General: Samurai Shodown is a two-player fighting game much like Capcom's long-running fighting series, Street Fighter 2, but instead of fighting with fists, these characters use weapons. Some characters even have animals that tag along with them, and can be used against their opponent in the midst of battle. Brilliant.
   Samurai Shodown is responsible for introducing the "RAGE" gauge (or "POW" gauge). The more you get hit, the more damage you deal out... Awesome. This game has an exceptional artistic style, great music, balance, and creates a mood unlike any other. Samurai Shodown is actually called Samurai Spirits in Japan. And if you didn't know, some of the characters in this game are based on real-life historical figures such as Miyamoto Musashi (Haohmaru), Amakusa Shirou Tokisada and Hanzo Hattori.
   Samurai Shodown also features some interesting new visual and gameplay enhancements to increase player's enjoyment, including the Kuroko, "The Ref," who attentively watches from the background, and even a character from the background who runs onscreen, and sometimes tosses an item into the ring, which could be food (to increase a players health) or money (for useless points)... Another outstanding element of gameplay
   And lastly, this series features deaths, but in a classy way... If you win with the right style, your opponent could be cut in half, or have a fatal wound, and drop to the ground after a nice blood release... A very nice presentation indeed, and probably one of the most enjoyable aspects of the game... This game was the main influence to future hit weapon-based fighting games, such as Soul Calibur.
Manufacturer: SNK
Platforms: Neo Geo, Super Nintendo
Year: 1993
Characters: Haohmaru, Ukyo, Galford, Hanzo, Kyoshiro, Gen-an, Earthquake, Wan-Fu, Nakoruru, Charlotte, Jubei, Tam Tam, Amakusa
Comment: The Samurai Shodown series had to start somewhere... And as a great game itself, Samurai Shodown 1 was the seed that started a truly memorable 2D fighting series! Memorable...
Rating: 9.5