Ranma ½: Hard Battle

Ranma ½: Hard Battle
North American cover art by Michel Bohbot featuring from left to right Ranma, Genma (in panda form), and Ryoga.
DeveloperAtelier Double
Publishers
ComposerToshio Okamoto
PlatformSuper NES
Release
  • JP: December 25, 1992
  • NA: November 5, 1993
  • EU: November 12, 1993
GenreVersus fighting
ModesSingle-player, multiplayer

Ranma ½: Hard Battle, known as Ranma ½: Bakuretsu Rantōhen[a] in Japan and as just Ranma ½ in Europe, is a 2-D fighting video game released by Masaya and DTMC for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System.[1] It is based on the manga and anime series Ranma ½. Hard Battle is the second Ranma ½ game to be translated into English, this time keeping the original graphics, music, and names of the characters, though the voices were still dubbed into English.[2] The game's English translation (but not its English voice acting) was provided by Viz Media (who had begun releasing the English dub of Ranma 1/2 earlier that same year).[3]

Gameplay

Gameplay screenshot showcasing a match between Ranma Saotome and Ukyo Kuonji.

Hard Battle has three modes of play: the standard one-player tournament mode, a two-player competitive mode, and a two-player five-character team challenge mode. There are ten characters in the game (twelve if Ranma and Pantyhose Taro's cursed forms are counted). All twelve characters are available for the two-player modes. After completing tournament mode, Pantyhose becomes a playable tournament character. Happosai is unlockable by entering a code.

The control is simpler than most other fighting games. Each of the SNES controller's buttons (plus the up arrow) can be assigned to activate one of four moves: jump, block, normal attack, and power attack. Different normal and power attacks can be triggered depending on a variety of factors, such as how far the attacker is from the opponent, if they are ducking, or if a directional arrow is pressed along with the attack button.

Instead of entering a series of directional movements and pressing an attack button to activate a special attack, most moves are done by holding the left, right, or down arrow in conjunction with an attack button for a few seconds and then releasing the attack button. The longer the attack button is held, the stronger the attack will be. For instance, one of Ryoga's special attacks is the bandana throw. If held for several seconds, he throws three bandanas instead of one. Many moves can also be executed while holding the block button.

Another feature of Hard Battle is the ability to recover from throws. By pressing an attack button after being thrown, the character can attempt to land on his or her feet and take less damage. Unlike many fighting games, opponents never get stunned after being hit with powerful attacks or a combo.Each character has his or her own story. In any case, the character is manipulated into fighting the other characters by Principal Kuno.

Reception

Ranma ½: Hard Battle garnered generally favorable reviews from critics.[21][22][23][24] A reviewer in Nintendo Power complimented on the characters and the unique team mode in the game, while finding the game offered little new to the genre.[25]

Readers of Super Famicom Magazine voted to give the game a 23.13 out of 30 score, ranking among Super Famicom games at the number 41 spot in a 1993 public poll, and received an award in the character category.[20] According to Famitsu and the Nikkei Marketing Journal, the title sold over 49,698 copies in its first week on the market due to the fighting game boom and popularity of its characters, selling out at many stores within the year.[26][27] It sold approximately between 205,569 and 320,000 copies during its lifetime in Japan.[26][27]

Retrospective reviews for Ranma ½: Hard Battle have been more mixed.[28][29][30] It remains popular more than 25 years since its release and has been featured in competitive play at fighting game tournaments as a side event such as Evo Japan 2018.[31][32]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Japanese: らんま1/2 爆烈乱闘篇, Hepburn: Ranma Nibun-no-Ichi: Bakuretsu Rantōhen; lit. "Ranma ½: Explosive Battle"

