""Easily one of the WORST fighters on the SNES""

Killer Instinct by Rare hoped to achieve the 3d fighter to the SNES. They failed miserably.

Story: In today's world there is one giant TV corporation trying to take over the world. Its highest rated show is the annual Killer Instinct tournament. Here fighters from all over the world come to get one wish from the global company. That is if they can defeat each other. The last one standing faces off against the defending champion, Eyedol. An ancient monster resurrected by the coporation's scientists. For eight years running no one has been able to beat him.

This year the combatants are:
Jago: A man looking to destroy the tournament from within.
B. Orchid: A secret Agent who looks to find Ultratechs real motive.
Cinder: An ex-con turned living fireball hired by Ultratech to stop the Space Alien Glacius.
Glacius: A man looking to find his way home, 50,000 light years away.
TJ Combo: A former boxing champion looking to regain his championship.
Chief Thunder: An indian mystic looking for his long lost brother, who disappeared from the tournament 8 years earlier.
Fulgore: A robot built by Ultratech specifically for this tournament.
Spinal: A resurrected spirit, many say of a fighter killed by Eyedol long ago.
Sabrewulf: A werewolf looking for the cure to his lycanthropic condition.
Riptor: A genetically resurrected/mutated raptor from the Jurassic era.

Graphics: (6 out of 10) The graphics are good, but from the company that brought us the three Donkey Kong Country's and then can transfer the graphics of that to the Game Boy, we could expect better.

Sound: (7 out of 10) The grunts and groans and speech are actually superb for a fighter. They stand a little room for improvement though.

Music: (9 out of 10) The music is the saving grace of the otherwise miserable fighter. The music is very suiting for each stage, especially Cinder and Eyedol's music.

Difficulty: (4 out of 10) It's just not that hard. The only hard thing about it is the button mashing that you will get trying to pull off a master combo. Other than that it is paled in comparison to the MK and Street Fighter series in this category.

Controls: (2 out of 10) Not even MK has as much button mashing the controls are clumsy and everything that a good fighter shouldn't be. The moves though plentiful are almost impossible for the player to pull off, especially with Glacius and Fulgore.

Recommendation: If you have a fighter already and have beaten it time in and time out, then this may be worth a look. Otherwise don't bother even looking at it.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 03/10/00, Updated 03/10/00