SNK revisits well, returns with 16-game compilation for PS2, PSP

by Jason Dobson { Jan 19th 2008 at 9:30PM }

We honestly believe that when it comes to SNK, they believe that nostalgia is job one. Why else would the company continue to keep one foot rooted in the past by re-releasing countless compilations of old releases in lieu of anything truly new? Not that there is anything wrong with that. The company has forgotten more about making fun games than most newcomers will ever know, polygons or not.

On that note, SNK's latest trip back in time comes care of an impressive collection of 16 different SNK faves, which skirt across the surface of the company's storied history like flat stone. Set for release for both the PlayStation 2 and PSP sometime during the first half of this year, the not-so-creatively dubbed SNK Arcade Classics: Volume 1 will include a bevy of early-gen fighters, such as the first World Heroes, Art of Fighting, and Samurai Shodown titles, as well as Fatal Fury, King of the Monsters, and King of Fighters '94. Beyond fighting games, however, SNK has put together a rather eclectic mix from other genres, with action titles like Top Hunter, Last Resort, Shock Troopers, Sengoku, and Burning Fight, as well as sports entries Baseball Stars 2, Neo Turf Masters, and Super Sidekicks 3. And of course, where would any SNK tribute be without the original Metal Slug and Magician Lord? Nowhere, that's where, so it's a good thing it includes those as well.

Not a bad salvo for the first volume, which has us already wondering what games should make the cut for what we hope will be a second collection soon to follow. What SNK greats would you like to see make a return?

[Via press release]

Tags: arcade, Baseball Stars, BaseballStars, Burning Fight, BurningFight, classics, collection, Fatal Fury, FatalFury, King of Fighters, King of the Monsters, KingOfFighters, KingOfTheMonsters, Last Resort, LastResort, Magician Lord, MagicianLord, Metal Slug, MetalSlug, Neo Turf Masters, NeoTurfMasters, nostalgia, Sengoku, Shock Troopers, ShockTroopers, snk, Super Sidekicks, SuperSidekicks, Top Hunter, TopHunter

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

JontheNinja @ Jan 19th 2008 11:16PM

I can see her asscrack.

T3H WICKERMAN (FDF) (BWF) @ Jan 19th 2008 11:47PM

See it? Ninja' I can SMELL IT!!!

DangerMouse @ Jan 20th 2008 12:54AM

^ yep, it smells like shit. same stench emanating from this collection of games.

Mr.ESC @ Jan 20th 2008 1:11AM

I see what you did there.

Jon @ Jan 19th 2008 11:16PM

If priced properly I will be picking the PSP version. More value for money compared to buying them individually off PSN, Xbox Live and VC.

sheppy2.0 @ Jan 19th 2008 11:23PM

God, there was this one NeoGeo game I played all the time. It was a beat em up where your first section was spent in a city and the next section was apparently in heaven as samurai. Wish I could remember what it was called. That would be great.

And also, please SNK... bring these stateside...

http://www.play-asia.com/paOS-13-71-40-49-en-70-2634.html

http://www.play-asia.com/paOS-13-71-40-49-en-70-1xyj.html

http://www.play-asia.com/paOS-13-71-40-49-en-70-1o8l.html

neoalec @ Jan 19th 2008 11:51PM

Sengoku

vgxtremist @ Jan 20th 2008 2:35PM

Hear hear, I've been waiting on the Samurai Showdown and KOF Orochi/NESTs collections too...not to mention I'd love to see KOF 98 Rematch be ported as well.

T3H WICKERMAN (FDF) (BWF) @ Jan 19th 2008 11:40PM

Hows about some frisbee madness? hows about some Windjammers?!?

Matt_M @ Jan 19th 2008 11:55PM

Thank you for saying it for me.

Brian Sexton @ Jan 20th 2008 3:47PM

I was just about to suggest Windjammers. It seems like it was about 350 years ago, but as I recall, I had some fun with that one!

