Archview #37: Justice League Heroes

 Since Marvel did it with Ultimate Alliance and Xmen Legends, DC had to get it's own RPG'em up!

 As much as fanboys would love to deny it, DC and Marvel are constantly borrowing ideas from each other, and it seems that trend applies to their games as well. Justice League Heroes is a beat'em up with a couple of RPG elements thrown in, in the same vein as Marvel Ultimate Alliance. Except on a smaller scale, but I'm not here to compare them, so let's get on with it.
 A meteorite rock falls upon the earth, and at the same time, a army of killer robots runs amok the city, and it's up to the Justice League to deal with it. Eventually the plot deepens, and many familiar faces, among some a bit more obscure like The Key, make their appearance. The Story is very Comic-y, there are alternate dimensions, missile silos and, of course, men in tights, but there's nothing to ground breaking about it, yet it gets the job of tying all the levels together done.

 Players take up to two characters on each missions, and there's a pretty respectable roster, albeit a bit small. Sadly, most of the time the game picks the characters for you. On some levels it makes sense, as there are puzzles based upon the characters, but they are the minority. Worst part is, all of the unlockable characters go unused, only usable on the few missions where you can select your heroes, and they will fall behind in level, as you don't get to use them as often.
 Each character has access to 5 different powers(The unlockable characters get screwed, with only four), while sharing the basic weak and strong blows with the rest of the cast. Thrown about the levels are many objects that can be grabbed, but some of the physically weaker can't grab the bigger ones(Neat detail, although they kinda forgot that Aquaman is supposed to be of the stronger ones...). Characters can also jump, and by double jumping some get to fly, glide dive with a kick or simply jump again(How Aquaman pulls another jump on the air continuis to baffle me).

 As mentioned before, there are RPG elements included. When enemies are defeated, they drop experience points, get enough experience and you level up. Every time you level up you get a couple of points to spend in a variety of stats, Health, Combat, Energy or the abilities of your hero. Even better, sometimes enemies drop "Boosts", you can use these boosts to customize your skills! Maybe add a Duration boost to Green lantern's shield? Or a Range Boost to Aquaman's sword... It's a very engaging system.
 The controls do their job, but sometimes using skills can be a bit unresponsive, specially in the heat of battle. Also, the game is meant to be played with another player, drop in-drop out cooperative play is an awesome addition, as the CPU can be dumb as bricks. The tend to get stuck on walls, they love to get ganged up by enemies, and they refuse to use their skills. Take Zatanna, for example, she can heal... but the CPU will refuse to use said skill until either character has 10% HP left or less, usually getting itself killed.

 Visually, it's a very nice looking game. There's a lot going on at the same time, with very little slowdown. The physics are also very nice to look at, destroying vases, boxes and plates can be quite distracting. The models used on the CG cutscenes however... They don't look altogether right, the ladies have huge breasts and the faces? They are a bit unsettling. The music? You'll barely notice it due to all the grunts and noises, but it's nothing worth humming. Voice acting is totally overdone, like a Saturday Morning Cartoon, although Perlman's Batman could use some work. The lines, fitting the voiceacting, can get quite cheesy, but on the brightside, there's lots of dialogue, even from the unlockable characters and they pertain the mission they are in!.
 The game is a bit on the easy side, if you play with a human player, but with a CPU it can get a bit vexing, but you do get regenerating health, and going back to any checkpoint revives your teammate, should they fall in battle. There's a slew of unlockables, from costumes to heroes, but the unlockable heroes don't get much love. They don't have alternate costumes and they lack a fifth power. Surprisingly, Hal Jordan and Kyle Rayner are in, and although they each have a spot on the character select screen, they play just like Jon Stewart(Which means they are the only unlockables with 5 abilities).
 All in all, it's a decent game, though keep in mind that it can and it will get a bit repetitive after a while, so play in small doses!.
 7 out of 10.

First Archimpressions: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

 Look at that beautiful box art. It looks much better in person, trust me.

