Fighters Destiny
Encyclopedia
Fighters Destiny, known in Japan
as is a video game developed by Genki
and published by Imagineer
for the Nintendo 64
. It closely models the 3D fighting game standard set by Sega
's Virtua Fighter, but integrates a unique point scoring system. The game's generic characters and unoriginal presentation have been panned by critics, but reviewers praise its point system and consider it to be one of the best fighting games on the Nintendo 64. It was followed by a sequel Fighter Destiny 2.
-based character in a three dimensional
battle arena. The game features typical hand to hand combat
fighting: using a variety of punches, kicks, locks, and throws, players attempt to pummel their opponents into submission. Each character also has a large list of special commands (called "moves") that can be accessed during battle. These different moves range from simply pressing the "B" button to inputting highly complicated button combinations.
In most versus fighting games, the objective is to deplete the opponent's health gauge. Fighters Destiny follows the same concept but also relies on a customizable point scoring system to determine the winner. These points, which are displayed as yellow stars under the character's health gauge, can be earned in a variety of ways. By default, knocking the character off the fighting platform (a "Ring Out") is worth one point, taking down an opponent with a throw nets the player two points, while a typical K.O. is worth three points, as well as taking the opponent down with a counterattack, and executing a "special" is worth four points. Finally, if the adjustable time counter runs out, then the winner is awarded one point by virtue of judge's decision. By default setting, the first fighter to score seven points wins the match.
K.O.'s can be achieved with instant-K.O. hits (referred to as "1-shot") or counterattack moves, or can be executed with a finishing blow when the player's opponent is in "Piyori condition," a brief spell of dizziness in which opponent's life bar has been drained completely and the fighter is allowed only limited control. "Specials" can only be executed when the opponent is in Piyori condition. If players are able to survive until Piyori condition passes, their health gauge refills completely. The health bar also refills continuously (albeit slowly) throughout the fight.
Fighters Destiny offers five different gameplay modes. By playing the traditional versus computer mode, players can earn a new character (Boro) and learn new skills for their character. They can also select to fight against a second player, challenge their skills and gain new characters in "Record Attack," play through the "Master Challenge" to expand their character's command list, and train against a robot character. When players learn new skills playing the computer or the Master Challenge, they can save their character's expanded command list to the Controller Pak; afterwards, the new command list can be accessed in any mode to aid the player.
master; Abdul, a well-balanced fighter from Mongolia
; Tomahawk, a professional wrestler from the United States
; Meiling, a Chinese
kung fu expert; a Japanese Ninja
with a massive catalog of special moves; Pierre, a French
clown
with a deceptive fighting style; Leon, an all-rounder from Spain
; Bob, a powerful Brazil
ian fighter; and the tough aerial combat specialist Valerie from Germany
.
In addition to the standard nine characters, there are five secret characters that can be "unlocked" by completing various challenge modes. To acquire the Russian
Joker, for example, players must win "Survival Mode" by defeating one hundred consecutive enemies. The other secret characters include the final boss of the one-player game, Boro, a quick and powerful Swiss
fighter; Rob, a training robot
from Germany
, which is unlocked by beating Record Attack in less than one minute; Master, an old Japanese karate expert unlocked by beating all challengers in Master Challenge without losing to Joker; and Ushi, a fighting cow from Hokkaido
, unlocked by staying in the ring longer than one minute in Rodeo, and can't be KO'd or thrown out of the ring or the unlock will be unsuccessful.
. Despite the game's critical acclaim, it missed its initial Christmas release date and was subsequently greeted with lukewarm sales figures, selling only 18,000 copies in the first two months after its North American release. As a result, Infogrames Entertainment
(the parent company of Fighters Destiny international distributor Ocean Software
) decided to shave US$
20 off the price tag, dropping the game's price to US$29.99. "Fighters Destiny has been praised as the best fighting game for the N64 by the vast majority of video game media," said Mike Markey, vice president of sales and marketing, Infogrames Entertainment. "The aim of the new price point is to make the game more accessible to all consumers."
There are twelve default characters in Fighter Destiny 2. Ryuji makes a return as "Saeki"; Adrianna, a flamenco
dancer from Brazil
; Federico, a scientist from Italy
; American street warrior D-Dog, who very much resembles Dennis Rodman
; Fashion Model
Kate from Great Britain
; German
professional wrestler Zeige; British
Punk Rocker Dixon; and Prince
Fabien from France
debut. Abdul, Meiling and Ninja make another appearance. Pierre makes another appearance as well, but is now more flamboyant than previously.
Like in the first series, there are secret characters and in order to unlock these characters, you must beat four different game modes, along with picking a certain character.; Play as Adrianna and beat Rodeo to Unlock Mou (Ushi from the first game, but billed from Hong Kong
), play as Ninja and beat Time Attack to unlock Samurai (Robert from the first game), and play as Saeki and beat Fighter Arena mode to Unlock the Master who once again makes an appearance.
