Virtua Fighter Kids

What could be better than kicking some butt in an awesome 3D fighting game, you ask? The answer is kicking butt playing as shrunken-down, big-headed versions of the Virtua Fighters! You get to do all the aforementioned in the upcoming Virtua Fighter Kids for the Saturn.

Any fan of Virtua Fighter 2 will slide easily into the play mechanics, which don't deviate too far from those of the second installment. But you'll have to make adjustments in judging distance.This is due to the short reach of the Kids and their more limited range of attacks. All the levels are redone with new objects and brighter pastel colors, along with remixed "happy" tunes that reinforce the wacky appeal of the title.

Other treats include a Fighting Vipers-style replay of attacks during the match and a new "Kids" setting, available at the character select screen. This mode makes it easy to do Special moves and actually seems to execute moves at random.The changing facial expressions are the coolest feature of the game. The characters laugh and smile, grit their teeth, stick their tongues out when you miss and close their eyes when knocked out! Fun stuff.

Harnessing the technology used for Virtua Fighter 2, Sega has taken a comedy slant on their latest coin-op. Virtua Fighter Kids is the loosely translated title of the company's new game. It features the characters from Virtua Fighter 2, 'Super-Deformed' (basically given big heads and small bodies) and set against cartoony versions of the original backgrounds. Although the gameplay remains virtually identical, the differences apply to the new size and shapes of the bodies.

Some bugs have been removed from the last incarnation of the game engine and, all in all, this is a funny and appealing title.The game is being squarely targeted at Japanese children, giving them a cuter and somehow less violent alternative to the country's most popular arcade title. A cutesy Sonic fighting game is also well under development.