The Last Blade 2

Released at the tail-end of 1998, the Last Blade 2 came out at a time when 2D fighting games were beginning to fade in the public eye. Unless you lived in Japan, series like the Last Blade largely went unnoticed. That said, if you were a 2D fighting game aficionado waiting for the next big thing from SNK or Capcom, you were well aware of this series. The first Last Blade was the very first brand new Neo-Geo game I purchased for my AES in February of 1998, so I became a big fan of the series early on.

There's little sales data to go on for this game, what with Game Machine in Japan stating it was popular and some healthy sales of the Neo CD release (incidently one of the last five Neo CD games) at around 10k its first week. Sales data for subsequent releases is also unavailable at the time of writing.

The Last Blade 2 continues the story from where the first game left off. Kaede is now in his awakened state and must work to close the portal to the underworld that Kagami (the first game's boss) opened. Overall, the core gameplay mechanics haven't changed much from the first game, so I recommend you read that review before jumping into this one. I'll be mostly covering the changes and updates introduced in this game. 

A fighting game sequel always means the introduction of new characters, and Last Blade 2 is no different. The entire cast from the first game, including a re-worked and playable Kagami, is present with three additional combatants: Setsuna, Hibiki, and Kojiroh. Setsuna is a large, imposingly dark figure with white hair and a long sword, Hibiki is a reserved swords-woman with deadly fast strikes, and Kojiroh is a part of the Shinsengumi swordsmen (actually, this is Kojiroh's sister Kaori disguised as him). Mukuro is and isn't a new character as this is the "zombie" version of Shikiro from the first game, and they play almost identically. There is one other notable change to the cast, and that is Kaede is permanently in his awakened state by default, so you cannot play as him in his original form without a code. Most characters received updates to their move sets, and returning move properties were tweaked. 

While the gameplay mechanics are mostly unchanged, the Power and Speed isms did see a couple of updates. The universal BC stagger has been removed and replaced with a similar mechanic in Speed mode and an entirely different mechanic in Power mode. In Power mode, the BC move is an unblockable attack that is unique to each character. As this attack is unblockable, it has an extremely slow start-up window, but does a considerable amount of damage and scores a hard knockdown on hit. In Speed mode, the BC attack is a launcher that lifts the opponent in the air, or it will stagger the opponent on block like in the first game. Speed mode also saw a change in how the custom combo system works: pressing down, down + A or B will initiate a speed combo that is unique per character rather than the true custom combo from the first game. Initiating this state requires a full super bar, and you cannot spam it when you are low on life. If you begin the sequence with A it will hit mid and with B it will hit low. 

SNK also added a hidden ism called EX that combines the basic mechanics of Speed mode with the added damage of Power mode. Thankfully this mode is hidden via a code you have to input at the select screen. Some characters, like Kaede, Setsuna, and Lee, are crazy over-powered in this mode. Because some characters are tooled to make use of Speed mode over Power mode, giving them the damage output of Power mode with their Speed specific combos creates some crazy balance issues. For example: Lee gains access to new moves he can chain into off of a standard Speed combo to create a flurry of ambiguous high/low mix-ups for the opponent. In EX mode you have access to his full set of moves including the damage bonuses - he's nuts. Because of the wild balance issues EX mode causes, it is generally banned from competitive play. 

The tone and art direction in the second game is more dire than the first. While some backgrounds have some neat effects (like the fire stage), they are not as interesting or memorable as those found in the first game. Similarly, the music also took a bit of a hit. The general composition is similar to the first game, but the variations on the new theme aren't as interesting. Just like the first game, though, the opening attract sequence is absolutely stunning and is one of the best attract sequences on the Neo-Geo. The overall sprite work on the characters remains largely unchanged, but of course animations were added for new attacks and some old moves received some re-worked frames here and there. The new characters' animation sets are on par with the returning characters, so they don't look out of place and fit in well with the rest of the cast. i.e. they are striking and beautifully animated.

While unimportant in the grand-scheme, there are some other changes I'm not a fan of. The announcer does not say the names of the fighters in the Vs screen. Instead, the fighters say one of their taunt or win-pose quotes. Similarly, the characters names are not announced at the end of a match either. Also, unlike the first game, the post-fight quotes are generic rather than targeted to the opponent you just beat. These are small complaints to be sure, but it does take away from the atmosphere in a fighting game series that is surprisingly rich with lore.

The Last Blade 2 is a fantastic game and a great fighter with memorable characters, good gameplay, and tight controls. The presentation is above-par compared to most 2D fighting games of the era, but it fails to meet the cohesive brilliance of the first game. Some say the first game is more balanced, and I can see some of that, but I haven't played either game competitively in over 20 years so my opinion here is weighted more on single player enjoyment. At the end of the day, if you've never played the first game, Last Blade 2 is a great jumping on point for series newcomers. 

Both Last Blade games are expensive on the AES, with this second game running between $700 on the low end for a complete Japanese copy to up to $1200 on the high end. The US version is ludicrously expensive (well over $4000 at this point) so only the loftiest of Shelf-Collectors will seek out that edition. The MVS version is expensive compared to most MVS editions of Neo-Geo games, but is still a fair amount less than the AES release. You can also grab the game on Neo CD. It's the cheapest route on real hardware, but you're going to be met with ridiculous load times and numerous cut animation frames. To be fair, it does include a number of extras like most high-profile Neo CD ports to help even out the hits in performance and loading. It did make its way to the Dreamcast and PS2, and both are solid ways to play this fighter. There is also a robust standalone release on modern digital store fronts developed by Code Mystics, as well as a stripped down version through Hamster's Arcade Archives series. I recommend the modern stand-alone digital release as the best way to play this game in the modern era outside of of the Fightcade client.

The bottom line here is that the first game is the better game (in my humble opinion), but the second has more variety. Given owning both games on AES will cost you around $1300 I highly recommend getting the first game over the second due to the gulf in price and rarity. That said, if you like the additional characters or have a fair amount of nostalgia for the second game over the first, then Last Blade 2 is still a safe bet. It is a better overall package if you're playing with other people regularly, but Last Blade 1 is the better single-player experience.