Godzilla: Monster War
Encyclopedia
is a two-dimensional
fighting game for the Super Famicom
, released in 1994. The game was developed by Alfa System
and published by Toho
. When it was released in Japan, it initially cost ¥
9,980. It was the second Godzilla game released for the Super Famicom platform, the other being Super Godzilla
.
In the game, players select from one of eight different monsters from the Godzilla
movies and battle in a variety of locations. The game was never released outside of Japan
. According to Nintendo Power
, the game was planned to be released in North America
in April 1995 under the title Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters. However, it was never released.
himself, Anguirus
, King Ghidorah
, Gigan
, Megalon, Mechagodzilla
, Biollante
and Mothra
. No matter which monster you select, you are taken to a map of Japan and must select your opponent to battle. Battles take place in the familiar 2D fighting screen seen in Street Fighter 2, though the game plays more akin to the SNES Dragonball Z fighting games. Each round has a time period of sixty seconds during which each monster fights with a variety of attacks to wear their opponent's energy bar down and win the round. At the end of the round, the player's score is tallied up based on time, energy and the level of their opponent. Once every enemy monster has been defeated, the player enters the eighth, final round and must face Mechagodzilla 2 or Atragon. Upon the defeat of on of those monsters, the credits roll and the game ends.
Each monster has a variety of standard and unique, special attacks and the ability to block. Standard attacks include light and heavy physical attacks (punch, kick, etc.) and varying degrees of energy-based attacks, a dash attack and a grab attack. Each monster also appears to have the ability to stun the opponent with a loud roar. As a succession of hits is landed, the monster will glow red and be stunned for several seconds, while a separate energy bar fluctuates, presumably either to increase the strength of the monster's attack power or the possibility of stunning the opponent. Monsters are able to use their projectile attacks to block oncoming projectiles, similar to Street Fighter 2, and sometimes the two clash in a brief test-of-strength encounter.
: King of the Monsters, Godzilla attacks using punches and his tail to smack opponents away, filling the void of an all-rounded fighter. Godzilla's charge attack is to rush the opponent and headbutt and bite at them, while his projectile attacks are the standard Atomic Ray, which can also be directed in a clockwise fashion, and his more powerful Red Spiral Ray.
Anguirus
: Small and light, Anguirus can land multiple hits but takes damage quite easily. Anguirus can attack by spinning his spiked body and tail and by cannonballing himself out of the sky, however he has no energy or projectile-based attacks.
King Ghidorah
: Godzilla's most persistent foe, King Ghidorah is large and has a variety of attacks. Ghidorah can fly and attacks using its three heads and its large feet. King Ghidorah can also blast opponents with its electrical energy beams and whip them with its tail.
Gigan
: Faster than Godzilla and tougher than Anguirus, Gigan attacks using its hooked arms and flame breath, able to whip opponents with its tail and blast them with a thin red energy beam. Gigan has a rushing combination attack where it grabs, kicks, punches and blasts its opponent away with a back-flip kick.
Megalon: Attacking with its horned head, Megalon is slow but makes up for its lack of grace with incredibly powerful special attacks. Megalon's standard projectile is a small beam of yellow electricity but it also drops a ball of fire onto the battlefield, incinerating the opponent and causing massive damage. It has a drill-combo attack that also causes considerable damage. Megalon can also launch itself like a torpedo at its opponents.
Mechagodzilla
: Slow but varied, Mechagodzilla can fly, extend its limbs and unleash a variety of projectile attacks, while being extremely durable. Mechagodzilla has an energy shield to block attacks, as well as the standard block, fires missiles and lasers at its opponent and has a special move where it unleashes all its arsenal in one blast, causing significant damage.
Biollante
: A monstrous clone of Godzilla, Biollante is slow moving but powerful. Biollante attacks using its large mouth and tentacle appendages, tossing spores at the opponent.
Mothra
: Light and quick, Mothra is also extremely weak. Mothra can fly about the upper part of the screen out of reach of normal attacks, causing its opponent to use jump attacks instead. Mothra can divebomb the opponent, leave spores and attack with her wings.
