When Final Fight hit the arcades in 1989 it became an instant classic, certainly not the first beat em up video game, but one that defined the genre. And today as that genre is all but near dead it still remains on the lips of beat em up enthusiasts when the subject of definitive games arises.
By 1993 Beat em ups had hit full stride, our favourite characters of comic books and cartoons were starring in their own button mashing multi-player street brawl fighting arcade games. The 16-bit era of console gaming had exploded, filling our living-rooms with everything from anthropomorphic animals that ran at the speed of light to muscle clad warriors that with a single punch could send you plummeting into a pit of razor sharp spikes without thinking twice. An odd time indeed for Capcom to release their belated 8-bit port of Final Fight.
It begins with the familiar story, a mainstay in oh so many games of the day. The Damsel in distress kidnapped by a mysterious evil antagonist. The Mad Gear gang have stolen the mayor's daughter Jessica, and Haggar the mayor accompanied by Cody and Guy must set out to rescue her!
The immediate difference noticed in Mighty Final Fight to its original arcade counterpart is the portrayal of the characters. Gone are our large realistic heroes and villians, they have been reduced to almost child like comical proportions. This works surprisingly well on the NES. Instead of an attempt at a direct port of an arcade game that ran on superior hardware, Capcom opted for a scaled down 8-bit revamp. Our familiar heroes are there as are the majority of the bad guys we knew in the arcade, just smaller, sillier and sporting heads in DK mode.
As for the gameplay, it's the Final Fight you knew and loved in the arcades. Controls are quick, smooth and responsive. The punches, flying kicks and tosses are all there. One button for attack the other for jump, together they unleash your character's special attack. Just like in the arcades. A noticeable variation from the original is the experience bar that builds with each thug you dispense of. By building your experience bar you gain EXP levels that ultimately lengthen your health bar. An interesting alteration that perhaps makes the game a tad easier than it should've been.
The backgrounds in Mighty Final Fight are well rendered and colourful, almost staying true to the original locales. Though the characters themselves for the most part look ridiculous, that was likely the intention of its creators, but at times(i.e, on the receiving end of an attack) they appear just TOO silly. The sound affects are nothing to write home about, the obligatory bumps and crunches when delivering or receiving blows, but you cannot expect too much from an 8-bit beat em up effects-wise. In game music though not memorable, is not bad either. It won't have you humming the tunes afterwards but it won't have you clambering for the mute button either. Two obvious omissions made in Mighty Final Fight are the lack of a 2 player option and not a single player-usable weapon to be seen in the games entirety. Despite these discrepancies it's aim stays true to the original arcade version.
Mighty is like a flawed little brother to its senior Final Fight. The older may be more popular and tougher, attractive, slicker, cooler and remembered by all. But the less attractive little brother shares the same genes that made it's senior great. In its own arena it holds the well deserved title as one of the best beat em ups to grace the Nintendo Entertainment System.