
- 40/100
- Players20 ratings

1994 · Delphine Software International · Fighting
Shaq-Fu
Shaq brings his awesome skill and size to a multi-world fighting game.
- Released
- 1 October 1994
- Platforms
- AmigaGame BoySNESSega Genesis
- Genres
- Fighting
- Developers
- Delphine Software International
- Publishers
- Electronic Arts
- Modes
- MultiplayerSingle-player
- Perspective
- Side view
- Country
- France
- Age ratings
- ESRB E
- Composers
- Raphaël Gesqua
About
Shaq Fu is a 1994 fighting game developed by Delphine Software International and published by Electronic Arts for the Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Versions for the Game Gear, Game Boy, and Amiga followed in 1995. Professional basketball player Shaquille O'Neal is the player character.
Shaq Fu was met with mixed responses from critics upon release, though it has since come to be considered one of the worst video games ever made. A sequel, Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn, was released in 2018.
Keywords
- black protagonist
- celebrity tie-in
- shaquille o'neal
Media
The articlegameplay, story, development, reception
Story
In the game's storyline, Shaquille O'Neal walks into a dojo while heading to a charity basketball game in Tokyo, Japan. After speaking with Leotsu, a martial arts master, Shaq is mistaken for a warrior chosen by the Stars and goes to another dimension, the Second World, where he must rescue a young boy named Nezu from the evil mummy Sett-Ra. After defeating Sett-Ra and his minions, Shaq rescues Nezu and returns to his original world in time for his game. However, he finds Beast, one of Sett-Ra's minions, has somehow entered his world and is now playing for the opposing team in order to get a rematch with Shaq.
Development
After Shaquille O'Neal was signed on to appear in a video game for publisher Electronic Arts, the EA staff were inspired to put him in a fighting game because they had heard of O'Neal's interest in martial arts.
Reception
Shaq Fu received mixed reviews at the time of its release. GamePro gave the SNES version a positive review, saying that the unusually small size of the sprites is balanced out by the incredibly fast game speed. They also praised the "ultra sharp" controls and impressive digitized graphics. They reviewed the Genesis version as superior to the SNES version due to its additional characters and improved controls, and concluded that the game is "fun once you get used to the small, fast sprites".
As Next Generation reviewed the Genesis version, "Shaq Fu includes everything a good fighting game needs, with the exception of good fighting". In contrast to their positive reactions to the SNES and Genesis versions, GamePro panned the Game Boy release, saying it dumbs down the gameplay, loses so much graphical detail that the characters are unrecognizable, and makes the music far too pervasive.
Releases by platformdates and regions as published
Editions and related releases
- Included in
- 20 in 1
- Ported as
- Shaq-Fu
- Built on it
- Shaq FuShaq-Fu
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Collections1 collection
Genres
- Fighting gamesList
Description adapted from its source, CC BY-SA 4.0.
