Nintendo Switch Critic Reviews

The Samurai Shodown games are among the best in the fighting genre: the seven games on offer here are perfect examples of this, and the exceptional Museum mode will keep you busy for hours. Its online may be a non-starter and it may have offered even more titles if it had lifted its self-imposed Neo Geo-only restrictions, but that doesn't take away from what's an otherwise strong collection of brilliant fighting games.

I hadn’t played Samurai Shodown in any form since a torrid weekend with the Super Nintendo port of the original sometime in the mid-90s, but I was always intrigued by the series from afar. To that end, I’m glad that the Samurai Shodown SNK Collection was a 10 in terms of my quest for knowledge and also has some good fighting action behind it—and by default it’s less expensive than buying the games piecemeal in the Archives.

If you’re a fan of the series then owning this collection is a necessity, even at the steep price. With seven incredible games, a ton of extra content and stable online play, this title will keep you busy for hours on end. However, if you’re new to the series and looking to explore what the NeoGeo fighters were like, then maybe give this one a miss.

For longtime fans or nostalgia-seeking, lapsed players, Samurai Shodown NEOGEO Collection is a great way to experience well-emulated versions of the franchise's first six games, a never-before-released end to the NEOGEO MVS' arcade library, and a horde of in-depth development information - all wrapped in a sleek package. But anyone looking to dig deep into a particular Samurai Shodown game should look elsewhere: NEOGEO Collection works far better as a digital SamSho museum than a platform for play.