Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid

Last updated
Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid
Power Rangers Battle for the Grid.jpg
Developer(s) nWay
Publisher(s)
Series Power Rangers
Engine Unity [ citation needed ]
Platform(s) Nintendo Switch
Xbox One
PlayStation 4
Microsoft Windows
Google Stadia
ReleaseNintendo Switch, Xbox One
March 26, 2019
PlayStation 4
April 2, 2019
Microsoft Windows
September 24, 2019
Stadia
June 1, 2020
Genre(s) Fighting
Mode(s) Single-player, versus multiplayer

Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid is a fighting game developed by San Francisco-based game developer nWay, featuring characters from the Power Rangers franchise. It was released digitally for Nintendo Switch and Xbox One on March 26, 2019, for PlayStation 4 on April 2, 2019, for Microsoft Windows on September 24, 2019, and for Stadia on June 1, 2020. Limited Run Games released a standard physical version on the Switch and PlayStation 4 alongside a more expensive Mega Edition, which included a SteelBook case, 18" X 24" poster, and 5 coins in addition to the game. Pre-orders went up for sale in June 2019 with the game delivered in November 2019. [1] In October 2020, Maximum Games published the "Collector's Edition" which included the character Lauren Shiba, both physically and digitally. [2] A third version (physical and digital) the Super Edition containing all previous downloadable content was released digitally in May 2021 and physically in August 2021. [3]

Contents

Gameplay

Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid is a fighting game in which players compete in battle using characters with different fighting styles and special attacks. Players select teams of three characters to engage in one-on-one combat, and can choose to switch between them at any point during the match, as well as call teammates to perform assists. Players can also call on Megazords to assist with the battle, via a meter that fills as their team members take damage. When all three opposing teammates have been eliminated, a victory is declared. [4]

The game features Ranked Online, Arcade, Versus, Casual Online, Training and Tutorial modes, along with a Story Mode loosely based on the Power Rangers comic book storyline "Shattered Grid". [5]

Playable characters

The game features 12 playable characters, with 14 additional characters available as downloadable content. [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14]

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
Power Rangers Zeo
Power Rangers Lost Galaxy
Power Rangers Time Force
Power Rangers S.P.D.
Power Rangers Mystic Force
Power Rangers Jungle Fury
Power Rangers Samurai
Power Rangers Megaforce
Power Rangers Dino Charge
Power Rangers (2017 film)
  • Cenozoic Blue Ranger a
Shattered Grid
Street Fighter
  • Ryu - Crimson Hawk Ranger b SF
  • Chun-Li - Blue Phoenix Ranger b SF

^a Added via free post-launch update
^b Paid downloadable content character; number denotes which season pass the character is included in

Plot

The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers are training in the Command Center when it is breached by Lord Drakkon, an alternate future version of Tommy Oliver. In his world, Drakkon sided with and trained under Rita Repulsa, before killing her and the other Rangers. Despite the arrival of Time Force Ranger Jen Scotts from the future, Drakkon manages to kill the younger Tommy and escapes. With his Chaos Crystal now charged by Tommy's green chaos energy, Drakkon and his forces begin travelling across time and space, using his Dragon Cannons to remove Rangers' powers and steal their morphers. Zordon sends a warning through the Morphin Grid and, with Jen's help, begins sending Rangers through time to protect other Rangers being pursued by Drakkon.

Kimberly Hart encounters the Ranger Slayer, a future version of herself from Drakkon's universe. Kimberly manages to free her from Drakkon's control, though Ranger Slayer continues to feign loyalty to avert suspicion. The Rangers regroup at Corinth, where Dr. K is working on a way to disrupt the Dragon Cannons. The city comes under attack by Drakkon's forces, including several Power Rangers placed under his control. Drakkon, who has powered himself up using the stolen morphers, arrives and overwhelms the Rangers, forcing them to retreat to the Command Center. Ranger Slayer arrives and reveals Drakkon's plan is to gain full control of the Morphin Grid and rewrite reality, using the morphers to increase his resonance with it. She suggests destroying his tower in their home dimension, preventing him from crossing dimensions and sharing his morphers' powers with his armies. Knowing they will be unable to do so alone, Zordon asks Rita to help stop Drakkon.

