Garou: Mark of the Wolves

Garou: Mark of the Wolves is a masterpiece title released right at the tail end of SNK's golden age throughout the 1990's. This 1999 release was the culmination of a decade of fighting game development and SNK's mastery of the Neo-Geo hardware by this point. Some believe Garou to be a direct answer to Capcom's Street Fighter 3, which released in 1997 on the brand new CPS3 hardware; an impressive 2D, sprite based piece of kit that was a step above both the Neo-Geo and Capcom's own CPS2. Whether or not there is any truth to this, Garou and Street Fighter 3's third iteration, Third Strike (which also released in 1999), are often lauded as the pinnacle of the 2D, sprite-based fighting game genre. 

While both Garou and Third Strike are considered masterpiece titles in their own right, they were each a little late to the fighting game party and got buried under the 100 ton weight of the litany of fighting games that came out earlier in the decade. Arcades in western markets were dying at a rapid pace a the close of the 90's, and even many arcades in Japan were beginning to see a decline. Despite diminishing interests in game centers and 2D fighting games by the end of 1999, Garou managed to be the number one grossing arcade game in Japan in January of 2000. Unfortunately, we have very little overall sales data for the MVS and AES versions of the game, but we can make some inference with what we do know. 

As one of the last few AES games released before the downfall of classic SNK at the close of the year 2000, Garou saw a pretty wide spread release for such a late launch in the hardware's life. In the 2022 retro game market the Japanese AES version just recently reached over the $1000 mark in value after 20 years, while contemporaries like Metal Slug 3 were already worth well over $3000 by this point. Garou has always been a "must have" title on AES, so its price has more to do with popularity than outright rarity. 

Despite being a sought after title on SNK's hardware, Garou was estranged from home console ports for quite some time. First relased as a late-launch Dreamcast title in 2001 in both the US and Japan, Garou didn't exactly fly off the shelves. Shortly after its release, though, Sega pulled the plug on the Dreamcast and exited the console market all together. It wouldn't be until 2005 that SNK Playmore would release a Playstation 2 port only in Japan. Because emulation of arcade level hardware was still in its infancy at this point, Garou was locked either on failed hardware nobody wanted, or on a popular platform in a region that was still hard to export from in the early aughts. By 2005, though, Garou had already reached legendary status and its place in the pantheon of 2D fighting games was secured for many years to come.

In the over twenty years since its original release, Garou has gone on to be touted as one of the best fighting games ever created by fans and critics alike. The high production value, balanced gameplay, interesting characters, and bold continuation of the Fatal Fury storyline have cemented the game in the hearts and minds of not just SNK fans, but fighting game fans the world over. SNK released many amazing titles over their arcade supremacy of the 1990's, but Garou was the penultimate game that all those releases finally lead to. As one of the final games released by "classic" SNK before their untimely downfall in the year 2000, it was a hell of a swan-song.

Garou: Mark of the Wolves is the eighth title in the Fatal Fury series. Storyline events follow the downfall of South Town due to Geese Howard's demise at the hands of Terry Bogard at the end of 1995's Real Bout Fatal Fury. Now named Second South, the plot takes place in the "distant" future of 2006 with a middle aged Terry Bogard (35 or so years old by this point) and his protégé Rock Howard taking the lead roles. Rock is the orphaned son of Geese, whom Terry adopted at some point after the story in Real Bout. Garou is essentially Rock's story as he tries to uncover the mysteries of his past and track down the tournament sponsor, Kain, for answers.

Since the events in Garou happen a decade after the conclusive demise of Geese Howard in Real Bout, all characters in Garou are brand new to the series with the exception of stalwart hero Terry Bogard. It's sad that some series staples like Mai, Andy, and Joe are absent, but it is a refreshing change of pace to have an entirely new cast of characters to learn. There are 14 main characters and two bosses that are playable only in the home version. While all characters are new, many have ties to past fighters: 

• Kim Jae Hoon and Kim Dong Hwan are Kim Kapwhan's sons.

• Hokotumaru is the successor of the Shiranui ninja line and Andy Bogard's pupil.

• Marco Rodriguez (or, oddly, Kushinwood Butt in the Western version) is the star student of Ryo Sakazaki and the Kyokugen Karate school of fighting arts (from the Art of Fighting series - set in the same universe). 

Despite ties to past characters, the "new" versions here all have unique styles of gameplay that befit their individual personality with only hints of their original incarnations. All the other new characters fit in the story in interesting ways, and some have even made their way to the King of Fighters' alternate universe. 

• Gato is a lone martial artist who is on the path of revenge to murder his father for killing his mother.

• Hotaru Futaba believes Gato to be her long-lost brother.

