Mighty Final Fight (NES)

Mighty Final Fight is a Capcom game released for the NES in 1989 as a spinoff of the beat 'em up classic Final Fight, but done in a chibi, big-head-and-tiny-body art style (which is so funny). The game was also ported to the GBA in 2006. The basic plot of the game is exactly the same as the arcade title (why do you think I put the arcae tag on this review? Silly folks.): the Mad Gear Gang, premier street gang of Metro City, kidnap Jessica, the daughter of Haggar, the mayor of the city. Determined to get his daughter back, Mayor Haggar, alongside Jessica's boyfriend Cody and his ninja training partner Guy, sets out to get her back.

I'd heard infinite good things about Final Fight in the past, but since it was an arcade title, I couldn't really find it around anywhere, not even the Virtual Console. However, I did see this cuter version of it for the NES and decided to try it to see if it was anything like the regular version.

For you skeptics and monkey uncles out there, this game is exactly the same in format and style as the original Final Fight, which I love, because it provides the same experience, which is incredible. Each of the three characters has his own forte. Haggar is stronger and a bit slower, Cody is an all-around street fighter, and Guy is a quick and deadly combatant (which is why I played as him. Ninja!!). It has all the great strategic and combat features which made Final Fight so popular to begin with.

What I like about this game is the way in which it goes beyond the simple punch-and-kick dynamic of games like Double Dragon and allows for various combo moves during combat. You can use this to get an edge in battle, which is especially useful when you're fighting large enemies or being come at from both sides by your opponents. For example, when I was playing as Guy, his air spin got be out of a few tight jams when I was surrounded.

The main qualm I have about this game is that it is unbelievably difficult considering the resources they give you. I mean, I've seen the last half of my health go away in one hit from a standard enemy. What the heck is that? They should really make you less beatable considering the fact that you're consistently just one player against ridiculous odds. If you're going to go on a tour of all five or six levels in the game, you're going to have to play all the time the way they have it just to get good enough.

Mighty Final Fight is really a great game overall. It's just that they didn't really give you enough endurance to last out the entirety of the game, and when you kept losing lives and having to start over, you eventually just began to question why you were even playing. So, play online and see what you think. You can't actually purchase it anywhere yet, but I like it just the same.