Battle Arena Toshinden
| Battle Arena Toshinden | |
|---|---|
| Original title | バ ト ル ア リ ー ナ 闘 神 伝 |
| developer | Takara |
| First title | Battle Arena Toshinden (1995) |
| Last title | Toshinden 4 (1999) |
| Platform (s) | DOS , Game Boy , PlayStation , Saturn , Windows |
| Genre (s) | Fighting Game |
Battle Arena Toshinden ( Japanese バ ト ル ア リ ー ナ 闘 神 伝 ) is a 3D fighting game series, the first title of which was published by the game developer Takara in 1994 for PlayStation and DOS .
history
Battle Arena Toshinden was a best seller in 1995. The design of the game was very innovative for a fighting game. After the competitor Namco launched a sequel to Tekken in 1996 , Takara had to follow suit in order not to fall behind. In the same year the sequel Battle Arena Toshinden 2 was published, but this found little sales, especially on the German market. The graphics could not come close to that of Tekken 2 and the playability of the competitor also met with greater enthusiasm in the fan community. 1999 appeared with Battle Arena Toshinden 3 , the technically strongly advanced third part of the series. After the initial success of this third part, a clear end to the Takaras video game series emerged in the same year with the new game from competitor Namco Tekken 3 . Tekken was better received by potential buyers as a technically superior program. In 2000, Battle Arena Toshinden 4 was the last Playstation offshoot in the series. The game had been graphically improved again for this purpose, but it was hardly noticed on the European market. In late 2000, the Playstation 2 was launched with Tekken Tag Tournament as a starting title, which marked the end of the Battle Arena Toshinden series . There were no further releases from the series.
Fascination with arms fighting
The main difference between Battle Arena Toshinden and other fighting games like Tekken are the weapons. Each character has a different weapon that gives them various advantages and disadvantages. The variety of weapons in particular was exceptional for the time. The available spectrum ranged from the broadsword, to the staff, to the whip. This concept was later found in games like Soul Blade (org. Soul Edge). Also a novelty on the game market were various special attacks that are carried out with the help of weapons. So there was B. fireballs, energy waves or plasma balls that are released from the weapons. This concept of weapon combat formed the essential basis of the entire series. Since the series renounced the explicit representation of blood, it was essentially unaffected by youth protection laws, which differentiates it from competing products.
Gameplay
The four parts of Battle Arena Toshinden develop their charm in particular through their varied characters and the technically complex lighting effects. The structure and structure of the plot of the first part were still relatively straightforward and offered three additional bonus characters in addition to the eight standard characters.
There were some problems with the PlayStation version as it did not have access to a memory card and therefore scores could not be saved. Since the second final boss, Sho Shinjo, could only be unlocked after eight combat rounds in all fights up to the boss opponent, this was very problematic and time-consuming. Because of this, players criticized the fact that they could rarely play this character on the PlayStation. The second secret boss, Chaos could not be unlocked at all, although even his stage music was on the CD. Versions for Sega Saturn or the PC do not have this error.
Part 2 already had a memory function and had a lot more characters available. In terms of play, it differed only slightly from its predecessor, even if the special move list was expanded a bit. Despite various mistakes, part 2, together with part 3, is the highlight of the series.
Part 3 was the playful highlight of the series. More than 32 characters, a lot of different moves and a strong dynamic made this game stand out. It was fast, colorful, and had one of the best render intros for its time. The soundtrack was also of high quality for the time.
The plot of part 4 took place some time after part 3. In contrast to its predecessor, players rated the game as not very demanding and complained about a lack of long-term motivation. Similar to part 2, the number of characters was again relatively small. However, there was a playful innovation, the 3-on-3 fight. Like in a tag team, you could compete with three characters one after the other to defeat the opposing hordes. Otherwise there were a few mini-games, but nothing that really improved the game compared to its predecessor.
Story and characters
The main storyline of the series is about the experiences of the Japanese swordsman Eiji Shinjo and his rivalry with his brother Sho Shinjo and his competitor Kayin Amoh . Sho was always the stronger game character, which is also noticeable in the game. Kayin , who also fights with a sword , is looking for his adopted daughter Naru Amoh . In their first tournament, they face a very strong opponent who fights with an even bigger blade: The tall, gray-haired swordsman Gaia wears insect-like armor at the beginning of the series and hides the lower half of his face with a mask and wears to satisfy his ambition the Toshinden tournament . Sho , however, hides in the background and tries to pull the strings, while Kayin is still looking for his daughter later. She was kidnapped and even fights in the third edition of the tournament as a little girl. Later a new opponent appears: Vermilion . This is an orange-haired, thin guy with glasses and a black coat. His weapons are pistols. He turns out to be a new threat to Eiji and the other "good" characters in the game. Behind Vermilion there is another man who calls himself Abel and has special skills. Later, Naru Amoh fights as a young woman with Subaru Shinjo the son of Eiji at her side for the good. But Vermilion is still alive and more obsessed with power than ever. He looked for very good support for his last fight with some godlike game characters, but will fail this time too. Another part of the plot is the revelation that Eiji is the organizer of the fourth Toshinden , but has since changed a lot.
Characters
The main characters of the series:
- Eiji Shinjo - weapon: katana (samurai sword)
- Kayin Amoh - Weapon: Claymore Sword (one-handed)
- Ellis - weapon: daggers
- Sofia - weapon: whip
- Fo - weapon: metal claws
- Rungo - Weapon: Stone Club
- Mondo - weapon: staff
- Duke - weapon: sword (two-handed)
- Naru Amoh - weapon: Kayin's sword
- Abel - Weapon: None
- Veil - Weapon: None
- Sho Shinjo - weapon: katana
- Vermilion - Weapon: Pistols
- Gaia - Weapon: Gigantic broadsword
- Chaos - weapon: scythe
Further releases of the game series
In addition to various soundtracks, there is also an anime series for Battle Arena Toshinden . This sheds light on the relationships between Eiji, Kayin, Gaia and Sho. It is not yet available in German, but it can be imported.