Sonic the Fighters is another Sonic Spin off that really needed another attempt, an Arcade fighting game with a ton of enegry, hilariously over-animated characters and a killer soundtrack stuck behind a game with confusing mechanics and lacking content.

STF has a story mode where you take 1 character through a bunch of set challenges in set stages each and every time. There’s very little in variation and it’s a shame that this is all the single player content that’s available.

Combat is overall fun but very inconsistent. Every character has a ton of moves that compliment their established characteristics. I don’t think it’s always simple to pull off advanced techniques, but practice can allow you to mop the floor with opponents… sometimes.

Sometimes you’ll lock an enemy into a chain and deal massive damage, sometimes you’ll either get blocked for no apparent reason or barely deal any damage. The block is also odd, you only get 5 dedicated guards per round. This isn’t a problem per se and it does make you think about when you should be blocking, and when it’s better to try and dodge or just take the hit.

I think what saves fighters from feeling extreme bare is the animation, it’s absolutely brillaint, looney toons styled slapstick and the sound effects are so crunchy you can really feel those hits.

But as I say it’s a fairly simple game. Better with friends for sure but there are better options. Love the soundtrack too, it’s got great great variety. Play this if you’re curious but don’t go out your way for it.