| Asuka 120% | |
|---|---|
Front cover of the FM Towns version of Asuka 120% BURNING Fest., the first version of the first title of the series. |
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| Developer(s) | Fill-in-Cafe (insolvent) |
| Publisher(s) | FamilySoft Kodansha |
| Distributor(s) | FamilySoft |
| Designer(s) | Takahiro Kimura, Atsuko Ishida |
| Platform(s) | FM Towns, X68000, TurboDuo, PC-Engine, Sega Saturn, PlayStation |
| Release date(s) |
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| Genre(s) | 2D Vs. Fighting/Bishōjo |
| Mode(s) | 1–2 Players |
| Media/distribution | Diskette, CD-ROM |
Asuka 120% (あすか120%) is a Japanese fighting game series produced by Fill-in-Cafe and published and distributed by FamilySoft and Kodansha. The music was composed by Keishi Yonao and the game series was designed by Takahiro Kimura, creator of the Variable Geo game series.
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The setting concerns the "Ryōran Private School for Women" which educates the daughters of the upper echelons of society. Here, the high class clubs annually hold a martial arts tournament for the "Club Rivalry Budget Contest Mega Fight." Each character fights with moves making use of the merits of each club. The original characters are all girls (later in the series, a male principal makes an appearance); it is a so-called "bishōjo game" versus fighter.
When it was first released in 1994, it was only available for some personal computer systems, and there were only six original characters. In 1995 it was ported to consumer machines such as the PC Engine, which also added new characters, bringing it up to par with most other fighting games. Furthermore, adjusted balance in later revised editions made it more popular than before.
A different version dubbed "Special" was released for the PlayStation in 1996. The better quality in various areas increased its popularity. Then in 1997, "Excellent" was released, but it was only a minor change from "Special"; the addition of an unthrowable time period changed the balance to be more aggressive. In 1997, "Limited" was released for the Sega Saturn. Graphics were substantially revised and the characters largely changed (for example, faces looked more ambitious), but with the Saturn itself not doing very well, it did not become a hit. Using the graphics from "Limited", "Final" was released for the Playstation in 1999, with the addition of the "down" gauge and a system that was largely changed in itself, along with drastic changes in the lineup of voice actresses. However, the game did not recover popularity.
A feature of the game is that the balance emphasizes exhilarating speed, and at the time of the series' launch, features like an original 2-level jump and easy-to-input special move commands for every character in addition to "counter from guard", "cooperation towards dash move", "striking" and "passive" attacks, etc. The novel components of his game are largely adopted in others now. Compared to the earlier series, there are two standard operation buttons to use the whole system (empty buttons became macro inputs).
Asuka 120%, whose base development was done by "Mad Stalker", was made mainly by just two programmers comprising Fill-in-Cafe. Because they moved on to Treasure, there are observable similarities to Asuka 120% in Treasure's fighting games (e.g. move counterbalancing, easy operation, etc.). Development for the X68000 was done by "Mad Stalker" and for the PSX by "Don't lose! Demon Kendo 2" for Fill-in-Cafe (which went bankrupt around 1998). Character design was done by Nanase Aoi initially, then Ishida Atsuko for "Excellent", and Sasameyuki Jun for "Final".
A list of known releases in the series.[1]
| Title | Platform | Publisher(s) | Release Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asuka 120% BURNING Fest. | FM Towns | Fill in Cafe | March 11, 1994 |
| Asuka 120% BURNING Fest. | Sharp X68000 | Fill in Cafe | April 22, 1994 |
| Asuka 120% Excellent BURNING Fest. | FM Towns | Fill in Cafe | December 22, 1994 |
| Asuka 120% Maxima BURNING Fest. | Turbo Duo/PC engine | Fill in Cafe | July 28, 1995 |
| Asuka 120% Special BURNING Fest. | PlayStation | Family Soft | March 29, 1996 |
| Asuka 120% Excellent BURNING Fest. | PlayStation | Family Soft | May 9, 1997 |
| Asuka 120% Limited BURNING Fest. | Sega Saturn | Kodansha publishers, Ltd. | October 9, 1997 |
| Asuka 120% Final BURNING Fest. | PlayStation | Family Soft | May 27, 1999 |
| Asuka 120% Return BURNING Fest. | PC Windows | Family Soft | September 24, 1999 |
| Asuka 120% Final BURNING Fest. | PlayStation (SuperLite 1500 series) | SUCCESS | September 22, 2002 |
| Asuka 120% LimitOver BURNING Fest. | Sega Saturn | Unofficial | Sometime in 1998[2] |
Asuka, the titular character of the game series, represents the chemistry club in the Mega Fight Tournament. She is best friends with Karina Toyota, and more recently, Kumi Ōkubo. Asuka dreams of becoming a chemist in the future. Her main attacks involve volatile projectiles such as throwing chemical-filled beakers.
Kumi represents her rhythmic gymnastics class in the Mega Fight Tournament. She met Asuka during the Ryouran entrance exam and has been friends since the tournament. A rather household-oriented type of girl, Kumi desires to have a family with lots of children in the future. Kumi's attacks involve her rhythmic gymnast skills.
Tamaki represents not only her tennis club, but is also the daughter of the school principal. She is looked up to by the juniors as the "Big Sister," and is well-loved by her fellow seniors. Tamaki dreams of being a teacher. Her moves involve the use of her tennis racket.
Ryūko specializes in volleyball, and holds a big rivalry with Tamaki Shindō since losing to her in the last Mega Fight Tournament. Ryūko is popular for her movement in sports, though schoolwork is another story. Ryūko mainly uses volleyball tactics to attack her opponent, such as tackles and serves.
Megumi is the cheerleading club representative. She is short in stature with a babyish face, but on account of her glamor, she is popular even with other schools' students.
Torami is the karate club representative and runner-up the previous year. The karate moves issuing from her tall figure are powerful.
Karina is the biology club representative, and Asuka's rival since childhood. A lot of her special moves involve her pet frog "Kero-pyon". (To show her rivalry with Asuka, Karina's surname is Toyota as compared to Asuka's surname which is Honda.)
Cathy, an exchange student from a sister school in Florida, is a member of the pro-wrestling association. Her special moves involve pro-wrestling throws.
Kiyoko is the softball club representative. Her special moves involve a sharply thrown underhand pitch.
Nana is a Japanese dancing research society representative and the eldest daughter of notable house Owada. Her special moves involve attacking with her folded fan and her naginata.
Shinobu is a gang leader from another school. She intrudes on the brawl in order to get revenge on Tamaki Shindō (whom she had lost to previously) and clear her name. Her special moves are like a Qigong bullet called "Banchō bazooka" (meaning "gang leader bazooka"). Her design resembles that of Rei Ayanami, which was a topic of discussion when the game was published. Still, her moves and personality are somewhat of a parody of Akuma and Makoto Mizoguchi.
Tetsuko is from the chemistry club. Since the chemistry club is winning though it usually loses most years, the senior who has an eye on middleclassman Asuka trains her intensively. Her special moves are similar to Asuka’s.
Genichirō is the principal. He uses special moves with names that are yojijukugo, such as "乾坤一擲" ("all or nothing").
Ichiko is the journalism club representative. She endeavors for real conditions but participates in "Final". Her special moves involve assaults with her microphone.[3]