(LAST UPDATE: 3/11/2010)
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Developer(s): Tamsoft
Publisher(s): SCEA
Platform(s): Playstation, Sega Saturn, DOS, Game Boy
Release Date(s): 1994 (
), 1995 (
)
Characters: Eiji,
Kayin, Mondo,
Sofia, Rungo,
Fo, Duke
B. Rambert, Ellis, Gaia,
Sho, Cupido
(Saturn version exclusive), Uranus (Game Boy version exclusive)
Related Games:
Battle
Arena Toshinden 2, Battle Arena
Toshinden 3, Battle Arena Toshinden
4
Story: The Toushindaibukai,
the ultimate tournament held once a year by the mysterious organization
Himitsu Kessha. It is here that the greatest fighters in the world gather
year after year to pit their abilities against one another. This tournament
is no mere competition. To the winner goes unimaginable rewards, and to
the losers...death. It is here that these fighters will decide their own
futures, in the Battle Arena Toshinden.
Review: Battle Arena Toshinden was the first ever 3D weapon based fighting game, and also one of the first fighting games to incorporate the "side-step" which is a key element in today's 3D fighting games. It was an impressive console fighting game at the time, and the premier fighting game for the PS1. Toshinden wasn't a "bad" fighting game for back then, considering the alternatives... However, the visuals really lacked polish when compared to arcade fighting games, which was probably the games biggest flaw. Simply put, the character models were really blocky and disproportional. The bland backgrounds, which are filled with flat and laughable textures, didn't help the game's appearance either.
Toshinden's eight initial characters each have their own unique set of moves and a desperation attack that can only be used when the player has low energy. Most character's special and super moves were pretty original and looked rather cool for the most part. The super moves in particular were pretty flashy, and even had the all important "ouch factor" for back then. Characters could run, jump, and even move in 3D AKA sidestep using the L/R shoulder buttons, allowing them to dodge projectile attacks... Ring outs can also occur as characters can fall off the edges of each stage (and usually ended up looking pretty hilarious). The controls overall weren't bad, but still a bit clunky when compared to some of the other 3D fighting games of the time, and especially those that came out shortly after 1995.
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Character
designs were a mixed bag in Toshinden, a few of them are cool (probably the
coolest being the hero & rival, and of course the secret character, Sho).
Other characters are a bit generic and uninspiring. The blocky character models
really hurt the character designs overall, but the characters really spoke more
with their moves than how they looked. The intro of this game is quite lame, since
it's just text; therefore, the presentation wasn't really all there... The
artwork for the game was also lackluster.
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6.5 / 10 |
Closing Comment:
Toshinden was a solid launch game for the first Sony Playstation. If you gave
the game a chance and didn't judge it by the crappy box art or blocky graphics,
it was actually pretty fun for a while. The graphics and character designs were
indeed the low points of the game, but at least the series had some room to
grow. ~F.Yagami,
Webmaster
of TFG