Melty Blood
Melty Blood | |
メルティブラッド (Meruti Buraddo) | |
---|---|
Game | |
Watanabe Seisakujo | |
Genre | Fighting game, visual novel |
Platform | Microsoft Windows |
Released | : December 30, 2002 |
Game | |
Melty Blood Re-ACT | |
French-Bread | |
Platform | Microsoft Windows |
Released | : May 30, 2004 |
Game | |
Melty Blood Act Cadenza | |
Released | ArcadePlayStation 2
|
Manga | |
Written by | Takeru Kirishima |
Published by | Kadokawa Shoten |
Magazine | Comp Ace |
Demographic | Seinen |
Original run | June 2005 – August 2011 |
Volumes | 9 |
Game | |
Melty Blood Actress Again | |
Sega Naomi) PlayStation 2 | |
Released | Arcade
|
Game | |
Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code | |
Ecole Software | |
Publisher | Sega (arcade) Arc System Works (Steam) |
Platform | Arcade (Sega RingWide) Microsoft Windows |
Released | ArcadeMicrosoft Windows: December 30, 2011 |
Manga | |
Melty Blood X | |
Written by | Takeru Kirishima |
Published by | Kadokawa Shoten |
Magazine | Comp Ace |
Demographic | Seinen |
Original run | May 2011 – November 2011 |
Volumes | 2 |
Manga | |
Hana no Miyako | |
Written by | Takeru Kirishima |
Published by | Kadokawa Shoten |
Magazine | Comp Ace |
Demographic | Seinen |
Original run | January 2013 – August 2014 |
Volumes | 3 |
Manga | |
Melty Blood Back Alley Alliance Nightmare | |
Written by | Takeru Kirishima |
Published by | Kadokawa Shoten |
Magazine | Comp Ace |
Demographic | Seinen |
Original run | December 2015 – October 2016 |
Volumes | 2 |
Melty Blood (メルティブラッド, Meruti Buraddo), sometimes shortened as Merubura (メルブラ), is a series of 2D
A manga series, written and illustrated by Takeru Kirishima, was first serialized in Kadokawa Shoten manga magazine Comp Ace in 2006. The series ended in 2011 with nine bound volumes released in Japan.[2]
The latest title, called Melty Blood: Type Lumina, was released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Microsoft Windows on September 30, 2021. It serves as a reboot of the series, and takes place in a new continuity first depicted in Tsukihime -A piece of blue glass moon-, a remake of the original Tsukihime.
Gameplay
Melty Blood makes use of widely used concepts in fighting games such as cancels (canceling a normal attack with a special attack before its animation ends, allowing for more complex and damaging combos) chain combos (normal moves that cancel into other normal moves) and the use of super bars (Magic Circuits).
Unique to Melty Blood are mechanics like Shielding, an advanced defensive technique which can completely nullify damage from incoming attacks; as well as French-Bread games’ staple gameplay mechanic Reverse Beat, a type of chain combo that can cancel from a higher normal move to a weaker normal move. The series is also characterized by its freedom of movement, especially in the air where players have access to a variety of options including jumps, double jumps, super jumps, and air dashes which can be combined to create complex, unpredictable movement not typically possible in other series.
The original series of games, culminating in Melty Blood: Actress Again: Current Code, features the Moon system. Similar to the groove system pioneered in Capcom vs. SNK 2, each character in the game has three different variants corresponding to the phases of the moon which can be selected during character select. Each moon type includes baseline mechanics that apply to all characters of that moon, while each individual character will typically have a drastically different moveset depending on the selected moon, impacting normal as well as special moves.
Melty Blood: Type Lumina introduced many gameplay changes from the original series, with many players describing the gameplay as a combination of the original Melty Blood series and French Bread's Under Night In-Birth series. A new moon system exists in Type Lumina which functions more as a meter and provides access to additional techniques like Moon Skill attacks (similar to traditional EX attacks from other fighting games) and Moon Drive.
Plot
The original Melty Blood game takes place in one year after Satsuki Yumizuka's non-existent route of Tsukihime and a month after
Characters
As of Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code Ver. 1.07, there are 31 playable characters.
Each of the 31 playable characters have 3 Moons, with each providing new variation to normal moves, special moves and system mechanics as well as gameplay feel. They consist of Full Moon, Half Moon or Crescent Moon.
