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Players start off with a single power stone in their possession, and successfully landing an attack on an enemy will knock it out of them. Where the fight takes place can have a profound effect on the flow of the action, since arenas can vary quite a bit in size and shape, and each usually comes with a few specific environmental hazards.īut it's the actual power stones that make the game really interesting. Weapons and power-ups will regularly materialize in the arena, like giant hammers, Gatling guns, bazookas, Molotov cocktails, swords, baseball bats, and more. Everyone has the same basic abilities, including a few simple melee attacks, some grappling abilities, and the ability to pick up and throw environmental items. The inspiration for other fighters, like the hulking Gunrock or the creepy, mummified Jack, is less apparent, but the action quickly becomes so bizarre that it hardly matters.Īt its core, Power Stone is a simple player-versus-player brawler-two players enter a room and beat the stuffing out of each other until only one's left standing. There's Falcon, the dashing English biplane pilot Wang Tang, the kung fu disciple Ryoma, the top-knotted samurai Rouge, the Arabian princess and Galuda, the Native American. Many of the characters are ostensibly inspired by an eclectic variety of turn-of-the-century archetypes. The game's arcade roots show in both the lightning-quick gameplay and the color-soaked visual style, and its look is pretty unique, applying an anime art style to some unusual sources. Power Stone Collection includes both games pretty much how they appeared on the Dreamcast. It's got a unique and vibrant look, but technically the game shows its age a bit. The action has some teeth when played against live opponents, but the weakness of the single-player game is quite pronounced. Power Stone Collection faithfully resurrects both of these underappreciated brawlers on the PSP. Though it spawned a much-improved sequel, the franchise never made it off Sega's doomed console, until now. While not explicitly intended for use with Power Stone, it got the job done.Originally released in 1999 as an arcade game running on Sega's modular, then-standard-bearing Naomi hardware, Power Stone found itself a good home on the Sega Dreamcast, where it delivered an accessible style of explosive fighting action. So good, I played it with the Sega Get Bass Fishing Controller. This may be enough for it to excel in some peoples' eyes. It does, however, have multiplayer for four. There's a sequel, but in my view it over-eggs the pudding with way too many gimmicks and far lesser stage design. There's not an enormous amount to it, but everything that's there is in direct service to the superb gameplay. It has delightful minigames downloadable to the Dreamcast's truly insane Visual Memory Unit. There are plenty of unlockables - secret characters, new weapons, etc. Playing the computer is fun, but nothing compared to the experience of sitting beside your friend, yelling at them to get away from the blue stone, panicking when they transform. And, of course, multiplayer is where it's at. The stages are tight and iconic, with plentiful gimmicks and items to interact with while being so compact that you're never truly safe from Player 2. Every character is totally distinct and they're all fun to control. The cast of characters is small, but memorable. Stages are small, but detailed and evocative. It's absolute madness and it's wonderful. Roll over your opponent in the form of a giant golem. Turn into a whirling dervish of blades and bandages. Get three, go super, hit the shoulder buttons to trap your enemy in a private dance before rhythmically kicking seven shades out of them.
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Run around the condensed 3D environments throwing furniture at your opponent and grabbing the titular stones, hoping you don't get them knocked out of you by an errant grenade or plume of fire. Brash sounds and colours, flamboyant characters with over-the-top moves, it's the Dreamcast's "arcade at home" ethos writ large.Įssentially knockabout, I'm sure that Power Stone has some hidden depths, but that's not how I remember it. See more of my work at Ĭapcom's flawless Power Stone is a vivid, striking fever dream.