Fighting Vipers

From Sega Retro

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Fighting Vipers Title.png

Fighting Vipers
System(s): Sega Model 2B CRX, Sega Saturn
Publisher: Sega
Developer:
Genre: Fighting

















Release Date RRP Code

Fighting Vipers (ファイティングバイパーズ) is a 3D fighting game developed by Sega AM2 for the Sega Model 2B CRX in 1995. It was ported the same year to the Sega Saturn with significantly reduced graphics. A version of the game was released for the PlayStation 2 as part of the Sega Ages series in Sega Ages 2500 Series Vol. 19: Fighting Vipers.

Gameplay

Fighting Vipers features a similar style of gameplay to Sega AM2's more renowned Virtua Fighter series, specifically Virtua Fighter 2, using a simply Guard, Punch and Kick attack buttons with a focus on combo moves (the Saturn version using its three extra buttons for three smaller combos).

The game is set apart with two unique features. Most notably, each of the 9 characters featured in the game sports armor of some kind or another, this armor can be broken off by opponents leaving characters much more vulnerable and able to take much more damage, a human shaped meter in the top corners of the screen monitors the damage to your armor. Secondly walls surround each arena, caging the combatants in, allowing for attacks in conjunction with them (bouncing off etc), if the correct combination is hit at the round's finale, characters can punch their opponent straight through the walls.

When ported, Fighting Vipers offered other modes besides Arcade and Vs. Playback Mode and Training Mode both of which are now used widely in the genre, by games such as Tekken and Soul Calibur. Players could save their matches and play them again in Playback Mode, while Training Mode talked you though the moves of each character one-by-one.

Story

Hyper-adrenal combatants in full-body armour, battling night and day in back-alley rings - only such young gurba warriors have earned the right to be called VIPERS...

Now in Armstone City, the mayor has formally announced a fighting tournament on a grand scale, with the final bout to be held atop the staggering City Tower in the centre of town.

With City Tower as their ultimate goal, eight young VIPERS start down the path to victory, a path which only one will see the end...

Characters

  • Grace: the game's major 'sex symbol' Grace is an attractive 19 year old African-American born in Armstone City whose armor is themed after the protective gear for In-Line Skating, including the skates themselves. Grace is making her living as a fashion model, though she once dreamed of becoming a professional figure skater, though her lover and coach betrayed her, leaving her disillusioned.
  • Bahn: despite only being a 17 year old High School Student from Nishino Machi, Bahn is a powerful and imposing fighter in a long coat and hat, who has come overseas to find and fight his father, whom he has never met and abandoned him and his mother when they were small, he has declared himself 'Gengis Bahn III'.
  • Raxel: the narcissistic lead singer and guitarist for a hair metal band called 'Death Crunch' with KISS-styled armour (pretty much looking like Ace Frehley's outfit) and carrying a red Gibson Flying-V electric guitar, Raxel is the son of an Armstone City councilman, a drop out who left home after a fight with said father, Raxel has simply entered the tournament to heighten his own profile and become further famous.
  • Note: Raxel's name is strikingly similar to Guns N' Roses' frontman Axl Rose. There is no official confirmation however that he is in any way based on him, as he doesn't really look like Rose, but more like ex-Skid Row singer Sebastian Bach or Poison's vocalist Bret Michaels.
  • Tokio: a 16 year old pretty boy rebelling against a strict kabuki actor's household, Tokio is a former leader of a street gang called 'Black Thunder' but left after feeling responsible for another gangmember's death. He has entered the tournament for a challenge and for thrills.
  • Sanman: a mysterious fat oriental-looking man about whom nothing is known, other than his birthday (3rd of March) and an obsession with the number 3, hence the name for which he goes (san in the Japanese for "three"). Sanman drives a large customised scooter.
  • Jane: a butch and muscled 18 year old part-time construction worker, Jane trained her whole life to join the Navy, but did not make it past training. She was discharged after repeatedly losing control of herself during fights and injuring fellow seamen. Jane now wants to test just how tough she is, hence entering the Fighting Vipers tournamet. Due to all these flagrant traits, Jane is widely believed to be lesbian.
  • Candy (Honey in Japan): a petite 16 year old Fashion Student with a pleasant nature, Candy designed her trademark plastic fairy suit herself, and has entered the tournament to promote her original fashion line. Candy became, by far, the most popular of the characters, and remains so, particularly in Japan, with, for instance, people regularly dressing as her (Cosplay) for Video Game conventions.
  • Picky: a 14 year old stereotypical skateboarder Picky's armour is styled after protective gear for skateboarders, he carries his skateboard on his back, and hits opponents with it. Picky began skateboarding to impress his first love, but later on he left her for Candy.
  • Mahler: the ninth character, not selectable, and unlockable in the Sega Saturn port, Mahler is a 20 year old mystery with a grudge against the Mayor of Armstone City [who has organised the tournament] wearing poisonous armour resembling a snake. He isn't officially registered as a member of the tournament. B.M. is boss of the game and is a powered up version of Mahler.

