The Last Blade ~Beyond the Destiny~ review by Paleface

Can two of the most colorful, subtle and gorgeous Neo Geo fighting games really fit into a tiny little 16 megabit NGPC cart? Can the four-button gameplay possibly survive with only two buttons? Can Amano still kick major samurai butt? Thankfully, The Last Blade answers all these questions with a resounding Yes! and, not content with that, adds in many extras in the bargain.

Don't come into The Last Blade expecting Match of the Millennium with samurai instead of street fighters, as you will be quite disappointed. LB's characters aren't as large, colorful or smoothly animated as those in MotM. The moves aren't as wild, the action doesn't seem to be as fast. At first, I didn't think there was much going on. A little digging, however, begins to uncover the treasures lurking in the depths of this game.

The Last Blade Neo Geo arcade games featured weapon fighters (the exception being Lee, the Chinese martial artist) who could pick from two modes, Speed and Power. Speed mode moves faster and allows more combos but lacks the sheer physical power and Super move selection of Power mode. The modes play quite differently and while each character tends to fit more naturally into one or the other, both open up different strategies and tactics and completely change the characters in a way that I have not seen equaled by Street Fighter ''isms'' or King of Fighters various modes. A third mode, EX, is something of a blend of the two, though physically weaker than both--this mode can be unlocked by a certain button combination when selecting your fighter. Generally I prefer the speed and chain combos of Speed mode but certain characters become true monsters in Strength mode: Strength mode Amano, for instance, can take off most of a character's life in just a few blows. Ouch!

The other most noteworthy feature of the LB fighting system is the parry, which both repels your opponent's attack and leaves them open to a counter. Parrying adds a great deal of tension to the game and slows down the pace so matches become tense waiting games which suddenly explode in flurries of strikes and counters when one fighter thinks they spot an opening. Countering in the pocket version is done by pressing forward+B which works quite well when you get used to it (B is also used for kicking), though if you prefer you can select from other parry methods in the game's option menu.

Character designs in the Last Blade have translated wonderfully from the arcade--the Last Blade series has always been blessed with some of the most brilliant character design in the business and you're treated here to pocket-sized versions of almost all of the characters from the two arcade games (with the notable exceptions of Juzoh, Mukuro, Shigen and the first game's bad-ass sub-boss, Musashi) with virtually all of their moves intact. You've only got one sword button (A) to work with so some of the moves are a little less accessible; once you figure your selected character's moves out, though, you'll find you have a substantial arsenal at your disposal. Each character plays quite differently than the others (possibly excepting Washizuka and Kojiroh, who come from the same school of sword-fighting) and while you'll enjoy discovering the groove of each you'll no doubt find several who fit especially well with your own style preferences.

As mentioned early on, the graphics in LB aren't incredibly astounding by Neo Geo Pocket Color standards. The characters have a slightly less super-deformed look than those in other NGP fighters and while this makes them look a little more serious and grown-up, they're also smaller and less ornately animated. All the necessary frames for their attacks are in there, however--this game may not overflow with eye-candy but it does not cut corners when it comes to the actual fighting. Like the characters the backgrounds have a more static, slightly washed-out look than MotM, yet they faithfully re-create many of the backgrounds from the two arcade games. And while the graphics don't have a whole lot of flash, what is there is absolutely top-quality stuff, there's no spot where you'd say ''oh gee, that could have been drawn better.'' And to be fair, some of the Strength mode supers, which flash a character portrait over the background just before launching, and the Speed mode Enigma Frenzy (chain combo) effect, look quite impressive.

There isn't a whole lot to say about the sound. The handheld speakers can only achieve a certain level of detail, so while the sword hits, blocks, fire effects and so forth sound decent, they won't blow you away. The music in particular suffers as compared with the arcade version--they tried to bring over the same spare, moody traditional Japanese music as the arcade, which is admirable, but there just aren't enough fine notes in the hardware to do it justice. It establishes a certain degree of the Last Blade feel but it can get a little grating at times--I would have preferred slightly lower volume.

Enough dissection, you cry, what do I do in this game? Well, to start with you can play the single-player game. At the beginning you'll notice a whole row of blank character boxes--you'll have to unlock these! Now, they handled combining Last Blade and Last Blade 2 in a great way: the first time you play a character, you go through the Last Blade storyline and fight Kagami, the Last Blade boss. The next time you play with that character you'll go through the Last Blade 2 storyline, fighting different characters (such as awakened Kaede, Hibiki and Kojiroh, who didn't appear in the first Last Blade) and the Last Blade 2 end boss, Kouryu. If you ever want to play back through the first game's storyline, just press Option instead of A when selecting your character. So basically you get both the Last Blade and Last Blade 2 storylines here--very nicely done. They're slightly altered to adjust for the absent characters but on the whole are quite faithful to the arcade, complete with ending cinematics.

So that'll keep you busy for a while. But wait, there's more! Training mode, naturally, as well as Time Attack (how many characters can you defeat within the time limit?) and Survival (how many enemies can you defeat in a row?). As you play more you'll unlock two mini-games: Mukuro's ''Great Escape from Hell's Gate'' is a bizarre one where Mukuro tries to swim through the air away from the Hell's Gate vortex, dodging uprooted rocks and trees while collecting flying powerups, while ''H.R Competition'' stars Juzoh batting pitches from Akari. By the way, here's a tip on batting: push B rapidly to build up power before the pitch and once it's thrown, first hold down A, then move the stick the direction indicated in the pitching chart. Soon you'll be hittin' longballs like the best of 'em! The additional modes and mini-games won't keep you busy that long but they're fun enough and provide a little break from the main meat of the game. Best of all, they get you the ever-coveted ''points.'' Survival is particularly noteworthy in that you're given the chance to accept a special goal for each fight, such as connecting with a four-hit combo: win the fight while also accomplishing the special goal and you win extra points.

What do ya do with these points? Ah, that's where Gallery mode comes in: you use points to buy scrolls in various categories. There are a lot of scrolls to buy so getting the points for all of 'em takes a good amount of playing. Luckily, it pays off in a big way. Some scrolls provide details on characters such as backstory and the like. You can get scrolls which allow you to watch the character endings whenever you want. Some scrolls are just pretty pictures. The coolest scrolls boost your characters' abilities: one increases your power charge rate, for instance. You can take two scrolls along with you while playing through the game. And of course, certain scrolls unlock the mini-games and the hidden characters--eventually even the two bosses become playable! Finally, I've never had the opportunity to try this but you can also trade scrolls between NGPCs via the link cable. Oh and of course you can play two player via link cable if you're lucky enough to find someone with a another copy of the game.

My only significant issue with the game, aside from the tunes, is the difficulty level: it's too easy! I'm no fighting wizard by any stretch of the imagination and yet I can beat the highest difficulty without breaking a sweat--if I pick the more powerful scrolls, it's a breeze. Now granted that is while using my better characters in their favored modes (Speed Kojiroh and Power Amano) but even getting through with characters I'm not as comfortable with isn't all that hard. As far as I'm concerned, a fighting game on the highest difficulty should give me a good whuppin' and Last Blade can't provide that.

Last Blade for the NGPC has the moves and style of the two arcade games put together, with a good deal of extras to boot. Fans of the arcade games will love it to death, as will any fighting game fans looking for a game that provides deeper than usual gameplay and storylines. This game is my sentimental favorite on the system--I just wish it put up a wee bit more fight before allowing me to master it.

Score: 9/10