~ WORLD HEROES 2 ~
SNK / Hudson Soft
Arcade CD-ROM
1994
World Heroes 2 can't hold a candle to its Fatal Fury ACD brothers graphically. Its soundtrack, while decent, boasts nothing that can compare with the best FF numbers. It does play a bit better than the Fatals, but there's no chance anyone will ever confuse
it with Street Fighter II. And now that I've sufficiently ragged on what one would think are the game's most important elements, let me say that I do enjoy WH2, mainly for its crazy cast. Among the psychotic pugilists who broke free of the nuthouse to join said cast are a
viking, a fencer, a pirate, a witch doctor, a magician, a wrestler, and a gigantic football player.
WH2 bolsters its acceptable SF2-style gameplay with neat "counter" techniques that allow you to deflect projectile attacks (and damage your adversaries in the process).
And to further separate itself from the crowd, it presents a "Death Match" alternative mode in which you must claim the balance of a single life meter while avoiding hazards like razor blades and land mines.
World Heroes 2 isn't a special fighter, but it's a likable one. Fans of the genre should get their ten bucks' worth out of it.