 I've never been much of a Zelda fan. My first Zelda was Ocarina of Time, and afterwards I played through Link's Awakening DX, Majora's Mask, A Link to the Past and Twilight Princess, but I never saw what everyone else saw in the series. To be fair, after my second playthrough of Twiligh Princess, I did love the game, but that's another story. Regardless, Skyward Sword was the first Zelda game I got excited about in the "I need to play this" kind of way(Before I even learned to love Twilight Princess), and here I am.
 First impressions? I just clocked two hours, and I'm loving it. I'm still torn on which opening to a Zelda game I prefer, this one or TP's. In this one, you are introduced to a wide variety of unique NPCs, and I'm loving th setting: People in the sky, a lifelong animal partner, a academy of Knights... I'm really digging it. What I'm not digging are the motion controls for the sake of having them. After the beautiful scene between Link and Zelda atop the statue, I was forced to land on a circle. Said scene was soon ruined by frustration at having to retry the fall, since falling is now controlled with motion controls. Fun, except not.
 Also, controlling Link sometimes is a bit sloppish due to the camera, nothing major, but it's a bit annoying. On the other hand, the soundtrack is downright epic, and the graphics? EHRMAGHEDDDDD, characters look very appealing, all featuring unique bodies and face types. And they are VERY expressive, I love them. All in all, despite my annoyances at the controls, I'm looking forwards to it, I hope it doesn't disappint.

Archview #36: The Legend of Dragoon

 And so I lay my demons, err, Dragons to rest.

 The Legend of Dragoon was an JRPG released towards the end of the PS1's life cycle. It had a massive 100-hundred man team(That was a large team, at the time) and a very ambitious goal. It was released to a very mixed reception, some called it average, some called it good. Me? Well, back then I wasn't a fan...
 Regardless, LoD tells the story of Dart, a man in pursuit of the "Black Monster", the creature that killed his parents, who eventually finds out he is one of the selected "Dragoons", men who harness the powers of the Dragons. Of course, there are many other nuances to the story, it is a four disc game after all.

 When exploring, the game plays like any other JRPG, you go from towns and dungeons to towns and dungeons to advance the story. The overworld here is a bit more streamlined, as Dart can only walk through predefined tracks that lead from place to place. Combat is where the game adds it's own twist. For starters, after you get their Dragoon Spirit, every character can turn into a Dragoon after increasing their SP above a hundred, which you get by attacking, every hundred of SP you get another Dragoon turn, up to five. Dragoons have only two commands, Attack and Dragoon Magic, which make seem little, but humans have no spells of their own, what's more, Dragoons have a higher attack power and defence rating than humans, so early in the game, they are fantastic.
 The real "hook" of the game, however, are the additions. When you attack, characters don't simply execute an attack, nope, every attack is a rythim minigame in which you must press the X button following certain visual cues. Sometimes enemies may "counterattack", which has you pressing O instead, unless you want your addition interrupted and recieve some damage. As you level up, each character gets anywhere from 3 to 7 different "additions", with different number of button presses, which must be selected in the Status menu. I must admit I was afraid it would get tiresome in the long run, but they never grew old. As stated before, humans have no spells of their own, to use magic they must use items, and since item capacity is limited, you must choose wisely.

 LoD has a very mixed visual presentation, while characters are very jaggy, they are quite detailed, and the designs, while basic, are pretty cool, specially when they go Dragoon. On the other hand, the spells, particularily their particles and transparencies look very good. The Pre-rendered backgrounds themselves are pretty interesting too, and it's pretty clear where you can go and where you cannot. The soundtrack is the presentation's strongest asset, there are many different pieces, and they all sound so good. There's a bit of voice acting too, and it's passable at it's best, and hilarious at it's worst, it kinda ruined one of the scenes during the ending where I found myself laughing, but it's not that bad. Not always.
 Now onto my gripes, first of all, backtracking. Every time you need to go from point A to point B, you have to go through every town and dungeon in between, you do get... means of quick travel on the fourth disc, but only for a little a while, and a little bit too late. Speaking of backtracking, some cities are only found on some discs, which means that you may need to switch between discs if you missed any optional sidequest, I found this one to be a minor annoyance, but worth noting anyways. Also, I found some of the plot points to be a bit cliche'd, even for it's time. But I did find the characters to be very well defined, and each had their own personality, even if some got shifted a bit to the sidelines. Lastly, items. There is a limit, as stated, and as bothersome as that could be, if you try to open a chest with your inventory full you won't know what's in th chest. Which means, if you want to check the contents, you need to make a gamble and discard something.

