History of Samurai Shodown/Spirits
Samurai Shodown is also known as Samurai Spirits in Japan and other Asian countries. The first installment of the Samurai Shodown series named Samurai Shodown, it first came out in the arcade in 1993. The first Samurai Shodown was not really that old, but it was one of the few popular 2D game availbale at that time. Then, Samurai Shodown 2 (a.k.a. Shin Samurai Spirits) came out in 1994. It was quite a hit when it first came out, quite a lot of people enjoy it and they like the game very much. After SS2, Samurai Shodown 3: Blades of Blood (a.k.a. Zankuro Musouken) came out in 1995. It didin't seem to win that many fans' hearts as SS2 did. However, the gameplay improved tremendously from SS2. Some people find SS3 a very hard game to play, and some people think that the graphics look too 'dark'. Samurai Shodown 4 Amakusa's Revenge (a.k.a. Samurai Spirits 4 Amakusa Kourin) came out in 1996, game mechanics, control and other things were vastly improved and look more 'colourful' than SS3. Moreover, some new features were added (i.e. rage explosion) to make the game more fun to play. In 1997, SS64 came out, it was the first 3D SS game, the gameplay wasn't as good as the 2D SS games, but it was not that bad. Since the SS64 was on Neo Geo 64 arcade machine(not the old MVS), the hardware didn't sell very well, the game did not appear in many arcades, so it was not a popular game. In 1998, SS64 2 came out, and this game suffer the same problem as SS64, not popular.

Samurai Shodown Series General Information(Arcade)

Samurai Shodown
Year of Released: 1993
Memory Size: 118 Megabits
Platform: Neo Geo MVS
Playable Characters: Haohmaru, Tachibana Ukyo, Nakoruru, Hattori Hanzo, Galford, Senryo Kyoshiro, Yagyu Jubei, Charlotte, Earthquake, Shiranui Gen-An, Wan Fu, Tam Tam.
Boss: Amakusa Shiro Tokisada.

Samurai Shodown 2
Year of Released: 1994
Memory Size: 202 Megabits
Platform: Neo Geo MVS
Playable Characters: Haohmaru, Tachibana Ukyo, Nakoruru, Hattori Hanzo, Galford, Senryo Kyoshiro, Yagyu Jubei, Charlotte, Earthquake, Shiranui Gen-An, Wan Fu, Kibagami Genjuro, Cham Cham, Neinhalt Sieger, Caffeine Nicotine.
Boss: Rashoujin Mizuki.

Samurai Shodown 3 Blades of Blood
Year of Released: 1995
Memory Size: 282 Megabits
Platform: Neo Geo MVS
Playable Characters: Haohmaru, Tachibana Ukyo, Nakoruru, Hattori Hanzo, Galford, Senryo Kyoshiro, Kibagami Genjuro, Amakusa Shiro Tokisada, Hisame Shizumaru, Rimururu, Kubikiri Basara, Caffeine Gaira.
Boss: Minazuki Zankuro .

Samurai Shodown 4 Amakusa's Revenge
Year of Released: 1996
Memory Size: 378 Megabits
Platform: Neo Geo MVS
Playable Characters: Haohmaru, Tachibana Ukyo, Nakoruru, Hattori Hanzo, Galford, Senryo Kyoshiro, Kibagami Genjuro, Amakusa Shiro Tokisada, Hisame Shizumaru, Rimururu, Kubikiri Basara, Caffeine Gaira, Yagyu Jubei, Charlotte, Tam Tam, Kazama Sogetsu, Kazama Kazuki.
Sub-Boss: Amakusa Shiro Tokisada.
Boss: Minazuki Zankuro.

Samurai Shodown 64
Year of Released: 1997
Memory Size: ? Megabits
Platform: Hyper Neo Geo 64
Playable Characters: Haohmaru, Tachibana Ukyo, Nakoruru, Hattori Hanzo, Galford, Kibagami Genjuro, Rimururu, Kazama Sogetsu, Kazama Kazuki, Shiki, Yagyu Hanma.
Sub-Boss: Gandara, Deku or Dekuina
Boss: Yuga.

Samurai Shodown 64 II
Year of Released: 1998
Memory Size: ? Megabits
Platform: Hyper Neo Geo 64
Playable Characters: Haohmaru, Tachibana Ukyo, Nakoruru, Hattori Hanzo, Galford, Kibagami Genjuro, Rimururu, Kazama Sogetsu, Kazama Kazuki, Shiki, Yagyu Hanma, Asra, Morozumi Taizan.
Sub-Boss: Gandara.
Boss: Yuga.

Samurai Shodown Series available for different home consoles

Samurai Shodown
Neo Geo Cartridge, Neo Geo CD, 3DO, Mega Drive/Sega Genesis, Sega CD, Super Famicom, Gameboy, Game Gear, Playstation(import).

Samurai Shodown 2
Neo Geo Cartridge, Neo Geo CD, PC, Playstaion(import).

Samurai Shodown 3 Blades of Blood
Neo Geo Cartridge, Neo Geo CD, Sega Saturn(import), Playstation, Gameboy.

Samurai Shodown 4 Amakusa's Revenge
Neo Geo Cartridge, Neo Geo CD, Sega Saturn(import), Playstation(import).