Battle Clash
Developer(s)Intelligent Systems[1]
Nintendo R&D1
Publisher(s)Nintendo
Director(s)Makoto Kano
Masao Yamamoto
Producer(s)Gunpei Yokoi
Programmer(s)Kouichi Abe
Osamu Yamauchi
Toru Narihiro
Toshihiro Nishii
Artist(s)Naotaka Onishi
Toshitaka Muramatsu
Composer(s)Yuka Tsujiyoko
Platform(s)Super Nintendo Entertainment System
Release
  • NA: October 1992
  • EU: March 18, 1993
  • JP: June 21, 1993
Genre(s)Light-gun shooter
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Battle Clash, known in Japan as Space Bazooka[lower-alpha 1], is a light gun shooter video game developed by Intelligent Systems and Nintendo R&D1, and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1992.[2] The game supports the Super Scope.[3] It was followed by Metal Combat: Falcon's Revenge the following year.

Gameplay

One of the stages, showing a boss battle

In the game, the player is the gunner of the mecha ST Falcon and also Mike's partner, who fights against a group of other STs in one-on-one battles. To attack, the player must shoot using the Super Scope. It is possible to shoot rapid shots by holding down the fire button, as well as energy bolts (charged shots). Energy bolts can be shot when an energy bar fills up (this happens when the player does not fire). When the energy bar has filled up, the energy bolt can be fired, though it will consume the energy bar. It is also important to defend against enemy attacks by shooting their fire. Some attacks can only be deflected by firing energy bolts.

The objective of the game is to defeat the rival ST to clear the stage. The damage inflicted on the enemy depends on the spot where the ST has been shot (all STs have some kind of weak point) and how powerful the shot is. The player wins if the rival ST's energy is depleted first. If the enemy depletes the player's energy or if the stage is played for ten minutes, then the game is over, but it is possible to continue the game indefinitely.

Synopsis

In a distant future, Earth lives in chaos and the only order that rules reside in is the "Battle Game", where the winner takes control over the world. All battles are fought with mechs called "Standing Tanks" (ST). A merciless fighter called Anubis eventually becomes the champion of the Battle Game.

Mike Anderson, whose father was one of the many victims of Anubis, refuses to succumb, and trains himself in everything ST-related to stop the current chaos and avenge his father's death. To accomplish this, he must first defeat the Battle Chiefs (Anubis' subordinates).

Development and release

The Japanese version, Space Bazooka, was released a year later after its initial release in North America. The Japanese version features slightly different endings from the western version of the game. If the player completes the game on the Normal difficulty setting, the background during the closing credits will be decorated with an image of the main character Mike Anderson standing besides the Falcon (in contrast to the blank blue background used in the western version). If the player completes the game on the Hard difficulty setting, Mike will be joined by Tasha, Antonov, and Eddie (the characters who assist Mike and the player during the final battle) as well.

Reception

Battle Clash received average reception from critics and retrospective commentators.[5][18][19][20] It received a 20.8 out of 30 score in a public poll taken by Family Computer Magazine.[21] Nintendo Power's three reviewers found the game fun, highlighting the enemy mechs and sound effects, but noted its lack of depth.[10] Super Pro's Mark Wynne considered it a decent attempt at a Super Scope game. He felt that the "tongue-in-cheek" plot translated well into the large enemy sprites, but said its sound department was weak.[17] Chris Buxton of Total! commented favorably on the game's visuals, but criticized its forgettable soundtrack, very simple gameplay, and low difficulty.[13] Electronic Games' Marc Camron praised the game for its graphical presentation, smooth gameplay, lack of slowdown, and variety of modes, but found the audio to be unremarkable and faulted its easy difficulty.[14]

GameFan's five reviewers commended its colorful graphics, sound, and screen-filling bosses, but criticized the gameplay for lack of diversity and felt that the game did not take advantage of the Super Scope.[6] Joypad's Nini Nourdine gave the game favorable remarks for its immersive sense of action, fast parallax scrolling, and music, but saw the lack of originality as a shortcoming.[8] Joystick's expressed his disappointment with the game, finding it to be boring and uninteresting.[9] Power Play's Michael Hengst pointed out the game's lack of variety, writing that "In the long run, the primitive shooting of Battle Clash is certainly no guarantee of long-lasting motivation".[15] Super Play's Jonathan Davies found the game more exciting compared to previous Super Scope titles, but ultimately felt it was very limited and repetitive.[12]

GamesMaster's Andy Lowe gave positive remarks to the audiovisual presentation, but faulted its limited playability, dialogues, and low difficulty.[7] Player One's Olivier Scamps called it a very playable title, praising its varied bosses and action, but pointed out its easy difficulty.[11] Sami Souibgui and Marc Lacombe of Consoles + celebrated the game's overall production values but criticized its repetitive action.[4] Super Gamer labelled it as a nice-looking but shallow shooter game.[16] Hardcore Gaming 101's David DeRienzo highlighted the game's enemy sprites for their animations and high level of detail, while also praising the special effects and catchy music.[18] Destructoid's Zoey Handley regarded Battle Clash as one of the few games worth playing for the Super Scope.[19]

