Assemble! - Fighting Game Archetype Roster - The Henchman

This is Assemble, where we look at several different characters across multiple series to form a perfect team-up. Whatever the case may be, whether it’s a fighting game roster or an RPG adventuring party, we’ll find the best team for the job. In a change of style from the more long-form articles featured here, these articles will be shorter entries, focusing on one or two characters each, and spread out over time until the complete roster is formed. 

What would a fighting game be without a roster of several different, powerful, and engaging characters? In this batch of articles for Assemble, we will be assembling a fighting game roster using characters from several different fighting games based on different character archetypes.

The picks will be based on where the characters fit in terms of game mechanics and their place in the story and world of the game. Only characters that originated in fighting games will be observed here. That means no guest characters, no licensed fighting games (unless their roster includes original characters), and no crossover titles. Finally, I’ll only be discussing games or characters that I am at least somewhat familiar with. While this means I won’t discuss all the fighting games out there, there should be at least some variety from just the major titles.

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THE HENCHMAN

  

The Henchman is a character in the cast, possibly one of a small few in the cast, that are employed by the game’s main villain or final boss. They may be loyal servants, they may have their own goals behind the scenes and may even want to overthrow the boss, or they may just be programmed, or mind controlled to do the boss’s bidding. The main point here is that when the boss wants a job done that they can’t (or won’t) do themselves, this is a person they send to do it. For this slot, we’re looking for a character that not only faithfully follows their leader’s orders but has the strength and skill to actually complete the tasks set onto them.

Our choice for the Henchman is…

Fulgore from Killer Instinct.

Fulgore is a cybernetic super-soldier created by Ultratech, the large megacorporation that controls the world of Killer Instinct. While Fulgore units are mass-produced by Ultratech, the one we play as in-game is the prototype that the others were based off. Utilizing the brain of a great fighter, Fulgore carries out whatever missions Ultratech assigns to him without question. He also has the strength and arsenal for it as well, being equipped with plasma claws, plasma guns, a reflector, eye lasers, and a nuclear reactor that he can overclock to increase his power and allow him to use his most powerful weapon, the Devastation Beam. And while the consciousness of the brain inside him tries to assert itself, more often than not, its programming to serve Ultratech wins out.

For being built and programmed to be his master’s perfect soldier, we now add Fulgore to the roster.

ADDED! 

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What did you think about this article? Want to see what other characters get picked for our roster? Do you think someone would fit this role better besides whoever got picked? Make your voice heard in the comments below. Thanks for coming.

Assemble! - Fighting Game Archetype Roster - The Joke Fighter

This is Assemble, where we look at several different characters across multiple series to form a perfect team-up. Whatever the case may be, whether it’s a fighting game roster or an RPG adventuring party, we’ll find the best team for the job. In a change of style from the more long-form articles featured here, these articles will be shorter entries, focusing on one or two characters each, and spread out over time until the complete roster is formed. 

What would a fighting game be without a roster of several different, powerful, and engaging characters? In this batch of articles for Assemble, we will be assembling a fighting game roster using characters from several different fighting games based on different character archetypes.

The picks will be based on where the characters fit in terms of game mechanics and their place in the story and world of the game. Only characters that originated in fighting games will be observed here. That means no guest characters, no licensed fighting games (unless their roster includes original characters), and no crossover titles. Finally, I’ll only be discussing games or characters that I am at least somewhat familiar with. While this means I won’t discuss all the fighting games out there, there should be at least some variety from just the major titles.

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THE JOKE FIGHTER

With this guy, the joke’s always on them.

The Joke Fighter is a character in the roster best known for being the designated comic relief. They often have the wildest, most exaggerated personality and interactions with this character tend to result in wacky shenanigans. However, this character is often also the weakest character in the roster, with ineffective moves in battle or stats or passive abilities that are completely underpowered compared to everyone else in the game. Some players even consider it a challenge worth bragging about to have beaten the game using this character.

Basically, the opposite of characters like this.

While certain characters may immediately come to mind for this fighter in the roster, our choice comes from the indie fighting game, Divekick. 

Divekick is a parody of normal fighting games with overly simplified controls, tongue-in-cheek jokes and references, and characters that each carry a laundry list of funny moments, including an inept and deep-in-debt martial arts master that wears shoes on his hands, a definitely-not-a-wolverine, and a cross between Yun from Street Fighter and Will Smith. (Yes, that Will Smith.) This is another instance where any of these characters could fit for the category, so to stand out, the one selected for the Joke Fighter would have to prove to be more of a joke than others in the roster.

Our choice for the Joke Fighter is…

Mr. N from Divekick.

To really understand the jokes behind this character, one should know something about his main inspiration, Martin Phan a.k.a. Marn.

Marn was a competitive fighting game player, placing high in tournaments for games like Tatsunoko vs. Capcom or Guilty Gear XX: Reload. He was even sponsored at one point. However, when he took an administrative role in an Ohio-based fighting game tournament called Seasons Beatings, Marn (who was also a competitor in the event) rigged the brackets for the Guilty Gear portion of the event in his favor. After his cheating attempt was discovered, the Guilty Gear portion was canceled and all of its matches were invalidated. Other controversies followed, including getting barred from being a tournament stream commentator after remarks relating to sexual harassment and an attempt to form a League of Legends pro team that fell through due to mismanagement.