Pepsiman

File:Pepsiman.jpg
Pepsiman

Pepsiman is the mascot for Pepsi and Pepsi related products in Japan. He rescues those in need of thirst by delivering Pepsi, and often gets inflicted with pain from unforeseen consequences. He is only available in the Japanese version of the Sega Saturn version. To face him, you start the game in Arcade mode, and allow the CPU to attack you without fighting back. Before your HP reaches 0, the game will issue a "New Challenger" to which the game will return to the character select screen and slowly scroll to Pepsiman's position, while playing his theme song. Defeating Pepsiman allows you to play as him through the regular game. A new Option menu item will appear upon unlocking the character that allows you to revert the secret, causing the player to have to unlock him again.

The game also featured the Pepsi logo in the background and on certain characters (Such as Picky's skateboard)

Production Credits

Arcade Version

Director: Hiroshi Kataoka
Game Coordinator: Daichi Katagiri
Programmers: Daichi Katagiri, Susumu Morii
D.S.P. Programmer: Katsunori Itai
Character Designers: Masahiro "T" Sugiyama, Kaznori O
Stage Designers: Yasuko Suzuki, Hiroshi Kataoka
Background Designer: Takako Kawaguchi
Motion Designers: Daichi Katagiri, Susumu Takatsuka, Hiroki Iwasaki
Sound Designers: David Leytze, Kazuhiro Kouchi
Assistant Programmers: Eiji Ikuta, Hiroshi Masui, Norimasa Yoshizawa
Assistant Designer: Manabu Sato
Publicity by: Kanae Tomikawa, Akira Yamanaka
Special Thanks: VirtuaFighter Team, VirtuaCOP2 Team, and All Members of AM R&D #2
Producer: Yu Suzuki
Presented by: Sega Enterprises, Ltd

Saturn Version

~In-game credits~
Director: Hiroshi Kataoka
Chief Programmers: Tetsuya Sugimoto, Hideya Shibazaki
Programmers: Masatoshi Shibata, Arata Hanashima, Masaru Nakamura, Susumu Morii, Shinji Ohshima, Yutaka Ito
Chief Graphic Designer: Yoji Kato
Character Designers: Manabu Sato, Kentarow Nishimura, Kaoru Nagahama
Movie Staff: Masahiro Sugiyama, Shin Kataoka, Wataru Kawashima
Assistant Graphic Designers: Takako Kawaguchi, Kazufumi Ohashi, Kaznori O
Music: David Leytze
Sound Designers: Makito Nomiya, Tetsuya Kawauchi
Jacket Designer: Akira Yamanaka
Publicity by: Fumio Kurokawa, Kanae Tomikawa
Exhibition Player: Motoki Shinohara (Bunbunmaru), Hisashi Obara (Ikebukuro Raxel), Kouichi Hirane (Daikumachi-Dark-Honey)
Guest Voice Actor: Hideki Kuroda (Pepsiman)
Special Thanks: Daichi Katagiri, Arcade "Fighting Vipers" Team, and All Staff of AM R&D #2
Producer: Yu Suzuki
Presented by: Sega Enterprises, Ltd.