Tsukihime characters:
- Shiki Tohno (遠野 志貴, Tōno Shiki): Kenji Nojima
- Arcueid Brunestud (アルクェイド=ブリュンスタッド, Arukweido Buryunsutaddo): Ryōka Yuzuki
- Ciel (シエル, Shieru): Kumi Sakuma
- Akiha Tohno (遠野 秋葉, Tōno Akiha): Hitomi
- Hisui (翡翠): Miyu Matsuki
- Kohaku (琥珀): Naoko Takano
- Aoko Aozaki (蒼崎 青子): Kotono Mitsuishi
- Satsuki Yumizuka (弓塚 さつき): Omi Minami
- Nrvnqsr Chaos (ネロ=カオス, Nero Kaosu, Nero Chaos): Jōji Nakata
- Michael Roa Valdamjong (ミハイル=ロア=バルダムヨォン, Mihairu Roa Barudamuyōn): Ken Narita
- Neco-Arc (猫アルク/ネコアルク, Neko Aruku): Ryōka Yuzuki
- Shiki Nanaya (七夜 志貴): Kenji Nojima
- Len (レン, Ren): Kaori Mizuhashi
- Kouma Kishima (軋間 紅摩, Kishima Kōma): Jūrōta Kosugi
The Garden of Sinners characters:
- Shiki Ryougi (両儀 式, Ryōgi Shiki): Maaya Sakamoto
New characters:
- Sion Eltnam Atlasia (シオン=エルトナム=アトラシア, Shion Erutonamu Atorashia): Rio Natsuki (Melty Blood), Satomi Akesaka (Under Night In-Birth)[3] - the main character of the original Melty Blood series
- Night of Wallachia (ワラキアの夜, Warakia no Yoru) (real name: Zepia Eltnam Oberon (ズェピア・エルトナム・オベローン, Zuepia Erutonamu Oberōn): Yasunori Masutani - the main antagonist of the first entry
- Miyako Arima (有間 都古): Miwa Kōzuki - A bajiquan rookie, whose family use to temporarily adopted Tohno Shiki when the former was still young prior to the latter returning to Tohno household
- Mech-Hisui (メカヒスイ, Meka-Hisui): Miyu Matsuki - A robot counterpart of original Hisui, created by Kohaku
- White Len (白レン, Shiro Ren): Kaori Mizuhashi - Len's doppelganger, created from the remains of Zepia and the unused part of original Len by Aoko
- Riesbyfe Stridberg (リーズバイフェ=ストリンドヴァリ, Rīzubaife Sutorindovari): Akeno Watanabe - Sion's partner who died prior to the first game's events, but suddenly revived as a sentient TATARI
- Neco-Arc Chaos (ネコアルク・カオス, Neko Aruku Kaosu): Jōji Nakata
- Dust of Osiris (オシリスの砂, Oshirisu no Suna) (boss of Melty Blood Actress Again, full vampiric form of Sion Eltnam Atlasia from alternate timeline): Rio Natsuki - not playable in Current Code 1.07
Alternative/bosses and hidden characters:
- Akiha Vermillion (紅赤朱 秋葉, Kurenai Sekishu Akiha) or 赤主秋葉 Sekishu Akiha: Hitomi
- Hisui & Kohaku: Miyu Matsuki & Naoko Takano
- Sion TATARI (吸血鬼 シオン, Kyūketsuki Shion): Rio Natsuki
- G-Akiha (G秋葉): Hitomi - does not appear in Current Code 1.07
- Red Arcueid (暴走 アルクェイド, Bōsō Arukueido, Berserk Arcueid): Ryōka Yuzuki
- Damien Armies (ダミアン・アーミー, Damian Āmī) - does not appear in Current Code 1.07
- Neco Chaos Black G666 (ネコカオス=ブラックG666, Neko Kaosu Burakku G666): Jōji Nakata
- Kohaku & Mech-Hisui: Naoko Takano & Miyu Matsuki
- Neco-Arc & Mech-Hisui: Ryōka Yuzuki & Miyu Matsuki
- Seifuku Akiha (制服 秋葉, Akiha wearing school uniform): Hitomi
- Archetype:Earth (True Ancestor Arcueid (真祖 アルクェイド, Shinso Arcueid)): Ryōka Yuzuki- playable character and the boss in her own route
- Powerd Ciel (Executioner Ciel (完全 武装 シエル, Kanzen Busō Shieru, Fully Armed Ciel)): Kumi Sakuma
In the original Melty Blood, only six (Sion, Arcueid, Ciel, Akiha, Kohaku & Hisui, and Shiki Tohno) of the characters above were available for play, with eight more being unlockable through story mode. However, in a later update released for the game (the "Nero" patch), all the characters are available from the start. The reasons for this are slightly unclear; it appears to be the result of a legal misunderstanding whereby
Release
2002 | Melty Blood |
---|---|
2003 | |
2004 | Melty Blood Re-ACT |
2005 | Melty Blood Act Cadenza |
Melty Blood Re-ACT Final Tuned | |
2006 | |
2007 | Melty Blood Act Cadenza Ver.B |
Melty Blood Act Cadenza Ver.B2 | |
2008 | Melty Blood Actress Again |
2009 | |
2010 | Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code |
2011 | Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code Ver. 1.05 |
Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code Ver. 1.07 | |
2012–2020 | |
2021 | Melty Blood: Type Lumina |
Melty Blood (2002)
The original Melty Blood was announced on October 8, 2001, at Tsukihime Matsuri Himehajime (月姫祀〜秘初〜), the dōjin convention hosting only Tsukihime content.[4] The plan was suggested by Nobuya Narita of Watanabe Seisakujo (French-Bread, from 2003). Kinoko Nasu wrote scenarios and Takashi Takeuchi designed characters. Watanabe Seisakujo developed the game system and pixel arts. They were known as the creator of parody games, but Nasu requested not to break the style of Tsukihime. They had difficulty thinking of attacks because original characters didn't have an attractive skill suited for the fighting game. They also worked hard to create frames of animation exceeding Street Fighter III.[5]
The full version of Melty Blood was released in December 2002 for Windows.[6] An expansion patch, Re-ACT released two years later in May 2004, and an update, Re-ACT Final Tuned, released in July 2005. An arcade version of the series, Melty Blood Act Cadenza, was later developed by Ecole Software and released in March 2005.[7] Later, a PlayStation 2 version of Act Cadenza was released on August 10, 2006.[8] A Windows version, Melty Blood Act Cadenza Ver.B, was also released on July 27, 2007. The series' newest game, Melty Blood Actress Again, was released on September 19, 2008.
