Samurai Shodown 5 Special is the last Neo-Geo game (it makes me really sad...), and it's a nice good-bye with the good old MVS.
Gameplay:
In SS5, there was a problem with playing the bosses(it wasn't possible to go to the next stage). It it now solved, 'cause they are now playable, but Mizuki has been completely re-animated. However, Sankuro, Yumeji and Poppy (why he?) were removed.
But the strangest new thing in gameplay is: Hanzo lost his teleports! Really! Now it's much easier to beat him, no matter CPU or human. Also, meditation works much better, but the Mu no Kyouchi is always short, too short.
These brand new Overkill moves (or Near-Death Secret) are launched with qcb+CD when:
- you are Raged;
- your opponent's life gauge is blue.
Then enjoy.
Apart from that, everything looks like in the previous version, so you won't feel confused.
Graphics:
There aren't many changes since SS5, but i'm sure Overkill animations are one of them that is worth mentioning. They look generally good and really, really bloody (the bloodiest is Basara's) and some of them are also quite funny, like Tam-Tam's and, again, Basara's. Characters look the same as in the regular versions, but some backgrounds, like Yoshitora's, were slightly redrawn. Gauges also look different, better in my opinion. Summing up, it's still a good piece of job. I hope they will continue it on Atomiswave.
Sound effects & Music:
Music didn't change too much - good Japanese tunes are always good. But I think they shouldn't have changed the character screen tune. It was great enough before.
Overall:
I don't know why, but I like this game far more than regular SS5. Maybe because I always got annoyed with the Japanese text... Nevermind. It is a good ending of the glorious series of Neo-Geo games. Worth playing, of course.
NEOGEO is a registered trademark of SNK PLAYMORE CORPORATION.
All intellectual property rights related to NEOGEO products and others belong to SNK PLAYMORE CORPORATION.
Non SNK software titles belong to their respective authors.
This website is tested with Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox. Best Viewed at 1024x768 or higher. Although it is tested with Firefox and IE, it should work with other browsers without problems - please contact me if you notice any issues!
