Compati Hero | |
---|---|
Genre(s) | Sports, platform, role-playing, strategy, racing |
Developer(s) | Various |
Publisher(s) | |
Platform(s) | Family Computer, Super Famicom, Game Boy, Game Boy Color, Sega Pico, PlayStation, GameCube, Dreamcast, PlayStation Portable, Nintendo 3DS, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita |
First release | SD Battle Ōzumō: Heisei Hero Basho April 20, 1990 |
Latest release | Lost Heroes 2 February 2, 2015 |
Compati Hero [lower-alpha 1] [lower-alpha 2] is a video game series published in Japan by Banpresto and Bandai Namco Entertainment that began in 1990 and features 16 crossover teams between Ultraman, Kamen Rider (also known as Masked Rider) and Gundam. Characters from other franchises have also been featured in some of the initial games, as well as in the Compati Sports series, such as Mazinger, Getter Robo, Devilman and Godzilla.
It was the first video game series to involve a crossover between animated giant robots and live action tokusatsu heroes from different established franchises. [1] [2] The series makes this possible by using caricaturized versions of the characters (officially referred to as "SD" or "super deformed" characters), which allowed the different heroes and villains to co-exist and interact with each other without the need to reconcile their contrasting styles, settings, or sizes. This also made them appear cute. The first game in the series, SD Battle Ōzumō: Heisei Hero Basho for the Famicom, which mixed franchises that were originally licensed to Popy, was developed as a congratulatory present to Yukimasa Sugiura when he was promoted to president of Banpresto at the time, [1] and was soon followed by series of spin-offs and related games featuring the same cast of characters that developed into the Compati Hero Series. The crossover was also possible due to Banpresto's parent company Bandai holding the merchandising rights for all the properties associated with the series.
The series was successful with children thanks to the SD Gundam craze, but after the release of Charinko Hero for the GameCube, there were no new games afterward for nearly eight years. Banpresto released a new game in the series titled Lost Heroes for the Nintendo 3DS and the PlayStation Portable in September 2012.
Mobile Suit Victory Gundam, is a 1993 Japanese science fiction anime television series. It consists of 51 episodes, and was directed by Gundam creator Yoshiyuki Tomino. The series was first broadcast on TV Asahi. It is the fourth TV anime installment in the Gundam franchise, first series in the franchise released in Japan's Heisei period, and the final full series to be set in the Universal Century calendar.
Artdink Corporation (株式会社アートディンク) is a Japanese developer of video games, based in Tsukishima, Tokyo.
Super Robot Wars, known in Japan as Super Robot Taisen, is a series of tactical role-playing video games produced by Bandai Namco Entertainment, formerly Banpresto. Starting out as a spinoff of the Compati Hero series, the main feature of the franchise is having a story that crosses over several popular mecha anime, manga and video games, allowing characters and mecha from different titles to team up or battle one another. The first game in the franchise was released for the Game Boy on April 20, 1991. Later spawning numerous games that were released on various consoles and handhelds. Due to the nature of crossover games and licensing involved, only a few games have been released outside Japan, and in English. The franchise celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2016, and its 30th anniversary in 2021.
Banpresto Co., Ltd. was a Japanese video game developer and publisher headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. It had a branch in Hong Kong named Banpresto H.K., which was headquartered in the New Territories. Banpresto was a partly-owned subsidiary of toymaker Bandai from 1989 to 2006, and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bandai Namco Holdings from 2006 to 2008. In addition to video games, Banpresto produced toys, keyrings, apparel, and plastic models.
Ultraman, also known as the Ultra Series, is a Japanese superhero media franchise consisting of television series, films, comic books, novels, video games, and other merchandise. Created by Eiji Tsuburaya, the franchise is centered on a fictional alien race of superheroes who often combat kaiju or other aliens. The series debuted with Ultra Q and then Ultraman in 1966, the series is now one of the most prominent productions in the Japanese tokusatsu genre, along with the Toei-produced series Kamen Rider and Super Sentai, as well as one of the most well-known examples of the kaiju genre, along with Toho's Godzilla series and Daiei Film's Gamera series. However, the series also falls into the Kyodai Hero subgenre of tokusatsu, a subgenre it also helped popularize.
