_ Direct execution of the game, without the need to download data and simulator.

_ No ads.

_ No need for internet.

_ Compact and small data file.

_ Ability to save and recall the game at any point of the game you want.

The player takes control of a martial artist named Riki (Kenshiro in the original release), who sets out to rescue his friend Kyoko (Yuria) from his rival, Wang (Raoh). The game is composed of six left-to-right side-scrolling stages in which Riki faces different types of underlings (depending on the stage), facing the occasional sub-boss at midpoints of certain stages. Keeping true to the original source material Hokuto no Ken , underlings violently explode upon being punched or kicked. At the end of each stage, Riki must confront the stage's boss, each being susceptible to only one type of attack. The player must exploit their opponent's weakness and use it to finish the boss off.

Black Belt was originally a Hokuto no Ken game in Japan. The character and backgrounds were changed during localization to remove all ties to the property. The game's third boss, which was originally a battle with a much larger opponent, was also changed to a normal boss battle in Black Belt . However, the game mechanics are still the same and even the lesser enemies die by exploding into bits, which caused the game to be banned from sale to those under age 18 in Germany until 2012.[2] A sequel was released for the Mega Drive in Japan, which was released internationally as Last Battle , once again stripped of the Hokuto no Ken license.

In Japan, a remake of Hokuto no Ken featuring 3D polygonal graphics was released for the PlayStation 2 on March 25, 2004 as the 11th entry in Sega's Sega Ages 2500 line, with an emulation of the original version included as a bonus. The original Master System version was digitally re-released in Japan for the Wii via the Virtual Console service on February 26, 2008. The game can also be unlocked for play in the 2018 title Fist of the North Star: Lost Paradise . The western release of Lost Paradise retains the original Japanese release of Hokuto no Ken rather than its western Black Belt counterpart.