Joker, an infamous player from the first game, does not make an appearance. However, a completely different character named Cherry, a crossdressing man from the U.S.A., replaces him. In order to unlock Cherry, you must play as Pierre and beat Survival Mode. In the North American release, Cherry's voice actor is changed to female for appropriateness however, nothing on his body is changed such as his muscles, his tattoes, and his face, which all resemble a male.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
as is a video game developed by Genki
Genki (company)
Genki is a Japanese developer of computer and video games. It was founded in October 1990 by Hiroshi Hamagaki and Tomo Kimura, who left Sega to form the company. Genki is best known for its racing game titles.-History:...
and published by Imagineer
Imagineer (company)
is a Japanese entertainment company headquartered in Nishi-Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan.The name "Imagineer" is a portmanteau, derived from the words "imagination" and "engineer". They started publishing video games in the mid-1980s...
for the Nintendo 64
Nintendo 64
The , often referred to as N64, was Nintendo′s third home video game console for the international market. Named for its 64-bit CPU, it was released in June 1996 in Japan, September 1996 in North America, March 1997 in Europe and Australia, September 1997 in France and December 1997 in Brazil...
. It closely models the 3D fighting game standard set by Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
's Virtua Fighter, but integrates a unique point scoring system. The game's generic characters and unoriginal presentation have been panned by critics, but reviewers praise its point system and consider it to be one of the best fighting games on the Nintendo 64. It was followed by a sequel Fighter Destiny 2.
Gameplay
In Fighters Destiny, the player controls a polygonPolygon
In geometry a polygon is a flat shape consisting of straight lines that are joined to form a closed chain orcircuit.A polygon is traditionally a plane figure that is bounded by a closed path, composed of a finite sequence of straight line segments...
-based character in a three dimensional
3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...
battle arena. The game features typical hand to hand combat
Hand to hand combat
Hand-to-hand combat is a lethal or nonlethal physical confrontation between two or more persons at very short range that does not involve the use of firearms or other distance weapons...
fighting: using a variety of punches, kicks, locks, and throws, players attempt to pummel their opponents into submission. Each character also has a large list of special commands (called "moves") that can be accessed during battle. These different moves range from simply pressing the "B" button to inputting highly complicated button combinations.
In most versus fighting games, the objective is to deplete the opponent's health gauge. Fighters Destiny follows the same concept but also relies on a customizable point scoring system to determine the winner. These points, which are displayed as yellow stars under the character's health gauge, can be earned in a variety of ways. By default, knocking the character off the fighting platform (a "Ring Out") is worth one point, taking down an opponent with a throw nets the player two points, while a typical K.O. is worth three points, as well as taking the opponent down with a counterattack, and executing a "special" is worth four points. Finally, if the adjustable time counter runs out, then the winner is awarded one point by virtue of judge's decision. By default setting, the first fighter to score seven points wins the match.
K.O.'s can be achieved with instant-K.O. hits (referred to as "1-shot") or counterattack moves, or can be executed with a finishing blow when the player's opponent is in "Piyori condition," a brief spell of dizziness in which opponent's life bar has been drained completely and the fighter is allowed only limited control. "Specials" can only be executed when the opponent is in Piyori condition. If players are able to survive until Piyori condition passes, their health gauge refills completely. The health bar also refills continuously (albeit slowly) throughout the fight.
Fighters Destiny offers five different gameplay modes. By playing the traditional versus computer mode, players can earn a new character (Boro) and learn new skills for their character. They can also select to fight against a second player, challenge their skills and gain new characters in "Record Attack," play through the "Master Challenge" to expand their character's command list, and train against a robot character. When players learn new skills playing the computer or the Master Challenge, they can save their character's expanded command list to the Controller Pak; afterwards, the new command list can be accessed in any mode to aid the player.
Characters
There are nine regular characters in Fighters Destiny: Ryuji, a Japanese karateKarate
is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands in what is now Okinawa, Japan. It was developed from indigenous fighting methods called and Chinese kenpō. Karate is a striking art using punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes, and open-handed techniques such as knife-hands. Grappling, locks,...
master; Abdul, a well-balanced fighter from Mongolia
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...
; Tomahawk, a professional wrestler from the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
; Meiling, a Chinese
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
kung fu expert; a Japanese Ninja
Ninja
A or was a covert agent or mercenary of feudal Japan specializing in unorthodox arts of war. The functions of the ninja included espionage, sabotage, infiltration, and assassination, as well as open combat in certain situations...
with a massive catalog of special moves; Pierre, a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
clown
Clown
Clowns are comic performers stereotypically characterized by the grotesque image of the circus clown's colored wigs, stylistic makeup, outlandish costumes, unusually large footwear, and red nose, which evolved to project their actions to large audiences. Other less grotesque styles have also...
with a deceptive fighting style; Leon, an all-rounder from Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
; Bob, a powerful Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian fighter; and the tough aerial combat specialist Valerie from Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
In addition to the standard nine characters, there are five secret characters that can be "unlocked" by completing various challenge modes. To acquire the Russian
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
Joker, for example, players must win "Survival Mode" by defeating one hundred consecutive enemies. The other secret characters include the final boss of the one-player game, Boro, a quick and powerful Swiss
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
fighter; Rob, a training robot
Robot
A robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or...
from Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, which is unlocked by beating Record Attack in less than one minute; Master, an old Japanese karate expert unlocked by beating all challengers in Master Challenge without losing to Joker; and Ushi, a fighting cow from Hokkaido
Hokkaido
, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...