His Divekick counterpart, Mr. N, is an exaggerated caricature of Marn. While Marn is overweight in real life, Mr. N is morbidly obese. Mr. N’s outfit consists of a toddler-style onesie, a neck-support pillow, and a towel being worn as a cape, many of his mannerisms are silly and unflattering, his special ability in the game involves running away from the opponent, and even when he wins a match, he sits on the ground with several plates of food while crying. Even some of the other ridiculous characters in this game use Mr. N as an example of how not to be a fighter.

For being portrayed as a joke character, even among other joke characters, we now add Mr. N to the roster.

ADDED!

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Honorable Mention: Dan Hibiki (Street Fighter)

For many fighting game players, Dan Hibiki is the definitive joke character. He wears a pink gi, his moves are significantly weaker versions from characters like Ryu and Ken, his boisterous and arrogant personality get him into trouble very often, luck just can’t seem to go his way, and he has a super move made entirely of non-damaging taunts. What separates him from Mr. N is how they are regarded by the fans of their respective games. Dan has had moments in the past where he was a low-key viable fighter in terms of gameplay (maybe not top-tier, but at least somewhat viable) and, in story material, Dan has even had some endearing moments. Mr. N on the other hand gets nothing but ridicule for whatever he does and is shown as a completely negative caricature, one that some would argue even borders on bullying toward the character’s inspiration.

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What did you think about this article? Want to see what other characters get picked for our roster? Do you think someone would fit this role better besides whoever got picked? Make your voice heard in the comments below. Thanks for coming.

Comic Review - NorthStars Volume 1

With the holiday season in full swing and everyone gearing up for Christmas and other winter holidays, lots of people are in the mood for some good holiday specials. While Christmas themed comics are rather rare, some options can be found. One such story is the light fantasy adventure comic NorthStars. Can this book put you in the holiday spirit?

Let’s look at NorthStars.

STORY

The story takes place in the magical region of Polaris, located in the area around Earth’s North Pole, and the residents of the town of Snowville, where Santa Claus lives, are getting ready for Christmas. Our two protagonists are Holly Claus, Santa’s daughter, and Frostina, the princess of the yetis, while the dark Christmas demon Krampus appears as our main villain. When Krampus steals a magical artifact that Santa needs for his Christmas deliveries, Holly and Frostina take it upon themselves to get it back and save the holiday.

The story is a nice little adventure. The girls do come across some genuine threats and switch between either fighting through them (with Frostina doing most of the fighting) or solving them with some creative thinking. There are also some good jokes peppered throughout the story, reminiscent of Adventure Time. While there isn’t any deeper story going on, at least in this volume, traveling with these characters and learning more about the world they inhabit and the kinds of other creatures and characters that live in it is itself engaging.

CHARACTERS

The characters that get the most exploration in this story are Holly, Frostina, and Krampus, as we see how they behave around others and what their motivations are. Sorry if you expect to see Santa appear throughout, but he only appears briefly at the start and in flashbacks. There isn’t much character development in the protagonists, as Holly and Frostina aren’t challenged in any big way, but since there are other comics in this series, this can be seen as more of an introduction to the characters and the world. We learn a few small things about the characters, like Holly being able to jump higher than a normal person and Frostina being very strong, and we are sure to learn more about them as the series progresses.

We also learn a fair bit about Krampus as portrayed in this story. While Santa’s job is to reward nice people with presents (or coal if they’re not so nice), Krampus goes out to punish the naughty, though sometimes he goes too far with his punishments. Also, it’s said he wants to take over control of Christmas from Santa and that’s why he goes through with his plan in this story. He also has powerful magic at his disposal and can even summon creatures to do his bidding. His basic motivations are laid out and he has room in the series to grow into a threatening villain.

VISUALS

This comic has a colorful and cheerful art style, fitting seeing the holiday it draws its inspiration from. A lot of characters and parts of the setting make use of white, reds, and greens, which set in the Christmas theme nicely. The characters look vibrant and interesting with a lot of variation while still fitting in with the world of the story. Even some of the elves in Santa’s workshop have distinct looks. Settings range from the quaint snowy town of Snowville to the subterranean mushroom village of Undertown and there are creatures from soldiers made of straw to ice dragons. It wants readers to go further to explore more of this world.

FINAL THOUGHTS

NorthStars is a fun and entertaining comic that presents itself as a Christmas-themed Adventure Time style story. There is a large world to explore with interesting characters to lead you through it. While the plot isn’t that deep, there is plenty of humor and clever scenes to keep you moving through the story that will hopefully be expanded on in future issues.

SCORE: 4/5

 REREAD VALUE: MODERATE

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What did you think of this review? Does this comic sound like something you want to check out? Make your voice heard in the comments below. Thanks for coming!