Last Bronx

"One of the least known Saturn fighters"

It has been said that the Sega development team, AM3, is always in AM2's shadow. Here is the perfect example. Last Bronx, possibly the last fighting game to come to America on the doomed Saturn before its demise, was released in the arcades a few weeks before the completely stunning Virtua Fighter 3. So, this game went basically unnoticed as soon as VF3 came out. That's a shame, because Last Bronx is a very good fighting game, despite its gameplay flaws. Its definitely worth a purchase, especially since you can find Saturn games for dirt cheap prices nowadays.

The graphics can be described as a dirty Virtua Fighter 2. There is a little more polygon clipping when the fighters get in close, plus the polygons aren't as smoothed out as they are on Virtua Fighter. The backgrounds however, are outstanding. They are richly detailed and large, with huge buildings and other various effects scattered throughout each level. The animation is a constant 60 frames per second, which seems to be Sega's number on this department.

One of the major problems with Last Bronx is the difficulty level. This game is WAY too easy, even on the hard setting. If you don't change the difficulty settings as soon as you turn on this game, you'll beat this game with every character in about 15 minutes if you're an average player. The AI is so predictable, even a retarded dog with rabies could foresee what the computers next move is. The only way to actually find a challenge in this game is to bring a friend over and play for a few hours. It's more fun that way.

The other major problem is the combo and damage system. I can understand a guy with a huge mallet could do a lot of damage to someone, but this is a fighting game, not real life. I could do his air-hit move then a juggle and have 50% of your energy gone already. The other fighters with the quick weapons, such as sais and nunchucks, don't do nearly enough damage, and their only saving grace is that they are faster than the bigger characters. I would have enjoyed more balance, but we can't get what we want all the time.

The number of moves Last Bronx has is less than it has been in the other Sega fighters. Also, the number of characters leaves something to be desired. Too bad there aren't any hidden characters or anything of the like in this game, it would have brought more replay value to the table than what is presented here right now. Its not that Last Bronx is a bad game, it just has some glaring flaws in it that could have been fixed easily, such as the AI or the character balance. Other than those 2 major gripes, Last Bronx is a decent, if unspectacular fighting game. The one player game is lacking somewhat, but still offers a pleasant experience. Worth picking up if you can find it at bargain bin prices.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 04/04/00, Updated 04/26/01