Melty Blood Re-ACT
An expansion to the original game, featuring an 'Arcade Mode' whose storyline takes place after the original Melty Blood. The expansion made numerous changes in regards to character balance and to remove many infinite-combo sequences. New movesets were created for the doppelgänger characters, whereas in the original, most of these characters had nearly identical movesets to their counterparts. It also made changes to the game's mechanics and added several new characters, though only two are playable the other four NPCs: Len, Satsuki Yumizuka, Neco-Arc (non-playable character) Executioner Ciel (Ciel holding the Seventh Holy Scripture, non-playable character), White Len (Sub Boss) and Aoko Aozaki (non-playable boss).
The final update to Re-ACT, Final Tuned, adds several features designed to allow the game to be configured to resemble the gameplay of Melty Blood Act Cadenza. It also adds a large number of gameplay tweaks and slightly updated animations, such as the inclusion of a new, analog-friendly controller setup; new configuration options that lets players assign multi-button commands to individual buttons; the ability to alter and adjust many of the game's internal variables (via new interface options); and four new colors for each player.
Melty Blood Act Cadenza
Melty Blood Act Cadenza was the first arcade port of the series and was published by
Melty Blood Act Cadenza, released for the PlayStation 2, was unique as a port in that it included an option to revert to Version A mechanics, yet introduced significant changes that were later included in Ver. B, including an early version of Neco-Arc Chaos as a hidden character. It is sometimes known as "Ver. A2".
Melty Blood Act Cadenza Ver. B is an arcade port of the PS2 game with various changes and upgrades, the most notable of which is the inclusion of White Len as a playable character, with a significantly weakened moveset. It also introduced a fifth button that served as a contextual action depending on the situation and the direction held on the joystick when pressed, such as dodging or throwing. This version can be identified by a dual silhouette of Len and White Len in the logo and the phrase "Through the Looking-Glass, Northern Light transparently".
Melty Blood Act Cadenza Ver. B2 is a Windows port of the arcade Ver. B. It has added features including tag-team mode, a 4-player team battle mode, a programmable dummy for training purposes and a new hidden boss character, Neco-Arc Chaos Black G666 (replacing G-Akiha from Melty Blood Re-ACT). It also included subtle gameplay changes, most notably altered defense ratings for characters and adjustments to the game's input system. It was released on July 27, 2007.[9]
Melty Blood Actress Again
Melty Blood Actress Again is the fourth game in the Melty Blood fighting game series. It was released on September 19, 2008, in Japan for the
Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code
Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code is an arcade port of the PS2 version. The game underwent location testing in Akihabara from December 19–20, 2009.[12] The characters formerly exclusive to the PS2 version of Actress Again became available for use, and the game runs on Sega's RingWide arcade system, as opposed to NAOMI like Act Cadenza and the original Actress Again. The game's website was launched February 11, 2010, and after being unveiled officially at Japan's Arcade Operators Union show on February 20, 2010, the game began undergoing another two week round of location testing. Unverified reports stated that the price for the game and RingWide hardware would be ¥230,000 plus ¥100,000 for a RingWide Harness and shipping costs, equaling US$3,560.83 at exchange rates as of May 13, 2010. Several arcade machine distributors showed the game as being pegged for a release on July 29, 2010.
An upgrade for Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code was launched on May 18, 2011, branded as Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code Ver. 1.05, with new changes in gameplay and adding 2 new playable characters, including Powerd Ciel (Ciel's Executioner version from Melty Blood Re-ACT) with her own Story Mode and ending, along with new moves and sprites for her.
