Play Hiryuu no Ken S - Golden Fighter (Japan) Online

Game Overview

Hiryuu no Ken S (or Ultimate Fighter if you're playing the US version) is one of those weird, ambitious SNES fighters that tries to do everything at once. You start off controlling Rick in a side-scrolling beat 'em up—kicking through waves of enemies like a classic Streets of Rage level—until suddenly you're thrown into one-on-one boss fights that feel straight out of Street Fighter. The story's goofy anime nonsense about stolen scrolls and demon lords, but honestly, I was just here for the fighting.

What makes it weirdly fun is how it keeps switching things up. One minute you're brawling through crowds, the next you're in a turn-based RPG-style duel against a boss (yes, really). The VS mode's where it shines though—twelve fighters with totally different styles, and you can actually feel the difference between, say, the quick karate guy and the slow-but-brutal sumo wrestler. First time I played, I got wrecked by the ninja character three times before realizing I could just spam low kicks with the boxer.

It's janky, unbalanced, and the difficulty swings wildly, but there's something charming about how much it tries to cram in. If you dig obscure 90s fighting games with identity crises, this one's a trip.