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| Fighting Vipers 2,
For Dreamcast (out now) |
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| Games,
Richard Young,
02:00:00,
05 April 2001 |
Rating: F2
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There has never been any doubt that the rungs of the Dreamcast fighting game ladder are satisfyingly occupied with many a pulse pounding pugilistic player. Sitting at the top you have the timeless Soul Calibur and the brash and brazen Dead or Alive 2, while the sweaty Ultimate Fighting Championship and sweet Power Stone hang around the next-best-thing level. The many Marvel vs. Capcom vs. Everyone Else 2D spin-offs are liberally scattered, never quite reaching the heights of their 3D counterparts, but maintaining a strong following nevertheless. Unfortunately, AM2’s off beat beat ‘em up Fighting Vipers 2, arrives with too little, too late, to make any kind of real impression, and merely sits somewhere above your Mortal Kombats and your ECW Anarchy Rulz’s.
For what was once an impressive arcade brawler that arrived hot on the heels of the arcade Dead or Alive, FV2 now has little to recommend it aside from a few intriguing character designs that include a streetwise kid who literally rides his BMX on your head, and the obligatory knicker-flashing female. The combat takes place within rather limiting square arenas, with no option to side-step. And although it is satisfying to biff your opponent into (and sometimes through) the surrounding fence/wall, you can’t help feeling a little limited and hemmed in.
Each of the 11 initially selectable fighters are covered head to foot in gaudily coloured body armour. Pound your opponent enough, and you will be able to break away bits of this armour and inflict some real damage. Nice idea, although in practise you find that the fight is usually over before you have had the opportunity to see this feature in action. The graphics are pretty in the same way that vomit can be pretty, I suppose. Music wise, FV2 has fortunately lost the dreadful American rock soundtrack of the previous game, and now has fairly cheesy techno accompanied by bog-standard and slightly annoying voice samples.
There is no real reason to get a copy of Fighting Vipers 2 when there is such stiff competition around, unless you are some kind of Beat ‘em Up collector, or need to see some heavy metal dude called Raxel hit someone over the head with a Gibson Flying V.
Published by Sega
Developed by AM2 of Japan
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