Bust a Groove
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| Bust a Groove | |
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| Developer(s) | Metro Graphics |
| Publisher(s) | Enix (Japan) SCEE (Europe) 989 Studios (USA) |
| Release date(s) | January 29, 1998(Japan) November 25, 1998 (Europe) December 2, 1998 (USA) |
| Genre(s) | music/fighting game |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Everyone (6+) |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation |
Bust-a-Groove is a hybrid music/fighting game for the Sony PlayStation released in 1998. The game was published by the Japanese video game maker Enix (now Square Enix) in Japan and brought to the U.S. by now-defunct 989 Studios. The original Japanese game was titled Bust A Move; the name was changed as the American release of Puzzle Bobble already used that name. The game combined PaRappa the Rapper-like rhythm-based gameplay with fighting game elements, including special moves designed to damage your opponent. The sequel, Bust a Groove 2 (known as Bust A Move 2: Dance Tengoku Mix in Japan), unlike its predecessor, was never released in Europe. A third game in the series, Dance Summit 2001 was only released in Japan on the PlayStation 2.
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[edit] Main characters
- Frida
- Age: 17
- Dance Style: West Coast Hip-Hop and Locking
- Jammer: She paints a wolf's head, which bites the opponent
- Info: She is an artist who lives in a shack. Her ambition is to use the Groovetron to give life to her paintings.
- Gas-O
- Age: 15
- Dance Style: Breakdancing
- Jammer: Traps the opponent in a gas chamber
- Info: Gas-O first became interested in becoming a scientist when he was eight. Now at 15, he has accomplished several outstanding tasks, including consulting for NASA, logging time on a particle accelerator, and studying the gaseous elements in his laboratory. Gas-O hopes to use the Groovetron to develop the ultimate gas.
- Hamm
- Age: 30
- Dance Style: Pop Locking
- Jammer: A giant hamburger squishes the opponent
- Info: He used to be a great dancer, but his love for junk food has left him somewhat chubby. He became a hamburger joint employee to satisfy his craving for junk food. He wants to use the Groovetron to help him diet.
- Heat
- Age: 19
- Dance Style: East Coast Breakdancing
- Jammer: A giant flame comes down on the opponent
- Info: He is the "poster boy" of this game. He used to be a racer, but hasn't returned to the track because he was nearly incinerated when he was involved in a terrible accident. Luckily, he made a total recovery with the ability to manipulate fire, and now wants to use the Groovetron to get back into the track.
- Hiro
- Age: 20
- Dance Style: Classic disco
- Jammer: An autographed picture of himself crashes onto the opponent
- Info: Hiro is a narcissistic disco-loving character. He lives in a tiny apartment where he works with his computer until Saturday night, where his playboy antics really take off. Don't even begin to try to match his Saturday night standards--he is truly one of a kind.
- Kelly
- Age: 23
- Dance Style: Slow Hip-hop Groove (Female Style)
- Jammer: A burst of energy gathered in her rattle
- Info: She is a secretary who has a fetish with everything infantile (related to babies), and wants to find a man. She bought her rubber suit to dress in when she is a guest at secret parties. She seems worried about her new rubber suit; this may be due to its cost.
- Kitty Nakajima (Kitty-N)
- Age: 16
- Dance Style: Fame
- Jammer: A burst of energy is thrown at her opponent
- Info: This lovable TV star is on break from the hit TV show "Love Love Senshi Miracle 5." She wants to use the Groovetron's power to make her the ultimate TV star. She has bought out the top floor of some building and converted it into her private dancing studio, just for the purposes of attracting more people.
- Pinky Diamond
- Age: 700
- Dance Style: Classic '70s Motown
- Jammer: Giant tarot cards that curse the opponent
- Info: She is a stripper, fortune-teller, and professional contract killer. It's no wonder she's so weird. She has the power to see into your lover's heart and claims to know you better than you know yourself. Your secrets are nowhere being close to safe near her!
- Shorty
- Age: 12
- Dance Style: Hip-hop
- Jammer: Giant pieces of candy that fall on her opponent
- Info: She is the daughter of a DJ father and a supermodel mother. Obviously, Shorty lives in a rich family with nothing better to do than dance with Columbo, her pet mouse. Her love for outdated music drives her to madness at a flea market, where she frantically searches for 8-track tapes.
- Strike
- Age: 21
- Dance Style: Gangsta Groove
- Jammer: Shoots the opponent with his two guns
- Info: He is from a notorious street gang, and managed to do something bad to get in the state penitentiary. He is gathering his fellow prisoners to form a dance team, called "The Ball and Chain Revue." Strike's favorite word is "freedom."
[edit] Secret characters
- Burger Dog
- Age: Unknown
- Dance Style: Pop Locking (Hamm's style)
- Jammer: A giant hamburger squishes the opponent
- Info: Burger Dog is the dog that runs the restaurant in Hamm's stage.
- Capoeira
- Age: Unknown
- Dance Style: Basic Capoeira
- Jammer: A wall of energy dazes the opponent
- Info: Capoeira, individually known as Kiki and Lala, have come to Earth to collect Japanese billboards to construct a giant fan. They are also here to display the power of the Groovetron, their special "dancing energy" invention.