• Police man Kevin Ryan enters the tournament to seek out his partner's killer Freeman who also entered the tournament.

• B. Jenet is a female pirate set on ripping off the mansion of the tournament's sponsor.

• Tizok (The Griffon in Western releases) is the token grappler and has no real connection to the wider plotline or other characters. 

Overall, the gameplay feels more like King of Fighters and less like Fatal Fury due to the removal of the line-sway mechanic prevalent in all prior games in the series. Also back is the 2 punch/2 kick button layout that was done away with in 1995's Real Bout. In place of the line-sway are other options that bolster both your offense and defense. The most notable new mechanic, the Just Defend system, was introduced in this game and has been used in other SNK titles like the modern Samurai Shodown reboot from 2019. 

Just Defends are achieved by blocking within a few frames of an oncoming attack - you can think of this as a "just in time" guard. If your Just Defend is successful it allows you an advantage on block. You know you've done it correctly if you see blue sparks and a message that says "Just Defend" fly on the screen. Essentially, the Just Defend system puts the tug-of-war power balance back to 0 on hit. Like the Parry mechanic in Street Fighter 3, Just Defneds are also a better way to guard against projectiles and specials because you do not take chip-damage. Just Defends also do not lock you in block-stun. Additionally, the Just Defend can be done in the air, and opens up options for air reversals. That said, you can only Just Defend a single action. This means that if you Just Defend an opponent's move that hits multiple times, you'll need to Just Defend each action in the opponent's move. If this is not timed correctly you will either open yourself up to a clean hit, or you will block normally. 

Another new gameplay mechanic is the ability to A+B cancel out of a particular special move that is unique to each character. This special cancel puts the opponent in a juggle state where you can then follow-up with another attack. For example, you can A+B cancel out of Terry's Power Dunk after the first hit, which then launches the opponent into the air. Terry can then follow up with any move, like a second Power Dunk or Power Geyser super move, to further punish the opponent. This cancel is not tied to your Power meter, and can also be done mid combo so long as you 2-in-one into the special that can activate it. 

All characters have two universal overhead attacks. Pressing A+B will do a hopping overhead attack, or if you hold down and press A+B you will perform a grounded mid attack. Overhead attacks can lead to some great mix-ups, and the fact that every character has at least two attacks that hit mid (or overhead), means that this action should be a key part of your strategy no matter which character you play. Overheads like this are often used in high-level play as Okizemi options - meaning "on get up." Using an overhead attack while the opponent is getting off the ground from a hard knock down creates an ambiguous 50/50 situation for them as they aren't sure if they should block high or low. Regardless they'll have to take the hit, leaving you at an advantage regardless of their action. The only way out of a forced block here is for the opponent to counter with an invincible get-up move - of which there are only a few and are exceedingly unsafe if you make the wrong choice.

Additionally, the developers added at least one feint special move for each character performed by pressing either forward + light and hard punch or down + light and hardpunch. These feint moves start the beginning frames of a special move but stop before the full animation and move come out. While this is far from the first implementation of fake special moves in fighting games, this is one of the first games where the combo system can be further opened up by performing feint attacks. Each character has at least one special move feint that can be canceled out of to extend your combo. These combos are much more advanced in nature, and casual players most likely won't need to bother here. That said, if you want to be competitive in the game, these feint combos are a core part of the advanced gameplay experience.

Finally, the TOP system is the last big gameplay addition that allows you to choose a third of your character's health bar (beginning, middle, or end) that gives them a few passive buffs while active. First, any damage lost while in TOP can be slowly built back up to where the TOP portion of your bar began so long as you are still in TOP mode and do not take further damage. Second, it gives your character a significant damage buff. Third, it opens up a C+D attack that is unique to your character and can usually be combo'd into. In the AES version of the game, as well as the home ports, you can further customize your TOP by shrinking the portion of your bar that activates TOP mode. The shorter the bar, the higher the damage buffs. 

The power meter works similarly to the Real Bout games giving each character an S-Power desperation move, and a more powerful P-Power version of the move. Your S-Power uses one stock of your gauge and is activated by the input command plus a light attack button depending on the move. The more powerful P-Power desperation move uses both stocks of the gauge and is activated by the input command plus a hard attack button depending on the move. Desperation moves are easier to pull off overall in this game than in prior Fatal Fury titles with most being a double quarter circle forward motion (two fireball inputs in succession). There are no hyper-complicated inputs in this game, like Geese's old Raging Storm pretzel style input. Command inputs are still more strict than in modern fighting games, but they are much more lenient here than in earlier 90's fighting games. 

