Psychic Force
- See also: psychic force in psychology.
Psychic Force | |
---|---|
Developer(s) | Taito Corporation, Acclaim |
Publisher(s) | Taito Corporation, Acclaim |
Platform(s) | Arcade, PlayStation, Dreamcast |
Release | 10/04/96 (Japan) 10/03/96 (North America) 07/1997 (Europe) |
Genre(s) | Action, Fighting |
Mode(s) | One-On-One; Up to 2 players simultaneously |
Psychic Force is a PlayStation game created by Taito and released by Acclaim in 1996. The game was a 3D fighter which combined the normal features of an arcade fighting game with psychic powers. There were eight characters available to choose from in the game, all deemed as 'psychic masters'. The game was released without much hype and failed to sell many copies. In 1999 a sequel was released titled Psychic Force 2012 for the Sega Dreamcast. This game was later ported to the PlayStation as Psychic Force 2, featuring downgraded graphics but multiple extra modes and the three characters from Psychic Force that didn't make the cut into the sequel. There was also a Puzzle Bobble style puzzle game released that was known as Psychic Force Puzzle Taisen, this game was never released outside of Japan however. In 2006 in Japan, all three games were released together as an anniversary pack for the PlayStation 2.
Story
The plot of Psychic Force (presumably) takes place on an earth several years in the future, where select individuals are blessed with the power of psychic abilities. All people imbued with this power also use a specific element (such as Fire, ice or earth).
Warring over the fate of the earth is a corporations named "NOAH" that has its own plans. However, other factions opposed to its regime and a mysterious faction known as Gates fight for their own intentions. Each fighter available to the player pursues their own destiny and may or may not be aligned with a faction.
Characters
James Burn Griffin
- Gender: Male
- DoB: July 26, 1988
- Age: 18
- Blood Type: B
- Country of Origin: USA New York
- Occupation: High School Student
- Hobbies: Football
- Psy Ability: Fire
- CV: Seki Tomokazu
- Fighting Style: Hard Based Attacks
- Music: Burning storm
- Friends: Wendy, Emilio, Keith
Emilio Michaelov Jamai
- Sex: Male
- DoB: February 21, 1992
- Age: 14
- Blood Type: A
- Country of Origin: Russia Moskou
- Occupation: N/A
- Hobbies: None
- Psy Ability: Light
- CV: Takayama Minami
- Fighting Style: Sambo
- Music: Fallen Angel
- Friends: Burn, Wendy
Wendy Ryan
- Sex: Female
- DoB: January 15, 1991
- Age: 15
- Blood Type: A
- Country of Origin: Australia Sydney
- Occupation: High school student
- Hobbies: Collecting accessories
- Psy Power: Wind
- CV: Hikami Kyoko
- Fighting Style: Wind - girl martial arts
- Music: Birdie Birdie!
- Friends: Burn, Emilio
Sonia (Chris Ryan)
- Sex: Female
- DoB: 2010 (specific date unknown)
- Age: 17 (?)
- Blood Type: Unknown
- Country of Origin: None
- Occupation: Artificial lifeform
- Hobbies: Playing cards
- Psy Ability: Electricity
- CV: Shiraishi Ayako
- Fighting Style: Electricity attacks
- Music: Carry away
- Friends: Wendy, Keith
Brad Kilsten Naschwanstein
- Sex: Male
- DoB: April 9, 1980
- Age: 24
- Blood Type: AB
- Country of Origin: Germany Hamburg
- Occupation: Unknown
- Hobbies: Flowers
- Psy Ability: Gravity
- CV: Nakao Ryuusei
- Fighting Style: Power Cutting Attacks
- Music: Lunatic Crow
- Friends: Keith
Richard Wong Chan
- Gender: Male
- DoB: 5 November, 1962
- Age: 34
- Blood Type: B
- Country of Origin: Hong Kong Kowloon
- Occupation: President of a long trading company
- Hobbies: Collecting Nunchaku's
- Psy Ability: Time
- CV: Madono Mitsuaki
- Fighting Style: Time Kung fu
- Music: Asian Labyrinth
- Friends: Unknown
Rokudo Genma Takashima
- Sex: Male
- DoB: January 1, 1952
- Age: 53
- Blood Type: B
- Country of Origin: Japan Hiroshima
- Occupation: Priest (Genma is a demon hunter on the side)
- Hobbies: Watching sumo
- Psy Ability: None (magic)
- Fighting style: Sumo Wrestling
- Music: Demon's Tune
- Friends: Unknown
George Gates Oltman
- Gender: Male
- DoB: August 13, 1969
- Age: 37
- Blood Type: O
- Country of Origin: USA New York
- Occupation: Soldier
- Hobbies: The outdoors
- Psy Ability: None
- Fighting Style: None
- Music: Revenger
- Friends: Unknown
Keith Evans
- Gender: Male
- DoB: February 14, 1993
- Age: 18
- Blood Type: A
- Country of Origin: unknown
- Occupation: unknown
- Hobbies: Reading
- Psy Ability: Ice
- CV: Tsukui Kyousei
- Fighting style: Ice Fighting
- Music: Freezing Point
- Friends: Sonia, Burn
Gameplay
The gameplay in Psychic Force revolves around the fighting game genre, with the addition of psychic powers and a battleground of cubic space defined by a magical force field. Using the psychic powers of levitation, characters fly about in a two-dimensional plane, despite the possibility of a Z-axis.
The characters are controlled with an eight directional joystick and three buttons which dictate a blocking function, a light attack, and a heavy attack (On the ported PlayStation version these commands were gived to the sqaure, trangle and circle buttons). By combining these different commands, the player can make combo attacks, throws, and special attacks which can break the enemy's defenses.
Levels
- Burn: A construction site area.
- Emilio: The burning ruins of the orphanage where Emilio was living, destroyed by his poorly controlled powers.
- Wendy: Above a mountainous region of Australia alongside Wendy's airship.
- Brad: Within a city located in Germany. A tower and ominous moon are visible. (This is the stage seen in the introduction.)
- Genma: Japan, a port area.
- Gates: In the driving rain above New York.
- Sonia: Within the crater of an active volcano.
- Keith: The abandoned nuclear silo which has been converted to serve as the base of operations for NOA.
- Wong: The city of Hong Kong, illuminated by the ever present glow of the neon streets below.
OVA
In 1998, a two-episode anime OVA was released.
The first episode describes Keith's escape from the laboratory where he was being experimented on. Burn almost hits him with his motorcycle, and takes a frightened Keith home. Three men in dark suits come looking for Keith, who uses his psychic abilities to injure two of them, and chase the third out. When Burn tries to help Keith escape, they are ambushed and, despite Keith's best efforts, he is dragged away, leaving Burn lying on the ground, which awakens his powers.
The second episode features Keith and Burn several years later, where Keith has been taken under the wing of Wong, head of NOA. Keith declares his vision of peace to the world, and begins to round up lost psychics. Burn's dormant psychic abilities are detected by Gates, who tries to attack Burn, but Burn is saved by Keith. While Burn is in NOA HQ with Keith, he berates him for trying to start a war between humans and psychics, then leaves with Wendy and Emilio. He eventually turns back to confront Keith, but their fight is interrupted by Wong triggering the self-destruct for the NOA HQ. Keith traps Burn in a cocoon of ice, leaving him as the only survivor.