Mutant Fighter (arcade game)

Did You Know?

• The arcade version's title screen demo mode serves as a tutorial for the player to learn moves.
• The king is dead, and a combat tournament is held to determine a new ruler.

Gameplay

Mutant Fighter's arcade roster includes eight playable characters: three humans (Fighter, Amazoness, Hercules) and five monsters (Werewolf, Golem, Minotaur, Dragon, Beast). The SNES version omits the Werewolf, Golem, and Dragon. Non-playable opponents include the Hydra, Doppleganger, demon Pazuzu, and Archmage. Characters have Power, Speed, and Defense stats. The game offers a one-player mode versus AI or a two-player cooperative mode against two AI opponents. Players choose opponents for the first three matches; later matches are computer-selected. Energy accumulated from successful hits fuels special attacks. Each character has unique special moves, and 19 combo attacks exist. The arcade title screen demo mode teaches these moves.

Reception

In Japan, Game Machine listed Mutant Fighter as the second most-successful table arcade unit in their August 15, 1991 issue. RePlay reported it as the eighteenth most-popular arcade game at the time. The One reviewed the arcade version under the title Heroes during location testing, praising its graphics, animation, sound, gameplay, and number of attacks. Sinclair User gave the arcade version 87 out of 100, calling it "very classy" and praising its "amazing" sound effects, animation, and action, particularly the special attacks. German magazine Video Games reviewed the Japanese SNES version as Death Brade, giving it an overall score of 22%. Video Games criticized the gameplay, sound, and graphics, describing the fighters as clumsy with Legoland-style animation, and stating that landing a hit sounded like "a baby slurping porridge." They also criticized the number of stages and called character names "irrelevant."