I found Samurai Shodown 2 nostalgic and enjoyable. It's a fun game to play with friends and I can see matches getting very intense quick. The gameplay is addictive and the bevy of characters will make the experience last. Fans of retro fighting games and/or of the Samurai Shodown series will enjoy Samurai Shodown 2 Pocket Edition. It's a simple fighting game with an easy control scheme that anyone can pick up and have a great time playing.
Samurai Shodown 2 Pocket Fighting Series is a gem from the past brought back onto the Switch platform. The SNK classic is a typical martial arts throwdown fighter that includes fifteen fighters, each equipped with their own unique fighting styles. The game has a bevy of modes for a portable fighter and it has different styles the player can use with their character. In other words, there’s a lot under this hood for a NEO GEO Pocket game. Let’s get into it.
Going in with Styles
When picking a character, players can either pick from two fighting styles, Slash or Bust. When picking the Slash style, combos will be more suited for in-your-face slashes to put the player or their opponent in the corner with no way out. Intense? Yep. Cool? Definitely. Bust style is more projectile-heavy, lending itself to more wins. Being able to camp the entire stage is a little unfair but is one of the most effective ways to win. Both fighting styles, regardless of your choice, are effective because the combos for both are the same inputs. At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter which style players pick, it depends on which they prefer to play.
NEO GEO Pocket graphic strikes again, but it’s manageable
An interesting feature added to the re-release is when players start up the game. You are greeted with the old Neo Geo Pocket Color system with Samurai Shodown 2 playing on the old screen. It’s a neat touch to play on the console but could get distracting and hard to play over an extended period. Fortunately, you aren’t forced to play this way. The Switch version allows you to have many different styles of Neo Geo Pockets, even going so far as to remove it altogether and just keep the gameplay. Samurai Shodown 2: Pocket Edition not only provides better visuals but also includes a rewind feature.
How mode-y are you?
The game has the same game modes from the original: Single-Player mode, Versus mode, and Survival. Single-Player mode is your typical fighting game classic mode, where you fight seven random fighters that led you to Gandara, a giant purple monster that blocks the way to the final boss. After losing to him a couple of times, as was the case with me, players might be able to progress and fight the final boss with the possibility of beating the game. It’s a great game mode to test out all your skills. The Single-Player mode takes about 20 minutes to complete and continues to feel rewarding after beating it several times.
An unexpected and cool feature to the collection tab was the ability to trade and receive cards from friends. Normally, I wouldn’t think the game would have a feature like this, but it does come in handy for those who want to complete their card collections. The only issue is that players can only hold up to eight copies of the same card. Each card is random, and you don’t get to decide which one you want. Players will get one of the four cards: Attack up, Defense Up, Special 1, or Special 2. There is a high chance to get a card you already have which can make the whole ordeal frustrating. Also, the only useful cards are the ones that increase stats because once you know a combo there’s little need to keep the card equipped to perform the super. Each character has eight cards (four for each style) and you can only get cards for the style you are playing, making card collecting very tedious.
Superb Gameplay
The gameplay itself is really addictive. If you have ever played Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat, the controls are basically the same: input the right button presses to unleash powerful attacks and combos. Even button mashers can succeed in this game, which makes it enjoyable for all. It’s fairly easy to pick up and all the combos can be very easy to learn. Players can even simply spin the control stick around and still be able to pull off all the combos. The gameplay gives off an arcade vibe that lets you keep playing for hours on end.
On hard mode, each fighter hits like a truck, and having more attack or defense gives the player a fighting chance. However, this doesn’t mean they still won’t mop the floor with you. Each real combo has a chance to do devastating damage to you or the opponent. You could lose 80 percent of your health in one multi-hit combo. Even one attack done by the CPU can take out most of an HP bar or one small attack may do a quarter or less of damage. With the stat booster cards equipped, players can tear opponents apart. Each combo can make an opponent lose 40 to 80 percent of their health, which completely changes the game. There is a chance you could have 20 percent of your health left while your opponent is full and still call it an even game with these cards. If one person doesn’t have these cards, you would think they should be at a disadvantage, sometimes it doesn’t even matter. It still makes fighting CPUs feel a little easier and a little bit fairer.
While playing the game I immediately noticed where players could input a combo that makes them unable to play the game entirely. If you are good enough, as soon as the match starts you can combo your opponent until they lose all their health. On the other hand, the CPU can also do the same thing, which I appreciated. Luckily Samurai Shodown 2 offers a Combo Breaker move that knocks back your opponent if they are in range and gives you time to counter or grab some footing.
Conclusion
Overall, I found Samurai Shodown 2 nostalgic and enjoyable. It’s a fun game to play with friends and I can see matches getting very intense quick. The gameplay is addictive and the bevy of characters will make the experience last. Fans of retro fighting games and/or of the Samurai Shodown series will enjoy Samurai Shodown 2 Pocket Edition. It’s a simple fighting game with an easy control scheme that anyone can pick up and have a great time playing.