Mechagodzilla 2
: The boss opponent for the game is on easy mode, Mechagodzilla 2 is only selectable in two player mode. Mechagodzilla 2 is faster than its predecessor and has stronger attacks, extending its limbs further, attacking with concussive lasers and bombs and traveling like a tank. Mechagodzilla 2, however, seems to block less, in favour of a more aggressive attack pattern
Super Mechagodzilla
: When the game is beaten on medieum difficulty, an enhanced version of Mechagodzilla 2 confronts the player, proving the most difficult challenge of the game through its joining with Garuda.
Atragon
: The final monster of this game can be unlocked on hard mode, Unlike the monsters, Atragon is a ship with a drill that can fire missles at it's opponent, it can fly and can fire masers at the monsters.
Interestingly, Nintendo Power was able to review the game, even though it was never released. A possible suggestion could be that the writers of Nintendo Power had acquired copies of the port, but the company decided not to release it into stores at the last second. There's a very minimum chance that this port made it onto the internet in the form of a ROM.
2D computer graphics
2D computer graphics is the computer-based generation of digital images—mostly from two-dimensional models and by techniques specific to them...
fighting game for the Super Famicom
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
, released in 1994. The game was developed by Alfa System
Alfa System
Alfa System is a Japanese game development company that plans, develops and markets game software for consoles and personal computers. Alfa System is based out of Kumamoto City, Kyūshū...
and published by Toho
Toho
is a Japanese film, theater production, and distribution company. It is headquartered in Yūrakuchō, Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group...
. When it was released in Japan, it initially cost ¥
Japanese yen
The is the official currency of Japan. It is the third most traded currency in the foreign exchange market after the United States dollar and the euro. It is also widely used as a reserve currency after the U.S. dollar, the euro and the pound sterling...
9,980. It was the second Godzilla game released for the Super Famicom platform, the other being Super Godzilla
Super Godzilla
Super Godzilla is a video game for the Super Nintendo released in 1993 by Toho.Unlike other games of the era, Super Godzilla is not a straight action game. Instead, the player must guide Godzilla into the different levels by pressing the adequate button in the appropriate place...
.
In the game, players select from one of eight different monsters from the Godzilla
Godzilla
is a daikaijū, a Japanese movie monster, first appearing in Ishirō Honda's 1954 film Godzilla. Since then, Godzilla has gone on to become a worldwide pop culture icon starring in 28 films produced by Toho Co., Ltd. The monster has appeared in numerous other media incarnations including video games,...
movies and battle in a variety of locations. The game was never released outside of Japan
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...
. According to Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power magazine is a monthly news and strategy magazine formerly published in-house by Nintendo of America, but now run independently. As of issue #222 , Nintendo contracted publishing duties to Future US, the U.S. subsidiary of British publisher Future.The first issue published was...
, the game was planned to be released in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
in April 1995 under the title Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters. However, it was never released.
Single Player
In the single player game, players are able to choose from GodzillaGodzilla
is a daikaijū, a Japanese movie monster, first appearing in Ishirō Honda's 1954 film Godzilla. Since then, Godzilla has gone on to become a worldwide pop culture icon starring in 28 films produced by Toho Co., Ltd. The monster has appeared in numerous other media incarnations including video games,...
himself, Anguirus
Anguirus
is the second Kaiju to appear in the Toho franchise. Anguirus appeared only a year after Godzilla in the 1955 Toho film Godzilla Raids Again...
, King Ghidorah
King Ghidorah
is a kaiju, a fictional Japanese monster featured in several of Toho Studios' Godzilla films...
, Gigan
Gigan
is a kaiju from the Godzilla series, introduced in the 1972 film Godzilla vs. Gigan. Gigan is a cybernetic monster sporting a buzzsaw weapon in its frontal abdominal region and large metallic hooks for hands. Gigan is considered Godzilla's most brutal and violent opponent, alongside Destroyah,...
, Megalon, Mechagodzilla
Mechagodzilla
is a fictional character from various films in the Godzilla series, introduced in Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla . He is Godzilla's mechanical doppelgänger and one of the most popular Toho kaiju...
