Gaming Hell

This week's Arcade Archives release is... Street Smart (SNK, 1989)

No Switch 2 version for this game!

As a remnder, this game is also available on SNK 40th Anniversary Collection by Digital Eclipse on PS4, Xbox One, Switch and Steam, with the PS4 and Switch versions also getting physical releases that you can get second-hand.

Only the Japanese ROM is included, although as far as I can tell the only differences are the Winners Don't Do Drugs screen and removal of Japanese text on the title screen. Preference Settings allow players to play on the Player 2 side, allowing easy access to Wrestler as a solo player.

Across the USA, street-fightin' men are getting ready for the big championship! 8 cities are hosting the bouts with their own fight queens to congratulate the winner, with two of the top contenders, Karate Man (P1) and Wrestler (P2), in fighting form! These pugilists know what they're doing, with powerful punches, crushing kicks and even backlips and somersaults to get out of harm's way quickly! They even move up and down the boxed-in arena to keep their opponents on their toes! As promising as they are, the competition is fierce, with some hulking competitors out there, waiting to become the king of the hill, and this year the action's even hotter as Karate Man and Wrestler can work together to fight two opponents at once, a real tag match! They'll even fight each other afterwards to see who's the toughest of the two! Only one can be the champion, though... Can they prove that they're really... Street Smart?! Medical services provided by SNK Ambulance Services, Co., with Dr. Nak Oruru and Nurse Rim Ururu tending to the wounded (well, they can't help with wounded pride!)

The SNK fighting game lineage begins with this game, one of their final releases alongside games like Beast Busters and SAR - Search & Rescue before the launch of the Neo Geo. Combining the one-on-one (or two-on-two with two players fighting two opponents) fighting of Street Fighter with the belt-scroll movement of Double Dragon, you've got a bit more freedom of movement than in later fighting games, allowing you to escape a little, plus the backflip helps you get out of a sticky situation quickly. That said, the way your character moves forward with most moves performed far away from your opponent is very strange and takes some getting used to, but if you're close enough, you'll throw out different moves that keep your stationary. The conventions of fighting games hadn't been set in stone just yet, so this is more of a boss rush with lives, non-recovering health between matches and unique opponents to fight.

To be honest, it's one I've never really been able to get into because of the strange way it feels, but there are definitely ways to play the game better than me! It certainly has charm though, with that distinctive '80s SNK look to it, an energetic soundtrack, some extremely loud and satisfying sound effects and the SNK AMBULANCE showing up to pick up the loser after bouts! Contrary to popular belief, there's no story ties to other SNK games, so no, you're not playing as Takuma Sakazaki. There are some connective threads though, as the first stage theme from Street Smart is remixed for the two-player battle theme in Fatal Fury, and the strange two player system- where players fight against the computer first then against each other- appears in both games (although in Fatal Fury, both players fight one opponent at once). One for those who want to explore the history of early fighting games for sure, although again, it's on SNK 40th Anniversary Collection- this version does have the advantage of being able to play as Wrestler easier, though.

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No Switch 2 release this time (similar to Chopper I) and the PSN version's not out until January 13th, so I'll update this with the working links later. Both the Japanese and English ROMs are included. Preference Settings allow you to control the player three side with player two controls (this is to more easily allow a player versus player game as when the game's set to four players, player one and player two are normally on the same team against the computer). Button Settings are similar to the ones for the other SNK Loop Lever games with the default being using the right thumbstick to control your passing direction, and other options letting you adjust the direction with buttons (no analogue settings for this though, make a note of that) and hold a button to lock direction, or tie aim direction to movement direction. You can also reverse the movement direction inputs, presumably to simulate player a multiplayer game on a cocktail cabinet.

This week's Arcade Archives release is... Munch Mobile (SNK, 1983)


Both the Japanese (Joyful Road) and English (Munch Mobile) ROMs are included, which have slight differences in terms of progression and stage design. No unique Preference Settings this time, but according to Eonostro on the LordBBH Discord server, this release fixes several problems exhibited by both MAME at the time of writing and Digital Eclipse's SNK 40th Anniversary Collection- some music errors have been fixed, you can see the letters to input them on the high score table in Munch Mobile, and you are no longer stuck with a single credit always in the game as is the case with the SNK 40th version.

