Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) Reviews

In a question made famous by Shakespeare himself, the playwright unflinchingly asked "what is in a name?" While there is little doubt how perplexing today's world would be to someone from such an era, I can't help but think that Shakespeare was actually a prophet, talking about what should be for all intensive purposes be known as "Star Gladiator 2: Nightmare of Bilstein." Plasma Sword? How ironic is it that this change kept me, a fan of the original, in the dark about its existence for so long? Okay, so the word "Bilstein" should have been a clue since it's not exactly a common name, but really, would such a cosmetic change really change the game's fortunes for the better?

Beyond picking on Capcom for such an ill-fated name change, what has changed since we last checked in with the Star Gladiators and the members of the Fourth Empire? Story wise, we know that Hayato Kanzaki defeated Bilstein (like that's a shocker, the Ken/Ryu-ish character winning), Zelkin has defected from the ranks of the Fourth Empire and Rimgal doesn't reappear for the reasons revealed in the original. None of this is actually revealed by the game however - we only get a shallow, non-FMV opening that mainly states "it's not over yet" in typical Capcom fashion - so you'll need to dig around on the internet a little to discover the actual series canon because the manual isn't any help.

Speaking of the manual, it and character select screen gives us a glimpse at an area that has gone completely awry. The first row of characters presents us with the returning cast from the first game, otherwise known as the "good" characters. Unfortunately, I don't mean "good" as in "good intentioned," I mean good as in those who are well designed, have purpose and are able to form affection for. I myself have always had a soft spot for Hayato and Zelkin. Those in the second row are new characters, characters with borrowed move sets (outside plasma strikes) that are flat-out terrible. Haven't we learned that doubling the roster in a fighter is pointless when you simultaneously half it's quality? I think Capcom missed that lesson when it crashed and burned in Battle Arena Toshinden 3. Some of these characters are really unimaginative: June and Hayato's future daughter? God, we couldn't help that insipid impulse to throw some time travel in there could we? Hell, even Bilstein's daughter manages to free up some of her time to join the fray. The worst offenders have to be the hidden characters that look like they were rejected from a Bloody Roar game.

Plasma Sword does attempt to build more of bridge between its characters and the player than the original however. Upon reaching the fifth stage one is greeted with a small exchange between the characters and the endings are more accessible than they were in the first game (which was a HUGE problem), now being unlocked by obtaining enough battle points and not continuing rather than how long it takes the player to beat the final stage. That said, there are still many things within the game's universe that are simply not touched upon which is a real letdown when you consider how well Capcom can do this kind of thing when they put their minds to it - e.g. Rival Schools.

On the audio side of things, the opening animation - if you could call it an animation, calling it that seems too charitable considering this is the Dreamcast - and character select screen will tell one they're in for a bumpy ride. The opening tune is probably the best piece of music you're going to hear all game and it is quickly revisited on the first stage of the game (the rocking "Illusion of Peace") and cast roll, but once you hear the character select theme, you’ll realize that not everything fits into place and that the guitar-riff based soundtrack by Tetsuya Shibata and Takayuki Iwai is shallow by design. With stages and characters no longer as linked to one another as they once where, the personality that was seen in original game goes out the window. Still, the bulk of the stage themes can seem pretty fine when compared to the character ending themes which are complete and absolute garbage. On the plus side of things, the voice acting for many of the returning characters is spot-on again, with many of the win quotes/battle cries being close re-creations or transfers from the first game.

In another unsurprising twist, Plasma Sword is behind the times graphically as well. The graphics have been slightly improved from the original ZN-2 arcade board, which makes the game look like a slightly remastered PlayStation game. Human characters fair the best while larger characters like Gamof show the age of the original hardware, sharp lines and edges still defining his wookiee-like frame to the end. The battle arenas represent one of the lower lows of combat, ditching ring-outs and adopting an endless Tekken-like area with a flat, listless image pasted in the background that are insulting considering the original game did so much more.

Combat fairs a little better although there are some hew hitches to be aware of. First off, not assigning block to a button in a three-dimensional fighter is a bad idea in my opinion - especially in a series where it was originally. While the camera is never really a problem, there are times where blocking just doesn't seem to register. Second nick-pick: turning the former block button into a sidestep button. Like every other fighter out there, that's what the shoulder buttons are for. Third gripe: Do we really need command short-cuts for Plasma Strikes when they are already easy enough to execute? Save this for a game with six attack-button control scheme. Further diluting the experience of combat is the new plasma meter, adding that Street Fighter element to the game that was disregarded from Star Gladiator for a reason. Sure, it wasn't exactly a new experience but it was a nice change of pace for a Capcom fighter.

Finally, there are the various modes available for play. If you do a lot of gaming on your own then there's only one mode of play and that's arcade. Backing this up is versus play, group battle, training mode and nothing more. It would help if there was another mode of play like Soul Blade's Edge Master Mode that expanded on the story, attack options and replay value but no. A bare-bones presentation that makes you crave for a game like Rival Schools that heaped on the options to an almost absurd level.

Plasma Sword is worth the ten to fifteen dollars you're likely to spend on it if you're into the off-beat characters from the first game, but beyond that it's a game that’s been severely outclassed and outgunned. Well, it was outgunned and outclassed before it was released - even on previous consoles - but that's beside the point. The game can be fun while it lasts, but if you want to check out anything, or anything that should be called “Star Gladiator,” do yourself a big favor and check out the original game which was a much better product for its time.