, unlocked by staying in the ring longer than one minute in Rodeo, and can't be KO'd or thrown out of the ring or the unlock will be unsuccessful.
Reception and sales
Fighters Destiny received mixed reviews; surprisingly, it garners better reviews from critics than it does from general audiences. Given the N64's almost complete lack of other quality fighting games, the press immediately seized on Fighter's Destiny as the machine's response to the Saturn's Virtua Fighter or the PlayStation's TekkenTekken (video game)
Tekken is a fighting game and is the first of the series. It was released at arcades in late 1994 and on the PlayStation in 1995. A simplified "arcade" version of the game was later released in Tekken 5s Arcade History mode. It was developed and published by Namco...
. Despite the game's critical acclaim, it missed its initial Christmas release date and was subsequently greeted with lukewarm sales figures, selling only 18,000 copies in the first two months after its North American release. As a result, Infogrames Entertainment
Infogrames
Infogrames Entertainment SA was an international French holding company headquartered in Paris, France. It was the owner of Atari, Inc., headquartered in New York City, U.S. and Atari Europe. It was founded in 1983 by Bruno Bonnell and Christophe Sapet using the proceeds from an introductory...
(the parent company of Fighters Destiny international distributor Ocean Software
Ocean Software
The British company Ocean Software was one of the biggest European video game developers/publishers of the 1980s and 90s...
) decided to shave US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
20 off the price tag, dropping the game's price to US$29.99. "Fighters Destiny has been praised as the best fighting game for the N64 by the vast majority of video game media," said Mike Markey, vice president of sales and marketing, Infogrames Entertainment. "The aim of the new price point is to make the game more accessible to all consumers."
Sequel
In 2000, a sequel to Fighters Destiny, titled Fighter Destiny 2, was released. Publisher SouthPeak Interactive dropped the s in the title due to copyright issues. Fighter Destiny 2 made improvements upon its predecessor, boosting the FPS to 60, and adding graphic and audio enhancements. Some of the characters make a second appearance in the sequel, but the majority of the cast is all new. Although the game mechanics remain unchanged, a new "Fighter's Arena" mode has been added, a giant board game that allows players to build up their characters' attributes in addition to having them learn new fighting skills. The character Ryuji, from the first game, seems to have been renamed Saeki for unknown reasons.There are twelve default characters in Fighter Destiny 2. Ryuji makes a return as "Saeki"; Adrianna, a flamenco
Flamenco
Flamenco is a genre of music and dance which has its foundation in Andalusian music and dance and in whose evolution Andalusian Gypsies played an important part....
dancer from Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
; Federico, a scientist from Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
; American street warrior D-Dog, who very much resembles Dennis Rodman
Dennis Rodman
Dennis Keith Rodman is a retired American Hall of Fame professional basketball player of the National Basketball Association's Detroit Pistons, San Antonio Spurs, Chicago Bulls, Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks. Born in Trenton, New Jersey, he was nicknamed "Dennis the Menace" and "The...
; Fashion Model
Model (person)
A model , sometimes called a mannequin, is a person who is employed to display, advertise and promote commercial products or to serve as a subject of works of art....
Kate from Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
; German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
professional wrestler Zeige; British
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
Punk Rocker Dixon; and Prince
Prince
Prince is a general term for a ruler, monarch or member of a monarch's or former monarch's family, and is a hereditary title in the nobility of some European states. The feminine equivalent is a princess...
Fabien from France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
debut. Abdul, Meiling and Ninja make another appearance. Pierre makes another appearance as well, but is now more flamboyant than previously.
Like in the first series, there are secret characters and in order to unlock these characters, you must beat four different game modes, along with picking a certain character.; Play as Adrianna and beat Rodeo to Unlock Mou (Ushi from the first game, but billed from Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
), play as Ninja and beat Time Attack to unlock Samurai (Robert from the first game), and play as Saeki and beat Fighter Arena mode to Unlock the Master who once again makes an appearance.
Joker, an infamous player from the first game, does not make an appearance. However, a completely different character named Cherry, a crossdressing man from the U.S.A., replaces him. In order to unlock Cherry, you must play as Pierre and beat Survival Mode. In the North American release, Cherry's voice actor is changed to female for appropriateness however, nothing on his body is changed such as his muscles, his tattoes, and his face, which all resemble a male.