- Columbo
- Age: Unknown
- Dance Style: hip-hop (Shorty's style)
- Jammer: Giant pieces of candy fall on his opponent
- Info: Columbo is Shorty's pet mouse, whom she keeps in her chest pocket while dancing. He occasionally pops out of her pocket if the player is doing exceptionally well.
- Robo-Z
- Age: Unknown
- Dance Style: Vogue
- Jammer: A blast of shock-inducing waves
- Info: Robo-Z was constructed by a tyrannical organization only known as "Secret X." It was built for the sole purpose of harnessing total power of the Groovetron. It is 50 feet tall on the final level, but on other stages, it is very short.
[edit] Songs
- Frida - Sora to Umi to Niji no Yume
- Translation: "Dreams of Sky, Sea, and Rainbows"
- Gas-O - Chemical Love
- Hamm - I luv hamburgers
- Heat - 2 Bad
- Hiro - The Natural Playboy
- Kelly - Transform
- Kitty N - Bust a Groove
- Original Japanese title: "Aozora no KNIFE (Bust A Move Edit)"
- Translation: "Knife of the Blue Sky (Bust A Move Edit)"
- Pinky - I know
- Shorty - Shorty and the EZ Mouse
- Original Japanese title: "Waratte pon"
- Strike - Power
- Burger Dog - I luv hamburgers
- Columbo - Shorty and the EZ Mouse
- Robo-Z - Flyin' to your soul
[edit] Versions
The game was made available in two different packages in Japan; the first is the more common single-disc (game only) version. The second package is a lesser-known version which contains two discs: the game disc and the Premium Disc. The Premium Disc contains four movies, and to access the movies you had to have a memory card with a Bust a Move save file on it. Accomplishing certain tasks in the game would unlock certain movies. One of the movies on the disc featured Hatsumi Morimaga, the artist responsible for singing the theme of Kitty-N's stage. This feature contained shots of the artist singing the song in the studio, an interview with the artist, and a live-action version of the game, complete with costumed Japanese dancers taking the parts of the various characters (Kitty-N, Heat, and Kelly are all included, amongst others). The other three movies contained within the disc were all for other Enix games: AstroNoori (a game unreleased in the U.S.), Star Ocean: The Second Story, and Hello Charlie (known as Eggs of Steel in the U.S.). The premium version was otherwise identical to the game only version; the gameplay, box art, and instruction manual were essentially the same, with the exception of a large red box with white type on the spine card proclaiming the addition of a Premium CD-ROM.
[edit] Changes
The U.S. version of the game had a number of changes from the Japanese version.
- Kelly's, Shorty's, Kitty-N's, and Capoeira's songs are all sung in English in the U.S. version. These songs were originally sung in Japanese. However, Frida's song retains its Japanese lyrics.
- In the Japanese version, Strike carries a flask and drinks from it before a match. In the U.S. version, the flask has been replaced with a can of soda pop.
- In the Japanese version, Hiro has a cigarette in his mouth the entire match. The cigarette was removed from the U.S. version.
- Hamm's lips are not as pronounced in the U.S. version.
- There is a line at the beginning of the Japanese version of Hamm's song that says, "Hamburger lovers let me hear you say ho!" In the U.S. version, the line is in a place where it shouldn't be and ends up being in the song twice. The line was thrown in to cover up the line "McDonalds, Burger King, or any other place.", most likely for legal reasons
- Also in Hamm's song, the word "Nigga" has been edited out in the U.S. version, however the initial "N" sound can still be heard.
- At a break in Hamm's song, a woman can be faintly heard saying "This 'Nigga' chose a cheeseburger over me. My sex is better. You gotta be crazy." The line is sped up and only the last line is emphasized.
- In the U.S. version, Kitty-N is said to be a part of the "Litterbox Warriors 5." The original name of the group was "Love Love Senshi Miracle 5," a group of cosplay soldiers from a popular Japanese television show.
- Shorty's father was changed from being a diplomat in the Japanese version to being a DJ in the U.S.
- The original Japanese version of Strike's song has a line that says, "Like Arnold Schwarzenegger I'm the only true Eraser, Go drink that tequila here comes your cola chaser ... Too Bad..." In the U.S. version, the song is edited to say "Like Arnold Schwarzenegger I'm the only true era ... (long silence)... Too Bad..." It is believed that this edit was to remove alcohol references from a game aimed at all audiences.
- Additionally, Strike pulls a bottle of tequila out from behind his back and takes a swig in the Japanese version. In the western versions, the bottle of tequila has vanished, but the animation of Strike drinking remains.
- Menus and menu fonts have been changed.
- In the Japanese loading screen, the announcer refers to Hiro as "Hiro-kun." The "kun" is edited out of the U.S. version.
- Stages are easier to "intensify" in the U.S. version.
[edit] External links
- Nissan_301's Heat and Shorty Dance Studio A fansite about Heat and Shorty from Bust a Groove
- Fever Time Approved fanlisting.
