Welcome to VC Weekly, N-Europe’s guide to the wonderful world of Nintendo’s download service. Written by Sam C Gittins

If you like Neo Geo fighters then you're in luck as here we have another title to add to your collection that should provide a decent fix. Anyway enough from me and on with the game!
 
Available for download this week we have...     

The King of Fighters '96

 
 
Points: 900
Publisher: D4 Enterprise
Developer: SNK
Released: 1996
System: Neo Geo

While this is the third release in the series we have already been treated to later entries so while initially it might seem odd to release The King of Fighters '96 in such a random way it is still a much needed addition as you'll see if you choose to play as it represents many important steps forward that have become subsequent staples that the games wouldn't be without now. Several additions are present which assist in providing a greater example of equilibrium that just wasn't as prominent in its predecessors so it's easy to see why this is such an important title that deserves recognition.

Amongst the most notable additions is the ability to control just how high your character can jump which is extremely usefull especially if you like to play in a rather tactical manner as it makes it easier to keep your opponent guessing which is always entertaining. Everything is still rather combo-focused but is now better balanced than in past efforts which makes this entry so much more playable, naturally it's still not on the same level as '97 or '98 but it's at this point where a lot of the series trademarks come into bloom which is a beautiful thing to see.

Many modes are available including Single Play where you simply pick a character so you can do battle with the leader of each team, Survivial Mode where it's literally your one selected fighter against the entire roster depending on how long you can last which is always a challenge plus Team Play which has you pick a team of three characters to go up against the CPU; this mode seems to be the clear 'winner' for single player especially when you take into account the sobering difficulty level. You can also play standard V.S along with Team Play in two-player mode which are just as fun as their single-player counterparts if not moreso depending on how much you like to fight it out with your friends, if it's the main reason that you buy fighting games then this should still keep you entertained for a while.

There's a decent amount going on visually as the graphics have been improved over previous games with backgrounds now bursting with colour along with some truly amazing animation on the characters themselves, this is perhaps the point where the series really started to shine in this department and as we know they only got better with each iteration. Unfortunately the audio is rather tame this time around because although you have a few typical high-tempo rock-infused tracks which have become a series staple there are other more relaxed pieces of music which really don't feel like they belong at all, though it's still not a complete deal-breaker it had to be mentioned.

Regardless of any shortcomings this is still a landmark title for the series as it's the one that is best remembered for moving the series forward so it's important to remember that without it the subsequent sequels wouldn't have been anywhere near as refined as they are; I'd advise going into playing this with an open mind as there is still plenty to enjoy here even if it doesn't have all of the refinements you may have come to expect from the series many of the important elements were refined here. If you're a fan of the series then this is a definite purchase, even if you haven't played a game in this wonderful series then this is actually the ideal starting point as it's much easier to get into then any of the titles that came before it but at the same time it's not nearly as daunting as some of the sequels can be so it's a decent compromise.

Verdict : A solid sequel responsible for raising the profile of this fantastic fighting game series.

That's it for another installment of VC Weekly which will return again soon. So until then, enjoy the rest of the week and Game On!