While they have not aged gracefully, these games are every bit as fun as they were years ago.
Often regarded as the best in the series, SSII was highly praised for its smoothness, overall improvements and balancing, and for being just better in almost every regard to its predecessor.
And then SSIII came around... This game was fun, and retained a lot of the successful aspects of the game, but it was referred to as Samurai Slowdown due to the constant frame rate dips and overall shallowness. SNK had switched companies when the 3rd game was released and it shows. The 3rd one was fun but suffered largely for its overall lack of polish.
SSIV sought to correct the mistakes of its predecessor, and for the most part it succeeded. The game was brought back to its former glory, characters were brought back, and the game as a whole was just better than 3.
5 came out shortly after and added a lot of new characters to the mix but not a whole lot else. For the most part, it was the aging sequel to an aging game series. (In the compilation, we are treated to the original version, not the enhanced and balanced SS5 Special.)
And with little fanfare, the 6th game was released. Encapsulating the most fighters of the entire series, it was seen as a return to form for the series. Copious amounts of modes and styles of play, along with a gigantic roster, the game is sort of fan service, but at the same time, I can't fault it for sending the series off in style.
The game does not have much in the form of extras outside of color modifications for characters and a training mode. The Wii version is also treated to motion control mini games, which for the most part, are uninspired but moderately entertaining. I would also comment that a VC controller is almost required to play this game. I would strongly recommend against the other control methods.
Something odd I noticed throughout the series was the fact that they made jumps in quality in the even digit games. 2,4, and 6 are all the highly regarded versions. Don't ask me why this is the pattern, I just report what I see.
Another factor to mention is the A/V element. The art in this compilation is simply fantastic. When they were released, the games were lauded for their exquisite style and music soundtrack, and rightly so. The characters animate fluidly, the backgrounds are gorgeous, and this compilation benefits massively from the overall Japanese ambiance. Aside from some hilarious mis-translations and pronunciations, the compilation is solid.
This compilation, for the most part, is fun in short bursts. I would say if you have a group of friends heavy into classic fighters, this would be a high caliber option. It isn't going to draw in a new crowd to the series, but its great in its own right, and even though the game is excruciatingly difficult, the rewards for beating it are incredibly satisfying.
VICTOLY!