A final upgrade for Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code was launched on October 14, 2011, named Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code Ver. 1.07. It includes a complete version of Archetype:Earth (princess version of Arcueid Brunestud) with new sprites and moves and her own Story Mode and ending. Also added were Story Modes and endings for the Neco & Mech and Kohaku & Mech teams. Riesbyfe Stridberg (just as Neco-Arc in the PlayStation 2 version of the game) can gain a new route in Story Mode, showing her as living her new life with Sion Eltnam Atlasia and Satsuki Yumizuka as a member of the Back-Alley Alliance (after the endings of Sion and Satsuki).
Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code was released for Windows on December 30, 2011, along with the Blu-ray release of Carnival Phantasm Season 3 limited edition. It included an online multiplayer option and an online matching mode. The matching server was taken down on October 10, 2014; however, direct connection is still available. Four patches have been released, the latest one bringing the game to version 1.4.0.[13] This version was made available on Steam, published by Arc System Works on April 19, 2016, and is the first in the series to introduce English language without modifications.[14]
Melty Blood: Type Lumina
Melty Blood: Type Lumina is the fifth game in the series. It also serves as a reboot of the series, and takes place in the new continuity established by Tsukihime -A piece of blue glass moon-, the first entry of Tsukihime remake series. As such, it shares the remake's modernized setting, revised designs, exclusive characters, and story changes. The visuals and mechanics of the game were also redone from the ground up. It was released worldwide on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and Microsoft Windows on September 30, 2021.
Reception
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (February 2015) |
Aggregator | Score |
---|---|
Metacritic | (Actress Again Current Code) 78/100[15] |
Publication | Score |
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Destructoid | 80%[16] |
Destructoid concluded their review with "Nearly 14 years after first bursting onto the scene, Melty Blood has aged to the point of near-perfection. While a few aspects of the package leave something to be desired, the fact remains that, at its core, this is a supreme fighter with a diverse roster and deep, compelling mechanics that merit your attention."
Melty Blood Act Cadenza has been featured at the international fighting game tournament
References
- ^ "Schedule" メルティブラッド アクトカデンツァ (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2005-08-22. Retrieved 2019-02-04.
- ^ "MELTY BLOOD X (2)". Kadokawa Shoten. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved September 20, 2011.
- ^ "Voice Of Sion Eltnam Atlasia - Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late". Behind The Voice Actors. Inyxception Enterprises. Retrieved 2018-02-17.
- ^ Kazami, Akira (2001-10-08). "かざみあきらの雑記(2001年10月)". Archived from the original on 2019-02-01. Retrieved 2019-02-09.
- ISBN 4-86032-028-X.
- ^ "MELTY BLOOD". Type-Moon (in Japanese). Retrieved August 28, 2010.
- ^ "Melty Blood pouring into Japanese arcades". GameSpot. July 15, 2004. Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved August 28, 2010.
- ^ "Melty Blood soaking PS2s". GameSpot. February 24, 2006. Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved August 28, 2010.
- ^ (in Japanese) Act Cadenza ver.B PC Site
- ^ "Melty Blood Actress Again". Arcadia. No. 91. December 2007. pp. 36–37.
- ^ "Melty Blood Actress Again". Tougeki Damashii. Vol. 8. January 2008.
- ^ "{{in lang|ja}} Ecole Software's Location Test Notice". Archived from the original on 2011-07-20. Retrieved 2010-01-18.
- ^ http://meltyblood.info/?p=651 Archived 2012-01-03 at the Wayback Machine (in Japanese)
- ^ "Arc System Works Universe Arc System Works Releasing 5 Titles on Steam by Summer 2016!". Archived from the original on 2015-12-08. Retrieved 2015-12-08.
- CBS Interactive. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
- ^ "Review: Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code".
- ^ Tougeki 2007's Official Site Archived 2004-07-18 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Tougeki 2009's Official Site Archived 2004-07-18 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Evo 2010 Players Choice Poll". shoryuken.com. Archived from the original on July 12, 2010. Retrieved August 29, 2010.
Notes
- ^ 1.05 title update was released on May 18, 2011. 1.07 title update was released on October 14, 2011.
External links
- Melty Blood
- Official website (in Japanese)
- Melty Blood at The Visual Novel Database
- Melty Blood Re-ACT Final Tuned
- Official website at the Wayback Machine (archived 2 June 2019) (in Japanese)
- Melty Blood Act Cadenza
- Official websites for Arcade at the Wayback Machine (archived 26 December 2013) and PlayStation 2 releases (in Japanese)
- Melty Blood Act Cadenza Ver.B
- Melty Blood Actress Again
- Official websites for Arcade and PlayStation 2 releases (in Japanese)
- Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code