Fatal Fury: City Of The Wolves Review In Progress – A New Mark

by

Although Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat are not recent names in the gaming world, their latest versions have given a unique twist to the longstanding fighting series – one by adding a layer of fresh hip-hop aesthetics, while the other has undergone a complete overhaul of its storyline.

As a dedicated gamer diving into Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, I wasn’t necessarily expecting a revolutionary overhaul, but rather a fresh take on the Garou universe. At its heart, the game delivers an intricately designed fighting system where skill trumps luck, and the excitement is amplified by the innovative REV System. This system, in my opinion, is one of the most well-balanced concepts to emerge in modern fighting games.

However, I find myself a bit disappointed due to the limited avenues to fully experience this new system and some questionable roster decisions that seem to dilute the game’s impact.

The fundamental aspect of this fresh Fatal Fury is the previously mentioned REV System, a mechanism that balances risk and reward, instantly altering the course of a battle and resulting in thrilling conclusions whether against AI or human adversaries. A partially round meter, known as the REV Gauge, accumulates whenever players employ particular moves and skills such as REV Arts or REV Accel, along with each block performed.

/videos/fatal-fury-city-of-the-wolves-official-play-guide-trailer/2300-6465914/

ARTs in this game function similarly to EX Moves in Street Fighter, amplifying a character’s unique special attacks for additional hits or damage. The REV Accel mechanism allows you to link multiple ARTs together for an impressive combo, but be cautious as it quickly fills the REV Gauge and may cause overheating. Defensively, there’s an option called REV Guard, which is a more powerful block that increases the distance between you and your opponent after a successful block. However, this action also increases the meter faster than standard blocking does. To reduce the meter, maintain mobility, land regular attacks, and create further chances to utilize these abilities again.

Whenever my gauge hits 100%, I find myself entering an Overheat state, which temporarily disables my REV Arts and other special abilities – fortunately, I can still block. If I choose to play aggressively, I can keep filling this gauge multiple times throughout the match, as long as I’m mindful of not being without some key moves. Alternatively, I could opt to keep the gauge low by carefully managing the moves that fill it, but that strategy would mean forgoing some of my most potent abilities.

As a die-hard fan, I can’t help but appreciate the pulse-pounding thrill that comes from weighing risk against reward in the heat of battle within City of Wolves. It may seem straightforward, but the sheer number of choices and paths each character takes becomes captivating once you factor in the REV System’s capabilities. To top it off, this time around we have the new super moves called Ignition Gears, and maneuvers like Feints and Braking that let us press additional buttons during special moves to either deceive or cut them short.

In addition, there’s the Selective Potential Gear (SPG) feature. This function marks a segment of your health meter, and once you reach that point, you receive an increase in attack strength and a wider range of moves, including the swift and potent REV Blow. Should you opt to trigger SPG right from the start to gain an early advantage, or conserve it for later stages as a potential comeback tactic? My strategy fluctuated with each bout, but I always appreciated the additional strategic depth it brought to this intricate fighting system.

Each character in the roster offers a distinct method for utilizing the REV System, making them all intriguing to delve into and tinker with. Familiar faces such as Terry Bogard and Rock Howard don’t undergo significant alterations in their latest versions, but the REV System introduces subtle changes to their established move sets that make them feel fresh and refined; these additional features breathe new life into them, even though they still wield moves they’ve been using since the late 1990s. The newly introduced character, Preecha, is particularly enjoyable to play due to her innovative interpretation of series veteran Joe Higashi’s Muay-Thai-centric move set.

Despite the fact that the REV System is incredibly enjoyable, it’s disheartening to see such limited depth in its game modes. While City Of The Wolves may appear to have a decent number of modes – Versus, Training, online play with ranked, casual, and private room matches, Arcade mode, and a new “campaign” mode called Episodes Of South Town for character backstories – these are mostly typical features found in fighting games. They don’t bring anything particularly new or innovative to the table.

In Arcade Mode, you play through seven consecutive battles before the game ends. Unlike Versus matches, which are standalone events not meant to last long, these offer quick bursts of competition. For those who enjoy mastering every detail about their characters, Training mode is ideal, but it’s not for everyone. Unfortunately, at this point in time, the online servers for PlayStation testers have yet to become fully operational (the review will be updated once they do). Despite being enjoyable and typical of fighting games, I eventually craved something new.