Led by Jason Lee Scott, a united group of Power Rangers storms Drakkon's tower. They are attacked by Drakkon and the Rangers under his control, but Mike Corbett is freed by the spirit of the Magna Defender and defects back to Zordon's forces. Rita infiltrates the tower and uses a Powerdraining Candle to weaken Drakkon, forcing him to retreat to stop her. Trini Kwan uses her Dragon Armor to grow and topple the tower's antennae, breaking Drakkon's control of the Rangers and causing his forces to lose their powers. Rita attempts to kill Drakkon, but his minion Finster-5 disarms her and the other Rangers. Finster-5 attempts to stop Drakkon from using additional morphers to restore his powers, believing the process will be fatal, but Drakkon kills him and proceeds. As he powers himself up, he is challenged by Tommy, restored to life through the Chaos Crystal's powers. Tommy defeats Drakkon, whose body has become unstable due to the morphers' power, and he escapes as Drakkon explodes, destroying himself and the tower. Zordon thanks all the Rangers for their help, and Ranger Slayer reassures Tommy that he will never become like Drakkon thanks to his bonds with his team.

Development and release

The game was released in March 2019 for Xbox One and Nintendo Switch, with ports for PlayStation 4 and Microsoft Windows following later in the year. An update in April 2019 added a story mode, written by Boom! Studios Power Rangers comic book writer Kyle Higgins, along with three additional characters, voice acting and two new stages. [15] The original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers actors Jason David Frank (in his final Power Rangers appearance before his death in 2022), Austin St. John, Johnny Yong Bosch, David J. Fielding, Barbara Goodson, Kerrigan Mahan and Sabrina Lu reprise their respective roles as Tommy Oliver (both original universe version, and Lord Drakkon), Jason Lee Scott, Adam Park, Zordon, Rita Repulsa, Goldar and Scorpina, while Power Rangers Time Force actor Daniel Southworth reprises his role as Eric Myers. [15] [16] [17]

An update in July 2019 added three characters via the first season pass, and additional features such as cross-platform play between the Switch, Xbox One, and Windows versions; [6] cross-platform support for PlayStation 4 was added via a later update in February 2020, [18] making it the first fighting game of the eighth generation of video game consoles to support fully platform-agnostic multiplayer. [19] A second season pass was announced alongside the game's Windows release. [20] A third season of content was announced on May 25, 2020. [21] On April 13, 2021, it was announced that Ryu and Chun-Li from Capcom's Street Fighter franchise would be added as playable characters via a "Street Fighter Pack", utilizing their designs from Power Rangers: Legacy Wars . The pack was released on May 25, alongside a digital "Super Edition" version of the game that includes all downloadable content up to that point. A physical release of Super Edition was released in August 2021. [22] A fourth season of content was announced on September 14, 2021. [10]

Reception

Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid has received mixed reviews, with reviewers praising the gameplay but criticizing the presentation and lack of content at launch. [23] [24] [25] IGN gave the game a 6.8 rating, praising the fighting system and tag mechanics but criticizing the graphics, lack of modes and characters. [27] Mike Fahey of Kotaku also criticized the launch roster but praised the accessibility of the fighting mechanics for players at various skill levels. [29] Screen Rant praised the game for using the Marvel vs. Capcom tag-team fighting system while adding new features like the assist-takeover move. They too criticized the lack of characters, non-existent story and highlighted the fact that for a game that was celebrating 25 years of Power Rangers, it only featured characters from four series at launch. [30]

Related Research Articles

<i>Mighty Morphin Power Rangers</i> American live action childrens television series

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers (MMPR) is an American superhero television series that premiered on August 28, 1993, on the Fox Kids programming block. It is the first entry of the Power Rangers franchise, and became a 1990s pop culture phenomenon along with a large line of toys, action figures, and other merchandise. The show adapted stock footage from the Japanese TV series Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger (1992–1993), which was the 16th installment of Toei's Super Sentai franchise. The second and third seasons of the show drew elements and stock footage from Gosei Sentai Dairanger and Ninja Sentai Kakuranger, respectively, though the Zyuranger costumes were still used for the lead cast in these two seasons. Only the mecha and the Kiba Ranger costume from Dairanger were featured in the second season while only the Kakuranger mecha was featured in the third season, though the Kakuranger costumes were later used for the mini-series Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers. The series was produced by MMPR Productions and distributed by Saban Entertainment, while the show's merchandise was produced and distributed by Bandai Entertainment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rita Repulsa</span> Fictional character

Rita Repulsa is a character from the television series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, and the principal nemesis of the superhero protagonists in the show's first season. She is portrayed in the first season by Machiko Soga and by Carla Perez in the remaining seasons, while voiced by Barbara Goodson in the series. Soga reprised her role as Rita, now the Mystic Mother, while Susan Brady provided her voice in the TV series Power Rangers Mystic Force. In the films, she is portrayed by Julia Cortez in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie, and by Elizabeth Banks in the 2017 reboot film. Rita Repulsa is based on the Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger villain Witch Bandora.

