- Release Date: 1993 07
- Genre: Action
- Style: Side-Scrolling Combat
Game Description
Final Fight, one of the all-time champions of the side scrolling combat genre, makes an unlikely appearance on the NES as Mighty Final Fight. One a handful of games released in 1993 for the then irrelevant 8-bit console, the game is a close port of the original and even includes the oft-deleted third fighter, Guy. The major difference: each of the characters has been shrunk down several size factors and rendered in a super deformed style.The story is the same: Jessica, the beautiful daughter of Metro City's mayor, has been kidnapped, and it's up to you to do something about it. You can select one of three fighters, each with his unique strengths and weaknesses.
Cody is the tough-guy street fighter. He's not too big, but he fights dirty and is vicious with a knife.
The kidnapper's cronies have infiltrated and taken over the entire city, so you've got five stages to jab and kick your way through. From the rough streets of downtown Metro City to the sinister sewers underground, there's a lot of butt to be kicked before reaching your goal.
In the tradition of River City Ransom, an experience points system rewards you for the number of bad guys you take down. Leveling up will earn you new moves, more strength and a longer health bar. These bonuses come in handy when you're up against the mini-bosses.
Mighty Final Fight lacks a save feature, so the game must be completed in one sitting.
~ Christian Huey, All Game Guide
Roots & Influences
Mighty Final Fight and its big brother Final Fight, owe a heavy debt to Double Dragon, a trailblazer in the side scrolling combat genre.~ Christian Huey, All Game Guide
Review: Overall
You're probably wondering: "what the heck is so mighty about these superdeformed shrimps running all over the screen?" Well, whatever the cause for the minor change in the game's title, Capcom has in many ways pulled off a work that's superior to its 16-bit cousin on the Super NES.Conceptually, Mighty Final Fight is hardly different from the horde of other side-scrolling fighters for the NES. You can punch, you can kick (but not always), you can flip bad guys over your shoulder like they were no more than ten-pound sacks of cornmeal. And, as always, chivalry lives on in the beat-'em-up genre, as each enemy patiently waits his turn before whomping up on you.
Since Double Dragon, side-scrolling fighters have evolved about as rapidly as the hammerhead shark. That is to say that they've looked pretty much the same since Cambrian times. A minor benchmark in the genre, however, landed a few years after Tradewest's River City Ransom for the NES. Sure, it was still a beat-'em-up at its core, but it abandoned the strict linearity that hampered older games of its ilk, and it even employed several RPG elements like experience points and money collecting.
Capcom, in 1993, keeps it simple with Mighty Final Fight, while freely appropriating standout elements from the two aforementioned titles. The result is a streamlined, simplistic, and id-feeding game that rewards you for fast and furious action. Mighty Final Fight doesn't have the moody feel of Double Dragon, the innovative gameplay of River City Ransom, or the in-your-face visual flair of Battletoads.
It's just a straightforward side-scrolling fighter that's relentless in its approach, nice to look at, and above all, fun to play.
The first console port of Final Fight on the Super NES was a disappointment to fans of the coin-op hit. The multiplayer mode wasn't there, the graphics were less than stellar, and the controls were asleep at the wheel. And let's not forget the "Where's Guy?" battle cry that eventually led Capcom to release a second version of the game, which included the third character from the original
Well, Guy is here, too. He's still a ninja (or a descendant of a ninja, or whatever), and speed is still his specialty.
Each of the five stages are similar to their 16-bit counterparts, but with substantially less visual panache. Luckily, instead of opting for simply an "inferior" looking game, Capcom has taken a more creative road with the graphics. The whole enchilada has gotten the anime makeover. Heads are huge, faces are super-expressive, and fighting moves get exaggerated to comic effect. Capcom's refusal to take the game seriously is infectious, and this translates to greater enjoyment on the part of the player.
The experience system is a nice touch, although the linearity of Mighty Final Fight makes so that it's predictable when you'll gain enough points to advance to each level. Still, it makes the game feel as if it's truly progressing as you play. Gaining new moves, and discovering hidden ones by accident is always cool, especially since you have precious few weapons at your disposal.
A fairly major qualm to be taken up with the game is its inconsistent difficulty level. Most players will find the main levels easy, and the boss fights incongruously hard. If there were a two-player simultaneous mode to Mighty Final Fight, this wouldn't be such an issue. Alas, the game is strictly a solo undertaking, much to the chagrin of fans of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game, and Battletoads.
You could rightly accuse Mighty Final Fight of having no depth, little innovation, or perhaps even dubious challenge. But the bottom line is fun, right? Well, rest assured, would-be street bullies. This game dishes it out at least as much as the next 8-bit fighter. While there are better titles to choose from in the genre, Mighty Final Fight has enough going for it to make it a guilty pleasure.
~ Christian Huey, All Game Guide
Review: Enjoyment
Beating things up is fun!~ Christian Huey, All Game Guide
Review: Graphics
Other than the hilariously exaggerated character models, the game's visuals are standard stuff for a Capcom title for the NES. (This is a good thing.)~ Christian Huey, All Game Guide
Review: Sound
Capcom knows how to please in the sound department. Every tune has a good driving beat, and sounds like it has been lifted from a lost Mega Man game.~ Christian Huey, All Game Guide
Review: Replay Value
It's not terribly exciting to replay, but the option of playing as three different characters mixes things up a bit.~ Christian Huey, All Game Guide
Review: Documentation
You could complain about the lack of story in the game's booklet, but the story's fairly beside the point. Controls are deliniated well.~ Christian Huey, All Game Guide