~Other credits~

US Staff

Producer: Steve Hutchins
Product Manager: Seth Gerson
Assistant Localization Producer: Osamu Shibamiya
Marketing Manager: Anne Moellering
Production Manager: Eileen Sacman
Art Director: Eric Smith
Art Designers: Scott Allen, Masud Husain
Special Thanks to: Arvin Carlson, Matt Dunbar, Manny Granillo, Mike Needham, John Orantes, Undyne Stafford, Andrew Stein, Mark Subotnick, The SEEDY Crew
Lead Tester: Jeff B. Junio
Assistant Leads: Lorne Asuncion, Rick Greer, Peter Young
Testers: Rey Alferez, Jason Bartholomew, Stephen Bourdet, Michael Dobbins, Essie Hamadani, Len Jung, Cesar Lemus, B. Lee, Dennis Lee, Christopher Lucich, Tony Lynch, Mark McCunney, Abraham Navarro, Sean Potter, Fred Selker, Timothy Spengler, Steve Thompson

Promotional Material

  • Saturn JP flyer

Physical Scans

Model 2 Version

Sega Retro Average 
Publication Score Source
100 №172, p74/75/76/77
Arcade
 100
Based on
1 review
Sega Retro Average 
Publication Version Score
Arcade
 N/A
Based on
0 reviews

Fighting Vipers

Model 2, US
Model 2, JP

Saturn Version

Sega Retro Average 
Publication Score Source
100 №180, p52/53/54/55
80 №38, p60/61
80 №57, p68/69
87
95 №49, p58/59
82 №69, p104/105
84 №85, p42/43/44/45
94 №12, p66/67
Sega Saturn
 88
Based on
8 reviews
Sega Retro Average 
Publication Version Score
576 KByte (HU)
89
[1]
CD Consoles (FR) PAL
100
[2]
Computer & Video Games (UK)
100
[3]
Edge (UK) NTSC-J
80
[4]
Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) NTSC-U
66
[5]
Famitsu (JP) NTSC-J
93
[6]
Freak (IL)
94
[7]
Fun Generation (DE) NTSC-J
90
[8]
Gambler (PL)
93
[9]
GameFan (US) NTSC-U
95
[10]
GamePro (US) NTSC-U
85
[11]
Game Informer (US) NTSC-U
75
[12]
Gry Komputerowe (PL)
95
[13]
Hobby Consolas (ES)
90
[14]
Intelligent Gamer (US) NTSC-U
91
[15]
Joypad (FR) NTSC-J
80
[16]
Joypad (FR)
91
[17]
MAN!AC (DE) PAL
87
[18]
Mega Force (FR) PAL
90
[19]
Mega Fun (DE) PAL
88
[20]
Mean Machines Sega (UK) PAL
95
[21]
Next Generation (US)
100
[22]
Player One (FR)
82
[23]
Saturn Fan (JP) NTSC-J
81
[24]
Saturn Fan (JP) NTSC-J
81
[25]
Saturn+ (UK) PAL
90
[26]
Secret Service (PL)
90
[27]
Sega Power (UK) PAL
84
[28]
Świat Gier Komputerowych (PL)
100
[29]
Sega Saturn Magazine (UK) PAL
94
[30]
Sega Saturn Magazine (JP) NTSC-J
90
[31]
Sega Saturn Magazine (JP) NTSC-J
88
[32]
Sonic the Comic (UK) PAL
95
[33]
Strana Igr (RU)
100
[34]
Total Saturn (UK) PAL
93
[35]
Total Saturn (UK) PAL
93
[36]
Ultra Game Players (US) NTSC-U
94
[37]
Video Games (DE) NTSC-J
82
[38]
Sega Saturn
 90
Based on
38 reviews

Fighting Vipers

Saturn, US
FightingVipers Saturn US Box Back.jpgFightingvipers sat us frontcover.jpg
Cover
FightingVipers Saturn US Disc.jpg
Disc
Fightingvipers sat us manual.pdf
Manual
Saturn, EU
Fightingvipers sat eu cover.jpg
Cover
Fightingvipers sat eu disc.jpg
Disc
Saturn, JP
Fightingvipers sat jp backcover.jpgFightingvipers sat jp frontcover.jpg
Cover
Saturn, BR
FightingVipers Saturn BR Box Front.jpg
Cover
Saturn, KR
FightingVipers Saturn KR Box Back.jpgNospine-small.pngFightingVipers Saturn KR Box Front.jpg
Cover



