How good is the Saturn for 2d fighting games?

[Hirolaser]

I have bought a sega saturn recently for 2d games in particular for 2d fighters like the Capcom and neogeo fighting games but have not used it yet. I know it has a lot of arcade ports but are they arcade perfect? The main thing that puts me off an arcade conversion is the missing frames of animation on characters. I want to play a lot of 2d fighting games especially the three games in the Streetfighter Alpha series, Samurai Showdown games, Marvel SH, Vampire hunter, KOF, cyberbots etc.

Which of the 2d ports had full frames of animation on the characters like the arcade versions and were "arcade perfect" if any? and does the 4 meg Ram card make a difference in this regard?

Thanks

[aryoshi]

I honestly found that Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 on the Saturn was one of the best versions of it I've ever played. Plus, how could I ever forget CRAZY CYRAX? :P I think the Saturn version of that game though is almost arcade perfect, save for the annoying loading times.

[kedawa]

There's some great info here (http://www.racketboy.com/retro/2006/05/sega-saturn-2d-fighters-library.html).

[old_skoolin_jim]

I initially got my saturn for the "Vs." games, and can strongly recommend the import of X-Men Vs. Street Fighter - it can often be had for $20ish.
It's good, and not quite as seizure-inducing as it's sequel (though that is still a great game too).

[Baloo]

X-Men Vs. Street Fighter
Vampire Savior
Marvel Super Heroes Vs. Street Fighter
Street Fighter Alpha 3
Samurai Shodown IV
King of Fighters '97

And there's plenty more import-wise.

[kedawa]

Waku Waku 7 is pretty great, actually.

[Edmond Dantes]

I'd like to know this too, actually, seeing as I like fighters and shmups and I've been given to understand that the Saturn (and Dreamcast) were basically heaven for those genres.

[TonyTheTiger]

There's no question that the Saturn was truly spectacular for arcade perfect fighting games, something very hard to come by in the late 90s. Pretty much any Capcom fighter for the Saturn will be arcade perfect with the 4M RAM cart and I'm pretty sure most, if not all, SNK games also match their Neo Geo counterparts, though I have less experience with them so I can't say for certain.

It has, however, become somewhat obsolete over time due to subsequent arcade perfect ports on the PS2 and onward. There's no reason to play any MK on it since the Saturn MKs actually aren't arcade perfect and they've been released a few times, the most recent being an affordable collection with online play. If arcade perfection is what you want, you won't get it from any MK home port prior to the PS2. And, even then, the PS2 version of MKII has issues.

But not every game has received subsequent ports so there's still good cause to bust out the Saturn. X-Men vs. Street Fighter and Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter, for instance.

[Snapple]

How has nobody mentioned Fighters Megamix yet? It's one of the greatest games of all time.

You can play as the goddamn Daytona car. And run people over.

[crazyjackcsa]

How has nobody mentioned Fighters Megamix yet? It's one of the greatest games of all time.

You can play as the goddamn Daytona car. And run people over.

That's 3d.

[ubersaurus]

The Capcom vs games on Saturn are pretty much by themselves worth it (and none of them were ever ported to a better console), as well as the Vampire Savior port. All the 4meg RAM cart games are practically arcade perfect in terms of animation - though the Saturn version of Alpha 3 is trumped slightly by the Alpha collection on ps2 in terms of gameplay accuracy. The games that don't use the expansion carts are missing some animation, like X-Men Children of the Atom or Night Warriors, but they still play pretty damn well.

I've only played a couple of the SNK game ports, but they're pretty solid as well (the fancier ones using, for the most part, the 1meg RAM cart), if not trumped by the PS2 collections that they also appear on. I would, however, look into Fighters Megamix and Fighting Vipers even if you're not interested in 3d fighters; they are absolutely fantastic Saturn exclusives.


Short version is that PS2 collections pretty much usurp the bulk of of the Saturn's 2d goodness as far as arcade accuracy goes, but the Capcom Marvel fighters are exclusive and fantastic on the system.

[Az]

Don't forget, Marvel Super Heroes has the extra option to use the 1mb RAM cartridge and an additional character (Anita).

[cheesystick]

If you import, you gotta check out Cyberbots. It's beyond awesome.

[TonyTheTiger]

Well, in this case importing is pretty much the only option for the vast majority of 2d fighters.

[Icarus Moonsight]

Saturn + 2D fighters = *splodge*
/thread

[gameofyou]

In addition to all the great Capcom & SNK fighting games, there were excellent games like Astra Superstars, Groove On Fight, and Asuka 120% Limited. A lot of the games will require (or optionally use) the 4Meg ram cart.