Super Robot Wars MX is a video game for the PlayStation 2. It is part of the Super Robot Wars series by Banpresto, and it was released on May 27, 2004. It was later ported to the PlayStation Portable on December 19, 2005, with minor gameplay tweaks, titled Super Robot Wars MX Portable.
Tose Co., Ltd. is a Japanese video game development company based in Kyoto. It is mostly known for developing Nintendo's Game & Watch Gallery series, various Dragon Ball games, as well as other Nintendo products. Tose has developed or co-developed over 1,000 games since the company's inception in 1979, but is virtually never credited in the games themselves. "We're always behind the scenes," said Masa Agarida, Vice President of Tose's U.S. division. "Our policy is not to have a vision. Instead, we follow our customer's visions. Most of the time we refuse to put our name on the games, not even staff names." As such, Tose has gained a reputation for being a "ghost developer."
Super Robot Wars Alpha Gaiden, or simply, Alpha Gaiden, is a video game for the PlayStation, first released in Japan in 2001. It is the first side-story in the Super Robot Wars Alpha series, continuing from Super Robot Wars Alpha. The characters of After War Gundam X, Turn A Gundam, and Combat Mecha Xabungle make debut appearances in the game.
Super Robot Wars 64 is a tactical role-playing game for the Nintendo 64. It was released only in Japan in 1999. The game can make use of the Nintendo 64's Transfer Pak with the Game Boy Color game Super Robot Wars: Link Battler.
Super Robot Wars A is a video game for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance, part of Banpresto's Super Robot Wars franchise and the first to appear on the Game Boy Advance handheld; the letter "A" in the title stands for "Advance". It was ported onto mobile phones as part of the Super Robot Wars i collection in 2006. An enhanced remake of Super Robot Wars A was released for the PlayStation Portable on June 19, 2008 as Super Robot Wars A Portable.
Climax Entertainment was a Japanese video game development company. It was a small company, with just 20 staff in 1996. Climax got its start during the 16-bit era, primarily developing games for the Sega Genesis console. During the 32-bit era, some members of the team left to create Matrix Software. Following the development of Dark Savior (1996), a group of staff members from the company's CGI division formed an independent company Climax Graphics, initially described as a "brother company".
Battle Soccer: Field no Hasha is a soccer video game, developed by Pandora Box and published by Banpresto, which was released exclusively in Japan in 1992.
2nd Super Robot Wars (第2次スーパーロボット大戦) was the first game to be produced in the "Classic" canon timeline, the second game in the overall series, and the first game produced for the Famicom video game system on December 12, 1991.
3rd Super Robot Wars (第3次スーパーロボット大戦) was the third game in a series, the second in the "classic" canon, and the first on the Super Famicom, published on July 23, 1993. Along with 2nd and EX, 3rd Super Robot Wars was released on the Sony PlayStation on June 10, 1999, as part of Super Robot Wars Complete Box and June 22, 1999, as a stand-alone port.
4th Super Robot Wars is a tactical RPG for the Super Famicom developed by both Banpresto and Winky Soft and published by Banpresto. It's the 5th entry in the Super Robot Wars series and the last entry in the Classic Timeline. It was first released on March 17, 1995, and received mostly positive reception, with reviewers highly praising the improvements from the last game while criticizing the game's increased difficulty. The game was ported to the Sony PlayStation and released on January 26, 1996, under the name 4th Super Robot Wars Scramble.
SD the Great Battle is a top-down platforming shoot 'em up video game released for the Super Famicom on December 29, 1990. A crossover of the Ultra Series, Kamen Rider, and Gundam franchises, characters from these franchises are playable. The game is presented in a super deformed style. It is also part of the Compati Hero series. A North American release by Bandai was slated for June 1992, however it was never released.