Two months ago I smack-talked Ikari Warriors II: Victory Road in the review of SNK 40th Anniversary Collection on Switch. At the least I called it annoying, at the most I called it garbage (in one of my older articles), stating that I would rather eat three year-old hotdogs than play that game again. But something happened after getting SNK for the Switch that had never happened before: I enjoyed myself playing Ikari Warriors II: Victory Road.
It all started more than thirty years ago, back then I would troll the suburbs of Metro D looking for returnable bottles to play arcade games. I've said it many times before, no doubt, but I loved this period of my life, despite the beatdowns I would sometimes have to endure due to my... geeky appearance. One of my most cherished games from this era was Victory Road, a sci-fi flavored sequel to Ikari Warriors. It certainly wasn't at the 7-11 for very long, but regardless I had put this game on a pedestal, from which it refused to budge for thirty-two years. So one day when I happened onto the NES port with the appropriate amount of money in my pocket, the cash couldn't couldn't fly out of my pocket fast enough, and I am pretty sure I set speed records for tearing off plastic and removing the game manual from the box. Wonder I didn't tear it to pieces like an animal. And the results? Not good, though I always felt I tried. The NES port of Ikari Warriors II: Victory Road felt unfinished at the time, and I am afraid that I delegated it to the "Budget Wall" bin along with Hydlide and King's Knight, somewhere deep in my room. In retrospect I probably played more Urban Champion then that game.
