In the gaming world where titles like "Street Fighter" and "Mortal Kombat" grab all the headlines, "Martial Masters" quietly stands out as a hidden gem of the 2-D fighting realm. It's the cool, low-key contender that doesn't rely on flashy moves or complex combos to win you over. Instead, it offers a raw, pure fighting experience set in a world that's a vibrant tribute to martial arts cinema. Each character, from Red Snake's fluid elegance to Monk's raw power, is a masterpiece of animation, making every battle a visually stunning dance of skill and strategy. This game isn't just about winning; it's about the artistry of fighting, a celebration of the genre that reminds us of the golden days of arcade gaming. "Martial Masters" is more than a game; it's an ode to the elegance of 2-D fighters, a beautiful, often overlooked classic that leaves a lasting impression on those who discover its magic. 🕹🥋🐉🎮
It's one of those "How have I never heard about this before" moments! Never heard this mentioned once in any 'Best of' fighting game lists? It looks fantastic I'll definitely be checking it out. Thanks for bringing it to my attention 🤜👍
And it feels great to play as well. I wish someone would get the rights to this and rerelease it with rollback and lobbies. Granted it can be played in fightcade but id really like and would absolutely support an official release. 3rd strike and garou were mentioned with MM and are obviously gorgeous but there is one more game I feel has same pixel sprite quality as these three. And that it is The Last Blade (both 1&2). They are all of such high quality. Cheers
We're looking at the future art style of Vanillaware in this game, i'm almost certain the artist went on to join Vanillaware for games like Muramasa, Odin Sphere and Dragon's Crown
Love Martial Masters, and respected the heck out of the presentation IGS pulled off here... but GuileWinQuote covered this recently, and he pointed out that their prior games were freakin' _Alien Challenge_ and the Killing Blade (which is better than that jank, but is still just _fine)._ Not only is the presentation here amazing and definitely _above_ SF3 and Mark of the Wolves in a lot of ways, but considering how MASSIVE a jump in quality and skill IGS gained in one year, it's literally *staggering.* It looks better than their LATER games, like Spectral VS Generation! This game is amazing-looking.
0:35 This guy reminds me of Club Foot from the awesome Once Upon Time in China III. The animation is stunning. Reminds me a lot of Elena from Street Fighter 3. I could swear their using rotoscope animation to achieve that level of smoothness.
Seeing this title in arcades was like "oh my, such a great pixel art and with greatanimation too!" (here in Mexico there were one or two arcade locals still in business)
Es una lastima que no importa que tantas hierbas le pongan a algunos video juegos, siempre quedan opacados por los más sonados y sobrevalorados, algo parecido pasa con last blade, chulada. Las animaciones de este juego son tan chivas y minuciosamente cuidadas que le da 20 vueltas a los hechos en 3D todo rígidos.
Thank you for not putting some ugly ass filter like most of the videos on youtube. The spritework is beautiful and putting it through a filter is disgusting.
This game looks incredible and has its own style, it oozes passion. This is way too much effort compared to actual cash grabs like Fighters History or Expect No Mercy.
![Martial Masters (Arcade / 1999) - Crane [Playthrough/LongPlay] (シンイーケン: クレーン) [形意拳]](/img/1.gif)
In the gaming world where titles like "Street Fighter" and "Mortal Kombat" grab all the headlines, "Martial Masters" quietly stands out as a hidden gem of the 2-D fighting realm. It's the cool, low-key contender that doesn't rely on flashy moves or complex combos to win you over. Instead, it offers a raw, pure fighting experience set in a world that's a vibrant tribute to martial arts cinema. Each character, from Red Snake's fluid elegance to Monk's raw power, is a masterpiece of animation, making every battle a visually stunning dance of skill and strategy. This game isn't just about winning; it's about the artistry of fighting, a celebration of the genre that reminds us of the golden days of arcade gaming. "Martial Masters" is more than a game; it's an ode to the elegance of 2-D fighters, a beautiful, often overlooked classic that leaves a lasting impression on those who discover its magic. 🕹🥋🐉🎮
It's one of those "How have I never heard about this before" moments!
Never heard this mentioned once in any 'Best of' fighting game lists?
