Final Fight CD: Belger Merges With 3rd St.
[ Company: Sega | Year: 1993 | Grade: D+ ]
Final Fight CD (Sega CD)
Final Fight was Capcom's answer to Double Dragon. This simple 2D brawler allowed two-players to walk from left to right cleaning up the streets of Mad Gear goons. The arcade game was so popular that it spawned a disappointing Super NES game. Seeing an opening, Sega picked up the rights and created the definitive 16-bit port for the Sega CD. This version not only featured the return of Guy and the two-player mode (both missing from the Super NES cartridge), but also added a remade ending. Join us on this sixth day of Christmas for a very odd version of the Final Fight ending!
Previously On Final Fight:
Upon hearing the devastating news that his daughter has been kidnapped by the meanest gang in town, former pro-wrestler Mike Haggar does the most sensible thing: He walks slowly through the urban city beating up everybody that gets in his way. Mike isn't in the joking mood, he's out to bust heads and make sure nobody messes with his family again. And not just because he's the father of young woman, but because he's the Mayor of Metro City!
Along for the adventure are Cody and Guy, a couple of good looking guys on the quest to save Mike's daughter. The three man army finds their way through the city park, back alleys, a dive bar, the subway and the dirtiest bathroom in Metro City. Hell, things are so bad that at one point Haggar beats up a car right in front of a gas station. I guess that's the kind of thing you can get away with when you're the Mayor of Metro City. Eventually the three pissed-off pugilists make their way to the hide-out of the Mad Gear gang. It's in this skyscraper that Mike hopes to be reunited with his victimized daughter.
How It Ended:
After making his way to the tower's top floor, Mike Haggar unleashes holy hell on the partially crippled Belger. But don't feel too bad for Mad Gear's billionaire boss; he has a spear gun to help even the odds. Here he jumps around shooting at Mike and anybody else that gets in his way, which involves a lot of his own men having to pull spears out of their
This seems like a good time to recommend you buy Final Fight: Double Impact!
heads. But Haggar is persistent, eventually punching Belger through the large window. The chief Mad Gear falls to his death, smacking hard against the sidewalk below.
Back in the skyscraper we see Mike, Cody and Guy celebrating their victory. At last, father and daughter are reunited and everything can go back to being normal. Instead of seeing the arcade game's text, Final Fight CD cuts to a brand new ending featuring redrawn graphics and actual voice acting. We hear a young sounding Mike have a brief conversation with the only woman in the Capcom office willing to do voice work. These are not the voices I imagined all those years, and the strange way they've animated the
There's a darkness in Cody that Capcom has yet to fully explore!
mouths (and nothing else) certainly isn't helping anything.
But wait, this ending isn't done yet. Now that Mike and Jessica are reunited, Cody and Guy are free to walk away and get back to their normal life. But wait ... all of a sudden Jessica shows up to tell Cody something. In one of the most perplexing moments in video game history, Guy decides to beat up Cody and run away. In the very next scene, Cody gets up without a scratch on him. It makes no sense and diminishes what should have been a sweet ending. Cody breaks Jessica's heart by telling her that he can't be with her when there is crime to fight. While a noble gesture, I can think of at least five better moments to drop that bombshell.
How It Should Have Ended:
Forget Cody and Guy's weird fight at the end, Mike Haggar is the real star here. The ending of Final Fight should have been the moment Mike decided to run for President of the United States. Here's a guy who doesn't just talk about being tough on crime, he's willing to beat up hundreds of people to save just one life. Want to run an attack ad against this former pro-wrestler? Then expect Mike to come by and beat up your car! Mike Haggar is ready to pile drive his way into the White House. I can only imagine how much better Final Fight 2 would have been if it had taken place on the campaign trail.
