NCS Product Synopsis
Update: October 11, 2007
«©NCSX» Yuki Enterprises (Examu) released Arcana Heart in Japanese arcades towards the very end of 2006 and found a ready and willing audience amongst the gaming cognoscenti. Firstly, it's a capable fighting game with a bevy of moves, combos, aerial maneuvering, and move cancels out the wazoo. Secondly, the cast of characters is entirely female. Make that attractive females who can choose their elemental powers by way of ten tarot cards which depict a beast such as Bhanri or a deity-like lassie like Partinias.
The main character is a redhead named Heart Aino and she's joined by 11 other fighters such as the blue-haired Saki Tsuzura, Kamui Tokinomiya, Maori Kasuga, Mei-Fang, Konoha, and more. When fighting, the bouts generally take place on the ground but aerial attacks can send the two girls way up into the air as the playfield lofts higher to take in the action.
The PS2 version of Arcana Heart includes the characters from the original arcade version of the game along with the "Arcana Heart Full" upgraded characters whom are more balanced against each other. It's all about equality these days. Similar to what Capcom did with the DC versions of Vampire Saviour and Super Street Fighter IIX for Matching Service, players may use characters from the original version of Arcana Heart to fight characters from the upgraded version. A Story Mode, Versus Mode, and a Gallery Mode round out the modes in the game.
Japanese Import Game Alert
Arcana Heart will only play on Japanese or Asian Playstation 2 and Playstation 3 consoles. It is not compatible with USA or European Playstation 2 and Playstation 3 consoles.
Jan Code: 4582210540096
View the back cover and screenshots on the main NCSX website.
NCS Game Notes
» Intro - Heart Aino appears followed by the rest of the cast in sequential shots who stand full-bodied in front of the camera. In the next scene, Arcana runs with the blue-haired Saki Tsuzura hand-in-hand followed by more character portraits along with their respective (recommended?) tarot cards. The intro was designed exclusively for the PS2 game and it serves to introduce gamers to the banshees and harpies featured in the game.
» The title screen features the ARCANA HEART text in front of two rotating mechanisms. Press START and the following selections appear:
STORY / Select a fighter and play through her unique story as she fights her way through the ranks. Voice acting accompanies the written dialogue.
ARCADE / Play the arcade mode with either original Arcana Heart characters or Arcana Heart Full! characters who are more balanced.
VERSUS / Fight against the CPU or a human player - you'll get to choose the opponent and her Arcana if fighting against the CPU.
TRAINING / Choose one of twelve gals and practice moves and combos against a dummy opponent that can be modified to be no dummy.
GALLERY / View character graphics, watch opening movies, listen to music and voices, and check out a Special section which requires unlocking.
OPTION / Set difficulty, match time, sound volumes, save/load data.
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The STORY MODE for each of the 12 characters starts off with visual novel-esque snippets of text and static images. The dialogue is fully voiced and a narrator reads the text that spews out across the bottom of the screen. After a bout of reading, players get to fight an opponent. For example, Heart's first opponent in Story Mode is Kamui. Both versions of characters are available in this mode which are selectable at the outset of the game.
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The ARCADE MODE is the original coin-op version but the PS2 game allows players to select the original or Full! versions of each character in the fighter selection screen.
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The TRAINING MODE keeps track of the damage impacted on the dummy opponent and tallies up the total damage in real time. The default setting for the dummy opponent is to simply STAND and take attacks without guarding or fighting back but the CPU can be toggled to continually crouch, jump, or be fully controlled by the CPU with a full repertoire of blocks and offensive attacks at its disposal.
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The GALLERY MODEis set up nicely with the following sub-options for each main category:
GRAPHICS
● Characters - View images of the 12 characters
● Arcanas - Check out the 11 Arcanas in the game along with special moves
● Others - View a collection of 9 Arcana Heart illustrations and splash pages
MOVIE
● Arcade OP - Check out the opening movie from the arcade version.
● Full! OP - Watch the opening movie from the arcade version without the title screen interruption.
● PV - View a demonstration of the game with canned music and information on the CV actresses that provide the voices for each fighter.
● Anime OP - Play the entire introduction cinema from the PS2 version accompanied by the game's theme song.
MUSIC
● Listen to the title song, in-game music, and snippets of tunes for a total of 34 songs in all. We enjoyed the "Poolside Dynamite!" song but we were probably unduly influenced by the title.
VOICE
● An impressive collection of every saying that every girl mutters, exclaims, and barks out in the game. For example, Aino Heart has a total of 218 sayings while Lieselotte Achenback is limited to only 190 vocals. Mildred Avallone who has a deep manly voice can speak even fewer lines with a total of 138 sayings.
SPECIAL
● Requires unlocking before players can access this particular section.
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» Start a STORY MODE or ARCADE MODE game and you'll select a fighter from the 11 girls and then choose an Arcana spirit helper.
» The D-pad or L-Analog thumbstick may be used for control.
» The game keeps track of your hit combos, first attacks, guard cancels, counters, and homing cancels among other moves.