[Kevincal]

I would think someone would have to have been living under a rock for the last 15 years to not know about the Saturns legendary 2d power lol ;) not to mention it has one of the best controllers ever for 2d fighters.

[Beefy Hits]

You can't go wrong with the Saturn for fighters.

One of the best versions of Street Fighter Alpha 3.

But you have to import a lot of stuff.

[Steven]

To answer topic question, PRETTY DAMN GOOD.

In fact, my first 2 years owning a Saturn I lived off just 2 fighting games: World Heroes Perfect and Fighter's History Dynamite.

Another yet-mentioned 2D fighter that I enjoyed is Sonic Council.

SF Zero 3 might be the best arcade-Saturn translation ever.

Saturn rocks for 2D fight fans

[Edmond Dantes]

Another yet-mentioned 2D fighter that I enjoyed is Sonic Council.

.... Any relation to a certain Hedgehog?

[Steven]

.... Any relation to a certain Hedgehog?

Haha. Can't tell if you're joking or not, but to answer your ? seriously, no it's not.

I'm sure you could find a vid of it on youtube. Nothing spectacular, but just another rock solid Saturn fighter. Sonic Council is sort of a throw-back to the early-mid 90s Street Fighter clones... no wonder I enjoyed it so much :)

[T2KFreeker]

The point here is that, yes, the Saturn has some very well done 2D fighters on it. The SNK games generally slaughter their Neo Geo CD Counterparts. Still, how about the fact that the Saturn itself is an outstanding system that just got lost at the time of it's release? The system is awesome and there is more amazing stuff there outside of the fighting realm . . .

[Edmond Dantes]

I kinda suspected it wasn't related to the Hedgehog, but I had to ask anyway.

So, what other games are worth getting a Saturn for? I've thought of getting a modded system and I just need a few more pushes to convince me...

[Atariguy]

The SNK games generally slaughter their Neo Geo CD Counterparts.

Really? I haven't ever done a side by side comparison or anything, but the NGCD had the exact same hardware as the arcade, and my understanding is that it wasn't until later in its life that that games started having some cuts to fit the RAM limitations. Which games do you feel are better on the Saturn and why?

[ubersaurus]

I kinda suspected it wasn't related to the Hedgehog, but I had to ask anyway.

So, what other games are worth getting a Saturn for? I've thought of getting a modded system and I just need a few more pushes to convince me...

There are plenty of good shooters worth getting on the system!
Donpachi & Dodonpachi, Galactic Attack/Layer Section, Soukyugurentai, Darius Gaiden, Batsugun, Sexy Parodius, Tempest 2000, Panzer Dragoon and Zwei...

Fighters Megamix, Fighting Vipers, and Virtua Fighter 1 and 2 are all pretty awesome on the Saturn, and other excellent games are out there like Panzer Dragoon Saga, Shining Force 3, Saturn Bomberman, Earthworm Jim 2, etc.

It's a very good system if you're willing to import or pay the money to get some of the pricier quality games.

[kedawa]

Last Bronx is a lot of fun too. It has nice quick jumps, unlike other Sega fighters. It almost feels more like a 2D game than 3D.

[Edmond Dantes]

A game store in my local area has Galactic Attack and In The Hunt. And I could swear there was something else of note.

[T2KFreeker]

There are plenty of good shooters worth getting on the system!
Donpachi & Dodonpachi, Galactic Attack/Layer Section, Soukyugurentai, Darius Gaiden, Batsugun, Sexy Parodius, Tempest 2000, Panzer Dragoon and Zwei...

Fighters Megamix, Fighting Vipers, and Virtua Fighter 1 and 2 are all pretty awesome on the Saturn, and other excellent games are out there like Panzer Dragoon Saga, Shining Force 3, Saturn Bomberman, Earthworm Jim 2, etc.

It's a very good system if you're willing to import or pay the money to get some of the pricier quality games.

There is also the import of Willy Wombat, which while an odd game from Hudson, it is really cool. If you like Pinball at all, Last Gladiators Digital Pinball is still one of my all time favorite Pinball games ever. War Craft II rocks. Quake, Duke Nuke'm 3D, Power Slave, Alien Trilogy, The Virtua Cop Games, Dungeons & Dragons Collection, Deep Fear, and if you liked either of the "D" games, there is also Enemy Zero, which actually has a strange continuation with them. I am also surprised that nobody has brought up Burning Rangers, which was just awesome. Magic Knight Rayearth was pretty good too!

[gameofyou]

So, what other games are worth getting a Saturn for? I've thought of getting a modded system and I just need a few more pushes to convince me...

I have videos of most of the good Saturn games on YouTube (6 volumes):
http://www.youtube.com/user/gameofyou1