Download Fighting Force (Windows)

A decent PC port of a Playstation game of the same name, Fighting Force is little more than classic Double Dragon series with a facelift.

Given that it was designed by the same team that brought us Tomb Raider, Fighting Force should be a much better game. Instead, you get only an average "fighting beat-em-up" that offers banal gameplay and a flawed control system. The game boasts "a fully interactive city." This means that, similar to Double Dragon or Final Fight, you can wield everyday objects such as trash cans and car tires as weapons. The game gives you four character choices, each with its own strengths, but ultimately it doesn't really matter which character you pick since you will end up doing the same things anyway. The typical array of punches, kicks, and grabs are here, as well as a character-specific special attack that clears out all the enemies around them at the cost of a little bit of their life bar. Needless to say, originality is not one of Fighting Force's strong points. Graphically, Fighting Force looks decent enough, although the characters are much more blocky than they should be (especially given how nice Tomb Raider manages to be with older technology). What hurts the game the most is boring enemies and very easy gameplay - I beat the game's final "boss" by simply pounding on the punch button repeatedly. Needless to say, this takes almost all the enjoyment out of the game. The only neat thing about Fighting Force is that there are alternate routes depending on which way you walk.

All in all, a pretty uninspired effort at making a 3D Final Fight. Check it out, but be prepared to go back to CAPCOM's classic (or Little Fighter 2 ;)) very very soon.

Review By HOTUD