Star Gladiator

Star Gladiator
Developer(s) Capcom
Publisher(s) Capcom
Director(s) Hideaki Itsuno
Eiichiro Sasaki
Artist(s) Akiman
Composer(s) Isao Abe
Yuko Takehara
Michio Sakurai
Platform(s) Arcade, PlayStation
Release date(s)

Arcade

PlayStation

  • JP October 25, 1996
  • NA October 31, 1996
  • PAL December 1996
Genre(s) Fighting
Mode(s) Up to 2 players simultaneously
Cabinet Upright
Arcade system ZN-1
Sound Stereo

Star Gladiator Episode I: Final Crusade (Japanese: スターグラディエイター Hepburn: Sutāguradietā) is a 1996 weapon-based 3D fighting game released by Capcom for the PlayStation-based ZN-1 arcade hardware. It was Capcom's first in-house polygonal fighting game (the earlier Battle Arena Toshinden 2 was licensed to Capcom from an outside developer).[1] A PlayStation port was released in October 1996. It was followed by a single sequel, Plasma Sword, in 1998.

Gameplay

Instead of the six-button configuration system seen in past Capcom fighting game series such as Street Fighter II and Darkstalkers, Star Gladiator utilizes a Soul series-esque four-button configuration system, which consists of two attack buttons for a character's weapon, a kick attack, and a guard defense. The fighters battle upon a limited 3D plane field, and if a fighter is knocked out of the field they lose the round.

Plasma Reverses are two special guard moves that can be unleashed at any time from within a battle. A Plasma Reflect enables a fighter to deflect an opponent's incoming move and stun them, leaving them vulnerable for a few seconds, while a Plasma Revenge enables a fighter to counterattack an opponent's incoming move and strike back with their own fast attack. Characters can also use a Plasma Strike, which can cause huge damage to an opponent if it connects on sight, but a Plasma Strike can only be done once per round.

Star Gladiator also introduces the Plasma Combo System. Through a specific string of attacks, a fighter can combo their opponent even if the opponent is blocking. If a character strings together five hits and presses a specific button at the end of the combo, they initiate a Plasma Final, which unlocks a technique that inflicts a large amount of damage upon their opponent if used. This system was discarded in the game's sequel, Plasma Sword.

The arcade mode of Star Gladiator consists of 10 fights. Depending on who the player chooses as their character, they will fight against a specific set of opponents. Gore is always fought at Stage 9 and Bilstein is always fought at Stage 10. Depending on how quickly the player defeats Bilstein, either the game ends or the player is taken to a special battle against Ghost Bilstein. Losing to "Ghost Bilstein" results in both a bad ending and a game over while defeating Ghost Bilstein results in a different ending than the one received if the game ends before Ghost Bilstein.

Story

In the year 2348, humans have been exploring the vast reaches of outer space for four centuries and have established peaceful contact with various alien civilizations. People now emigrate from one planet to another. However, some problems arise with a couple of alien races, so the Earth Federation begins developing a Plasma-power weapon to protect the Earth from any outside threats. Dr. Edward Bilstein, a Nobel Prize-winning German-American physicist for the Earth Federation, uncovers the secret to humanity's "sixth sense": a technique for capturing the energy of the human mind, an energy source he calls "Plasma Power". The Plasma weapon is built, and Bilstein gains fame and fortune for the invention. It is discovered by the Earth Federation that Bilstein experimented on actual human bodies during his research on Plasma Power. He is arrested and exiled from Earth, imprisoned in a satellite that orbits the Planet Zeta, while development of the Plasma weapon is indefinitely suspended. Word of Earth's possession of a super weapon spreads throughout the universe and it reduces hostile confrontations.

Four years later, an Earth Federation army base is attacked and destroyed by a small group of rebels calling themselves the "Fourth Empire". Bilstein, who has built himself a powerful cyborg body and escaped from Zeta, is their leader. Realizing their pattern of attacks is leading back to Earth, a panicked Earth Federation searches for people who can utilize Plasma Power in their own given accord and stop Bilstein before he can conquer the universe with his nascent Fourth Empire. All of Earth's hopes rest in the project codenamed "Star Gladiator".

Characters

Development

In an interview with Destructoid.com, Capcom's Seth Killian mentioned that Star Gladiator was supposed to have been a Star Wars game.[2]

See also

References

  1. "Capcom's First 3D Arcade Game: Star Gladiators!". Maximum: The Video Game Magazine (Emap International Limited) (5): 121. April 1996.
  2. Zimmerman, Conrad: Bit Transmission Podcast, Episode 06

External links

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