Kinnikuman Colosseum Deathmatch - MSX (1985)
MSX Cover
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Kinnikuman Colosseum Deathmatch
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Kinnikuman Colosseum Deathmatch
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"Kinnikuman Colosseum Deathmatch" is based on a manga/anime franchise that is mostly known in the west for a line of toys called "M.U.S.C.L.E.". The first video game based on Kinnikuman is a fighter for MSX where a lone player must fight past three opponents, after which the game loops. Matches consist of a lone round, health is measured with a health bar, Up jumps, down ducks, and you can attack from those positions or while standing, and execute a throw. You also have a bizarre, and far too risky, technique where you jump against the wall, tap the direction toward the wall, and tap attack, making your character bounce off the wall; damaging your opponent if the move connects, or hitting the ground and taking damage yourself if it does not. Lastly, KCD is noteworthy for being the first fighter with air throws. It seems like this could have been decent, but control responsiveness is poor, and you will often find yourself tapping attack repeatedly without anything happening. Despite this last problem, it's a pretty easy game, so it's definitely worth playing through as a curiosity.
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Kinnikuman Colosseum Deathmatch
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The Way of the Exploding Fist - Commodore 64 / Amstrad CPC / BBC Micro / ZX Spectrum - (1985)
The Way of the Exploding Fist
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The Way of the Exploding Fist
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The Way of the Exploding Fist
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While it may be no more than a Karate Champ clone, The Way of the Exploding Fist is one the most plagiarized games ever made. Most pre-SFII fighters for home computers (there were quite a few of them) are virtually rereleases of The Way of the Exploding Fist. Sometimes other games literally contained identical animations and blatantly obviously redrawn versions of the same sprites found in this game.
Moves are performed by tapping a direction alone or in conjunction with the attack button. This control system allows for about a dozen attacks, the ability to walk, jump forward, and jump backward. You can block and evade, but these moves are not reliable due to the game's bad controls. Like in KC, moves can reward you with a whole point or a half point and the first to reach two points wins.
As I stated earlier, my major complaint Exploding Fist is the controls. Your character will keep facing the same direction if your opponent moves behind you. You can face your opponent again by executing any of the three attacks in that direction. However, these moves can also be executed when you are already facing your opponent, forcing you to turn again to face the correct direction. Why not program the game so the characters were always facing each other? The game's visuals, however, are high end for the time. The animations are fluid and there are four backgrounds with high levels of detail. Audio effects are outrageous. Exploding Fist utilyses Bruce Lee movie inspired effects like high pitched screams and kung-fu movie cracks.
There were a few ports of this game. The Commodore 64 version is by far the best with superior graphics and sound. The Amstrad CPC version is not as good, but better than any of the other versions. Just stay away from the BBC Micro and ZX Spectrum versions. Their limited visual and aural capabilities fall in comparison to the C64.
There is a Fist 2, which is a 2-D action game, but this was the only other fighter in the series. You move the guy from the original along repetitive terrain, climb ladders, jump over pits, and occasionally fight battles. These battles play EXACTLY like WotEF, except with the point system replaced with a health bar. There is also a "training mode", which plays like a 1 on 1 fighter. This is the same as the action mode's battles, but the health bar is replaced with health points. Making it more or less a remake of WotEF. Oh, and the action mode is shit and is best avoided. The training mode is inferior to WotEF, so just go with the original instead. There is also a ZX Spectrum port, which is the same, but crappier.
Exploding Fist+, the third game in the Fist series, was a knock off of International Karate+, a sequel to International Karate, which was a clone of The Way of the Exploding Fist, which, again, was a clone of Karate Champ. The only differences from The Way of the Exploding Fist is the point system has been changed and three characters are active in each fight. The only difference here from IK + is that all three characters can be played at the same time. This feature seems like fun, but three people can make it a bit crowded around a computer. It's cool just to have the option, though. This feature made Fist + the first fighter to allow more than two people to play at the same time. The best version by far is the Commodore 64 version. Don't waste you time with the Amstrad CPC or ZX Spectrum versions, as they are vastly inferior in every respect.