In Fatal Fury, the unique aspect is called “Episodes of South Town,” however, it doesn’t captivate me as much as anticipated. Here, you select a character and traverse various parts of South Town, each marked with spots for quick battle challenges. To ‘explore’, simply move your cursor over a marker, choose it, and engage in a fight. Contrastingly, Street Fighter 6’s World Tour offers a vast urban environment comprising smaller themed maps, making EOST appear less engaging in comparison.

In EOST, every character has their unique tale, which is quite intriguing. Yet, this implies that each map needs to be finished by every character on the roster separately. While this extends the total playtime, it doesn’t significantly boost gameplay diversity. Instead of encountering a variety of characters, I found myself frequently battling the same generic opponents, appearing to serve merely as targets for this mode. Unfortunately, all the missions in this game are quite similar; they either consist of standard matches or include some form of challenge like “the player character is overheated throughout the match.

In truth, there’s a unique conflict in this game that requires a warning: Scattered across each level of the map, you’ll find a “Robust Roulette” duel. During these encounters, you’ll face an opponent who cannot be harmed at all. However, with a 1-in-66 chance, one of your attacks could inflict maximum damage and instantly end the match in your favor. This battle can be incredibly frustrating because it eliminates the skill that fighting games are known for and replaces it with sheer luck, making it an unsuitable aspect of the game.

Luckily, the City of Wolves stands out with its captivating American comic-style artwork, boasting vibrant, attention-grabbing colors that leap from the screen. Some intricate gameplay aspects also incorporate appealing visual effects: for instance, Just Defenses – a skill similar to parrying, requires precise timing with an opponent’s attack and generates a halo of distorted light around your character, giving you a sense of achievement when timed correctly. Additionally, activating Ignition Gear and watching the camera focus on your character is quite impressive; they truly shine in this artistic style.

Indeed, it’s time to discuss an elephant in the room that has become quite noticeable: The introduction of two well-known figures from the real world – Cristiano Ronaldo, the Portuguese soccer sensation, and Salvatore Ganacci, a Swedish DJ – into the playable roster of Fatal Fury. For some gamers, this move seems like an extreme example of the trend where guest characters are included in fighting games.

As a gamer, I’ve found that Ronaldo is exclusively available for Versus battles, whether it’s online or offline. There’s no Arcade mode sequence for him, and he’s not an option in Episodes of South Town. He seems like an odd extra at the end of the character selection screen. In a single-player session, he can easily be overlooked, but his inclusion feels even more redundant because of it.

His moveset is decent, and he serves as a useful training dummy, but the vibe he gives off, like a friendly greeting to fellow Fatal Fury fighters, isn’t what you’d expect from a headlining guest character in a fighting game. It leaves me wondering why he was added at all.

Salvatore Ganacci stands out distinctly compared to his counterpart. His gameplay style is a quirky blend of music and martial arts, incorporating humorous poses reminiscent of Duck King from earlier Fatal Fury games. He’s present across all modes, including Episodes Of South Town, with a unique storyline that’s undeniably entertaining. His own stage is featured, and the actual version of him has provided several tracks for the game’s soundtrack. Ganacci appears to be a deliberate addition, as if he was part of the game’s design from the beginning, unlike his football star companion. If Ganacci were the sole celebrity on this roster, while it would be unusual, I believe he would be well-received. However, the contrast between these celebrities’ in-game portrayals—coupled with the controversies surrounding Ronaldo—ultimately diminishes the overall enjoyment.

Regardless of any debates, Fatal Fury has made a strong comeback with City Of The Wolves, leaving me eager for more. The REV System gives the traditional 2D fighting style a fresh tactical twist, making each fight feel energized and unique compared to other fighters. The diverse roster offers plenty of opportunities for experimentation, and every character looks fantastic due to the comic-inspired art style. However, I find the gameplay can sometimes feel repetitive, similar to Episodes Of South Town. An engaging online mode might alleviate this issue, but until I can test it out, I can’t confirm that for sure.

City Of The Wolves. In fact, I’m ecstatic that it’s back, and I plan on spending quite a bit of time in South Town.

Editor’s note: This review will be finalized in the near future.

Read More

2025-04-21 19:40