While not the most popular fighter made by SNK, Art of Fighting is still a respected series by many 2-D fighter fans. And, the popular character Ryo was produced by the series as well.

Art of Fighting has a fairly large fan-base and is a cult favorite. Still, it was not as successful as it’s cousin Fatal Fury, but was not forgotten as many of the characters made appearances in the King of Fighters series. However, you do not get the Art of Fighting experience if you choose a character from Art of Fighting to play in King of Fighters. Art of Fighting is a unique game with it’s own set of ups and downs.

To start off, Art of Fighting does have a story. In this particular installment, Yuri (Ryo’s sister) has been kidnapped and, Ryo and Robert in particular, set off to rescue her.

--Graphics-- 9/10
The characters in Art of Fighting are rather large and very vibrant in color. The backdrops are colorful too, and somewhat large. Looking closely at the backgrounds, there was a nice use of shadow affects, and you can clearly see that this game took advantage of the 102 megs. However, some complaints have been made about the over-sizing of the characters.

--Sound-- 7/10
Comparable to the sounds of Fatal Fury and Street Fighter, Art of Fighting has the old classic arcade game sound. The music is mostly a mix of an upbeat sound with a hint of traditional Japanese music affects. The announcer sounds like an American man who is 25% robot, but the sound of the hi-yaas and movements sound fairly sharp for it’s age.

--Control-- 8/10
The moves are also comparable to any of that of Capcom or SNK’s. Somewhat like King of Fighters, there is a super meter that may build up by pressing and holding the C button. Although, a not so great feature is that the meter will decrease if you are hit too many times, which is completely opposing the Street Fighter system (where your meter goes up if you are hit). Also possessing a similarity of Fatal Fury’s, however, is that when you reach a certain (low) point in your life gauge, your super meter will build up gradually (as in where Fatal Fury, you do not have a super meter, but when you reach a point on your life gauge, you may use supers at any time). With your super meter, you can use moves that could not have been used without your super meter, and your attacks become stronger (your fireballs project farther).
The button layout is your basic four button layout. By pressing A, you execute a weak punch; by pressing B, you execute a weak kick; by pressing C, you execute strong punch; by pressing D, you execute taunt. While those are the basics, the moves actually vary even on the same button. Combined with certain movements with the control stick, the moves can become what are considered “special moves”. An example of a special move is the fireball. In Art of Fighting, the fireballs do not always project fully across the screen. As mentioned before, in order for the fireballs to go the full distance, your super meter must contain a certain amount. This rule applies for other moves as well.
Depending on what you like, it is either a positive or negative feature of the game.

--Extras-- 6/10
Considering it’s time period, Art of Fighting has adequate extras even for today’s standards. There is your basic VS mode, but there are also fun mini-games you encounter once you reach a certain point in the game. If you’ve every played a Street Fighter game before, you might have ran into the mini-game where you beat up the car. That mini-game is very similar to what is in Art of Fighting, but you have more options. You may select from three different games. While the extras could never compare to those in some for the games today, Virtua Fighter 4 for example, they are still fairly decent.

--Difficulty-- 9/10
This one is right up there with Fatal Fury Special. Even though you may select difficulties between easy, medium, and hard, they are all difficult in one way or another.

--Gameplay-- 10/10
Art of Fighting has a unique feel to it, and is noteworthy because of that. A major difference between Capcom’s recent works and all of SNK’s works, is that SNK takes more of a strategic approach rather than a chaotic combo-fest. If this is what you are partial to, then Art of Fighting is something you should definitely consider.


*Note* If you own a Japanese Neo Geo system, the English language is still selectable. Also, you can increase and decrease the speed in the game.

--Overall--
The cheapest of the three, Art of Fighting is a fun, fast paced, and even strategic 2-D fighter that any SNK fan would appreciate. Thumbs up.


Recommended: Yes