SD Hiryuu no Ken EX (Japan)

Getting started is straightforward for anyone familiar with fighting games. When you boot up the title, you'll be greeted by a title screen that leads into a menu written entirely in Japanese. The main options are likely versus mode, practice, and options. Use the D-pad to highlight your choice and press Enter (Start) or X (A) to confirm. If you want to change settings, such as difficulty or round count, look for a submenu with a wrench or gear icon.

Once you get into a match, you control one of several martial arts fighters. Each character has a set of basic attacks using the B and A buttons, and you can perform special moves by inputting directional commands (like down-forward and then attack) just like in arcade fighters. The core loop is simple: pick a fighter, battle through a tournament against CPU opponents or challenge a friend via link cable, and knock your opponent's health bar to zero. The D-pad is used for movement and crouching, while the shoulder buttons (L and R) may trigger taunts or other actions depending on the character.

Since the menus are in Japanese, a little trial and error goes a long way. The first item on the main menu is usually single-player mode, the second is versus, and the third is options. If you get stuck, pay attention to the order of the cursor positions. The game supports two-player versus via a link cable, but if you are playing on an emulator, you can map two sets of controls. Remember that the A button is also used to confirm selections and the B button cancels or goes back in menus.