#480 Killer Instinct 2 Hidden Character: Player Gargos playthrough.
0A playthrough of the hidden, playable version of Gargos in Rare's Killer Instinct 2/KI2.
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Gargos' moves:
http://www.angelfire.com/va3/mk/ki/main2.htm#Gargos
So, here we end Killer Instinct just as quickly as it began. Kind of a shame, really. I'm surprised Nintendo didn't just make a arcade board based on N64 hardware to make a third game with, but then again this was during the era where they truly believed the 64DD would not only come to fruition, but also be useful, so you can't expect too much.
KI2 is a decent sequel, all things considered, but it's definitely more an upgrade of the second game than an outright sequel. Three regular characters have been removed (Chief Thunder, Cinder and Riptor) and replaced instead by three new characters (Maya, Tusk and Kim Wu). Personally, I definitely prefer these three characters, even if they are stereotypes in their own way, but they're at least still a little more creative than the three characters removed. What's more, Eyedol has been removed from the game, and instead replaced by his supposed archnemesis, Gargos, who like Eyedol has a hidden, playable variant. So, they swapped out a cyclops and replaced it instead with a gargoyle. It's so generic as to be almost laughable, and the fact that the game took two years to be released really doesn't compliment the effort that went into the gameplay characteristics of the game.
That said, there's no doubt that KI2 is a vast improvement over the first game. Graphically-speaking it looks significantly better, with sprites and stages popping out much more than they did before, and losing much of the murky design which plagued the previous game. The UI looks nicer too, stage fatality animations don't look as hilarious, and the pseudo-3D effects (such as in Kim-Wu's stage) look significantly better, to the point of actually being quite impressive. The soundtrack is brilliant, certainly the most impressive of any fighting game of 1996, except perhaps KOF 96. Gameplay definitely feels more refined, with combos a touch easier to pull off without thereby being too easy to utilise, and the whole thing feels a fair bit more beginner friendly, without necessarily being too forgiving. It's a decent balance, and it seemed like they were really onto something here. The absolute most impressive thing about the end though is its multiple endings. By sparing some characters and finishing off others with special moves, each character can end up with a variety of different endings depending on the actions they take. It's actually extremely innovative, and with the exception of perhaps Soul Blade I don't think I've ever seen it done otherwise, which is a complete shame as I think it adds a fair amount to the game. The fact that these were removed in the N64 port of the game was even more of a shame.
So, onto Gargos. He was a replacement for Eyedol, and you can tell. He has similar leaping and rushing combo starter moves, as well as a uppercut-style finishing move. Combos are somewhat limited but relatively easy to him, although in his playable state they do significantly less damage. In his boss form he's able to heal health at will in a state which also allows him to reflect projectiles, and as a boss can only be defeated by a finisher move, which was not a good idea in the slightest. He also has the ability to fly as well as an aerial fireball (which I abuse to no ends, here), but apart from that it is essentially just like playing a somewhat more agile version of Eyedol. Admittedly, a number of sequels in fighting game history were effectively upgrades of the first game (Samurai Shodown II in particular comes to mind), but it's so blatant and apparent here to the point of derision. KI2 is still vastly more enjoyable than the first game, that point I have to emphasise, but I probably would enjoy this game more if only they had actually bothered to continue the series. If it had been something of a stepping stone it would have functioned better, but for now it stands as a testament that they just weren't really sure what to do with the series. This notion which has only been quashed by the recent 2013 reboot of the series, which has now become one of the most extensively updated fighting games of the modern era.