"Kyokugen back where it should be"

Finally the god's of two dimensions have shown grace upon us this month with the release of the Art of Fighting Anthology. Our great friends at SNK Playmore have delivered many great 2D fighting franchises over the years, but few have ever reached American consoles, or even our shores at all. SNK has finally changed that with the release of Art of Fighting Anthology for the PS2. The first SNK 2D fighter released for the PS2, but hopefully not the last, since King of Fighters 02/03 back in 2005.

The reason why anyone plays these games now days is purely for nostalgia and that's what SNK delivered in this pack. Art of Fighting Anthology contains all three Art of Fighting games in there complete arcade goodness. Each game starts with an awesome Neo-Geo start up screen to make us feel a little more at home. Art of fighting, whom many might remember from the SNES, is packed together with Art of Fighting 2 and 3 and allowed them to make their first American console debut. Art of Fighting lead heroes Ryo Sakazaki and Robert Garcia set out to the dangerous streets of South Town in order to save Ryo's Sister Yuri. Pretty basic story line for a game released back in the early 90's. The three games focus heavily on player on player combat as most early fighters should. Installments 2 and 3 add several new playable characters to the list such as Kasumi Todoh, Rody Brits, and Eiji Kisaragi. Art of Fighting implemented many new ideas in fighting games for their time. Being one of the first series to add “super attacks” and in Art of Fighting 3's case, have some of the best animations for a game of that time, Art of fighting was a huge step in the right direction and many 2D fighters have evolved from these very ideas. The bonus content is not as extensive as some would hope. The game does not contain any special artwork, interviews, history, or making of that some fans would expect to see from an anthology style game, given past releases. (I.E. Metal Slug Anthology or Capcom Classics Collection). The game play is flawless. Excellent ports of these older games where nothing was lost in translation. Old school style arcade difficulty will leave many newcomers clinching their teeth at stage four or five, but in all honesty this adds to the fun factor. The play style is not as fast paced as some of the other King of fighters titles, but not nearly as complex or technical as Samurai Shodown. The game is filled will tons of little hidden moves and combo links with each character to keep the players learning and experience new things. How boring would a game be if you finished it your first time with no struggle?

The bottom line is simple. If you're a fan of fun, multi player, inexpensive, old school, 2D games, then buy this game. The controls are perfect thanks to the PS2's excellent controller design. No longer will you have to fumble with the Xbox's clunky un-responsive directional pad. Fifteen dollars is nothing in comparison to the fun you'll have reliving old memories. For the price of a medium pizza you can have three truly awesome games. Art of Fighting Anthology is a must own for any 2D fan or SNK enthusiast. Now we can only hope for the Fatal Fury, King of Fighters, and Last Blade collections. Someday my friends…….someday.

+ Awesome collection for any 2D fighting fan. Great control quality. $15.
- Maybe to old for some people. Meant for fighting game fans. No bonus material.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 05/21/07