Zachary "Zack" Taylor is a fictional character in the Power Rangers universe, appearing in the television series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. He is the first on-screen Black Ranger of Power Rangers. He would be succeeded as the Black Ranger by Adam Park. A reimagined version of Zack, now Chinese-American, would appear in the 2017 reboot film, played by Canadian actor Ludi Lin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tommy Oliver</span> Fictional character from the Power Rangers franchise

Dr. Thomas "Tommy" Oliver is a fictional character and the overarching main protagonist of the American live-action television franchise Power Rangers. He is best known as being the original Green Ranger and the first evil Ranger who fought and nearly defeated the original Power Rangers while under the control of Rita Repulsa. He was eventually freed from Rita's spell and aligned himself with the other Power Rangers. He is a main character in the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers TV series, as well as four of its successive incarnations Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers, Power Rangers Zeo, Power Rangers Turbo, and Power Rangers Dino Thunder. He also appeared in the Power Rangers Wild Force episode "Forever Red", the Power Rangers S.P.D. episode "Wormhole", the Power Rangers Super Megaforce episode "Legendary Battle", and in the Power Rangers Super Ninja Steel episode "Dimensions in Danger". He was portrayed by actor Jason David Frank in all of his appearances from the Zordon era until Saban Brands era's seasons of the franchise prior to his death in November 2022, with the exception of the episode "Wormhole", where he appeared only in Ranger form and was voiced by actor Jeffrey Parazzo. He was also infrequently portrayed by actor Michael Gotto in instances where the story required the character during childhood, such as in the series Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers.

<i>Power Rangers in Space</i> US 1998 television series

Power Rangers in Space is a television series and the sixth season of the Power Rangers franchise, based on the 21st Super Sentai series Denji Sentai Megaranger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zordon</span> Fictional character in Power Rangers franchise

Zordon is a fictional character from the Power Rangers franchise who serves as the Rangers' mentor. Zordon first appeared on the first season of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and appeared in subsequent seasons until the conclusion of Power Rangers in Space, where he was the titular major supporting character of his saga.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kimberly Hart</span> Fictional character in Power Rangers

Kimberly Ann Hart is a fictional character in the Power Rangers universe. Played by American actress Amy Jo Johnson during the first three seasons of the show, plus on the two feature films of the franchise, Kimberly has the longest tenure of any female ranger in the series' history, and fourth overall. She is best remembered as the first Pink Ranger (pterodactyl) and first Pink Ninja Ranger from the first entry of the franchise Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Kimberly was the Pink Ranger for nearly three years before she was written off the show as having given up her powers for good to Zordon's new pink ranger Katherine Hillard, to participate at the Pan Global Games in Florida. However, she would briefly return as the Pink Ranger on three occasions. She first returned during the Legendary Battle of Power Rangers Super Megaforce alongside former teammates Zack Taylor, Billy Cranston, Trini Kwan, and Jason Lee Scott. The five of them later fought alongside the Dino Thunder Rangers, Dino Charge Rangers, and the Grid Battleforce Rangers against Goldar Maximus in Power Rangers Beast Morphers. She also returned to fight a robotic version of Rita Repulsa with the other four original rangers and Tommy Oliver in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always. Johnson did not reprise her role for any of these appearances.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trini Kwan</span> Yellow Power Ranger character

Trini Kwan is a fictional character from the Power Rangers franchise, first appearing in the original series as the Yellow Ranger. She was portrayed by Vietnamese-American actress Thuy Trang.

