After beating Fatal Fury, I felt obligated to play Art of Fighting because of how much I liked it. Sadly I didn't get the same enjoyment here.

The music is decent, the graphics are good looking, the movement is much better Fatal Fury's, and I like how the story is framed as a kung-fu action movie with cutscenes thrown in the mix. I just feel like the gameplay holds AoF back.

This is probably a me problem, but I don't like how sluggish the special moves feel. A Hien Shippuu Kyaku or a Haoh Shoukou Ken takes eons to come out, so don't go using them willy-nilly. Then there's the meter mechanic, the Spirit Gauge. I feel that it's a hindrance.

Not only do you need it to perform special moves which drain a lot of it, but it's difficult to get it charged high enough with the AI being so neurotic. They'll be constantly taunting you to shrink the gauge or outright intercept you, while they constantly charge theirs up. It feels like this picture. Mr. Big is especially guilty of this. Penis-headed bitch. But I'll give SNK some credit, the Spirit Gauge adds another layer of strategy to the game, which did keep things interesting.

I respect this game as one of SNK's legacy titles, but it's not something I'd like to revisit.