References

  1. ^ Anime Video Games. "Ranma 1/2 Hard Battle, Super Famicom". Retrieved November 17, 2009.
  2. ^ "Where Are...". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 51. EGM Media, LLC. October 1993. p. 28.
  3. ^ "Ranma 1/2... New Voices!". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 53. EGM Media, LLC. December 1993. p. 18.
  4. ^ Souibgui, Sami; Alves, Douglas (March 1993). "Super Famicom Review: Ranma ½ New". Consoles + [fr] (in French). No. 18. M.E.R.7 [fr]. pp. 130–131.
  5. ^ Patterson, Mark (November 1993). "CVG Review: CVG Review : Want a beat-'em-up that's not hyped up to hell? Well you're in luck... Ranma (SNES)". Computer and Video Games. No. 144. EMAP. p. 83.
  6. ^ Semrad, Ed; Carpenter, Danyon; Alessi, Martin; Sushi-X; Weigand, Mike (November 1993). "Review Crew". Electronic Gaming Monthly. Vol. 6, no. 11. Sendai Publishing. p. 42 – via Video Game History Foundation.
  7. ^ "New Ganes Cross Review: 奇々怪界 -謎の黒マント-". Famitsu (in Japanese). No. 211. ASCII Corporation. January 1, 1993. p. 41. (Transcription by Famitsu.com. Archived 2016-08-17 at the Wayback Machine).
  8. ^ Halverson, Dave; Off, Gregory; Stratton, Tom; Cockburn, Andrew; Dr. Jones (February 1993). "Viewpoint: Ranma ½ Part 2; Super Famicom Review: Ranma ½". GameFan. Vol. 1, no. 4. DieHard Gamers Club. p. 10, 52–53.
  9. ^ Ellis, Les; Leach, James; Lowe, Andy (March 1993). "Reviews (SNES) - Ranma ½". GamesMaster. No. 3. Future Publishing. pp. 46–47.
  10. ^ Herranz, Sonia (December 1993). "Lo Más Nuevo – Super Nintendo: Ranma ½ – El Sorprendente Arte De La Lucha". Hobby Consolas (in Spanish). No. 27. Hobby Press. pp. 72–75.
  11. ^ Demoly, Jean-Marc; Prézeau, Olivier (February 1993). "Super Famicom: Ranma ½ II - Ranma 1/2 Multiplíe Par 2 Égale Ranma". Joypad [fr] (in French). No. 17. Hachette Disney Presse. p. 128–129.
  12. ^ Tarrain, François (November 1993). "Tests - Super Nintendo: Ranma ½". Player One [fr] (in French). No. 36. Média Système Édition [fr]. pp. 85–87.
  13. ^ Sol, Bruno (December 1993). "Super Nintendo: Ranma ½ — La Leyenda De Los Mil Lagos". Superjuegos [es] (in Spanish). No. 20. Grupo Zeta. pp. 66–70.
  14. ^ Beaven, James (April 1993). "SNES Round-Up: Ranma ½ part 2 (Grey Import)". Total!. No. 16. Future Publishing. p. 40.
  15. ^ Karels, Ralph (February 1994). "Rom Check - Super Nintendo: Streetfighter-Parodie - Ranma ½". Video Games [de] (in German). No. 27. Magna Media. p. 99.
  16. ^ O'Connor, Frank (March 1993). "Super Review: Ranma 2 ½ (Japanese Release)". Super Action. No. 6. Europress. pp. 62–65.
  17. ^ Hickman, Sam (November 1993). "Review Official - Ranma ½". Super Pro. No. 12. Paragon Publishing. p. 56.
  18. ^ "ザ テストプレイ: らんま1/2•爆烈乱闘篇". The Super Famicom [ja] (in Japanese). Vol. 4, no. 1. SoftBank Creative. January 8–22, 1993. p. 21.
  19. ^ "SNES - Ranma ½ 2". VideoGame [pt] (in Portuguese). No. 23. Editora Sigla. February 1993. p. 35.
  20. ^ a b "90年11月から'93年6月21日発売までの323本を収録!! Super Famicom All Catalog '93 8月情報号特別付録 - らんま1/2 爆烈乱闘篇". Super Famicom Magazine (in Japanese). No. 16. Tokuma Shoten. August 1, 1993. pp. 29, 104–107.
  21. ^ "Import Review: Ranma 1/2: Super-Skill Wild Dance Chapter". Super Play. No. 6. Future Publishing. April 1993.
  22. ^ Hellot, Grégoire; Prézeau, Olivier (November 1993). "Super Nintendo (Cartouche Française): Ranma ½ 2 - Tiens De L'eau! Chplaff' Et Merde!". Joypad [fr] (in French). No. 25. Hachette Disney Presse. p. 112–14.
  23. ^ Sharples, Jay (January 1994). "Review: Ranma 2 ½ (Official)". Super Action. No. 17. Europress. pp. 18–19.
  24. ^ "Review - Ranma 1/2 (Super Nintendo)". Power Unlimited (in Dutch). No. 7. VNU Media. February 1994.
  25. ^ Tilden, Gail Tilden, ed. (February 1994). "Now Playing". Nintendo Power. Vol. 57. Nintendo of America. p. 103.
  26. ^ a b "スーパーファミコンソフト 人気の格闘もの再出荷 発売元、ほっとひと安心". Nikkei Marketing Journal (in Japanese). Nikkei. March 30, 1993. p. 27.
  27. ^ a b "Game Search". Game Data Library. Archived from the original on 2023-01-01. Retrieved 2023-01-10.
  28. ^ Ciudad, José Ángel (September 2003). "Videojuegos Manganime: Ranma ½". GamesTech (Extra) (in Spanish). No. 1. Ares Informática. pp. 14–15.
  29. ^ ZZZ (December 6, 2008). "Ranma ½: Hard Battle". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on 2018-12-27. Retrieved 2023-01-10.
  30. ^ Nuktos (October 4, 2010). "Test de Ranma 1/2 : Hard Battle sur SNES par jeuxvideo.com". Jeuxvideo.com (in French). Webedia. Archived from the original on 2012-10-15. Retrieved 2023-01-10.
  31. ^ Yamoto, Shinichi (January 28, 2018). "［EVO Japan］スーパーファミコンの「らんま1/2」，26年目の王者が決定。サイドトーナメント「Ranma World Championship」レポート". 4Gamer.net (in Japanese). Aetas Inc. Archived from the original on 2018-02-02. Retrieved 2023-01-10.
  32. ^ Kemps, Heidi (January 30, 2018). "EVO Japan 2018". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 2018-02-02. Retrieved 2023-01-10.
allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranma_%C2%BD:_Hard_Battle