Anyone who has spent an abnormally lengthy amount of time at their local arcade back in the 80s will tell you that it takes more than a handful of quarters to get to that one final boss that will - within seconds - make a mockery out of your fighting skills. If the names Terry and Andy Bogard or Mai Shiranui are familiar to you then chances are you played a Fatal Fury coin-op game back in the day or played it on a console at some point. Now the 2D fighting franchise is back in the form of a compilation for the PlayStation 2 called Fatal Fury: Battle Archives Volume 1. Time to give those thumbs a workout again.

As far as compilations go, Battle Archives Volume 1 doesn’t add any bells and whistles that compilations like the Midway Arcade Treasures series contain. There’s no brief history feature that gives gamers insight on the creation of the Fatal Fury series or even fighter bios … hell, where are the art galleries? What we do get is a disc that includes the first Fatal Fury, Fatal Fury 2, Fatal Fury Special and Fatal Fury 3. Oh, and the budget price of $15 dollars is not bad at all. Still, it’s the lack of features or an online multiplayer mode (to share the Fatal Fury love with others) that makes this title feel like there could have been more to honor this SNK series.

Like the Street Fighter series, the Fatal Fury games contain their own recognizable cast of fighters that show up in the sequels as well as build up the roster along the way. The first Fatal Fury game starts with a very short list of fighters and offers up some challenging opponents to take on in a very limited number of backgrounds. It isn’t until we get to Fatal Fury 2 that we get a better variety of fighters (eight to start with) and then Fatal Fury Special (with a whopping 15 fighters) where the series just improved on everything. Fatal Fury 3 is a step back in terms of the number of fighters in the starting lineup but it is here that we get a better sense of the fighting competition and each fighter’s personality.

Despite the simplicity of the controls, each fighter has his or her own special moves as well as combo varieties. Joe Higashi, for example, is the master of the powerful TNT Punch while the bouncy Mai makes good use of her Dragon Flame Fandango move. Fatal Fury 3 introduces Bloody Mary, an assassin that brings to mind other female assassins such as Tekken’s Nina Williams or Dead or Alive babe Christie. You’ll even get to fight as capoiera master Bob Wilson. The series’ third outing contains short cut scenes before and after bouts. And all four have a final boss that’s frustratingly difficult to defeat.

The real problem with Fatal Fury: Battle Archives Volume 1 is not just the lack of features but the PS2 controls that feel a bit awkward at times. The worst of the bunch is Fatal Fury and Fatal Fury 2, both of which experience a delay in unleashing special moves or failing to pull off a combo thanks to the control scheme. The good news is that Special and Fatal Fury 3 (the better of the four) is handled perfectly even using the PS2 Dual Shock 2 controller. Unlike the Mortal Kombat games, pulling off the more advanced combos isn’t too hard in the later games and that makes them the games fans will be playing the most.

All four games, of course, vary in graphical beauty. The first game might have seemed so totally “radical” back in the 80s but it hasn’t really aged all that well. Then again, the rest of the games really seem dated thanks to the next-generation of gaming spoiling us with dazzling graphics. Still, there’s something charming about the retro visuals that are still colorful and lively. Even the visual effects still stand out. There are also some pretty decent sound effects and a very limited amount of voice work. When I say voice work it’s mostly an annoying announcer and a few words spouted by each fighter after they pull off a specialty move or a rather juicy combo. There’s also music but it’s of the cheesy heavy guitar riffs variety.

Fatal Fury: Battle Archives Volume 1 for the PS2 brings us four classic SNK fighting games that are still considered fan favorites but this package comes with very little else that would make this a real Must Have. The PS2 already has a number of retro classic collection series but the difference between those is the features and extras that offer insight on why we loved these games and still do. Still, if you’re a Fatal Fury fan (or love classic 2D fighting games) who doesn’t already own one of these games will find the price just right but don’t expect a lot from this one.

Gameplay: 7.0
Here’s the thing about revisiting gaming classics … some games hold up better than others. The first Fatal Fury game feels really awkward and the second not so much but it’s Fatal Fury 3 that just feels right at home on the PS2. Each game builds up the roster but you’ll find yourself wishing they’d pile on other characters from other SNK games. Oh, and an online multiplayer mode would have been great.

Graphics: 6.0
Back in the day the graphics looked like a million bucks but now they’re kind of an eyesore … a very colorful pixilated eyesore. When you get to Fatal Fury 2, Special and Fatal Fury 3, though, the characters look a bit better and so do the backgrounds.

Sound: 6.5
The music in all four games will not fail to irritate and the announcer is still just as annoying now as he was back when the game first came out but thankfully there’s some classic sound effects and character sounds that are still bearable.

Difficulty: Medium/Hard
Even in the game’s Medium difficulty setting, all four games are still really challenging and will give your thumbs quite a workout. You’ll still find yourself getting your backside handed to you by the likes of Ryo Sakazaki or Andy Bogard no matter what difficulty setting you pick.

Concept: 6.9
The games are neatly packaged on one disc fit for the PS2 but there’s very little to be found in terns of extra content. It’s great to see Fatal Fury Special again and all four games are still challenging now as they were back then. The collection has a budget price but I still think these could have been released for less on the PlayStation 3 as downloads.

Multiplayer: 6.0
Go back to a time when you would pluck quarters into a cabinet to beat a friend as Terry Bogard and you get the idea of what the two-player multiplayer mode is like on the PS2. It would have been totally rad if SNK included online multiplayer complete with a leader board so you can challenge the top player in online tournaments.

Overall: 6.9
As far as retro gaming compilations go, Fatal Fury: Battle Archives doesn’t deliver enough to warrant a purchase even if you’re a fan of these SNK classics. Simply put, this collection is true to the first four 2D fighting games but somehow the series just doesn’t hold up as well as it did back in the day.