REVIEW:  Aiming to stay fiercely competitive with Capcom's highly-successful and ever-evolving Street Fighter 2 series, SNK's Fatal Fury 2 introduced a whopping seven new characters (in addition to five returning fighters from the original game). Newcomers like Mai Shiranui and Kim Kaphwan would go on to be fan-favorites and mainstays in future fighting games (soon crossing over into the KOF series a few years later).
 
 
Fatal Fury 2's visuals showed significant improvements over the original Fatal Fury, featuring completely redrawn sprites (something Capcom wasn't doing with SF2 at the time). SNK's smoother character sprites and brand new hand-drawn backgrounds in Fatal Fury 2 have a cartoony charm that pops out of the screen with lots of bright colors. It's definitely a bright game with characters wearing bright outfits. Hey, it's eye catching!
 

 
Even though the Fatal Fury 2 featured all new graphics, the overall presentation still seemed lacking in certain ways. For one, the intro and character selection screen have some bland and boring visual elements — compared to other 2D fighting games out at the time. Many character "win quotes" were also translated beyond horribly in the English version, which did not help the characters catch on with the audience early on, nor did it help each character's development or general likeability at the time. (In retrospect, these hilarious and poorly translated "Engrish" quotes are looked back upon somewhat fondly for their unintentional humor. Things do look a lot better with nostalgia glasses on. We've come a long way and we're still here!)
 

 

Gameplay-wise, Fatal Fury 2 feels similar to the first game but thankfully speedier and more responsive this time around. Fatal Fury's unique gameplay element of switching between the foreground and background has faithfully returned. This time, the player can switch freely between planes by pressing the Light Punch and Light Kick buttons simultaneously for to attack while switching planes. The player can also perform a Super Move that knocks their opponent to the other plane.
 

     
The roster is certainly more exciting than the first game. Not only that, but the stages play a role in gameplay this time. Certain stages have hazards in the background, such as electrified wires or even a stampede of bulls, which players can knock their opponents into for extra damage. Ouch! The stage hazards element adds some variety and helps distinguish FF2 over other fighting games of the era, but it mostly comes off as a gimmick if you ask me. I personally prefer a faithful, fair contest any day of the week. Fatal Fury 2 didn't have it all, but it paved the way for many great sequels to come. I will say one thing, Fatal Fury 2 had some bitchin' artwork! Eiji Shiroi and Shinkiro definitely illustrated some masterpieces in this series.
 

Page Updated: October 12th, 2025 Developer(s): SNK     NeoGeo Takara     SNES/Genesis Publisher(s): SNK Artwork By: Shinkiro, Eiji Shiroi Platform(s): Neo Geo, Neo Geo CD, PC, Sega Genesis, SNES, Game Boy, Wii Virtual Console Release Date(s): Dec. 12, 1992                   MVS Mar. 5th, 1993                 NeoGeo Nov. 26th, 1993               SNES April 1994                           SNES Mar. 12th, 1994               PC June 24th, 1994               Genesis Sept. 9th, 1994               NeoGeo CD June 30th, 2009               Wii VC Characters:  Terry Bogard, Andy Bogard, Joe Higashi, Mai Shiranui, Big Bear, Kim Kaphwan, Cheng Sinzan, Jubei Yamada, Billy Kane, Axel Hawk, Laurence Blood, Wolfgang Krauser Featured Video: Related Games: Fatal Fury Special, Fatal Fury, Fatal Fury 3, Real Bout Fatal Fury, Real Bout Fatal Fury Special, Real Bout Special: Dominated Mind, Real Bout Fatal Fury 2, Fatal Fury: Wild Ambition, Fatal Fury: 1st Contact, Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, Garou: Mark of The Wolves, Street Fighter 2: Champion Edition, Street Fighter 2 Turbo, Samurai Shodown 2, Mortal Kombat, World Heroes    Gameplay Engine  6.0 / 10 Story / Theme  6.5 / 10 Overall Graphics  6.5 / 10 Animation  6.0 / 10 Music / Sound Effects  6.0 / 10 Innovation  7.0 / 10 Art Direction  8.5 / 10 Intro / Presentation  5.0 / 10 Replayability / Fun  5.5 / 10 "Ouch" Factor  5.5 / 10 Characters  5.5 / 10 BOTTOM LINE  6.3 / 10  Review based on Arcade version       Final Words: Fatal Fury 2 was certainly an improvement over the first game, technically and aesthetically, but the sequel curiously left out many of the original characters from FF1. (Something you might expect as a Capcom fighting game fan back then?) Obviously, SNK wasn't done with their FF2 engine and had more plans to compete against Capcom's SF2 (and other soon-to-come 2D fighting games). The gameplay system of FF2 was a bit more refined than the first game, but sales charts would prove that the majority of fighting game players were still overflowing Street Fighter 2 cabinets with their hard-earned quarters. Even so, Fatal Fury 2 was a solid effort from SNK at the time, and made an impact on the genre with great 2D sprites and beautiful artwork by soon to be legendary illustrators, Shinkiro and Eiji Shiroi. Fatal Fury 2 paved the way for the next title in the series, Fatal Fury Special (the sequel to Fatal Fury 2) which brought back several characters from the original FF1 roster including Geese Howard, Tung Fu Rue, and that goofy breakdancing guy with the mohawk... Duck King. They're a kooky bunch aren't they? ~TFG Webmaster | @Fighters_Gen    Click Here for all Posters / Box Art! Click Here for all Character Promo Art! Click Here for all Animated Stages! STORY PROLOGUE Illustrated by Eiji Shiroi Click Here for all Story Prologue Illustrations!     Click Here for all Screenshots! FOLLOW    ON:                             TFG NEWS CHARACTERS GAMES