The Pleiades Revolution {Toshinden Subaru}

Toshinden Subaru - The Review

(And Overview)

"This White Tiger Sword will show me the answer." -- Subaru Shinjo

* Warning! The Empress is about to exert her [trying-not-to-be-biast] opinion on you. AhahahaBEWARE!!!!
(In other words, if you don't agree with what I'm saying about this game, tough shit. Go write your own review if that's the case. Sorry, I'm just getting a little miffed at people complaining about my opinions when they don't even have a damn page to tell everyone else their's.)

To start, I'm going to stay that there has never, EVER been anything even remoted related to videogames that I have anticipated more in my life than this one game. I wasn't overly thrilled about Toshinden 2 or 3 at the time--though I did freak out for a little while the first time I saw Toshinden 3 at a Blockbuster Video in Nova Scotia. (Too bad that game held my admiration for about, oh, ten minutes) But this time, it was worth it all. Oh yes, my little otaku subjects, worth everything I had to go through to play this game. After waiting more than half a year, being stalled for three months, spending over $150 and going through many trials and tribulations, I finally got to experience that which is Japan's Toshinden Subaru. Suffice to say, Final Fantasy VIII hasn't been touched for two weeks ^_~ I've been playing it for what I hope is enough time to assess a decent amount of info and opinions to write this review (I went for an eight-hour solid stint on the first night I had the game ^_^;;), and now I finally think I have enough to write a thorough review which I hope can be a decent overview as well. So, Toshinden Subaru...was it saviour or failure of the Toshinden series? Well...it depends on what you're judging it by. It apparently got really panned in Japan, but I'd give it four out of five -- it's not an incredible or revolutionary game in this age of Soul Caliburs and Tekken Tag Tournaments, but it's sure as hell better than Toshinden 3 and great fun for Toshinden fans in particular -- or maybe ONLY for Toshinden fans.

(This is the part where I get to make all of you feel sad ^_^) For better or worse, Toshinden Subaru marks the end of a thirteen-game long era that has become no less than legendary in the eyes of the loyal fans; sadly, gone are the days of Eiji with his brash heroics and Kayin with his stoic demeanor; of those wonderful leading ladies, Sofia, Ellis, and Tracy; of the Himitsu Kessha and their antagonists, the Shitennou included; of the Soshiki and Agon Teos; of the infamous Sho Shinjo and the clashes between him, Eiji and Kayin; and of every character, storyline, videogame and anime volume in-between -- that all added up to the mighty legend that was Toshinden. And herein, from the ashes of the phoenix rises a new game, a new generation of young heroes and a new era for Toshinden, its series and its history.

Now, the game itself...the graphics are a lot better than I expected, and not as annoyingly pixellated as Toshinden 3's (though the camera does tend to make the pixels do nasty things at times, and the way the hands are shaped really annoys me). The characters are nicely rendered with the shadows and lighting, and the backgrounds as well, particularly Miyabi's temple stage with a forest in the distance, the shifting-coloured floor of Zero's stage, and the swirling tie-dye colours of Eiji's boss stage. The graphics go particularly fancy during the super attack sequences, which you will be seeing a LOT of, as unfortunately, the curse of the too-cheap, too-easy super attacks is still around (and almost worse than ever this time). An added feature of some of the new arenas is the breaking tiles -- during a fight (or constantly in Time Attack), the occasional tile on the floor will begin to shake or crack, and then falls out, leaving a hole in the arena floor that you (or your opponent) can slip through. Ring outs are also back, for better or worse, depending on your opinion; and in some arenas, there are no barriers, so there is opportunity for you to use the new "free-running" feature, which can be done by holding down all four top buttons and moving the D-pad in any direction -- though it's quite erratic and not as smooth as Power Stone or whatnot, so I wouldn't recommend using it much. The game runs at a fairly good clip (though the fight loading time can be as annoying as ever), and quite smoothly to boot -- even though the controls and movement are still kind of lagging in response, and getting your fighter to turn around can be a problem at times (both of which have been continuous problems ever since the very first game). The music, while not done by Bang Heads this time around, is terrific in some areas (like Subaru's theme which doubles as the end credits music, Fen's reggae-style theme, and Eos' foreboding symphony), but lacking in others (the intro music).