It looks fantastic I'll definitely be checking it out. Thanks for bringing it to my attention 🤜👍
Why did you say all that like so sort of inspirational quote?
Beautifully animated game. Right up there with SF3 and Garou: Mark of the Wolves in terms of fluidity.
Absolutely! That's why I was motivated to make this video. I wish more people knew about this game
And it feels great to play as well. I wish someone would get the rights to this and rerelease it with rollback and lobbies. Granted it can be played in fightcade but id really like and would absolutely support an official release. 3rd strike and garou were mentioned with MM and are obviously gorgeous but there is one more game I feel has same pixel sprite quality as these three. And that it is The Last Blade (both 1&2). They are all of such high quality. Cheers
@@cirro51 yeah, Last Blade is a beauty in motion as well
We're looking at the future art style of Vanillaware in this game, i'm almost certain the artist went on to join Vanillaware for games like Muramasa, Odin Sphere and Dragon's Crown
The animation's so smooth, so many frame they put in.
Love Martial Masters, and respected the heck out of the presentation IGS pulled off here... but GuileWinQuote covered this recently, and he pointed out that their prior games were freakin' _Alien Challenge_ and the Killing Blade (which is better than that jank, but is still just _fine)._ Not only is the presentation here amazing and definitely _above_ SF3 and Mark of the Wolves in a lot of ways, but considering how MASSIVE a jump in quality and skill IGS gained in one year, it's literally *staggering.* It looks better than their LATER games, like Spectral VS Generation! This game is amazing-looking.
It's amazing how clean the sprite animation is. I didn't know of this game's existence until I watched a video about it.
Ghost Leg and Scorpion was pretty fun to play as, and the combos chained very nicely even for a casual player like me.
Nice Wong Fei-Hung type theme music too.
Not only are the graphics good in this great game!
I am so happy to see you around again! Thanks for the video!
0:35 This guy reminds me of Club Foot from the awesome Once Upon Time in China III. The animation is stunning. Reminds me a lot of Elena from Street Fighter 3. I could swear their using rotoscope animation to achieve that level of smoothness.
Its based on him, most of the cast are from the Once upon time series
Fun game that deserved a sequel. It's never too late for a reboot ya know (though some may disagree with me 😅).
International Games System is now very focused on mobile games, but you never know...
Most fluided fighting game in years. God bless 2D pixels and IGS (who published that game).
Seeing this title in arcades was like "oh my, such a great pixel art and with greatanimation too!"
(here in Mexico there were one or two arcade locals still in business)
you can tell that it's using a very similar art style to street fighter 3
Yeah, it really reminds me of the art from the Capcom masters. That's a huge compliment
Interesting how some animations just seem to have SO much more effort put into them compared to others in this game...
Es una lastima que no importa que tantas hierbas le pongan a algunos video juegos, siempre quedan opacados por los más sonados y sobrevalorados, algo parecido pasa con last blade, chulada.
Las animaciones de este juego son tan chivas y minuciosamente cuidadas que le da 20 vueltas a los hechos en 3D todo rígidos.
Thank you for not putting some ugly ass filter like most of the videos on youtube. The spritework is beautiful and putting it through a filter is disgusting.
What platform is this on?
Like👍😎
Many thanks!
... Knights of Valour too, please!!!
Noted!
I never played this 😢😢😢
I wish I didn't need "PC's For Dummies" because I would've been found a way to download this game 😂😂😂🤦🏿🤷🏿
Name of the music?
MARTIAL MASTERS OST - MASTER HUANG STAGE BGM
@@BitsBeats Thank you!
Wow, I’m the 69th like
It's an interesting title and especially fun for people who enjoy old kung fu flicks, but it's unfortunately not well balanced.
this is a chinese-made game yes? Hoping to cash in on the backs of better known fighting games like Samurai Shodown and Last Blade
@@codyfrance2537 funny whenever a talking crap like yourself with the brains of a libtard tells someone to take their crap somewhere else.
This game looks incredible and has its own style, it oozes passion. This is way too much effort compared to actual cash grabs like Fighters History or Expect No Mercy.
Taiwanese company made this
@@shenglongisback4688 then that makes me happy