Hello again and welcome to another entry of Retro Revival, the ongoing series where I cover classic games that have been given a second chance. Here I cover HD remasters, emulated ports and compilations in part or whole. This time the adventure through the NEOGEO library continues, with Burning Fight, which was SNK’s foray into the beat ‘em’ up genre in 1991. This title is available via the ACA NEOGEO series by Hamster Corporation.
Disclaimer: the games discussed in this feature have been my own purchases, so all opinions contained within are my own. There has been no sponsorship of the content in this feature, with links to the different versions of the game where available.
So with the introductions out of the way, let’s get started. I will be discussing the general gameplay experience, then provide my personal thoughts on the release.
About the game
Burning Fight is a side scrolling brawler, similar to Double Dragon and Final Fight, set in a fictionalised Japan. The plot focuses on two NYPD detectives Duke and Billy, who travel to Japan hot on the heels of a crime syndicate. Here they meet Ryu, a police officer who joins them on their mission. Together, the trio will fight their way through city streets, underground malls and on the top of moving trains, battling various gangsters.
At the start of the game, players will be able to select one of the three characters. Duke is a balanced, all round character that is suited for all players. Ryu is a fast and speedy brawler, with the quickest attacks and combos. Then there is Billy, the slowest of the three, yet he has the most powerful attacks, dealing significant damage to enemies. After the player selects their character the game will begin, throwing them straight into the action.
This title is made up of 5 stages, which take place across various locations. The objective is simple, make it to the end of the stage, beating down the enemies that appear and attack. All of the characters have a simple toolkit, using three buttons for the attacks and actions. The moves consist of a basic combo for punches and kicks, a throw and jump attack. Each of the characters also have a special super attack, but this costs health to use.
While making their way through the stages, players will encounter waves of enemies that will try to beat them down. The different enemies will have unique attack patterns, either attacking bare handed or armed with weapons. As the player takes down enemies, some of them will drop weapons that can be picked up. These weapons include knives, broken bottles and poles that players can pick up, but these have limited use before being dropped.
Weapons aren’t the only thing that can be picked up by players, as there will be a variety of environmental objects that can be broken. By destroying objects like signboards, vending machines and furniture, point items and healing pick-ups can be found. The point objects are simple enough, they add bonus points to the player score. Then we have the health items, made up of classic fast foods, which will restore different amounts of lost health.
In most of the stages, players will be able to enter special bonus challenge rooms. When the player enters these rooms, they will be given target items to break in a limited time. These consist of boxes, display shelves and even a printer, which the player must destroy as fast as possible. If the player destroys the objects, they will drop items for players to collect. After clearing the room or the time expiring, the player will leave the room and continue the stage.
At set points during the stages, there will be powerful enemies will appear and attack the player. These are the top henchmen of the syndicate, consisting of powerful members of the Yakuza, heavy hitters and deadly samurai. Some will appear as mid boss foes, appearing before the stage transitions to the next area. Each of these battles will have the main boss, with their unique attack patterns, but they won’t be alone as more bad guys will appear.
Even though this game is only 5 stages, there is a lot of content on offer, taking about an hour to clear the game. But this time may vary when paying co-op with another player, as more enemies will spawn in different areas. When the final boss is defeated, there will be an ending montage which changes depending on the character used. If the player clears the game with a co-op partner, they will also appear in the ending scene.
Like the other games that have been released as part of the ACA NEOGEO library, players can take on the High Score and Caravan modes. In these modes the player will have a single credit to get as many points as possible, submitting their scores to the leaderboard. High Score mode is the regular game with only a single credit, whereas the Caravan mode gives players a 5 minute time limit. All scores set in this mode are submitted to global rankings.
Players can enjoy the English and Japanese version of the game, with their own rankings tied to them. There is also the inclusion of the manual for the game, showing players all the details needed to play the game. Players can also adjust the settings, changing the lives, score bonuses and in the video options apply filters for a retro CRT filter. All of these options make this the best way to experience these classic games on modern systems.
Personal Thoughts
I enjoy Burning Fight, and have done since first getting to play it long ago through unofficial emulation, as well as the SNK Arcade Classics on PSP. The action is relatively fast paced, with easy to use controls and a solid heavy soundtrack. It is one of those games that can perfectly slot into any game night when playing alone, or with someone else. Especially as you can set the game to have 99 lives, making a challenge to see who can get to the end with more lives left.
Now, Burning Fight may look like a clone of the brawlers that came before it, with similarities to games like Final Fight and Double Dragon. However, while it does have elements of the games that come before it, it still has gameplay elements that make it feel unique. The classic archetypes of the all-rounder, the agile fighter and the heavy powerhouse are present, giving the game that familiarity that makes it easy to pick up and play.
It may feel like a short experience, clocking in at around an hour, but it has enough replay value with the main game, the leaderboard rankings and bonus modes. There is also the full digital manual, dipswitches and remappable controllers, allowing players to fit their own preferences. All of this for a pretty low cost of entry, especially as the Cartridge version for the NEOGEO AES, or the NEOCD release can be in the hundreds on the secondary market.
This is a very early game in the lifespan of the NEOGEO, releasing just over a year after the hardware was released for the MVS in May of 1991. The AES version for the home released less than four months later, within the launch window for the international release of the home unit. As mentioned in other features, the AES+ has been announced for November, and Burning Fight is one of those games I would like to see if there are additional carts released.
If you have enjoyed this feature, then take a look at the other content available and see what catches your eye. There are reviews, sometimes news and features that cover a variety of games. There is the lost gems series, special Gaming Oddities and more coming in the future. So stick around for a while and check out the other content.
Link to Nintendo Switch Version (HERE)
Link to PlayStation version (HERE)
Link to Xbox version (HERE)
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