The actual fight setup is interesting, where you select your team and your "story" character (the one you get to see the ending for when you beat the game). After the team's story, you watch your team ascend up an elevator to each arena floor, having short conversations (all in Japanese text) among themselves. Upon arrival and assessment of each challenging team, the computer decides for you who your starting fighter is, and I'm not too fond of this. There's always a fighter I don't really care for on the team, and you always HAVE to play as all of them--why? Because all the characters have a "tie" with another character on another team. Take Subaru's Team, for example: Naru is sought by Lancelot of Puella's Team; Rook was beaten by Miyabi of Genma's Team; and Subaru is looking for Eiji, naturally (you have to love this, the second of the Shinjo-brother-teacher-student battles...^_^), who leads his own Gerard team. So if there's a fighter on the team you don't like, too bad. You're straddled with them anyway. So you fight all three of your opponents in the format made famous by The King of Fighters series, where if you lose, your fighter is eliminated and the next one in your three-man lineup takes over. If you manage to beat all three opponents without all three of your team being KO'ed, then the "main" fighter of the battle says a few things before heading off with the rest of your team to the next fight. If you should lose, the opposition's "main" fighter of the battle does the same thing if you choose not to continue. (I'm not going to say what happens when you lose to Eiji's Team with Subaru's Team--let's just say it was enough to make me scream loud enough to raise the dead and denounce anything I've heard about Eiji still being a good guy @_@) There are three teams to beat, and if you successfully do so without using any continues, you get to face Verm after seeing your chosen fighter's ending, and if you beat HIM, you get your team's ending and the end credits roll. During the credits roll, you also get to see a special picture of your fighter...and I have to say that with Eiji's, it was the most frighteningly true metaphor I never thought I'd see--he was looking into his sword, and his brother's face was reflected in it. So in other words, it was saying that he's virtually become his brother. If that's not deep for Toshinden, what is?

The plot of the game itself looks simple, but once you actually take the time to scratch below the surface, like every other Toshinden game, it's more complex than it seems. After the Soshiki was destroyed by Eiji and company in 1996 (the third game's era), there were no more Toshindaibukai tournaments, no more strange invitations, no more mysterious underworld evil threatening the sanctity of the world and its denizens. But in the ten years that has passed - it's now 2006 - quite a few things have happened, and most of them revolve around the original hero of the battle arena -- Eiji Shinjo. A while ago, Eiji heard of an old legend telling of the 'Shiseibugu' [Four Sacred / Holy Weapons], a set of four holy relics that bring great divine power when assembled. When an emissary of the newly-resurrected Gerard Zaidan [Gerard Foundation, the REAL name of the Himitsu Kessha] requests that Eiji, the winner of the previous Toshindaibukai, take the position of the top executive of the foundation (the Master), Eiji accepts once he learns that he can use the powers of the organization for good -- and that its resources can help him find the weapons, which he wants to assemble and use for good as well. Leaving behind the young boy his brother left with him back in 1996 and told him to take care of (that'd be Subaru, the game's main and namesake character with the WEIRDEST eyebrows I've ever seen), Eiji takes the position of the Master of the Gerard Foundation. After a little while on the job researching on where to find the Four Sacred Weapons, Eiji is shocked to learn that someone evil is out to find the weapons as well -- to use them to destroy the world. Knowing that he has to gather the weapons before evil does, Eiji and his organization hold a new Toshindaibukai, inviting three three-man teams that are all lead by a fighter who carries one of the Four Sacred Weapons -- and that includes his own student and adopted little brother, the now-teenaged Subaru, who wields the Byakko no Tachi, the White Tiger Sword that Eiji left him. Forming his own team with two of the Gerard Foundation executives, Eiji - now the coldhearted Master - steps into the tournament, ready for any challengers of the new generation as he seeks the four weapons...

