is a 1992

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

fighting game released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System by

Sammy Studios is a Japanese developer and retailer of pachinko and pachislot machines, headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its South Korean office, Sammy Amusement Service, is headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. Sammy is a subsidiary of the entertainment cong ...

. Players use swords, morningstars,

knives A knife ( : knives; from Old Norse 'knife, dirk') is a tool or weapon with a cutting edge or blade, usually attached to a handle or hilt. One of the earliest tools used by humanity, knives appeared at least 2.5 million years ago, as evidenced ...

, and other weapons to beat up their opponents. The player can either play in a

colosseum The Colosseum ( ; it, Colosseo ) is an oval amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum. It is the largest ancient amphitheatre ever built, and is still the largest standing amphitheatre in the world t ...

or on a quest. The eventual goal is defeat the

Dark Lord In fiction and mythology, a dark lord (sometimes capitalized as Dark Lord or referred to as an Evil Overlord, Evil Emperor etc. depending on the work) is an antagonistic archetype, acting as the pinnacle of villainy and evil within a typicall ...

who lives in a castle in the sky.

Plot

A land known as Virg was under the command of a powerful

king King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

. Every king was selected at the "Tournament of Champions". A demon from Hell, was hell-bent on world domination, so he sent five phantoms to possess every combatant in the tournament. The demon turned the contenders into enemies where they would have them battle one on one (similar to

battle royal Battle royal (; also royale) traditionally refers to a fight involving many combatants that is fought until only one fighter remains standing, usually conducted under either boxing or wrestling rules. In recent times, the term has been used in a ...

e). The phantoms possessed every contender except for one. As one phantom ambushed Durill, the strongest of the competitors, an unknown

disease A disease is a particular abnormal condition that negatively affects the structure or function of all or part of an organism, and that is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical conditions that a ...

struck him. Durill ended up defeating the phantom, but collapsed due to mind poisoning. After he died, his son Kerrel vowed to avenge his father, and defeat the evil demon.

Characters

*Kerrell (known in Japan as Faud) - This is the main hero of the game. He vowed to avenge his father, and destroy the dark lord. *Shnouzer (known in Japan as Shazzer) - This is the leader of the mountain beast pack. He is widely regarded as the most feared competitor, as he has good close-combat skills. *Adrick (known in Japan as Werleck) - The

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

from Naxus, who relies on his long-reaching Dark Blade (known in Japan as Hell Blade). *Tesya (known in Japan as Filea) - An agile

warrior A warrior is a person specializing in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal or clan-based warrior culture society that recognizes a separate warrior aristocracies, class, or caste. History Warriors seem to have be ...

from Flynn, who uses twin daggers as her weapon of choice. *Lord Gustoff - The half-orc ruler of a peaceful farm village, makes use of a morningstar/flail combination weapon. *Lang - The twin brother of Kerrell. He has the same ability set as his brother. Only appears in The Battle mode. *Autarch (known in Japan as Gilformoth) - The game's final boss, only encountered in The Hero mode. A powerful demon whose claws are as deadly as any sword. Seeks to wipe out the champions and conquer all of Virg. Not playable outside cheat mode.

Cover art

The illustration from the Japanese cover art was made by .

Development

The North American release was originally announced for October 1993, but did not hit shelves until January 1994. According to American Sammy, a combination of bugs in the game, Nintendo's "lengthy approval process", and American Sammy's move from

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

caused the game to be delayed.

References

{{reflist

External links

Promotional flyer (Super Famicom)
1992 video games Sammy games Super Nintendo Entertainment System games Super Nintendo Entertainment System-only games Video games set in the Middle Ages Fighting games Video games developed in Japan Video games scored by Masaki Kase Video games scored by Megumi Matsūra Video games scored by Sizlla Okamura Multiplayer and single-player video games