 To sum up, The Legend of Dragoon is a bit different. It's not unique, but it has it's own unique twists on the Combat, and in my opinion, they work. I did have find some annoyances with the game, but they didn't get in the way of my enjoyment of it. I really don't get why I didn't like it back then, maybe it wasn't the game I needed, but the one I deserved...
9 out of 10.

First Archimpressions: Kirby's Epic Yarn

 I don't think this is my kind of game...

 Yeah, I don't like it too much. I applaud Nintendo for trying something different, but this is not for me. And it's not like I hate "cutesy" stuff, I adore Yoshi's Island and Yoshi's Story, and I think the look of the game is pretty neat, it's the gameplay that fails to attract me. For starters, Kirby borrows some of Wario's classic mechanics, namely, he can't die. Instead, when he get hits he losses some of the gems he has collected. However, unlike Wario, there are no puzzles here, sure you can manipulate some of the backgrounds elements, but it's very straightforward. Then there's the music, it's too relaxing. Kirby always has upbeat "happy" music, the music in this game is way more "laid back" so to speak. I don't like it.
 The gameplay feels repetitive. I've only played two levels, but.... I don't think I'm gonna enjoy this one. It's different, that's for sure, but not my kind of different.

Entry Number 100: Archile's Top 10 Favorite Games

 This is so happening. But first, honorable mentions, I really wanted to put these two in, but there simply was
no room for them. Eternal despair.

 Honorable Mention #1: Zone of the Enders 2(Playstation 2, ZoE HD Collection on PS3/X360)

 I've played this game many times, and it never gets old. It has some of the most amazing set pieces I've ever played in my life, like the air battle in which you must take down the Battleships with the cannon, the epic battle on the dessert or just how badass using 0 Shift makes you feel. Epic falls short when describing this game.

 Honorable Mention #2: Gundam Extreme VS(Playstation 3)

 Everything I love in a game is here. Basically a fighting game, has a very arcade-like feel, pick-up-and-play but with many nuances to master, loads of playable units(Over 60!) and loads of content. This game is a blast to play, every time.

 Honorable Mention #3: Resident Evil 4(Nintendo Wii, also on PS2, PS3, X360, PC, GC)

 Everyone knows about this one, but why do I like it so much? Let's just say I didn't like Resident Evil(And I played all of the numbered ones, including Code Veronica) until I played this one.

 Honorable Mention #4: Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne(Playstation 2)

 What I love the most about JRPGs is character developement, so I was a bit scared, with the HitoShura being the only playable (demi)human character, and he being a silent protagonist... Well, it didn't matter, the whole story of the game was incredible. From the world getting devastated, to how the few surviving humans saw the world and how they were motivated... it was a fantastic RPG from beginning to end.

 And now that that is out of the way, onwards with the list!

 Number #10: Orcs And Elves(Nintendo DS also on Mobile Phones)

 I first came across the series when I played Doom RPG(A Mobile Phone game). It was fantastic, a grid turn based, first-person RPG based on the Doom series, and it fit the mobile platform so well. On Mobile Phones, controls always suck, so being turn based, you never never handicapped by them. You could save anywhere and anytime. Needless to say, I played it many times, and never grew tired of it. Eventually I saw a trailer for a new game that would be coming out in a couple of months, Orcs and Elves, "Oh! Reminds me of Doom RPG", so I did some research and it turned out that Orcs and Elves were made by the same people and using the same engine, and this DS game was an enhanced port of the mobile version, which meant, I had to get it!. I played the hell out of Orcs and Elves Mobile, I liked it even more than Doom RPG.
 I bought the DS version at launch, and never regreted it. While I played and finished the mobile version way more times, it's due to it's more "I take my cellphone everywhere" nature, I finished the DS version loads of times on all difficulties.If I were to choose between versions, I'd go with the DS version anytime. Everything that made the original so good is here(Even the save anywhere anytime feature) but with better graphics(way better) and more content, it's a no brainer. It also had a sequel on mobile phones, and I also played it many times, however, making it work on my phone was a bit of a pain in the butt, so I never grew as attached to it as I did with the first one.

