SNK/Neo Fighters: games for novice to start with?

[airzonk]

Hey Guys...

This forum started me off on a trek to play the arcade games I could never dream of having enough quarters to play (or in the case of the Neo Geo, parents willing to pay hundreds of dollars per cart )

anyway, I've always had an intense fondness for the Neo and its beautiful, colorful, fun, awesome fighting games. Problem being, I am NO good at them! I just button mash, and really that's not playing them like I see the pros do.

I like Fatal Fury Special (probably because I played more of it at arcades and on the PC Engine ACD than any other SNK game), and Art of Fighting 3 a lot... I guess my question is--there are so many, and I have them all, so, which one is a good one to start with for a novice player? To learn the death combos and blocking at the right time, simple enough controls that I don't feel like throwing my gamepad at my PC?

I am decent at Capcom beatemups but not a pro either. For some reason tho I find myself more attracted to SNK fighting games.

-Gabe
(newly reacquainted with the Neo )

[sepiasongs]

to start out with i'd recommend real bout:fatul fury. use kim and after a some button bashing, the chances are you would've worked out a couple of decent combos. ninja masters is also good since all the combos are pre-set a la tekken so for button bashing it can be quite rewarding. if you like capcom fighters then you could always go for svc chaos, but i'd personally reccommend kof 2003 since the tag system will make instant sense if your familar with the vs. games.

[Kazuya_UK]

Yeah I would agree with sepia, but I'd also say Mark of the Wolves, not just because it's a fantastic game, but also because the super moves were simplified greatly in that game compared to most other SNK games. Most of them are just QCF x 2, unlike previous Fatal Fury games where they were slightly more complex.

sepia: glad you said Ninja Masters mate! Always good to see that underrated game get some attention! ;D Anyways, welcome to the forum airzonk!

Kaz

[fusion24]

fatal fury, although garou is simplified it is in another level, hte basic would be fatal fury.

[sepiasongs]

fatal fury is a classic, but only in respect to the titles that proceeded it. if you were to play it now without any prior knowledge of the subsequent titles you'd probably just think it was lame and not bother with looking into the series any further. that is not to say its a rubbish game, but one made unbalanced, garish, tacky and flawed becase of the of subsequent developments in the genre.

its a fact that when people pioneer stuff its often the case that they cling on to the odd convention or two which subsequent developments in that field show was a mistake, in other words, progress. as long as you always bear that in mind its not a bad game.

in fact i even play it from time to time but nine times out of ten its usually out of boredom or just another way of reminising about times long gone. though on a side note the first world heroes is my favourite out of snk's fisrt batch of thumping games.

as for garou, i can't believe i missed it out. especially since its a game i struggle to think of a reason not to recommend. definately one of snk's most accessible fighters and well worth picking up under any circumstances. i also forgot to mention 'breakers'. while they're not in my view among snk's best, if you like sf alpha chances are you'll enjoy them a lot since they play very similar though perhaps too much so for my liking.

[jelle]

Practice makes perfect, just try to built up from the more simple moves. Like the fireballs to dragonpunch upwards to the superspecials. I had some trouble whit the superspecials at first to but i eventually masterd most of them.

A little tip on the side is to write down the specials of your character on a post it and hang it near the screen (or wherever you can see it whitout too much hassle), i do this a lot whit my MVS since there's no movelist in game, although i find pausing a game for the checking of a movelist a bit disturbing (specially if your opponent is human). So it might also be a good tip if you play on a home system.