Close your eyes and think about the opening screens of your favorite game of all time. Chances are you can remember almost every small detail and sequence of events. For me, it’s Street Fighter II. Even after spending countless hours playing other games or absorbing other pieces of information, my brain can pop up the image of the generic guys getting ready to duke it out with the blood pumping music like it was right in front of me without fail. This is how Super Blackjack Battle 2 Turbo Edition – The Card Warriors opens, and doing so, gets a few brownie points on this review.
While the title is advertised as a fighting card game hybrid, the Street Fighter references are essentially for aesthetic purposes only. Everything from the character select to the loading screens borrows from Capcom’s classic series. While these give you something fun to look at while you play what is arguably one of the least interesting games of chance (beaten only by BINGO and lottery scratch offs), it does not add anything to the experience unless you are a fan of the franchise that the assets are inspired from.
You’ll pick your avatar from a rounded cast of characters; sadly, these do not callback or mimic any noteworthy characters from Street Fighter or any other franchise for that matter. While they do boast a wide variety of nationalities and genders, they don’t really stand out in any meaningful way. I feel like making slight nods would’ve improved the already stellar fan service that the rest of the presentation showcases.
If you grew up with questionable influences like I did, you probably learned how to play Blackjack at a young age. Unlike poker, the rules are pretty basic and can be picked up within minutes. If you didn’t grow up with a grandmother that had a pretty ridiculous gambling addiction or ever visited your local casino, Blackjack requires the player to acquire a hand of cards as close to a score of 21, without going over. This doesn’t offer much in the form of a tutorial, so you will need to have a basic knowledge of the game to be successful.
The trick to the game is that one of your two cards that are dealt at the beginning of the hand is always face down, so the other players never know what you have unless you clearly go over the magic number. Once the two cards are dealt you can place a bet, and then ask for additional cards to get as close to 21 as possible. While there are a few variations of the game, this video game requires only that you beat the hand of the dealer, not every player at the table.
Each match will take place over the course of ten hands, requiring you to not only beat the dealer in as many hands as possible, but bet enough to beat the other players’ pot of winnings. The AI tends to play it safe making the challenge fairly simple, often resulting in me going all in (betting all of my available money) early into the game to get a commanding lead. At times, this is still fruitless as the AI will get back to back blackjacks, or reach 21 from their first 2 cards. Once the first fighter is defeated, you will make your way via a short on screen plane ride that looks shot for shot like its inspiration. You’ll rinse and repeat this as you work your way up the ladder, working your way to each fighter’s ending. With 12 characters being offered, you will have your hands full if you wish to unlock each ending.
The game is fairly short on modes; the story is the meat of the package, with a single fight option and party mode being the only additional content. While the mobile versions offered an online mode, this has since been replaced with the option to play with up to four players on a single console. With everyone being able to see what the other players are holding and essentially betting with, this mode perplexes me as to why it was even included as an option.
If you look at this for what it is, a decent blackjack game, it works well and is one of the more entertaining card games on console, second to Telltale’s Poker Night at the Inventory, even without the inclusion of the popular fan favorite characters. That said, I would recommend purchasing Super Blackjack Battle 2 Turbo Edition – The Card Warriors if your collection is in need of some variety, even if the “fighting” mechanics are a bit of a letdown.
7 out of 10
Pros
- Great Blackjack Sim
- Varied Roster of Fighters
- Creative Use of Street Fighter Inspired Menus and Design
Cons
- Lack of Game Modes
- Mediocre AI
Super Blackjack Battle 2 Turbo Edition – The Card Warriors was developed by Stage Clear Studios and published by Headup Games. It launched on mobile and PC in 2017, as well as PS4 and X1 July 25th, 2018 for $7.99. The game was provided to us for review on X1. If you’d like to see more of Super Blackjack Battle 2 Turbo Edition – The Card Warriors, check out the official site.
Here at GBG we use a rating method that you are more than likely familiar with – a scale of 1 to 10. For clarification, we intend on using the entire scale: 1-4 is something you should probably avoid paying for; 5-7 is something that is worth playing, but probably not at full price; 8-10 is a great title that you can feel confident about buying. If you have any questions or comments about how we rate a game, please let us know.
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