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The Way of the Exploding Fist (Commodore 64)
The Way of the Exploding Fist (Commodore 64)
The Way of the Exploding Fist (Commodore 64)
Fist + (Spectrum)
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International Karate - Atari ST / Commodore 64 / Amstrad CPC /Gameboy Color / ZX Spectrum / PC /MSX / Atari 2600 (1986)
Commodore 64 Box Cover
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International Karate (Atari 8-Bit)
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International Karate (Atari 8-Bit)
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International Karate marks the beginning of WotEF plagiarism. There really are no differences between this game and WotEF, at all. They both have the exact same gameplay. The only thing that was different about the game's visuals in the original releases was that there were eight backgrounds as opposed to four. Otherwise it seems to have redrawings of the exact same sprites that WotEF had. Despite being a complete copy of Exploding Fist, this became WAY more popular. This game was among the most popular fighters outside of Japan until SFII was released. The audio was composed by Rob Hubbard, a very popular vgm composer among C64 music fans. He would later go on to compose the audio for this game's sequel and many other games such as Bangkok Knights, Budokan, Skate or Die, and Road Rash.
The computer ports vary greatly. The Atari 8-bit version is middle of the road in terms of sounds and visuals. The ZX Spectrum version is the worst in every respect. The Amstrad CPC version is bad to the point of being unplayable. I had high expectations for the MSX version because YAKF was so good, but this port of IR is terrible. The Commodre 64 version (retitled as "World Karate Championship" when brought to the US) is the best in its original form by far. Do not even bother with the other original versions of the game. The Atari ST and PC versions were graphical remakes. They look way more high end, but lack the original aesthetics.
The Gameboy Color port is among the strangest modified ports ever made. The gameplay is very different from the initial released version. The best improvement is that the characters will face each other at all times. Attacks are still executed by tapping a direction and a button at the same time, but are performed slightly differently. Another change is the addition of a health bar. Getting in a hit after the health bar is depleted results in a knock down, which can be worth a half point or a whole point. The first player to score three points will win a round and the best two out of three rounds will win a match. In addition, there are more characters and redrawn backgrounds. These characters all seem to play the same so what was the point of this addition?
There was also a release called International Karate +. This is exactly the same as IK, except with a slightly different scoring system and three characters at the same time in each fight. The third character can not be played as in EF +, however. The controls are maybe a little more responsive than IK or WotEF, but these changes are not really noticeable differences. This is the first fighter to have more than two competitors in a free-for-all style fight.
The scoring system has been changed so that the goal is to score six points before your opponents. I would assume that hits are capable of scoring a lone point, but every hit that I have landed in this game seems to score two points. After a few hits a character can be eliminated, which will cause the fight to pause then resume with the remaining two fighters. The game is visually different from IK or WotEF in that is has only one background. The animation might be a little smoother, but not noticeably so. Music is composed by the same guy that composed for the first game. It also has samples taken directly from Bruce Lee's movie "Enter the Dragon".
As with damn near any fighter release on the computer, the ZX Spectrum port of this game was not very good. However, the Amstrad CPC is pretty much like the others, unlike most of the fighters released on that platform. The Commodore 64 version was good and was retitled Chop n' Drop for the American release. The Playstation, Amiga, and Atari ST versions are identical and are slightly better looking than the Commodore 64 version with the same gameplay. There were two versions released for the Gameboy Advance. The first was called International Karate Advance and is a sequel to the visual remake for Game Boy Color. The gameplay is pretty much the same as the GBC predecessor, but the backgrounds are much more refined. The second is identical to the Amiga, Atari ST, and Playstation versions, except with slightly modified controls.
All in all, despite knocking off both KC and its clone WotEF, IK is a decent game. It's probably better than EF +, because of slightly smoother controls. IK has a superior one-on-one mode, too. However if you have two other people to play the game with in three player mode, I would recommend EF +, rather than IK.