Dave Silva @ Jan 22nd 2008 12:49AM

It was a Data East game, and who knows who owns the rights to that...

wait in the car @ Jan 19th 2008 11:42PM

Glad I held off on purchasing any SNK titles for the Virtual Console...

neoalec @ Jan 19th 2008 11:52PM

It would have been great to see some of SNK's pre-Neo Geo titles. We don't need another collection of re-released Neo Geo games. The Virtual Console and XBox Live Arcade have already got that covered, in addition to all the PS2 collections.

JasonD @ Jan 19th 2008 11:54PM

I agree...Iron Tank FTW.

Shignami @ Jan 20th 2008 12:33AM

Shock troopers is a great game, but not great enough to make me pay for roms.

BPM4:Guns of the Idiots @ Jan 20th 2008 1:20AM

1) Waiting for eventual Wii ports

2) Remember what happened when SNK Playmore tried new things:
a) SVC Chaos: SNK vs. Capcom - Chaos indeed. Horribly unbalanced game. Only reason I even remotely like it is because Megaman Zero is in it (and MMZ has been one of my favorite Megaman series for how tough it is)
b) SNK vs. Capcom Card Fighters DS - Aside from being completely broken in the first release (they eventually fixed it), the gameplay overall sucks and fails in comparison to the NeoGeo Pocket Color original
c) Doki Doki Majo Shinpan - With being advertised for its "sexiness" (which is borderline pedophilia outside of Japan lol), the game turned out to be a complete snorefest (from what I've heard, at least)

Even if SNK Playmore was formed out of the defuct SNK's employees, it seems what ever creative genius that used to exist in the company died along with the original SNK.
Porting IS priority one for them, because it's really the only thing they can't screw up (unless they try really hard to), and it's somewhat forgivable because they used to make really cool games.

T3H WICKERMAN (TMNT DF) (BWF) @ Jan 20th 2008 2:18AM

card fighters clash on the neo geo pocket was great, im sorry you had to play the (from what I hear) bad ds rehash. The original two were very new and exciting. RE mansion was the best and the RE cards were awesome.

Cain Highwind @ Jan 20th 2008 2:26AM

Why are you ONLY mentioning the bad games? They made up for those games quite nicely with NeoGeo Battle Coliseum, Samurai Spirits/Shodown Tenka/VI, and KoF XI. Although, I wish they had waited to try making a VS game until NOW. NBC is sadly what Chaos should've been (literally, because it's based off the same "engine"). Great game, but I can't help but think how great it would've been if Capcom characters were in it.

They were better and more original back then though, I'll give you thst much. Considering Last Blade has never been properly ported to any other system, I'm waiting for THAT

BPM4:Guns of the Idiots @ Jan 20th 2008 2:44AM

2005 was a good year for Playmore. You got me there, Cain... But the other years haven't been as favorable for the company.

DaiMac79 @ Jan 20th 2008 9:30AM

I fully agree, whatever genius at SNK they possessed (see SamSho, RBFF, MoTW, etc) at one time is long gone. SNK is dead, Playmore is all that remains now.

Mr Khan @ Jan 20th 2008 1:23PM

SNK's golden age was too closely tied to the 2nd Golden Age of Arcade games (the 16-bit age)

The one dies, so does the other. Doesn't mean SNK is incapable of doing more. It just means that their original glory can never fully be reclaimed.

timnc @ Jan 20th 2008 1:25AM

Oh... all the original SNK fighters in a nice little PSP package... I'll get it.

Shignami @ Jan 20th 2008 2:02AM

What is it with Neo-Geo games and "Compilations" anyway?

DarthDavid @ Jan 20th 2008 9:03AM

Damn only one shump??? Well Last Resort is not that bad ........hopefully next time we'll get Blazing Star, Pulsar, & hell give me Alpha Mission II!!!

heckthor @ Jan 20th 2008 10:25AM

I love Samurai Showdown 2, so if it's included im buying (even though i have it for the original system ), and i would love to see NINJA MASTERS, AGRESSORS OF DARK COMBAT, KING OF FIGHTERS 95, 97, 98, DOUBLE DRAGON, KABUKI KLASH, oh man so many... but this collection seems pretty good (second should include Aero Fighters )... The Future is Now... SNK-Playmore...