Shaq Fu

This article is about the video game. For the album, see Shaq Fu: Da Return.
Shaq Fu

Shaq Fu cover for Sega Genesis
Developer(s) Delphine Software International (Mega Drive, SNES)
The Dome (Amiga)
Tiertex (Game Gear)
Unexpected Development (Game Boy)
Publisher(s) Electronic Arts (Mega Drive, US SNES, Game Gear)
Ocean (EU SNES, Amiga)
Black Pearl Software (Game Boy)
Designer(s) Paul Cuisset
Composer(s) Raphaël Gesqua
Engine Proprietary
Platform(s) Mega Drive/Genesis, SNES, Game Gear, Game Boy, Amiga
Release date(s) Mega Drive/Genesis
  • NA October 28, 1994
  • EU 1994
SNES
Amiga
Game Gear
Game Boy
Genre(s) Fighting
Mode(s) Single-player, two-player simultaneous, Tournament Mode
Distribution Cartridge
3½" floppy disk

Shaq Fu is a 2D fighting game released on the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis and Super Nintendo game platforms on October 28, 1994. It was ported to the Amiga, Game Gear and Game Boy platforms in 1995. The game was published by Electronic Arts and developed by the now-defunct Delphine Software International. It features former professional basketball player Shaquille O'Neal (also known as Shaq) as a playable character. Though it met with a mixed response from critics, it has since come to be considered one of the worst video games of all time. A sequel, Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn, is in development.[1]

Story

In the game's storyline, Shaquille O'Neal wanders into a dojo while heading to a heavily emphasized charity basketball game in Tokyo, Japan. After speaking with a martial arts master, he stumbles into another dimension, where he must rescue a young boy named Nezu from the evil mummy Sett-Ra.

Variations

Shaq fights Auroch, one of the characters excluded from the SNES version.

The Sega Mega Drive/Genesis version of Shaq Fu has five more playable characters (Auroch, Colonel, Diesel, Leotsu and Nezu) and three more stages (The Lab, The Wasteland, and Yasko Mines) than the Super NES version, therefore the Mega Drive/Genesis version has a longer story mode. The North/South Gate stage is accessible in the SNES version with a cheat code, whereas the Mega Drive/Genesis version has the North/South Gate stage available from the start. The Amiga version is the same as the Mega Drive/Genesis version (it even keeps a "Licensed by Sega Enterprises, LTD" leftover from that version in the title screen), but the backgrounds have no animation. It also only has three songs; there is no music during the fights.

The Game Boy port has the same seven characters as the Super NES version, whereas the Game Gear port only has six characters. Both the Game Boy and Game Gear versions have no tournament mode or in-game voices. Due to the Game Boy's monochrome screen, the Game Boy version is not in color.

Reception

Shaq Fu received mixed reviews at the time of its release. GamePro gave the SNES version a generally positive review, saying that the unusually small size of the sprites is balanced off by the incredibly fast game speed. They also praised the "ultra sharp" controls and impressive digitized graphics.[2] They reviewed the Genesis version as superior to the SNES version due to its additional characters and improved controls, and concluded that the game is "fun once you get used to the small, fast sprites."[3] Next Generation Magazine gave a 2/5. One of the multiple reviewers at Electronic Gaming Monthly scored it as a 6/10, and another gave it a 4/10.[4] It received a grade of D from Entertainment Weekly.[5]

Retrospective criticism has been generally negative. GameTrailers rated it number 4 Worst in their "Top Ten Best and Worst Video Games".[6] Allgame gave it a negative review, commenting that "Shaq Fu is a dud" in terms of fighting games based on basketball players.[7] GameInformer magazine placed it number 2 on the Top 10 Fighting Games We'd Like To Forget. In response to the negative feedback to the game, Levi Buchanan from IGN stated it was undeserved as a result of collective exaggerations.[8] The website Shaqfu.com is dedicated to "liberating [the game] from existence" by finding and destroying as many copies of the game as possible.[9]

Sequel

At the 2014 Consumer Electronics Show, Shaquille O’Neal confirmed speculations in an interview with GamerFitnation that there would be a Shaq Fu 2.[10] On March 6, 2014 an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign was started for Shaq-Fu: A Legend Reborn. It will feature gameplay that heavily differs from its predecessor. The funding goal was $450,000 USD. If achieved, the game creators at Big Deez Productions promised the game would be released on consoles (PC, PS4, Wii U, PS3, Xbox One and Xbox 360). The campaign ended on May 5, 2014, with the funding goal exceeded at $473,884.[1] The game creators at Big Deez announced they will be accepting Quark crypto-currency as a method of in-game payment.[11]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Indiegogo - Shaq-Fu: A Legend Reborn
  2. ↑ "ProReview: Shaq Fu". GamePro (64) (IDG). November 1994. p. 124.
  3. ↑ "ProReview: Shaq Fu". GamePro (65) (IDG). December 1994. p. 98.
  4. ↑ Lachel, Cyril (17 August 2013). "Shaq Fu: What Did Critics Think at the Time?". Defunct Games. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
  5. ↑ Strauss, Bob (16 December 1994). "Shaq-Fu". Weekly Inc. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
  6. ↑ Top Ten Best and Worst Games of All Time, GameTrailers.com.
  7. ↑ Weiss, Brett Alan. "Shaq Fu Review". Allgame. Retrieved October 8, 2011.
  8. ↑ Buchanan, Levi (October 20, 2008). "In Defense of Shaq Fu". IGN. Retrieved October 8, 2011.
  9. ↑ Shaqfu, shaqfu.com.
  10. ↑ Bridge, Zachary. "CES 2014: Shaq Confirms Shaq Fu 2 "Coming Soon" #ShaqFu2". GamerFitnation. GamerFitnation. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
  11. ↑ Tran, Calvin. "QuarkCoin Partners with ShaqFu 2 Team". CryptoCoins News. CCN. Retrieved 12 April 2014.

External links