 Number #9: Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga(Playstation 2)

 SMT: DDS(Known simply as Devil Turner in Japan) is a two part game, so I picked it as one game. However, I find the first part to be more enthralling. The first part is the set up, you are introduced to a cast of entraniable characters, you'll soon grow fond of each every member in your party, even Cielo. In this first part, you take the role of Serph, the leader of Embryo, one of the many tribes fighting for dominance in a crapsack world. At the start of the game, everyone gets branded with a Demon Virus, which makes them turn into demons, and now have to devour each other if they are to grow stronger. The story is very interesting, and the way they are presented is incredibly memorable. One of my favorite scenes is during the ending, when a really short, but fantastic, musical piece plays as the whole cast gets separated... it's one of the best scenes I've ever scene, and I doubt I will ever forget about it!
 Part 2 takes off right after the first game ended, and provides characters with incredible moments of badassery and tearjerker scenes. It's, emotionally, a much stronger game, but I kinda missed the world from the first game. Also, I felt the last parts of the game got a little too insane, but it hardly blemishes this fantastic game. The second part also rebalanced all the skills, so you can't cheap out the extremely hard optional bosses like you could on the first game, heck, even the main game is more challenging.
 Digital Devil Saga is highly recomendable as a whole, but no part should be played without the other!

 Number #8: Half-Life 2(PC also on PS3, X360)

 I really don't know why I bought this game. I wasn't fond of the first part(Now that I've played it, I can say that it was quite good, but at the time I felt it was meh) so I don't know what got into my head, but thank god it did. This game has one thing in common with entry #5, which is something I love... It's one huge world, and you are  constantly moving forward, with no "breaks" or stage transitions. It's hard to explain, but it feels epic, it feels like a nonstop adventure!
 To be fair, I was never an Alyx fan or whatever, I just loved the game. The weapons, the setting, the gameplay, everything felt so good, I still have fond memories of bringing down the barriers that cut your way through the water. And the Magnum? My favorite weapon in an FPS, heck, it made me favor the Magnum in every other game I play. And who can forget the beginning of the game, when you are unarmed and must escape from the guards? The fact that the game never takes you away from Gordon's eyes helps get you invested in the game, even when the NPCs are talking and you've nothing to do but wait until they are finished, but hey, you can run around and throw things at them while they run their mouths. The game started with a bang and it only got better.

 Number 7: Pokemon HeartGold(Nintendo DS also on GB/GBC as Pokemon Gold)

 Look at that cover. It's one of my favorite covers of all time(It looks better in real life, trust me). I've said many times what Pokemon Gold means to me. I dare say that it was the best Pokemon game until Heart Gold came out. Sure, Ruby/Saphire/Emerald/FireRed/GreenLeaf and Pearl/Diamond/Platinum introduced many new things and commodities, but did any of them have two big regions to explore? Did any of them have better pokemon than the second generation(This is a matter of taste, and in my opinion, no they don't)? With every new Pokemon generation, you get more ZigZagoons and the value of legendary pokemon diminishes(Seriously, there's like 30 legendaries now).
 Regardless, I'm here to talk about what makes Heart Gold so awesome, and that I will. For starters, Pokemon Gold in it's entirety is here, looking better than never. All the commodities that the games after Gold introduced are added. And, for the first time since Yellow, you can have a Pokemon follow you around. This is the only Generation to include two regions, and if you grew up with Pokemon, there's the whole Nostalgia factor of seeing it again. Heck, it also worked for Pokemon Gold, going back to see what happened to the world you had explored in Red/Blue/Yellow!
 If you ever liked Pokemon, or had a passing interest in it, this is the game to play.