<i>Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie</i> 1995 film directed by Bryan Spicer

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie is a 1995 American superhero film. It stars the ensemble cast of Karan Ashley, Johnny Yong Bosch, Steve Cardenas, Jason David Frank, Amy Jo Johnson, and David Yost alongside the villains cast from the original series and Paul Freeman as Ivan Ooze. Much like the television season that followed the release, it used concepts from the Japanese Super Sentai series Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger, Gosei Sentai Dairanger and Ninja Sentai Kakuranger. It is the first Power Rangers production from Saban Entertainment not to feature any archived footage from Super Sentai. It is the first installment in the Power Rangers film series. The film was released in between the second and third seasons of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, but is incompatible with season three, which provides a different explanation for the Rangers gaining their Ninja Ranger powers and Ninjazords, indicating they are set in different continuities.

Jason Lee Scott is a fictional character in the Power Rangers franchise, played by actor Austin St. John. Jason is known as the first on screen Red Ranger from the first on screen series, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, as well as the leader of the first on screen team of Power Rangers. He later becomes the temporary Gold Ranger in Power Rangers Zeo. He once again becomes the Red Ranger by Power Rangers: Beast Morphers, alongside his original team. A reimagined version of Jason appears in the 2017 reboot film, played by Australian actor Dacre Montgomery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Billy Cranston</span> Fictional character in Power Rangers

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Day of the Dumpster</span> 1st episode of the 1st season of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers

"Day of the Dumpster" is the first episode of both the American tokusatsu television series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and the Power Rangers franchise. It premiered on the Fox network on August 28, 1993 as part of its Fox Kids programming block, and was later released on VHS and DVD. A new re-version of the episode later aired on ABC on January 2, 2010, as part of ABC Kids. As with the first season's episodes, most of the scenes featuring the Rangers in morphed form, the Zords and the villains are taken from the Japanese tokusatsu series, Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger, the 16th entry of the Power Rangers franchise's Japanese counterpart of origin, Super Sentai.

Spin Fighters were die-cast metal top toys that were manufactured by Bandai in China from 1993 to 1997. The tops were loaded into launchers, which were then tightly wound by fingertip, and subsequently released into the Spin Fighters Battle Arena or onto a flat surface. The tops battled until the last top spinning was the winner. Spin Fighters tops were about 1 inch across, came in black and gold colors, and bore a prismatic sticker with a character from a TV show or video game. Usually, the black tops represented the "bad guys" and the gold tops represented the "good guys". Spin Fighters were sold two to a package, one gold and one black. Power Launchers and Battle Arenas were available separately or bundled. The tops can be disassembled and worn on jackets, shirts and hats, through any small button hole. Production of Spin Fighters ceased around 1997.

<i>Power Rangers: Legacy Wars</i> 2017 video game

Power Rangers: Legacy Wars is a fighting video game based on the 2017 film Power Rangers, created by San Francisco–based game developer nWay with characters from the movie and the TV show. The game was featured on Amazon, Apple's AppStore and Google Play Store. The game has been downloaded more than 50 million times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shattered Grid</span> 2018 comic book event published by Boom! Studios

"Shattered Grid" is a 2018 crossover comic book event published by Boom! Studios, in collaboration with Saban Brands. Based on the Power Rangers franchise by Haim Saban, it was mostly written by Kyle Higgins and Ryan Parrott through the ongoing comic series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and Saban's Go Go Power Rangers to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the original television series.

<i>Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Mega Battle</i> 2017 video game

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Mega Battle is a beat 'em up video game based on the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers television series, developed by Peruvian studio Bamtang Games. It was first announced in October 2016. It was released on January 17, 2017. The game never received a physical release and is only available via digital download.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Necessary Evil (comics)</span>

"Necessary Evil" is a 2019–2020 crossover comic book event by Boom! Studios and Hasbro, based on the Power Rangers franchise created by Haim Saban. The event is written by Ryan Parrott and Sina Grace through the ongoing comic book series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and Go Go Power Rangers, making it the second crossover event in the Power Rangers comics by Boom! after 2018's "Shattered Grid".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unlimited Power (comics)</span> 2020–2022 American two-part crossover comic book storyline

"Unlimited Power" is a 2020–2022 American two-part crossover comic book storyline published by Boom! Studios, based on the Power Rangers franchise by Haim Saban and Hasbro. It is the sequel to "Necessary Evil" and the third crossover event in the Power Rangers comics by Boom!

<i>Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always</i> 2023 American superhero television film

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always is a 2023 American superhero television film serving to commemorate the 30th anniversary of both Mighty Morphin Power Rangers (1993–1995) and the Power Rangers franchise.

