Two players can tackle the underground fighting scene, beating
down various adversaries until they're knocked out. This is done with grainy, digitized
sprites, which were at the time amazing. Now, with their limited animation, it hinders the
gameplay.This is an agonizing port. If it didn't attempt to mimic the arcade game, it would have been better off. The sprites scale in and out of the background, and on the washed out screen of the Lynx, it's hard to determine depth. It's all a matter of luck when a punch connects, and considering this is the heart of the gameplay, it's unacceptable.
Life bars are difficult to discern against the background, and
weapons are rarely used due to the convoluted control scheme. This is one of those games
that uses every button on the console, including combinations of the out-of-the-way option
buttons and the d-pad. Again, it's copying the arcade game, but not on a system where this
is possible. All of this, including an impossible to enjoy soundtrack, renders the game almost unplayable. It could be saved by a decent speed. It's not, and this game barely even seems to be working. Any of the fast paced action the game drew its entertainment value from is lost, all because it pushes the console well beyond where it can go.
This remains the one of two portable versions (the other being on the Game Boy). It's not worth it for fans, or for curiosity. The title's chances were excellent, but the developer's intentions of making a perfect port are lost on the gameplay.
