a hit without resorting to special attacks half the time.

Game-play 7/10

For the most part, Burning Fight is standard early-90s beat 'em up material. You have three playable characters, although you don't quite develop a personal preference since none of them are especially effective in their cliche Final Fight-esque stereotypes. Combat consists of punching, kicking, jump-kicking, a unique special attack per character - and a few weapon pickups. Along with the glass bottles, knives, and kendo sticks - you get to use a sixshooter on occasion, which is nice because not too many brawlers have long-range temporary weapons. The stages often feature little detours in the way of bonus rooms, which consist of entering a shop and breaking vending machines or display shelves. The action outside the room actually pauses, and the reward for beating a bonus event is a bunch of health packs and a higher score. There is a nice bit of enemy theatrical interaction - several of the bosses push aside the wreckage you cause or do a little scenic destruction of their own before you battle. Most of the baddies fight you on-foot, but some of the levels have motorcycle jousting punks or creeps trying to run you down with forklifts. Although the game isn't groundbreaking on any level, it has a draw to it and is decidedly better than several dozen lesser brawlers I've had to review for Gamefaqs.

Replay value 3/10

There are some interesting levels in the game (I'm fond of the opening one), and three playable character with some lackluster differences to add to the replay value of the game. Sadly, there is no real ending - no alternate routes - and no real incentive to go at it soon unless you're unlocking trophies on the SNK Arcade Classics Vol. 1 disc.

Overall 7/10

Burning Fight is one of those "me-too" type of beat 'em ups - although it isn't entirely dependant on rehashing ideas from previous brawlers. There is enough here to warrant a play - but I'm not sure if you'll want to spend the dough for a NEO GEO cart. Buying SNK Arcade Classics Volume 1 like I did would probably be the best option to experience Burning Fight.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 09/12/08

Game Release: Burning Fight (US, 08/09/91)