References

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  2. ↑ web|url=https://www.gematsu.com/2020/07/power-rangers-battle-for-the-grid-physical-collectors-edition-launches-october-8
  3. ↑ web|url=https://www.dbltap.com/posts/power-rangers-battle-for-the-grid-super-edition-release-date-when-is-it-01f6g5stdw9x
  4. ↑ "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid Available Today". battleforthegrid.com. 26 March 2019. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
  5. ↑ "Launch Features and Content". battleforthegrid.com. 25 March 2019. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  6. 1 2 Moyse, Chris (July 11, 2019). "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid adds crossplay, improved matchmaking and reveals three new DLC characters". Destructoid . Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  7. ↑ "Power Rangers: Battle For The Grid Adds The Original White Ranger And More!". IGN . 26 September 2019. Retrieved 26 September 2019.
  8. ↑ "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid is Adding a Muay Thai Ranger and Female Red Ranger". IGN . 27 May 2020. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  9. ↑ "Scorpina Returns in Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid With a Whole New Look". IGN . 25 September 2020. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
  10. 1 2 "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid - Official Season 4 Trailer". Ign.com. 14 September 2021.
  11. ↑ "Power Rangers: Battle For The Grid Reveals Street Fighter Crossover Pack". Comicbook. 14 April 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  12. ↑ "Power Rangers: Battle For The Grid Street Fighter Crossover Reveals Ryu Angel Grove Skin (Exclusive)". Comicbook. 26 April 2021. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  13. ↑ "Power Rangers: Battle For The Grid's Street Fighter Crossover Reveals Chun-Li Trailer". Comicbook. 13 May 2021. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  14. ↑ "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid Season 4 Adds Rita Repulsa and More". Comicbook. 15 September 2021. Retrieved 15 September 2021.
  15. 1 2 "'Power Rangers: Battle For The Grid Shattered Grid Story Mode Trailer Revealed; Update Live Today". comicbook.com. April 30, 2019. Retrieved May 28, 2019.
  16. ↑ "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid Season 4 Launching September 21". News.xbox.com. 20 September 2021.
  17. ↑ "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid Adding Rita Repulsa". 10 December 2021.
  18. ↑ Makedonski, Brett (February 5, 2020). "Power Rangers morphs to add cross-play between all four platforms". destructoid. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
  19. ↑ Jordan Oloman (29 May 2020). "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid to Become the First Fighting Game With Cross-Play Across 5 Platforms". Ign.com. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  20. ↑ Romano, Sal (September 24, 2019). "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid Season Pass 2 trailer". Gematsu. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
  21. ↑ Power Rangers: Battle For The Grid [@Battle4TheGrid] (May 25, 2020). "Today we announced our upcoming Season 3 pass on @ComboBreaker's Retrospective stream! ⚡Jungle Fury Wolf Ranger ⚡Red Samurai Ranger ⚡and a soon to be revealed character! More info can be found at http://battleforthegrid.com Watch the trailer here: https://youtu.be/Ffw60sdNCIU" (Tweet). Retrieved May 25, 2020– via Twitter.
  22. ↑ "Street Fighter Crossover Coming to Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid". Ign.com. 13 April 2021.
  23. 1 2 "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid for Switch Reviews". Metacritic . Red Ventures . Retrieved October 10, 2021.
  24. 1 2 "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid for Xbox One Reviews". Metacritic . Red Ventures . Retrieved March 28, 2020.
  25. 1 2 "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic . Red Ventures . Retrieved March 28, 2020.
  26. ↑ Moyse, Chris (14 April 2019). "Review: Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid". Destructoid . Retrieved 23 October 2021.
  27. 1 2 Saltzman, Mitchell (March 28, 2019). "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid Review". IGN . Retrieved April 2, 2019.
  28. ↑ Reseigh-Lincoln, Dom (March 27, 2019). "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid Review". Nintendo Life . Retrieved April 2, 2019.
  29. ↑ Fahey, Mike (March 28, 2019). "The New Power Rangers Fighting Game Could Use A Lot More Power Rangers". Kotaku . Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  30. ↑ Raymond, Nicholas (March 31, 2019). "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid Review - It's Missing Too Much". Screen Rant . Retrieved April 3, 2019.
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