King of Fighters EX: Neo Blood Review

7.0

Format Game Boy Advance

Developer SNK

Publisher SNK

Genre Beat 'em Up

Classy palm punisher

Playing fighting games on GBA and nailing complex combos on its diddy Dpad often feels as fiddly as threading a needle while wearing boxing gloves. King Of Fighters on the handheld is no different.
However, if your fingers are no thicker than chopsticks, Neo Blood's hardcore old-skool-style 2D beat 'em up is just as enjoyable as Super Street Fighter II Turbo Revival.

Although the fighting arenas don't look quite as vibrant or slick as those in Capcom's palm-sized brawler, Neo Blood's combatants look fantastic and each of the contenders is blessed with a killer array of unique attacks.

The main Team Battle mode sees you mix and match four fighters from a cast of 18, and take your kick-ass crew through a series of fast-paced hardcore matches. But if you choose to fight as one of the six official teams - Fatal Fury, Hero, Ikari, Psycho Soldier, Korea or Art Of Fighting - you access one of the six extra fighters on offer.

The action then becomes story-led, and when you complete the game you can unlock extra characters like Geese. This play mode works well and compels you to work through the game again and again as each of the teams. And with solid Single Play, Survival and two-player link-up modes, King Of Fighters on GBA fits nicely into any fight fan's collection.

Michael Cooper