Neo Geo Arcade 3 (Evercade) - Includes Some Of The System's Best Games

Following Neo Geo Arcade 1 and Neo Geo Arcade 2, Blaze has returned with another collection of classic titles in the form of this third helping.

While you might assume we're looking at diminishing returns here, any SNK fan will tell you that the Neo Geo's catalogue of games is positively bursting with excellent titles – and that is certainly true when you inspect the majority of what's included on this cart.

The King Of Fighters '97 might be one of the earlier entries in SNK's team-based fighting franchise, but it's still a solid example of the genre. Sure, its sequel might be considered one of the best in the entire series, but '97 has all the hallmarks of a classic; I'm particularly fond of its often low-key music, which creates a wonderfully ambient atmosphere during battles.

Metal Slug 3 is considered by some fans as one of the best instalments in the entire series, and is certainly a game I personally have a lot of fondness for, having played it to death back in the glory days of XBLA. The branching pathways expand its longevity in comparison to previous titles, and the humour element is also ramped up. Some might prefer Metal Slug X, but this is still a superb gun-and-gun title.

Twinkle Star Sprites is potentially the strongest title included in this package. It's like a mix between a vertically-scrolling shmup and a competitive puzzler; the screen is divided down the middle, and by defeating enemies, you can damage your rival or mitigate incoming damage. The key issue with the game is that it only really comes alive with two players, so this is best enjoyed on the Evercade VS.

Samurai Shodown II is the second one-on-one fighting game in this collection, and one of the highlights of SNK's beloved weapon-based brawling series. Again, like Metal Slug 3, this is often regarded as the best game in its respective franchise and perhaps even one of the greatest fighting games of all time. It goes without saying that playing against a fellow human is the way to go here.

Ghost Pilots, however, feels like something of a relic; an early Neo Geo release from 1991, it feels like a below-average clone of Capcom's 194X series, and is handicapped by the system's 4:3 aspect ratio – it would have made more sense with a TATE setup (something the Evercade EXP is capable of providing, but the game would have needed redeveloping).

Likewise, Super Sidekicks is another very primitive Neo Geo outing, and would be iterated and improved upon by its many sequels. It's good fun, but very basic compared to the best soccer games of the era. Even the most ardent of fans is likely to get bored with this very quickly.

Despite two of its six titles being passable rather than solid-gold classics, the remaining four games are utterly fantastic, making this a highly recommended purchase for your Evercade system.