I think the original Prince of Persia was the most fun swordfighting game I have played.
The Last Express was really interesting. It's mostly a Myst-style, er, mystery, with animated cut-scenes. But even despite the limited interface there is a cool fight mechanic. You can only survive by predicting what the opponent's next attack is going to be by subtle shifts in body posture, and doing an appropriate countermove.
How does one even begin to write a martial art simulation? Does one model the human body (model things like "a human elbow can turn x degrees in 2 planes" or whatever)? Does anyone have any references to (or demo code on) how to write a martial arts simulation? Thanks in advance.
But, maybe I chose the word "simulation" because his works are always grounded in ordinary body physics. The typical fight game is really a button-masher with the reward of seeing a body fall to the ground if you win. Mechner's fight mechanics are about things like leverage, timing, moves and countermoves. They aren't really 'realistic' either but he's going one level deeper.