Yu Yu Hakusho: Makyou Toitsusen
Treasure's forgotten gameGenre: fighting - 1v1
Publisher: Sega
Year: 1994
System: MD
Gameplay Score: 3
Gameplay Notes:
Very slow gameplay. Every move is telegraphed from a mile away. Only two buttons for a weak and strong attack, plus a dedicated block button. This is necessary because left and right make you face that direction instead of backing away or moving toward your opponent. This feels so unnatural. Slow movement. Feels like you're fighting in a sticky mud pit. Jumps are short both vertically and horizontally. Combined with the small sprites, no character ever touches the top half of the screen, and they can't jump more than 1/5th the length of the screen. Despite the sluggish speed, weird movement, and limited attacks, the actual gameplay is responsive and enjoyable. Nowhere near a peak fighting title, but at least average.
Level Design Score: 3
Level Design Notes:
Boring stages with nothing going on in the foreground or background. The only thing noteworthy is the use of a two-plane system like Fatal Fury. This is a useless gimmick, which is why the FF series eventually ditched it. If your opponent jumps back there, you simply need to wait for them to return because they do so slowly and are vulnerable when they return. Several extra mode are available, including Tournament and Handicap modes, in additional to the standard Story (called Competition) and 2P VS (called Practice Match). Handicap lets you fight multiple enemies at once, which I assume is why Treasure included the strange left and right facing mechanic. So, props for originality, I suppose.
Theme Score: 3
Theme Notes:
I'm not familiar with the Yu Yu manga/anime, and this game doesn't feature any plot or character cutscenes, so I think the devs were hoping you were already familiar with the setting. Unfrotuantely, the characters don't have much personality, so I didn't get much out of the boring roster.
Art Style Score: 2
Art Style Notes:
Not Treasure's finest moment. Small sprites. Good animation. Some interesting character designs, although they're much less interesting that a lot of comparable games.
Audio Score: 3
Audio Notes:
Good music that sounds like other Treasure soundtracks. Some of it has a Turtles in Time or Rolling Thunder vibe. Menus and intros have excellent jingles. Loud and annoying sound effects. Characters yell gibberish every time they attack.
Overall Score: 58
Review ID: 6093
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