Know what I like? Good games. Know what's even better? Good games you can get cheap, secondhand, usually in decent condition, and usually fairly easily, since they're so common. But we sometimes get too wrapped up in finding a copy of Super Tag Battle to notice.
What games should you not be without? Here are some:
-Samurai Shodown 2. Goes without saying.
-Samurai Shodown. A work of art. Some really bad bugs, like Haohmaru's ridiculous redizzy and Earthquake/Wan-Fu's spotty hit detection, but those things aside, SS1 is a bona fide classic. Easy to get cheaply, too.
-Fatal Fury Special. Another good, cheap classic. FFS and SS1 were the games in which SNK really started putting emphasis on combos.
-KOF '94. First of the KOFs, also probably the easiest to find, and holds up surprisingly well. Damn good music, too, especially England, Brazil, Mexico, and Andy's remixed Venice theme.
-Art of Fighting 2. Innovation is written all over this game. Spirit meter actually leads to a lot of strategy. You can jab cancel most projectiles. Huge characters. Young Geese. And some of the best dialogue in any video game.
-World Heroes 2. It's not "perfect," but it's a damn sight better than WH1, and implemented all the new deathmatch fights, as well as all the new characters up until Jet/Perfect, which really weren't that great (Jack, Ryofu, and Goku... no thanks). Also has great win quotes.
-Savage Reign. Said it before. Will say it again. Savage Reign is a great game that plays extremely well. I suspect most of Savage Reign's detractors didn't know much about things like combos or the fine art of throwing when this game first came out in 1995. Savage Reign has extremely tight control, 3 speed settings, multiple dash levels (normal and jump dash), an excellent 2-plane system, and an interesting weapon/projectile system. Basically, everyone in Savage Reign has at least one projectile attack (BC). By the same token, everyone in Savage Reign has a projectile reflect (hit a normal BC projectile with your weapon to reflect it). Good clean combo system and crazy characters, and the best announcer in any video game ever. (And I mean, ever.)
-Galaxy Fight. Yeah, it breaks down at higher levels once you realize that you can backdash infinitely, block cancel infinitely, and block cancel into a backdash (which rewards really cowardly play, especially from characters like Alvan and Musafar), but Galaxy Fight is great for a few quick rounds. Whacking somebody (especially Roomi) with a dashing strong attack and sending them flying is always satisfying. Galaxy Fight also has some really cool characters, like the fake-polygonal Gunter (Clark from KOF stole his running throw, while Shigen from Last Blade stole his slam throw), and an anime look, which would be a plus if you're into that kind of thing.
Any others? What other good stuff are you guys getting cheap and easy?
What games should you not be without? Here are some:
-Samurai Shodown 2. Goes without saying.
-Samurai Shodown. A work of art. Some really bad bugs, like Haohmaru's ridiculous redizzy and Earthquake/Wan-Fu's spotty hit detection, but those things aside, SS1 is a bona fide classic. Easy to get cheaply, too.
-Fatal Fury Special. Another good, cheap classic. FFS and SS1 were the games in which SNK really started putting emphasis on combos.
-KOF '94. First of the KOFs, also probably the easiest to find, and holds up surprisingly well. Damn good music, too, especially England, Brazil, Mexico, and Andy's remixed Venice theme.
-Art of Fighting 2. Innovation is written all over this game. Spirit meter actually leads to a lot of strategy. You can jab cancel most projectiles. Huge characters. Young Geese. And some of the best dialogue in any video game.
-World Heroes 2. It's not "perfect," but it's a damn sight better than WH1, and implemented all the new deathmatch fights, as well as all the new characters up until Jet/Perfect, which really weren't that great (Jack, Ryofu, and Goku... no thanks). Also has great win quotes.
-Savage Reign. Said it before. Will say it again. Savage Reign is a great game that plays extremely well. I suspect most of Savage Reign's detractors didn't know much about things like combos or the fine art of throwing when this game first came out in 1995. Savage Reign has extremely tight control, 3 speed settings, multiple dash levels (normal and jump dash), an excellent 2-plane system, and an interesting weapon/projectile system. Basically, everyone in Savage Reign has at least one projectile attack (BC). By the same token, everyone in Savage Reign has a projectile reflect (hit a normal BC projectile with your weapon to reflect it). Good clean combo system and crazy characters, and the best announcer in any video game ever. (And I mean, ever.)
-Galaxy Fight. Yeah, it breaks down at higher levels once you realize that you can backdash infinitely, block cancel infinitely, and block cancel into a backdash (which rewards really cowardly play, especially from characters like Alvan and Musafar), but Galaxy Fight is great for a few quick rounds. Whacking somebody (especially Roomi) with a dashing strong attack and sending them flying is always satisfying. Galaxy Fight also has some really cool characters, like the fake-polygonal Gunter (Clark from KOF stole his running throw, while Shigen from Last Blade stole his slam throw), and an anime look, which would be a plus if you're into that kind of thing.
Any others? What other good stuff are you guys getting cheap and easy?
