The whole idea behind fighting game DLC is to expand the game by adding new obstacles and experiences. Now one character can do this, so I can do that or change my tactic to overcome whatever that new thing is. This can make some fighters highly desired, especially if their play style is good or popular. However, since SNK Heroines Tag Team Frenzy isn’t as deep as a traditional fighter, it changes how players approach DLC. Now that two characters are out, are they worth your time or is it better off sticking with the included characters?
Thief Arthur was the first DLC character and is quite interesting. Her whirl wind attack delivers quite a number of hits and is easy to land. This move is also extremely easy to combo into, have your opponent reset, attack once or twice and then do it again for a good number of hits. In fact, Thief Arthur is so good at getting hits you could honestly do a single punch, swap characters, do a couple attacks, whirl wind and then her aerial finisher and unlock the 25+ hit trophy.
In addition to having a forgiving special, she also two really good finishing moves. Her basic standing attack throws a knife downwards, which is easy to land and even easier to combo into. In fact, doing the aforementioned whirl wind move and using it the second you hit the ground will almost always connect. However, if you don’t want to wait, doing it immediately after whirl wind in the air will also work.
On the other end is Skullo. Despite having a more traditional move set, Skullo is meant to be a joke fighter. With her attacks making chibi Skullos appear, running like a character out of Naruto and one of her finishers having a joke frame tossed in, she fills an odd niche.
The biggest difference between Skullo and Arthur is ease of use. Skullo requires decent timing, a couple moves having dead ends and extremely hard to hit specials. To make up for this, Skullo does great damage, it’s just hard to say if it’s enough to make up for her shortcomings in regards to finishing.
Where Arthur has multiple moves that lead into a finish, Skullo has none. It’s so bad that even a single punch at the right distance will push them out of your finishing moves range. The only attack I found that pairs nicely with a finisher is the uppercut. Players are given a fairly large window to follow up with her dash punch, though both supers are fairly hard to hit on their own.
Outside of battle, both Thief Arthur and Skullo are a little lacking. Even though they both have a story ending, neither character has an alternate costume. Both characters still have four colors and different accessories, so it isn’t so bad, just a little disappointing considering how nice some of the costumes are. They also lack a specific team ending image, likely to prevent complaints that players need two characters to unlock it, though it’s still a shame.
Overall, both characters add different things to SNK Heroines Tag Team Frenzy. Thief Arthur is easily one of the most forgiving characters, with one of the simplest move sets in the game. Skullo is able to deal a lot of damage, she just requires a little more forethought to make her worth. Naturally, the two make a great pair, skullo to damage and Arthur to finish, so if you’re looking to get a little more from the core experience, the DLC is probably worth it. However, if you want massive game changing characters, you’ll most likely want to keep looking.
