The fighting game market is still thriving quite well these days, with thousands of players stepping up for tournaments and proving their worth in games like Mortal Kombat, King of Fighters XIII and Street Fighter x Tekken, among others.  But by no means should you ignore the “little guys”, the teams that are still making less-than-popular fighting games that are just as good as the “big boys”.  Case in point – Skullgirls, the latest from Revenge Labs and their respective publishers at Autumn Games and Konami, has finally arrived on Xbox Live and PlayStation Network after what seems like years in development.  And now that it’s here, you shouldn’t dare miss it.

The game revolves eight quirky character types chasing after a Skull Heart, which promises unabashed power to whoever wields it.  Getting it, of course, isn’t easy, as they’ll beat each other up like mad to prove they’re the top dog.  And these aren’t normal Chun Li or Cammy types either, but rather full-blown psychopaths.  Parasol, for instance, is a focused secret agent with manpower on her side and plenty of weapons; Peacock looks ripped out of the 40’s cartoon era, complete with animated enemies and long, stretchy arms; and then there’s Double, a disgusting shape shifter who’s not afraid to transform into a smiling car and run ladies over.

The character count is few compared to other fighting games, but the engine itself is quite deep.  You’ll be able to select from a number of options, including tag team partners (one super powered player or three smaller ones) and whether you want to fight local or online.  From there, you can also try out the game’s training mode, which is in-depth and teaches you everything from how to perform air dashes to canceling supers – a perfect tool to adjust to today’s fighting game scene.  It’s probably best recommended that you go into this mode first, since the game is ridiculously difficult when it comes to combo-building characters and competition.

Not to say it isn’t fun, though.  In fact, Skullgirls hunkers back to an age when 2D fighting games ruled, and for good reason.  You can formulate all kinds of strategies here, from well-timed combo counters to supers that can really make a difference when your energy is running low.  A regular controller works fine for the game, but obviously a MadCatz FightStick or FightPad is recommended, since the game uses a six-button set-up like traditional Street Fighter games.

About the Author

Robert Workman

Senior Writer/Editor

Robert has years of experience in the video game industry, writing for such sites as AOL GameDaily, PlanetXbox360 and Comic Book Resources.  He can also outdrink you any day of the week.  And twice on Sunday.  Follow him at www.twitter.com/thedcd.