The Final Word game review

Tekken -- Namco

Fight in a 360 degree, 3-D environment in Namco's new PlayStation game Tekken. Choose from eight characters and fight the ultimate battle for big money.

Ferrari Man
This is where the ultimate fighting game challenge begins. Tekken is one of the best multi-player fighting games on the market. With smooth camera shifts highlighting your incredible moves, to a fast paced two-player fight this game really comes out on top. Although the game lets you move in 3-D during your special move attacks, your basic control is limited to a 2-D plane. This is perhaps the only advantage that Tohshinden shares over Tekken. The sound track is great, the single player mode is fun, and the whole package wraps up nicely. I am eagerly awaiting Tekken 2 as well!

E.Phoenix
Everything I said about the Japanese version still stands except that it is now my favorite fighter.

R.I.P.
I have really strong mixed emotions about this game... On the one hand I absolutely hate the character control and look. I feel like I'm controlling this big floppy stick figure that just flails its limbs around. On the other hand, I really love the depth of the background graphics, the sound and music, as well as the fact that you can move combat out of the ring and all around the environment. Personally I think Tohshinden is still a better game because the character dynamics are so fluid and realistic. But if you want action, Tekken definately has faster gameplay and really sets some standards for 3-D fighting games.

Salamander
This is unquestionably one of the best fighting games of the year. The graphics are superb as is the sound, but this title truely excels in play control. Tekken unquestionably advances the fighting genre with its many innovations -- gameplay doesn't halt wether you are in the air, on the ground or out of the arena. "Dirty pulls" become a true tactic to win when you can hit your opponent when they're down. The only gameplay improvement that possibly springs to mind would be the addition of left and right movement, such as Toshinden. Excellent.

>>>>> 86.0/100 <<<<<		Ferrari Man	E.Phoenix	R.I.P.	Salamander
Graphics		4.0	5.0	4.0	4.5
Sound		4.5	4.5	4.5	4.0
Gameplay/Control		4.0	5.0	2.5	5.0
Longevity/Playability		4.5	4.5	3.5	4.5
Overall		4.5	4.5	4.0	4.5
Total		21.5	23.5	18.5	22.5

(12/95)