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International Karate (Atari 8-Bit)
International Karate (Atari ST)
International Karate (GBC)
International Karate (GBC)
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Gladiator - Arcade / PC / Playstation 2 / Xbox (1986)
Gladiator
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Gladiator
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Gladiator
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This game plays kind of like a much faster version of Great Swordsman, though you have a shield for blocking and the developer added scrolling sections similar to Yie Ar Kung-Fu 2. There are three buttons that will attack high, straight, or low. The shield is at mid level when the joystick is at neutral or while moving, and can be moved up or down by holding the joystick in that direction. If you move the joystick up and down rapidly, a force field (force field? Aren't these gladiators?) will appear and protect your character temporarily. This move can only be executed once per level. There are no life meters in Gladiator. Instead, when a character is hit a piece of their armor will break off. If the fighters are hit where they no longer are wearing armor, they'll be killed. In a way, this hit system is an early example of fatalities in a fighter. Your shield or sword can also absorb hits and will break if hit enough.
The biggest problem with Gladiator is the difficulty. Other than the first few guys, opponents will block every attack you throw at them. Their shields can be damaged, but this doesn't do a thing to make it any easier. Interestingly enough, in the Japanese version, the female gladiator's bare breasts are visible when her chest plate is destroyed.
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Gladiator
Gladiator
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Brian Jack's Uchi Mata Commodore 64 / Amstrad CPC / ZX Spectrum (1986)
Brian Jack's Uchi Mata (Commodore 64)
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Brian Jack's Uchi Mata (Commodore 64)
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Brian Jack's Uchi Mata (Amstrad CPC)
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Uchi Mata is the first fighter to have Street Fighter-style controller motions. These moves need to be executed very quickly and with a keyboard, making them nigh impossible to execute. The game requires that you tap the action button while approaching an opponent and then enter a command very quickly. If these are both executed properly the opponent will be thrown to the ground. The complexity of the controls seems to implemented to add challenge and a learning curve to the game, requiring the player to learn the complexities to do well in the game. Unfortunately, it's just not fun at all.
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Brian Jack's Uchi Mata (ZX Spectrum)
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Trojan - Nintendo Entertainment System (1986)
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When the Capcom action game "Trojan" was ported to NES from the arcades, it got a VS. mode that plays like a fighter and remains exclusive to this version. As this port was made in 1986, that technically makes it Capcom's first foray into the fighter genre. Both players control the playable character from the action game mode, but you can only play it with two players. Matches are fought in a best-three-out-of-five format. Health is measured with a health meter comprised of several notches, and a lone notch will be depleted with each hit. Down ducks, Up jumps, and there is a block button that will cause your character to block with a shield. You can only attack with a single sword strike, but can attack or block while airborne or while ducking, making it a early example of air blocking in a fighter. There are even hit levels, allowing for mix-ups, and with correct timing it is even possible to hit air blocking opponents in the feet.
The control responsiveness is actually pretty good, and attacks are quick, so you can switch from a block to a strike very quickly, and vise versa, making precise timing a important part of gameplay. Oddly enough, you can't jump over your opponent, which makes cornering your opponent far too easy, and makes the ducking block an impenetrable form of defense. While not the worst fighter by any means, you will spend matches mostly just hacking away.
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Trojan
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Karate - Atari 2600 (1987)
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"Developed by Froggo for Atari 2600, "Karate" is the lone fighter for the console. The playing field is more like a beat-em-up, though, and allows the players to move in and out of the screen, as well as back and forth. There are four attacks that are each performed by holding any of the four directions and tapping the lone button. Keeping the joystick in neutral will perform the "up" attack. Matches are timed and each of the four available attacks is worth varying point totals. The competitor with the most points after the timer ran out would be declared the winner. Karate, disappointingly, really is a terrible game. The worst part is the hit detection, which almost seems to be randomized. Controls are horribly poorly responsive, and the characters' movement "feels" extremely awkward, sluggish, and stiff. It might be novel and campy to play a fighter with generic Atari 2600 graphics and audio, but the hit detection and game physics kill it's chances of offering any other appeal.
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Karate
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