Final Fight

Overview

Final Fight first appeared as a 1989 arcade game released by Capcom for their CPS hardware. It is a side-scrolling "beat 'em up" (or brawler) with attacks consisting mainly of simple punching and kicking, as well as grabs, throws, aerial attacks and special moves which clear the area around the player while draining a small amount of health. Knives, swords and pipes can also be used. In the original arcade release, there are three playable characters: Cody, Haggar , and Guy.

Story

The story revolves around the Mad Gear street gang kidnapping Mayor Haggar's daughter Jessica in an attempt to bully him into submission.

Instead of giving in to the gang, Haggar decides to fight back and reaches out to Jessica's boyfriend Cody. He in turn calls on his training partner Guy. Together, the three take to the streets of Metro City to destroy the gang and rescue Jessica. The player fights through the streets, through the subway system, through a wrestling ring, and eventually fight their way to the leader of the Mad Gear gang's headquarters, ultimately defeating him and rescuing Jessica.

Hardware

Final Fight was originally on Capcom's CPS arcade hardware. It featured a dedicated cabinet with a control panel that had two buttons and a 8-way joystick. Although three characters where selectable only two players could play at a single cabinet. Cabinet colors varied but were typically black, with large character graphics featured on the side.

Ports, Sequels and Emulation

The SNES version, released in North America in 1991 for the launch of the SNES in that territory, disappointed many because it dropped the co-op play, removing arguably the most attractive element of the game and it also removes Guy as a playable character. A second version was later released in 1994, called Final Fight: Guy, which added him in lieu of Cody. This version was available as a rental-only game from Blockbuster video stores.

The SNES version of Final Fight was also limited to three on-screen enemies simultaneously, whereas it was a common occurrence in the arcade version to fight far more than this amount, easily double or triple.

One silver lining to the SNES port is the arrangement of the music; Capcom tailored the soundtrack to fit the sample-based capabilities of the SNES sound chip. This was a departure from the FM synth-based soundtrack in the arcade and offered a different interpretation of the music.

It was recently discovered that two variations of Final Fight: Guy exist- the common "orange box", and the rarer "black box." There is a lot of confusion as to where the black box version came from, and very few have ever been found. Theories express that it could have been the original color of the box until an exclusive deal was later made with Blockbuster or that it was a Canadian variant, despite it being marked as available in the US. This small variation can make these versions of the game very valuable from a collector's standpoint.

Two sequels, Final Fight 2 and Final Fight 3, were released on the SNES in 1993 and 1995, respectively. It is likely due to more experience working with the SNES hardware that Capcom was able to offer a fuller experience with each of these sequels, including co-op play as well as more enemies on-screen at once.

Much later, the game was re-released on the Game Boy Advance as Final Fight One. Final Fight: One featured small dialog exchanges before boss fights, unlockable features, and the Street Fighter: Alpha versions of Cody and Guy. In addition, Capcom rectified the limited enemy count from the SNES port-- many instances of Final Fight One show an on-screen enemy count more faithful to the arcade port, and included cooperative play via the link cable.

Final Fight: Double Impact was a PSN and XBLA game that was attached with Magic Sword.

The game was also released as part of the 'Capcom Arcade' on iOS in 2011.

Playable Characters

Haggar

The big, slow, strong character of Final Fight. His optimal weapon is the pipe, and he has a piledriver and spinning lariat. He is the mayor of Metro City as well as Jessica's Father.

Cody

The middle of the road character of Final Fight. His optimal weapon is the knife, and he is the only character able to use it without throwing it. He uses a jumping spin kick, and is Jessica's boyfriend.

Guy

The fast character of Final Fight. His optimal weapon is the Katana. He uses a jumping spin kick similar to Cody's. Guy is a friend of Cody's.

Stages

There are six stages in the first Final Fight all taking place in Metro City.

• Stage one - Slum
• Stage two - Subway
• Stage three - West Side
• Stage four - Industrial Area
• Stage Five - Bay Area
• Stage six - Up Town

Bonus Stages:

• The first bonus stage takes place in a gas station in between level two and three, where the player destroys a thugs car as fast as they can within the time limit.

• The glass panes factory is the second bonus stage, it takes place between level five and six, where the player is to destroy all of the glass panes in the factory within the time limit.

Boss Characters

Damnd

Damnd is the first level boss, as well as the character that Haggar talks to in the attract screen.

*In the SNES version his name was changed to Thrasher.

Sodom

Sodom is the Second level boss. He uses two swords that can be knocked out of his hands and used against him. He would later appear as a playable character in Street Fighter Apha.

*In some regions he is known as Katana.

Edi.E

Edi.E is the third stage boss. The gum he spits out at the start of the fight can be eaten to regain health.

Rolento

The boss of the fouth stage. He is fought on a elevator while enemies and weapons fall down from above.

Abigail

Abigail is the boss of the fifth stage. He appears to be a palette swap of Hugo Andore with a different head.

Belger

Horace Belger is the sixth and final boss. He starts in a electric wheelchair with Jessica in his lap. The chair breaks after a significant amount of damage or a single throw, and Jessica is tossed aside.