Notes

  1. ↑ Japanese: スペースバズーカ, Hepburn: Supeisu Bazūka
  2. ↑ GameFan's review was by four critics with different ratings: 60%, 83%, 65%, and 63%.[6]
  3. ↑ Nintendo Power provided scores of 3.9 of graphics and sound, 3.9 for play control, 3.6 for challenge, and 3.7 for theme and fun.[10]

References

  1. ↑ "Engaged Game Software". Intelligent Systems. 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-11-30. Retrieved 2024-01-14.
    "作品紹介 - ゲーム" (in Japanese). Intelligent Systems. 2024. Archived from the original on 2024-01-14. Retrieved 2024-01-14.
  2. ↑ "Super NES Games" (PDF). Nintendo. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-09-20. Retrieved 2024-01-14.
  3. ↑ "Buyers Beware". GamePro. No. 98. IDG. November 1996. p. 24.
  4. 1 2 Souibgui, Sami; Lacombe, Marc (April 1993). "Super Nintendo Review: Battle Clash". Consoles + (in French). No. 19. EM-Images. pp. 106–107.
  5. 1 2 "NEW GAMES CROSS REVIEW: スペースバズーカ". Famitsu (in Japanese). No. 240. ASCII Corporation. July 23, 1993. p. 37. (Transcription by Famitsu.com).
  6. 1 2 Halverson, Dave; Brody; Stratton, Tom; Cockburn, Andrew; Yoshi (January 1993). "Viewpoint: Battle Clash; Planet SNES - Super NES Review: Battle Clash". GameFan. Vol. 1, no. 3. DieHard Gamers Club. pp. 12, 41.
  7. 1 2 Lowe, Andy (February 1993). "Reviews: Battle Clash". GamesMaster. No. 2. Future Publishing. p. 88. Archived from the original on 2024-01-15. Retrieved 2024-01-15.
  8. 1 2 Nourdine, Nini (January 1993). "Battle Clash: En 1993, La Chasse Aux Robots Est Ouverte!". Joypad (in French). No. 16. Challenge SARL. p. 137.
  9. 1 2 Demoly, Jean-Marc (January 1993). "Consoles News: Battle Clash". Joystick (in French). No. 34. Sipress. p. 230.
  10. 1 2 Sinfield, George; Noel, Rob; Jade (November 1992). "Now Playing: Battle Clash". Nintendo Power. Vol. 42. Nintendo of America. pp. 105, 107.
  11. 1 2 Scamps, Olivier (March 1993). "Tests de Jeux: Battle Clash". Player One (in French). No. 29. Média Système Édition. pp. 86–87.
  12. 1 2 Davies, Jonathan (January 1993). "Import Review: Battleclash". Super Play. No. 3. Future Publishing. pp. 54–55.
  13. 1 2 Buxton, Chris (December 1992). "SNES Round-Up: Battle Clash". Total!. No. 12. Future Publishing. p. 68.
  14. 1 2 Camron, Marc (January 1993). "Video Game Gallery: Battle Clash". Electronic Games. Vol. 1, no. 4. Decker Publications. p. 69.
  15. 1 2 Hengst, Michael (January 1993). "Videospiele / Tests: Feuer Frei — Battle Clash". Power Play (in German). No. 58. Markt & Technik. p. 152.
  16. 1 2 "A-Z of Games - Nintendo Games Index: Super NES". Super Gamer. No. 1. Paragon Publishing. April 1994. pp. 122–124.
  17. 1 2 Wynne, Mark (December 1992). "Review (Official): Battleclash". Super Pro. No. 2. Paragon Publishing. p. 97.
  18. 1 2 DeRienzo, David (August 7, 2007). "Battle Clash / Metal Combat". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on 2017-10-05. Retrieved 2024-01-15.
  19. 1 2 Handley, Zoey (February 24, 2023). "Battle Clash on SNES is good for all your robot dismembering needs". Destructoid. Gamurs Group. Archived from the original on 2023-02-24. Retrieved 2024-01-15.
  20. ↑ "UK Review: Battle Clash". Super Play Gold (The Complete 1993 Super Nintendo Guide). No. Summer Special. Future Publishing. 1993. p. 26.
  21. ↑ 超絶 大技林 '98年春版: スーパーファミコン - スペースバズーカ (Special). PlayStation Magazine (in Japanese). Vol. 42. Tokuma Shoten Intermedia. April 15, 1998. p. 248. ASIN B00J16900U.
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