Mankind's folly has lead to this point. We have given our cars, those wheeled contraptions that take us to and fro and here and there, digestive organs, extended arms and eyes. We asked if we could create a horrific amalgamation of creature and conveyance, but we never asked if we should, and now all is lost. Anyway, this is a weird 1983 vertically scrolling driving game, I guess you'd call it, where as the Munch Mobile itself, you have to drive along the road, avoiding hazards and using your extending arms to grab fuel so you can keep going and bonus food that your car somehow eats and leaves behind just apple cores and fish skeletons- be sure to dump the waste in the nearest-available bin, don't be a litter bug! Be careful not to slam your arms against obstacles or you won't be able to grab things, and don't hit the sides of the road or your car's toast. Don't run out of fuel either! This is a strange game but it's pretty interesting- the presentation is very cute (I like the tpuches like the car's eyes closing as you run out of fuel like it's falling asleep) and it's a non-violent game with no shooting, no real enemies, just obstacles which is nice to see for an action game like this. This is on SNK 40th as a free downloadable game, but if you want the best version with leaderboards and a more robust feature set, this is the one you want.

This week's Arcade Archives release is... Dead Connection (Taito, 1992)

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This game is also included in Taito Milestones 3 (this is the final 'exclusive' game from that set to get an individual ACA release) but while that release only has the Japanese ROM, here both the Japanese and International ROMs are included. This is important because the intro and cutscene text is only in English in the International version, and it's a really big part of the charm. Anyway, Preference Settings include displaying the number of remaining bullets in special weapons and allowing solo players to play on the Player 2 side.

Dateline, The Big City! Nerozzia's crime syndicate has seeped into every part of the city, but four untouchable cops from the Criminal Department- Philip, James, Eddie and Gary- start striking back. Enraged, Nerozzia's message to them is simple- "You can regret it in Hell!"- and orders a hit on the beloved Christine. Keeping anger in their hearts, the four trecnhcoats refuse to give up in the face of tragedy, and go all-out in crushing out the crime in the city, with Nerozzia at the top of their list. From the opulent Restaurant Campanula to the Nerozzia crime family garden party and even the grand opera house, each single-screen stage sees the quartet gunning down a quota of gangsters and can grab machine guns and shotguns to even the odds, as well as duck for cover and dive to avoid shots (and take out bad guys at the same time). Evil power steals on, but nothing will stop their quest for vengeance!

Oh hell yes, Dead Connection. One of my favourite discoveries through emulation, this is an action-packed arena shooter that eschews the twin-sticks of the likes of Roboton: 2084 and Smash T.V. and goes for a single stick with two buttons layout. The controls might be an issue for some, as there's a sort-of auto-aim mechanic- bullets will fire slightly to the left or right if there's enemies in those directions- but it doesn't take long to get used to it, plus the dive can save you in a pinch as it will kill enemies. It also makes up for potential control shortcomings by taking cues from crosshair shooters like Cabal with its focus on environmental destruction. It goes a step further even, as these finely-detailed dioramas have environmental hazards that can be used against the enemy like statues you can kick down stairs, tables you can knock the candles off of to start fires and even machinery to turn the warehouse stage into a raging inferno. The later stages do perhaps go on a bit too long and slowly get less and less interactive elements, but the game overall is pretty short, so as I said about 10 years ago in my short review, at least it wears thin near the end rather than halfway through.



So it plays very well, but the presentation really puts Dead Connection over the top. You've got hugely-detailed dioramas for stages, great character and enemy animation, and some of the most bonkers stage intros and environmental destruction in a game of the time. This does come at a bit of a cost, especially in co-op mode as there can be some rough slowdown, which is a shame, but that's the price of fighting crime. The story really helps as well- the intro has stone-cold classic lines like "MEN MAKING A STAND AGAINST A GIGANTIC CRIME" and "EVIL POWER STEALS ON", this continues throughout the game with diary entries before each stage explaining the story, voice clips throughout like "NEROZZIA... I'LL CHASE YOU TO HELL AND BACK" and "DON'T DIE, ANDY! PLEASE, OPEN YOUR EYES!" and even inserting a coin gets you "WE'RE COUNTING ON YOU, DON'T LET US DOWN". It's incredible, and the ending really leaves an impact, like a good Taito ending should. If you want more info, my very very old Gaming Hell playthrough hasn't aged as badly as I thought- probably needs a rewritten intro but generally it's got some good tips, if I do say so myself. In summary, play Dead Connection.