» When face to face close-up, the characters measure roughly half the height of the screen. When they're at opposite sides of the screen, the camera pulls back so that they're about 1/4 of the height of the screen. When an aerial attack is in progress and the gals are at dashing around and/or getting kicked around, the screen scales quickly outwards so that the fighters measure only 1/8 the height of the screen.
» Maori Kasuga generally fights one-on-one in a bout but she's actually a family of four. She calls upon her siblings to launch attacks and special moves on opponents. Once she gets an opponent up in the air, a number of aerial cooperative attacks from her gliding helpers are possible for some thrilling sequences.
» The game features lots of dashing attacks for the girls where they can move quickly and attack with running blows. This is especially the case for Heart Aino who has an attack that can be likened to a dragon punch where she attacks an enemy and sends her higher.
» The camera scrolls in and out effortlessly to take in the action as the gals range near and far away from each other on the battlefield.
» A character's ability to use an Arcana move is dictated by the three bars on the lower part of the screen. The overall power of the Arcana is indicated below those three bars.
» Based solely on the sixth picture in the Graphics/Others section, Aino may have a crush on a bewildered Saki.
» The full fighting cast roster is as follows below:
Mildred Avallone / Boss woman with a man's vocal chords
Fiona Mayfield / Boss maid who wields a blade that's as big as she is which leads her to swing it clumsily. Fiona can also attack with her butt (L + O).
Kira Daidohji / Delightful little moppet who rides on a big drop of water... which can attack with monstrous water-powered punches and kicks.
Mei-Fang / Martial artist with a Chun-Li-like persona who moves with acrobatic twirls and possesses a healthy bouncing bosom.
Lilica Felchnerow / An athletic blonde who rides along on skates and is endowed with powerful leg-kicking action.
Yoriko Yasuzumi / A red-headed witch with an extremely unusual broom-cum-familiar with demonic feline facial features.
Heart Aino / Dashing aerial princess who has an wallop move and a wind-up punch. We generally use her with the Moriomoto Arcana.
Saki Tsuzura / Blue-haired brawler who's hair gets shabby up during the heat of battle. We usually pair Tsuzura with Partinias.
Maori Kasuga / The girl who fights as a family of four with cooperative attacks galore and a nigh unbreakable "shield" barrier.
Kamui Tokinomiya / Super-fast sword swinging maiden with a very long ponytail. Her reach is impressive and we like her boots.
Konoha / Girl with a bushy tail who wears a dual red cape and throws shuriken like the dickens. We love her.
Lieselotte Achenbach / Carries a suitcase from which she dispenses imperfect wooden attack puppets that clatter on the sidewalk.
» The Arcanas in the game are:
Oreichalkos / Metal Arcana which is in the form of a dragon that imbues strength and super meter charging. A sword attack is also possible.
Niptra / The Water Arcana which features orbiting ice chunks which block enemy blows and throws out water based attacks; also slows enemy down.
Lang-gong / The Fire Arcana which gives fighters the power to shoot fireballs galore and also enhances a fighter's offensive attacks.
Tempestas / The mighty Wind Arcana which rouses up local area whirlwinds and gives the lucky partner girl a swirling disc attack.
Dieu mort / Death Arcana apparition which throws out a simmering purple-colored poison attack and imparts teleportation skills.
Partinias / Love Arcana takes the form of an angelic deity and gives fighters the power to shoot purple balls of energy and laser beams that sizzle.
Bhanri / Electric Arcana which dispenses crackling electrical discharges and lightning blasts which strike from above.
Ohtsuchi / One of Ohtsuchi's attacks is a big honking Earth Arcana fist that smashes into an opponent and can breaks guards; also adds armor.
Anutpada / The Time Arcana naturally affects the time and pace of the game and allows for interesting attack possibilities.
Moriomoto / Nature Arcana with interesting seed-throw move which sprouts into a Venus-flytrap-like man-eater when triggered by opponent.
Gier / Dark Arcana creatures shadow (literally) and are at the beck of whomever possesses the power of Gier.
» When an opponent uses Ohtsuchi as her Arcana and throws out an Earth fist, you can crouch down and dash forward to avoid it. The Ohtsuchi Arcana also allows a fighter to drop a rock on top of an opponent but it can be blocked.
» After each match in Arcade Mode, the game counts down your "Life," "Time," "Finish," and "Perfect" scores.
» Famitsu gave Arcana Heart a 26/40. Granted, the game looks like the kind of fighter that can't be taken seriously with its lolicon imagery, overly cheery characters, and pastel colors but we're guessing the Famitsu editors couldn't be bothered to sit down for more than an hour and really explore the game. A single match or three won't reveal much about AH's play mechanics or the Arcana system. To wit, button mashers can win a few matches but they won't beat a skilled player. In order to discover Arcana Heart's depth, its position in the universe, and the inner meaning as to why girls have to fight each other, one must sit down and play for a minimum of 2 hours and check out the characters, experiment with the Arcana forces, and then mix and match them until something special is discovered. Arcana Heart is one of our best selling PS2 games in terms of preorders this year so the market appears to agree with our positive assessment of the game.
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