 Number #6:  No More Heroes(Nintendo Wii and PS3, X360) / No More Heroes 2(Nintendo Wii)

 I remember reading about this game even before I had a Wii, but I didn't really care about it, seems it was touted as the next big Wii game or something, and it had fairly divisive reviews. Eventually, I bought it and I played it... and I fell in love with it. Never had I played a game with so much personality. Every boss had an introductory secuence and a death secuence, and in just a couple of minutes, the game managed to make each one very memorable. And the main character, Travis? He is my favorite video-game character of all time, from his look to the fantastic work done by Robin Atkin Downes as his voice actor. This game just oozes style everywhere.
 It also got a Sequel and... I loved it as much as the first one. To be fair, No More Heroes 2 lost a bit of it's personality, the bosses are not as memorable(Not to say they are not, but I'm comparing it to the first NMH) but the gameplay got better. Heck, even the graphics got better, probably one of the best looking Wii games. I really couldn't pick one above the other, sure No More Heroes 2 lacks some of the style and personality( The game has so much of it that I just can't stop saying the word) the first one had, but it feels much better, as a game, it's better.
 Eventually, the first game was ported to the HD consoles, alongside some of the bosses from the second game and... I'd pick the Wii version over them. As incredible as it sounds, the motion controls on NMH feel very responsive and satisfying, while the analog sticks on the PS3 didn't feel as such. And while NMH Wii had slowdown... the HD port has it too, and it's simply inexcusable here, the game doesn't even look that good. Oh, and they gave Travis abs. Travis is a nerd, he doesn't have abs. Unforgivable.

 Number #5: Dungeon Siege 1(PC)/ Dungeon Siege 2(PC)

 Since I let NMH 1 and 2 take the same spot, I just had to make another exception for Dungeon Siege. So, without further ado, here's my story with Dungeon Siege. So I was young, and I saw this cover with a redhead holding a flaming sword and I said "I need to play this" so I bought it. This was the second RPG I ever played online and did I have adventures. I hold many memories of Dungeon Siege 1, I've played it a dozen of times, and I tried to replay it last year before the bugs, due to it's conflict with Windows 7, made me abandon the game. Sad times. But what sets it apart from other hack and slashes? The same thing I love so much about Half Life 2, you are always moving forwards. Sure, you can go back, but enemies don't respawn. There's no central Hub, there's nothing, it's an epic adventure to stop the Krugs.
 Dungeon Siege 2, just like No More Heroes 2, is a better game. They polished up the engine, made it prettier, added new weapons, new companion times, new spells and added special skills. It's a much better game... however, now it's just another Diablo 2 clone. The towns, one per chapter, act as hubs, and every time you reload your game, everything respawns. DS 2 is a better game, but it lost DS 1's personality... still, I had a blast playing it, and that's what matters.
 There's a PSP game, that I haven't played, and a third game, which I own but have yet to play. I did play the demo, and I liked it a lot, but I felt it was a Dungeon Siege game in name only. Still, they made a reference to the mules, so you gotta give'em points for trying.

 Number #4: Tekken Tag Tournament 2(Playstation 3 and X360, WiiU)

 The most recent game on the list, and the only fighting game(And I call myself a Fighting Game Lover!) featured here. Tekken Tag 2 is the ultimate Tekken game. My story with Tekken is a bit... odd. The first Tekken game was 2, and I didn't even know it was Tekken, I just knew it as "that arcade game with the guy that has the head of a tiger((It's a leopard, by the by)) and the robot with the hat" and I never payed much attention to it. Then I played Tekken 3, and it was one of the reasons I decided to ditch Nintendo, and instead to upgrading to a Gamecube, I jumped ship to the Playstation 2. I loved both Tag and Tekken 4, but since my PS2 was KIA, I never got to play 5 until much later. By the time I played 5, 6 was already out, but I only had a PS2. I didn't really like it too much, so I never cared much about it. Fast forward a couple of years later, a friend got a 360 and I played Tekken 6, and suddenly my love for the series returned, Tekken 6 was the reason I decided to get a next gen console.
 Tekken Tag 2 is the culmination of everything that is and was good about the series. Almost every character that appeared in the games is here, with rare exceptions( And they would've been clones anyways). It's also the second game to have tag mechanics in more than 10 years since Tekken Tag 1. And, hate the tag mechanics? You can play as one versus two. Or one versus one. This game has it all. And I'm not even mentioning the stuff that is a given on any Tekken game, the great character designs and their incredibly long movelists. The graphics are great, with each character having it's own unique musculature. There's also the tried and true gameplay that has been forged through over 7 iterations of the series....
 Tekken Tag Tournament 2 is, quite likely, the best Fighting Game that came out of this generation, and I doubt it'll be topped any time soon.