, Biollante
Biollante
is a daikaiju from the Godzilla film series. She made her first appearance in the 1989 feature Godzilla vs. Biollante. She was never put into any other Godzilla movies, although she is featured as a secret character in Godzilla: Unleashed on the Nintendo Wii.-Origin:After Godzilla's return in...
and Mothra
Mothra
is a kaiju, a type of fictional monster who first appeared in the serialized novel The Luminous Fairies and Mothra by Takehiko Fukunaga, Shinichiro Nakamura, and Yoshie Hotta...
. No matter which monster you select, you are taken to a map of Japan and must select your opponent to battle. Battles take place in the familiar 2D fighting screen seen in Street Fighter 2, though the game plays more akin to the SNES Dragonball Z fighting games. Each round has a time period of sixty seconds during which each monster fights with a variety of attacks to wear their opponent's energy bar down and win the round. At the end of the round, the player's score is tallied up based on time, energy and the level of their opponent. Once every enemy monster has been defeated, the player enters the eighth, final round and must face Mechagodzilla 2 or Atragon. Upon the defeat of on of those monsters, the credits roll and the game ends.
Each monster has a variety of standard and unique, special attacks and the ability to block. Standard attacks include light and heavy physical attacks (punch, kick, etc.) and varying degrees of energy-based attacks, a dash attack and a grab attack. Each monster also appears to have the ability to stun the opponent with a loud roar. As a succession of hits is landed, the monster will glow red and be stunned for several seconds, while a separate energy bar fluctuates, presumably either to increase the strength of the monster's attack power or the possibility of stunning the opponent. Monsters are able to use their projectile attacks to block oncoming projectiles, similar to Street Fighter 2, and sometimes the two clash in a brief test-of-strength encounter.
Multi-Player
The game supports the standard two player Vs Mode, the only difference being in the player's ability to select to play as Mechagodzilla 2 and Atragon, presumably, to choose their own battleground.Playable Monsters
GodzillaGodzilla
is a daikaijū, a Japanese movie monster, first appearing in Ishirō Honda's 1954 film Godzilla. Since then, Godzilla has gone on to become a worldwide pop culture icon starring in 28 films produced by Toho Co., Ltd. The monster has appeared in numerous other media incarnations including video games,...
: King of the Monsters, Godzilla attacks using punches and his tail to smack opponents away, filling the void of an all-rounded fighter. Godzilla's charge attack is to rush the opponent and headbutt and bite at them, while his projectile attacks are the standard Atomic Ray, which can also be directed in a clockwise fashion, and his more powerful Red Spiral Ray.
Anguirus
Anguirus
is the second Kaiju to appear in the Toho franchise. Anguirus appeared only a year after Godzilla in the 1955 Toho film Godzilla Raids Again...
: Small and light, Anguirus can land multiple hits but takes damage quite easily. Anguirus can attack by spinning his spiked body and tail and by cannonballing himself out of the sky, however he has no energy or projectile-based attacks.
King Ghidorah
King Ghidorah
is a kaiju, a fictional Japanese monster featured in several of Toho Studios' Godzilla films...
: Godzilla's most persistent foe, King Ghidorah is large and has a variety of attacks. Ghidorah can fly and attacks using its three heads and its large feet. King Ghidorah can also blast opponents with its electrical energy beams and whip them with its tail.
Gigan
Gigan
is a kaiju from the Godzilla series, introduced in the 1972 film Godzilla vs. Gigan. Gigan is a cybernetic monster sporting a buzzsaw weapon in its frontal abdominal region and large metallic hooks for hands. Gigan is considered Godzilla's most brutal and violent opponent, alongside Destroyah,...
: Faster than Godzilla and tougher than Anguirus, Gigan attacks using its hooked arms and flame breath, able to whip opponents with its tail and blast them with a thin red energy beam. Gigan has a rushing combination attack where it grabs, kicks, punches and blasts its opponent away with a back-flip kick.