Games in the Fighting Vipers Series
Arcade
 Fighting Vipers (1995) | Fighting Vipers 2 (1998)
Sega Saturn
 Fighting Vipers (1996) | Fighters Megamix (1996)
Sega Dreamcast
 Fighting Vipers 2 (2001)
Sony PlayStation 2
 Sega Ages 2500 Series Vol. 19: Fighting Vipers (2005)
Xbox 360
Sony PlayStation 3
 Fighting Vipers (2012)
Fighting Vipers related media
Music
 Fighting Vipers Original Soundtrack (1996) | Fighting Vipers Sega Saturn Original Soundtrack (1996) | Fighting Vipers 2 The Sound Album (1998)
Book
 Fighting Vipers Technical Manual (1996) | Fighting Vipers: Crimson Angel (1996) | Fighting Vipers Sega Saturn Manual 2: Biting the Vipers (1996) | Fighting Vipers: My Sweet Honey (1996) | (1997) Fighting Vipers Perfect Guide (1997) | Fighters Mega Books Mix Ultimate Guide (1997) | Fighting Vipers 2 Official Guide (1998)
Film
 Sega Official Video Library Vol. 1: Fighting Vipers (199x)
  1. ↑ 576 KByte, "December 1996" (HU; 1996-xx-xx), page 11
  2. ↑ CD Consoles, "Novembre 1996" (FR; 1996-xx-xx), page 102
  3. ↑ Computer & Video Games, "November 1996" (UK; 1996-10-09), page 52
  4. ↑ Edge, "November 1996" (UK; 1996-09-20), page 60
  5. ↑ Electronic Gaming Monthly, "November 1996" (US; 1996-xx-xx), page 76
  6. ↑ Famitsu, "1996-09-06" (JP; 1996-08-23), page 1
  7. ↑ Freak, "10/96" (IL; 1996-xx-xx), page 1
  8. ↑ Fun Generation, "11/96" (DE; 1996-10-09), page 76
  9. ↑ Gambler, "2/1997" (PL; 1997-xx-xx), page 1
  10. ↑ GameFan, "Volume 4, Issue 11: November 1996" (US; 1996-xx-xx), page 20
  11. ↑ GamePro, "December 1996" (US; 1996-xx-xx), page 142
  12. ↑ Game Informer, "November 1996" (US; 1996-1x-xx), page 46
  13. ↑ Gry Komputerowe, "1-2/1997" (PL; 1997-xx-xx), page 1
  14. ↑ Hobby Consolas, "Diciembre 1996" (ES; 199x-xx-xx), page 60
  15. ↑ Intelligent Gamer, "November 1996" (US; 1996-1x-xx), page 98
  16. ↑ Joypad, "Octobre 1996" (FR; 1996-xx-xx), page 68
  17. ↑ Joypad, "Novembre 1996" (FR; 1996-1x-xx), page 96
  18. ↑ MAN!AC, "11/96" (DE; 1996-10-09), page 78
  19. ↑ Mega Force, "Novembre/Décembre 1996" (FR; 1996-1x-xx), page 72
  20. ↑ Mega Fun, "10/96" (DE; 1996-09-18), page 40
  21. ↑ Mean Machines Sega, "November 1996" (UK; 1996-10-04), page 58
  22. ↑ Next Generation, "December 1996" (US; 1996-11-19), page 266
  23. ↑ Player One, "Novembre 1996" (FR; 1996-xx-xx), page 104
  24. ↑ Saturn Fan, "1996 No. 18" (JP; 1996-08-23), page 189
  25. ↑ Saturn Fan, "1996 No. 21" (JP; 1996-10-04), page 62
  26. ↑ Saturn+, "Issue 4" (UK; 1996-10-24), page 12
  27. ↑ Secret Service, "Styczeń 1997" (PL; 1997-01-01), page 18
  28. ↑ Sega Power, "November 1996" (UK; 1996-09-26), page 42
  29. ↑ Świat Gier Komputerowych, "1/1997" (PL; 1997-xx-xx), page 1
  30. ↑ Sega Saturn Magazine, "October 1996" (UK; 1996-09-18), page 66
  31. ↑ Sega Saturn Magazine, "1996-15 (1996-09-13)" (JP; 1996-08-23), page 240
  32. ↑ Sega Saturn Magazine, "Readers rating final data" (JP; 2000-03), page 11
  33. ↑ Sonic the Comic, "6 January 1997" (UK; 1996-12-24), page 10
  34. ↑ Strana Igr, "Iyul 1997 2/2" (RU; 1997-xx-xx), page 88
  35. ↑ Total Saturn, "Volume One Issue Three" (UK; 1996-11-29), page 53
  36. ↑ Total Saturn, "Volume One Issue Four" (UK; 1996-12-29), page 27
  37. ↑ Ultra Game Players, "December 1996" (US; 1996-11-05), page 96
  38. ↑ Video Games, "10/96" (DE; 1996-09-25), page 88
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