 Number #3: Super Mario Bros.(Gameboy Color and virtually every Nintendo console has it in some shape or form)

 I'm pretty sure this is the first game I've ever played, but seeing how I was about 3 and we had many of those bootleg 400-in-1 carts, I could be wrong. Super Mario Bros is a timeless classic, it doesn't matter how old it grows, it will never be obsolete. There's something elegant to the simplicity of it's premise and controls, this game comes from simpler times, and it's fun in it's purest form. To this day, at least for me, the game keeps being as fun as it was 20 years ago, and at this point, I seriously doubt I'll ever grow tired of it.
 As for why I picked GBC version, I feel it has the most content. Sure, I could've gone with All-Star Super Mario Bros+Mario World, but seeing how I never really owned it, I'm going to go with the version I actually own. Super Mario Bros Color has extra features, like racing against boo, or 3 hidden red coins on each level. Super Mario Bros 2(AKA The Lost levels) are also included, so really, what's to hate about it? Oh yeah, the screen was compromised, since the GBC's screen was a wee bit too small, but it never bothered me.

 Number #2: Shin Megami Tensei Persona 4(Playstation 2 and Playstation Vita)

 This was my introduction into the Shin Megami Tensei series, and what an introduction it was. Confession time, I got so hooked into it, that I would actually lock myself in my room, close all curtains and turn off every light source in order to better enjoy the game. I would actually tell my friends that I was "Busy" or "couldn't go out due to X reason" in order to play this game. I soaked in a good 80+ hours in my first run, and I enjoyed every last one of them.
 What made it so good? The setting. The believable characters. The mechanics. The presentation. Everything. Unlike other JRPGs, this one was set in a highschool. Every character in the main cast, heck, some of the minor characters too, got a lot of developement, and they were very believable, they made sense. And the mechanics? Brilliant. The One More was a fantastic idea, which I later found out was borrowed from Shin Megami Tensei 3(And Digital Devil Saga too). Then there was the presentation, from the JPopish music, to the bright colors everywhere, the game was very loud, in a good way.
 For a time, this was my favorite game ever, until I replayed Number 1 and realized that, nope, I liked number 1 a tiny bit better...

 Number #1: Final Fantasy VII(Playstation and PC, PS3)

 Was there any doubt? I mean, seriously. I've mentioned my love for this game time and time again. I've mentioned my story with the game time and time again. So I'm just gonna leave some closing words here.
 Final Fantasy VII is a game that I know almost by heart. I can recognize almost every song, I know almost every step in the game from memory, few secrets escape me. Last year, after I finished the game, for many days there after, I'd think to myself "Ah, I'll play some FF7 now" only to remember, and disappoint myself, that I had already finished it.
 I adore Final Fantasy VII.

"First" Archimpressions: The Legend of Dragoon

 I liked it more than I remembered liking it. Actually, I think I liked it more than I thought I did.

 I'm almost 3 hours in(2:57), with Dart at level 7 and both Lavitz and Shana at 6 and about to enter Indels Catle at Bale's. It's... fun, the additions system is interesting, but I feel it may make grinding a bit of a pain later on, since for optimal damage output, your brain's going to have to be on all the time.
 Things I like? You start with small number. You start at level 1, with 60 HP and deal less than 10 damage per attack. That's cool. Few RPGs work with the full spectrum of numbers, often times starting you at level 5 to 7, and with hundreds of HP. I also dig how the game starts with a bang, no silly caves or forests, oh no, the first dungeon of the game is a Prison Escape.
 Things I dislike? Limited item capacity. The worst part, is that you won't even know what's inside the chests, a simple "Inventory is full" prompt will pop up and that's it. You have to discard something and hope that whatever is inside is better. Not cool. Another thing I dislike, but haven't encountered yet(But I remember it!) is how in order to backtrack you have to traverse the whole dungeons again, if they stand in your way. And the game will have you backtracking, I remember it so.
 Ah well, so far it seems like a pretty decent game.