Many fighting games grant you temporary buffs if you land a clean counter hit, and Garou is no exception. Much like Street Fighter Alpha 3 which released the prior year by Capcom, counters in Garou put the opponent in a juggle state indicated by a slower decent to the ground. While the opponent is in this juggle state you can follow up with a standing normal to go for a reset, a hard hitting special or desperation move, or other option. Counters are another key part of high-level play in this game as they open up the best damage opportunities. In addition to counter juggles, though, there are some normal special moves that can also put the opponent in a juggle state, like Dong's Shiden-Kyaku.

Characters also have during fight and after fight taunts. For example, if you press start during a match you will do the character's normal taunt. Directly after landing the last blow to win the match, but before the character breaks out their win-pose, you have an opportunity to perform two special taunts by pressing either back or forward + start. Sadly, I've found that many people aren't aware of these special taunts. This is unfortunate as they are all pretty hilarious. A personal favorite is Hotaru's where she whistles for her ferret who then falls out of the sky and hits the opponent's KO'd body one last time.  

Coming hot on the heels of Capcom's Street Fighter 3: Third Strike, Garou's presentation has a striking art direction with the most lavish animation ever seen on the console - and goes toe to toe with Capcom's 2D masterpiece. Sure, Art of Fighting 3, the Last Blade games and the Real Bout games are showstoppers, but Garou is on another level entirely. If you played Garou and was not aware it is running on hardware that was a decade old at that point, you would not be remiss to think it was developed from the ground up for a more modern system. The color pallet is bold and vibrant, with flat shades that bring a more anime vibe to the visuals while also being more subdued than Real Bout Special or Real Bout 2. Backgrounds are also some of the best SNK has ever produced, and every arena includes a short cinematic that introduces each stage - much like the Last Blade. Also, in typical SNK fashion, backgrounds are filled with cameos and nods to other series, and even original Fatal Fury characters missing from Garou. Hokotumaru's busy intersection, for example, is full of these cameos.

Sound effects are all brand new, and have great "impact" during a fight. Music is as brilliant as ever, and still feels very Fatal Fury in nature. Both the OG and arranged soundtracks are absolute masterpieces and can easily be listened to outside of the game. It's the kind of VGM that gets stuck in your head, but in the best way. That said, Rock Howard's theme is a little TOO close to Robert Miles' late 90's trance masterpiece, Children.

Garou: Mark of the Wolves is a masterpiece - a video game so carefully crafted that you can only assume its mastery is somewhat of an accident. I honestly cannot think of one thing to complain about - the gameplay is the epitome of SNK game design, the presentation is leaps and bounds above any other 2D fighter at the time (including Third Strike, imo), and the sound and music are top-notch. While I hold some other Fatal Fury games in higher regard for a variety of nostalgic reasons, Garou: Mark of the Wolves is the marquee title for the Neo-Geo right along side King of Fighters 98. 

If you like fighting games and have the cash to spend, Garou should be an essential purchase for your AES or MVS collection. Even though the asking price is high, it is worth every penny of the $1100+ you'll spend in the modern market (2022) for a complete Japanese copy. If you want that US copy, though, you'll be paying upwards of $5000 for this bad-boy. The MVS version is also no slouch commanding prices upwards of $500 these days and over $1000 for a complete MVS kit. Being one of the later Neo-Geo releases, it never saw a Neo CD release - and I suspect we're all the better for it, actually.

So, how should you play it if you aren't into sourcing games for SNK hardware? As mentioned before, there are the Dreamcast and PS2 ports which are getting expensive in their own right these days. But there are a litany of other ways to play this game in our modern era - most notably a stand-alone release for modern platforms programmed by Code Mystics that uses Rollback Netcode for smooth online play against opponents around the world. This online-enabled version is a fantastic way to experience this game in the modern age, and even had a limited physical release from Limited Run games.

You can also enjoy the game on the PC-centric Fightcade client. Despite being "legally" available on modern platforms with good netcode, Fightcade is where you'll find the most competition. Currently sitting as one of the top five most popular game on Fightcade with a lobby full of hundreds of players at all times of day, there is no shortage of competition. Be warned, though, as the meta for this game is so well understood by the community at this point that if you're new to the game you will get eaten up quickly by some of the best players in the world if you choose to find your competition on Fightcade.

Listen, spending over a grand on a single game is a big ask, but I honestly believe there is no better way to play this game than on Neo-Geo hardware. This could just be my own nostalgia and love for everything SNK talking, but there's something special about this game running on its native hardware that is lost in translation. Garou is an amazing experience and is much more than "just another 2D fighter." Although it's not my personal favorite fighting game of all time (that accolade goes to King of Fighters 98), I recognize its brilliance and firmly believe it is one of the best fighting games ever created. Still, play it any way you can. I guarantee you'll walk away impressed, even if you play it another 20 years from now.