Megalon: Attacking with its horned head, Megalon is slow but makes up for its lack of grace with incredibly powerful special attacks. Megalon's standard projectile is a small beam of yellow electricity but it also drops a ball of fire onto the battlefield, incinerating the opponent and causing massive damage. It has a drill-combo attack that also causes considerable damage. Megalon can also launch itself like a torpedo at its opponents.
Mechagodzilla
Mechagodzilla
is a fictional character from various films in the Godzilla series, introduced in Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla . He is Godzilla's mechanical doppelgänger and one of the most popular Toho kaiju...
: Slow but varied, Mechagodzilla can fly, extend its limbs and unleash a variety of projectile attacks, while being extremely durable. Mechagodzilla has an energy shield to block attacks, as well as the standard block, fires missiles and lasers at its opponent and has a special move where it unleashes all its arsenal in one blast, causing significant damage.
Biollante
Biollante
is a daikaiju from the Godzilla film series. She made her first appearance in the 1989 feature Godzilla vs. Biollante. She was never put into any other Godzilla movies, although she is featured as a secret character in Godzilla: Unleashed on the Nintendo Wii.-Origin:After Godzilla's return in...
: A monstrous clone of Godzilla, Biollante is slow moving but powerful. Biollante attacks using its large mouth and tentacle appendages, tossing spores at the opponent.
Mothra
Mothra
is a kaiju, a type of fictional monster who first appeared in the serialized novel The Luminous Fairies and Mothra by Takehiko Fukunaga, Shinichiro Nakamura, and Yoshie Hotta...
: Light and quick, Mothra is also extremely weak. Mothra can fly about the upper part of the screen out of reach of normal attacks, causing its opponent to use jump attacks instead. Mothra can divebomb the opponent, leave spores and attack with her wings.
Mechagodzilla 2
Mechagodzilla
is a fictional character from various films in the Godzilla series, introduced in Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla . He is Godzilla's mechanical doppelgänger and one of the most popular Toho kaiju...
: The boss opponent for the game is on easy mode, Mechagodzilla 2 is only selectable in two player mode. Mechagodzilla 2 is faster than its predecessor and has stronger attacks, extending its limbs further, attacking with concussive lasers and bombs and traveling like a tank. Mechagodzilla 2, however, seems to block less, in favour of a more aggressive attack pattern
Super Mechagodzilla
Mechagodzilla
is a fictional character from various films in the Godzilla series, introduced in Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla . He is Godzilla's mechanical doppelgänger and one of the most popular Toho kaiju...
: When the game is beaten on medieum difficulty, an enhanced version of Mechagodzilla 2 confronts the player, proving the most difficult challenge of the game through its joining with Garuda.
Atragon
Atragon
Atragon, released in Japan as , is a 1963 Toho tokusatsu film based on a series of juvenile adventure novels under the banner Kaitei Gunkan by Shunrō Oshikawa and the illustrated story Kaitei Okoku by illustrator Shigeru Komatsuzaki, serialized in a monthly magazine for boys...
: The final monster of this game can be unlocked on hard mode, Unlike the monsters, Atragon is a ship with a drill that can fire missles at it's opponent, it can fly and can fire masers at the monsters.
Stages
There are nine stages in the game, one for each monster, ranging from cities to the open countryside to a carnival fair. Some stages have a degree of destructibility, others are already in wreckage.Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters
In the May 1995 issue of Nintendo Power, a page mentioned Godzilla: Destroy all Monsters for the Super NES. This was supposed to be the North American release. Curiously, the release date said April 1995, even though the issue of Nintendo Power was released in May of that same year. It was never mentioned again in later issues, and no copies of this game existed. The port was most likely a last second cancellation.Interestingly, Nintendo Power was able to review the game, even though it was never released. A possible suggestion could be that the writers of Nintendo Power had acquired copies of the port, but the company decided not to release it into stores at the last second. There's a very minimum chance that this port made it onto the internet in the form of a ROM.
External links
- Godzilla: Kajuu Dai Kessen on AllgameAllgameAllgame is a commercial database of information about arcade games, video games and console manufacturers.Allgame is owned by All Media Guide, along with Allmusic and Allmovie....
- Godzilla: Kaijuu Daikessen on GameSpotGameSpotGameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...