Archview #35: Rival Schools

 Moero Moero MOEEEROOOOOOOOOOOOO!!

 Played on: PS1 game played on a PS2
 Rival Schools is a 2-disc, 3D 2 on 2 fighting game in which you pick a team of highschool students(Or teachers. Or one of each.) and are tasked with finding out the mistery of the disappearanced. Obviously, this being a fighting game, the only way you are going to find out anything is by punching the living hell out of everyone in the most badass way possible. Interestingly, there is no tagging mechanic, but you can change to your partner character, if you want, after every round and there's a team up attack(Each character has his/her own unique team up move) too.
 Unlike most Capcom fighting games, there's only four buttons at play here: Weak Punch, Strong Punch, Weak Kick and Strong Kick. Obviously, there's your assortment of Special and Super moves for each character. By double tapping forward you can dash, and double tapping back you get a small backdash. Throws are done by pressing both punch buttons, and you can even grab crouching opponents! You can dodge moves by pressing both kick buttons, time it right and it gets you right on your enemy's back. This is a very fast paced game, it has it's own physics which give certain weight to the characters and it feels awesome, heck, air and ground recovies, while being a shared animation among all characters, looks incredible, and it borrows a lot from the Marvel VS Capcom series, you launch your opponent into the air by pressing diagonal forward and down+SP or SK(Depends on the character, just like MvC!). Lastly, by using two energy bars and pressing a punch and kick button, you can use the Team Up attack, if you land it, you call upon your partner and execute the move.

 As mentioned before, it is a 2-disc game. The first disc, dubbed the Arcade Disc, touts itself as being an Arcade perfect convertion of the game. This disc has three Play modes, Arcade mode, Versus(2P only) and Training. In Arcade Mode, if you pick two characters from the same school, you actually get voiced dialogue before and after every fight that help tell the story of said school, voices are in japanese, but the dialogue is kinda interesting. Each character also gets two ending, both voiced unlike the Arcade Version.
 The Evolution Disc is a more multiplayer friendly disc. The Booklet mentions that it has been "adjusted for optimum balance" but I didn't notice any different property on the moves. Training mode is gone, but Versus Mode and Arcade mode remains, however, all dialogue in the Arcade Mode is now gone, and while the endings are still here, they are not voiced, but there are two new animated endings that play every time you beat the game and they are pretty decent. This Disc includes many modes like Group Battle(2 Player only), League Battle(Team vs Teams on a round robin format), Tournament battle, Cooperate Battle(2 Player only, each character takes control of each character of the team) and finally, Lesson Mode, which is a 1 Player tutorial of sorts. Finally, this disc has many extras, each female(But Akira and Sakura) gets a new costume(Costume, not pallette), there are four minigames and 24 "Students"(Generic characters that borrow moves from the main cast) to unlock.

 Graphically, characters are extremely blocky, although a bit charming, but they have a lot of personality, hands are huge(Like the official art) and the faces are pretty expresive in spite of being so simple. Regardless, the official art by Edayan is amazing and is easily 50% of what makes the cast of Rival Schools so appealing, they are all school stereotypes, you have the Delinquent, the Jock, The Cheerleader and so on. Voice Acting is amazing, albeit in japanese, further making each character stand out from the others. The music is pretty upbeat and lends itself to the action niceley, and the SFX are very Capcomish. If you've played other Capcom games from the era, you know what I mean.
  Rival Schools is the Bancho of all fighting games, it may not be the best fighting game, nor prettiest, but it has so much soul pourn into it, from the characters to the setting. Sadly, it was probably a bit too japanese, and therefore fell off people's radars... which is a shame, Rival Schools needs to Return!
9 out of 10.