SNK Playmore recently released two more downloadable Neo Geo classics for PS3 and PSP. The new entries are World Heroes, a one-on-one fighting game, and Shock Troopers, a top-down run and gun action shooter (PS3 versions reviewed here).

World Heroes is an early 2-D fighter probably riding the coattails of other popular brawlers at the time, especially Street Fighter 2. Play as and fight against eight combatants from around the world, including a French swordswoman, Rasputin the magician, and an American wrestler. Some players may be turned off by the primitive graphics, limited animation, and meager selection of characters. But I appreciated the charming simplicity of the game, and beginners and less experienced players may like the more basic controls.

Shock Troopers is very similar to other SNK arcade classics such as Ikari Warriors. Pick from one of eight characters, each with their own special weapons, then blast the bad guys in top-down viewed scrolling stages. It’s great fun, and the best part of both games is that two-player gameplay is supported. If you enjoyed playing Neo Geo arcade games back in the day, you may want to check into downloading these.

Kid Factor:

Both games are rated T for Teen with ESRB descriptors of Blood and Violence. World Heroes is a fighting game, so of course it’s a bit violent. But the fighting is more cartoony than anything, and the only blood shown is on the face of the loser on the results screen. Shock Troopers has you shooting soldiers and blasting tanks and helicopters with grenades and other explosives. When defeated, enemies spurt out a little pixelly 16-bit blood. While this may frighten very young kids, I’d be OK with preteens playing these titles, as they were in arcades when I was that age and I think I turned out all right. Better yet, parents can play these classics with their kids and younger gamers. That’s what I recommend doing anyway.

Tags: Game Reviews