Toshinden

Booting this up again, the 3D stages felt huge and fresh compared to the flat arenas of other fighters from that era. The flashy special moves really sold the whole "future of fighting games" feel, even if the controls take a moment to get used to today. For a nostalgia trip, it totally delivers.

That polygon fighter still looks surprisingly good on a CRT, and the fluidity of the sidestep mechanic was ahead of its time. It’s clunky by modern standards, but that retro charm makes it a fun relic to revisit.

I remember the first time I saw that spherical arena rotate—it felt like stepping into the future. The character models are blocky now, but the crisp 60fps combat still holds up surprisingly well.