It's my opinion that the PC Engine port of Asuka 120% Maxima Burning Festival is the best fighting game on any 8-bit console, so I was curious about Kakutou Haou Densetsu Algunos, which was released by the same developers a year earlier. Surprisingly, considering how both Asuka 120% and Fill-in-Cafe's beat em ups Mad Stalker and Panzer Bandit all share a few common mechanics like the semi-automatic attack speed, and the clashing attack/parry system, Algunos plays more like a more traditional post-Street Fighter II fighting game.
It does have a few points that would have made it a little more unique at the time of its release, though. For example, it was made and designed specifically for the PC Engine, rather than being an arcade port, so rather than making compromises in terms of graphics and controls, it's all designed to be the best it can be on the host hardware. Like Asuka 120%, it can be played to its fullest with a standard two-button controller and the Super CD ROM system card. No need to hunt down rare and expensive six-button pads and Arcade Cards!
So, the controls feature a strong attack button and a weak attack button. You can also perform throws by pressing them both together (or by pressing the third button on a six-button pad). Other than that, move inputs are pretty standard for the time, with quarter circles and dragon punch inputs doing something for most characters. There's none of the kind of big innovations we'd later see in Asuka 120%, though, like dashes, backsteps, and so on. (Actually, one character does have the ability to dash, and unexpectedly, it's the big green giant guy). It still manages to stand above a lot of the lesser-known also-rans from the early 90s, though, in that it feels good to play, specials are easy to consistently execute, and the AI opponents aren't unstoppable monsters that make solo play a frustrating misery festival.
Where it does stand out, though, is in the setting and aesthetic. The characters, and the world they inhabit all look like they were ripped straight from some gritty bubble-era OAV. The kind of stuff that licensed on the cheap, and dubbed with a load of extra swearing in the UK. It almost feels like some kind of long-forgotten Guilty Gear ancestor, at least in aesthetic terms. I think it might have been one of the first post-SFII fighting games not to have a "martial artists in the modern real world" setting, even. (Not the first, though, as I pretty sure that title would go to Irem's Dino Rex, which supposedly changed genre mid-development when it became clear how big and important the just-released SFII was turning out to be). I was disappointed that the story mode endings didn't have nice animated cutscenes like the intro, though. Oh, and another thing to mention for solo players: the final boss is absolutely not safe for people with photosensitive epilepsy or similar conditions. It constantly emits some of the most violent flashing I've ever seen in a videogame, so be warned.
So, though it doesn't live up to the greatness of its direct descendant, Kakutou Haou Densetsu Algunos is still a solid, very enjoyable game, especially when you take into account the host hardware and how early into the genre's life its release date was. If you want to play it, do it via emulation, though. It's suffering the fate that seemingly all PC Engine games suffer these days: absolutely ludicrous prices online. Hopefully there'll come a time when the hoarding speculator scum get bored of old videogames and move onto ruining some other hobby, but until then, emulation is fine. Just an example, and sorry for mentioning Asuka 120% yet again in this review, but I got a copy of that game a few years ago for £15. Looking up Algunos, a less popular, less iconic game, and the cheapest copy I can find is £90. Madness.
No comments:
Post a Comment