It will be difficult for me to review Fatal Fight without mentioning its forebear, One Finger Death Punch, so I apologize in advance if I mention OFDP too often. If you're familiar with Silver Dollar's beloved classic (and if you're not, I'd like to strongly advise you to go ahead and check it out on Steam), you'll know what to expect from Fatal Fight's core gameplay. Both games offer a visceral kung fu combat experience in which every punch, chop, throw, and spinning tiger kick you unleash upon your opponents is delivered via one of the two buttons you will use throughout the entirety of the game. Or, if you're hardcore, nothing less than the total responsiveness and tactile feedback of a mechanical gaming keyboard will suffice. Because nothing says "hardcore" like spending $200 on a keyboard and then only using two of the keys.
Though the controls are simplistic, Fatal Fight demands high levels of focus and hand/eye coordination from the player. In the later stages of the game, a simple ill-timed blink of the eye could very well begin a series of unfortunate events that leave your avatar in a crumpled, bloody heap. And there's plenty of blood on display here: Enemies are pummeled, decapitated, dismembered, and occasionally even sliced in half at the waist. Gore aside, the overall aesthetic of the game is very nice. Playfields and characters are colorful and well-animated, but Kung Fu Panda this ain't. And that's a good thing in my book.
Contrasting a bit sharply against the violent aesthetic, the game's greatest shortcoming lies perhaps in its sound design. While there are plenty of grunts, thwaps, smacks, and various other noises one might expect to hear in a pitched fist fight, most of the sound effects are underwhelming; especially considering the gloriously, graphically violent context in which they're used. I would have liked a little more "oomph" in this category, but the sound effect library serves its purpose well enough. The soundtrack also feels like a bit of an afterthought. One can't help but compare the droning, placid Far Eastern melodies in Fatal Fight to the pumping, in-your-face tunes featured in OFDP. In the latter, the music serves as an integral part of the experience for me. In FF... Well, it's just sort of there.
The core gameplay loop in the Campaign mode consists of progressing through various stages in which you dispatch increasingly faster enemies that require different combinations to defeat. Along the way, you will unlock different accessories with which to adorn your avatar, including hats and various other bits of clothing. These not only change the appearance of your avatar, but also grant useful boons such as score multipliers and combat bonuses. Watch out, though: If your enemies manage to smack that fancy ♥♥♥♥♥♥ Hat right off your noggin, you can kiss that bonus goodbye. This is a very cool feature that is unique to FF, and it allows a fair amount of customization options for the player to consider. Some of the accessories are synergistic with certain skills, so it pays to explore these options. Despite not being incredibly deep, the system works well and gives you something worthwhile to think about as you unwind in between stages. The player can also earn "Boosters" which can be activated prior to beginning a stage that alter the starting conditions of the round. Some Boosters grant extra health, others might slow down enemies under certain conditions, and still others might just save your life outright if you get hit one too many times by a brawler or three. There are seven Booster types in all, and the player can choose to activate any number of them at the start of any round.
"Arena" is a survival mode, complete with daily challenges and leaderboards.
At the end of the day, I can't recommend this over OFDP even though it does bring some great new concepts to the party, while simultaneously addressing some of the minor quibbles I have with OFDP. In fact, I would say that everything FF does differently than OFDP, it does better. But there's just something not quite as thrilling about pulling off a godly combo in FF as there is in OFDP. The hits don't feel as snappy or bone-crushing, the music isn't as epic and driving, and there isn't a wizened Chinese Master constantly urging me onward. OFDP makes me feel like Bruce Lee. FF makes me feel like Jackie Chan. And while Jackie is certainly awesome... Well... Bruce...
Although shamelessly derivative, Fatal Fight delivers a solid two-button brawler on the Steam platform with an experience exceeding that of its mobile counterpart on every level with NO microtransactions in sight. It brings enough glamour and unique gameplay elements to the table to distinguish itself, however marginally, from the classic game that it seeks to emulate. And for around the same price you might expect to pay for a large fountain drink, there's plenty of kung fu content to keep you busy for a lot longer than it'd take you to drink that soda.
There's room enough in everyone's Library for Fatal Fight and One Finger Death Punch, as both are very much worth the asking price!
