A recent extended play session with this game has changed my long standing view of it. No longer the average title it appeared to be in quick bursts, it is now (in my opinion) a very poor game whose flaws accumulate with any kind of lengthy play. Not only has it easily cemented itself in last place among 3DO import fighters, but perhaps even overall (although I do confess that I’ve never actually played the retail version of ‘Shadow’, just a demo
) What is it that makes this game so bad?The licence perhaps? It is true that licenced video games have a history of spotty quality (usually below average) Getting by simply on popular source material is the rule of thumb, with game play taking a back seat. But wait … aren’t both Sailor Moon and Ultraman (3DO import fighters) also licenced games? Yes … but with several strong points besides. Again, in my opinion, I could not find any strong points with this title. When viewed strictly as a 2d fighter, it’s flaws pile up beyond acceptableness. Here is a quick breakdown of it’s main offenses …
The roster is awful! The characters failed to impress me at all. Besides being graphically underwhelming, their size is too tiny for sure. Worse, your selection is limited to just 4!
I kept thinking that as I progressed more would have to become available … but no. 4 is all for the main game …ridiculous! 
The graphics are lousy! The characters, though plenty poor, look like gems when you compare them to the backgrounds. Ugly and washed out, with the added insult of being some of the most boring and unexciting backdrops I’ve ever seen in a 2d fighter! Oh, and if you think they’d make up for it in sheer variety you’d be wrong. 6 is all that is available.
The artificial intelligence is severely lacking. Tough AI rarely shows it’s head in this game. Though special moves are executable, even on a standard pad, there is absolutely no need to use them. All you need to know is how to do jump kicks and throws. Corner trapping is also a very effective way to win (yes it is cheap to be sure, but I feel little guilt when little effort is made to avoid it) Did I mention that the contests are essentially 4 against 1? The default difficulty setting is an insult to any halfway serious fighting game fan!
There are a number of lesser offenses too, though still plenty annoying. Far too much lengthy and crappy animation (explains where the focus went instead of on game play
) Poor audio, with the screams and grunts of the combatants battling with the spotty soundtrack (m-e-l-l-o-w) for worst offender. And the overall kiddish look of the game, which I picked up on early thanks to the blue haired child and her friend birdie that greeted me on the menu screen, is lame. 
More of a chore to play than anything else, Yu Yu has no business being on the shelf with 3DO’s many great fighting games. Not recommended at all!
-Trev
