For well over a decade, The Rumble Fish 2 had remained the white whale of the fighting game community that was trapped in Japanese arcades, but that’s no longer the case.
Today, we have a special exclusive video featuring 2 of the top Rumble Fish players in Japan trying out the upcoming PlayStation 5 version of TRF2 for the first time and sharing their impressions — plus what the game means to them and the FGC.
Evo Japan 2020 TRF2 runner-up Kogat and top 4 finisher Norainu were brought into the Mikado Game Center in Tokyo, Japan where the pair share their history with fighting games and the small series before sitting down for some matches.
“The offense is crazy strong,” says Norainu as to why The Rumble Fish is different from other fighters. “Even if you get blocked you can quickly guard crush. Plus, throws and interrupts come out really fast at 1 frame. It struck me as a game where the offense is really strong, so I gave it a try.”
After playing a few matches of Lud vs. Aran, both players are pulled back in for their thoughts on the conversion from arcade to PS5, and they both seem pretty pleased.
Kogat in particular notes that the controls and response time on hitting buttons still feels great while Norainu is very thankful he can finally play at home.
The Rumble Fish 2 first released in 2005 from the developer Dimps, who then went on to make Street Fighter 4, featuring 16 playable characters using the unique “Smooth Model Animation” system making their 2D sprites stand out in the genre.
17 years later, the game will be releasing on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC via Steam worldwide on December 8, 2022 digitally.
Outside of Japan, prospective players can also pick up physical editions of The Rumble Fish 2 through Limited Run Games on Switch, PS5 and PS4 for $34.99.
There’s a physical Collector’s Edition for $69.99 on PS4 and Switch that also includes a code for the original The Rumble Fish game, 3 DLC characters, a soundtrack, artbook, strategy guide and command list. These physical versions do not yet have a solid release date.
You can check out our exclusive video with English subtitles below to see what Kogat and Norainu have to say about The Rumble Fish 2 and how the game looks in action.
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