Final Fight Double Impact Hands-On (Xbox Live, PSN)

Wow, Haggar's seen better days. Oh, wait, this is Magic Sword...

Capcom held its super-secret "Fight Club" event last night in San Francisco, and between butt-kicking rounds of Street Fighter IV on iPhone and Super Street Fighter IV on consoles, we got a chance to check out Final Fight: Double Impact, the company's upcoming double-header of classics due for Xbox Live and the PlayStation Network next month.  We went a few rounds with both games and, yep, they're good.

Final Fight consists of both the Metro City brawlin' classic and the side-scrolling fantasy/adventure game Magic Sword.  Both games have numerous options that let you tweak your gameplay experience, with classic/high-definition visual views, the option to listen to remixed soundtracks, and the ability to play while the authentic arcade art is displayed on the sides of the screen.  In addition, you can unlock several art gallery pieces with certain goals in the game, such as beating Sodom (one of the bosses) or reaching a specific point in Magic Sword.  There are several tiers of challenges, so you won't get tired of them.

When you initially select between the two games, you'll be introduced to the original arcade cabinets, albeit in virtual form.  These look just like the real Capcom deal, right down to the attract screens that run when you first walk up to one.  From there, you simply start up your game, and the emulation kicks in, representing the games as you would remember them back in "the day".  Gone are the freaky female-to-male transformations from the SNES version of Final Fight, and the censorship is gone as well.  (Damnd is back to being Damnd...which is damn cool by us.)

As for gameplay, it rocks.  We went into several two-player sessions with both games and felt the competitiveness right away.  (Kudos to Chastity from Nfamousgamers.com for being such a good sport.)  The games run nicely, with no slowdown whatsoever (not even in full-screen) and plenty of on-screen chaos.  Whether we were hacking away at rival grizzly bears and demons in Magic Sword or punching the Andore triplets like mad in a wrestling ring in Final Fight, we got more than enough of our fill of action.

Messing around with the options was fun, too.  No matter which view you go with (scrunched in with cabinet art, full-screen, etc.), there are literally no bad views of either game.  And the sound is great too, from Damnd's ridiculous boss laugh ("Ehh-hahahahahaah!") to the prisoners thanking you for freeing them in Magic Sword ("Thank yew!"), it's pure Capcom classicness.

As for how the games play, they really couldn't be any different.  Magic Sword is a side-scrolling hack-n-slasher where you simply work your way through a multi-tiered castle, picking up computer-controlled allies along the way.  (We suggested that Capcom add a patch where additional players could control them, but the rep was telling us that would be "too much" -- and they're kinda right.)  As for Final Fight, you're punching, kicking, and spinning piledrivering (is that a noun?) your way to glory.  Guy, Cody and Haggar are in action here, just as great as they've ever been.  Of course, we prefer Haggar.  Hey, just 'cuz.  The guy spin fists and throws people around like they're nothing.  Way to go, Mr. Mayor!

Final Fight: Double Impact unleashes its fury next month on Xbox Live and the PlayStation Network next month for only $9.99 (800 Microsoft points).  While it's disappointing that the game isn't part of Microsoft's Game Room service, it's good to see these classics stand out on their own.  Plus, there's more where that came from.  Capcom is already considering future compilations down the road, through digital release.  (And yes, we already suggested Captain Commando.  Baby-controlling robot for the win!)

Look for a review upon the game's release!