And as for the characters, which have been a staple source of fanworship and long seen as the series' best asset...I don't think you need to worry about the new fighters and their attempt to measure up to the original cast with thirteen-game seniority. I've pretty much fallen in love with the new main six; they're actually very good, even enough so in some cases (Subaru and Naru especially) to make you temporarily forget about the originals. This "new generation" is almost a group of kids, compared to the original generation: Subaru Shinjo, the newest of those ever-popular Shinjo boys who's voiced by the ever-talented Midorikawa Hikaru, is out to prove his suspicion that the initial "E" on the invitation is who he thinks it is. (And the truth is going to be a lot more painful than he thinks...plus the fact that he has a pair of very infamous parents that he knows nothing about...) Naru Amoh, the ponytailed returning adopted daughter of Kayin, is desperately trying to find her missing father (though the reality of it made me bawl ;_;). Puella Marionette, an young orphaned girl who wields the Suzaku no Yumi [Phoenix's Bow, one of the Four Sacred Weapons], is trying to uncover the identity of the "angel" who gave her the bow, and for what purpose. Lancelot Lakeknight, a champion fencer who bears more than a passing resemblance to Kaoru Miki from Shoujo Kakumei Utena, is out to find Naru Amoh, whom he admires greatly for her courage after she beat him in a fencing match. And of course, Eiji Shinjo himself returns, though it's in a way that NO Eiji fan could have ever expected (and trust me, I KNOW. See that creepy guy in most of the TSD4 pictures with the black mask, grey hair and glowing white eyes? Well, guess who...). And that's just to name a few of the thirteen fighters. At times, even, it seems that this batch of characters are possibly better created. Yes, even more so than the beloved original group. Puella's a choir singer. Lancelot's a Net addict and a chatter. Subaru's a high school student who hates studying. All those little bits make them seem more realistic, and we can sympathize with them more than the originals, who seemed born to be larger-than-life heroes in the first place. Though while nearly ALL of the character stories are well done, I have to mention that some of the storylines don't fully coincide with the endings, like Subaru's, Miyabi's and others -- which bugged me (although Subaru's was STILL incredible despite that flaw). Even though the only returning characters are Naru, Eiji and Vermilion, you have to love how many ties to the original generation chars that Kotobuki shoved in. (Though this requires a decent knowledge of the originals to fully understand / take the impact of some of the game's moments) Yes, this is a spoiler alert, folks: As for the new main six fighters, we have Sho's son / Eiji's nephew-adopted little brother-student (all in one adorable main character whom I love more than anything right now ^_^); Uranus' daughter; Kayin's daughter; Duke's sort-of student; Mondo's sort-of student...you get the picture. Hey, it HAS been ten years, after all. Who here's played Tekken 3? Same sort of idea (which many think is a ripoff). And come on, what's there NOT to love about the concept of Sho's kid out to save the world and trying to stop his uncle Eiji? The more I think about it, the more I realize how much of a genius Kotobuki is. If you ever have a chance to come across this godlike art master, bow to his feet and kiss the ground he walks on. And the anticipated intro? Pure bliss. I think my heart stopped the first time I watched it. After the scarring experience of living through the ugly-rendered TSD3 intro, it's a HUGE relief to finally see Toshinden get back to its roots: pure, sweet Japanese animation. I have to pretty much agree with everyone else who's seen it -- even though the intro's about, oh, maybe two minutes long, it still rivals if not surpasses the quality of ALL of the one hour of OVA. Sure, the music is a bit shoddy and it's just a mix of scenes...but it's all about the Kotobuki-creation goodness. (And Subaru's sexy-as-all-hell smirk ^^) Anyone who's seen Saber Marionette J, The Art God's other anime masterpiece, will know what I mean. Jealous yet? You should be...

There have been lots of little "extras" added this time around, most of which make this game an even better experience. By far the best new addition are the selection of seven Mini-Games, which can be unlocked either by code or time release (one every hour after three hours have been played). From puzzle to air hockey to shooter to dance, these are all great fun, and you can easily waste a couple hours playing some of the more addictive ones (I've played The Toshin Dance for at LEAST eight hours now ^_^;;). Database Mode is a welcome addition for the people who actually give a crap about things such as sounds, records and character detail (me included, dammit!), and Goods Mode is fun to play, with those ever-rewarding prizes like alternate costumes (see Puella in a sexier outfit and Eiji in his niisan's old costume!...*shudder*) and silly weapons (amusing to just plain odd). Kishin Kourin, the newest type of "super" attack added, is pretty cool to look at, though it's not too helpful given your typical situations. However, additions to the fighting system like the Weapon Parries and the Guard Cancels are much-welcomed, and I'm happy to FINALLY be able to jump into the air and block (something I've been trying to do since the first game, out of habit from playing too many Capcom games ^_^;;). The new combo system, Toshin Ryuugi, is a bit tricky to learn right off but can come in handy if you have the time to master it. And hey, if you have it, you have to appreciate the Dual Shock...

To finish, Toshinden Subaru isn't a landmark in fighting game history like the very first Toshinden game, but it's a game that's sure to please most Toshinden fans in some way or another. It's not fighting-game perfection, but what Toshinden game ever has been? The series has come now to cater more to the extreme fans of the series, so don't expect many "outsiders" or gaming purists / critics to enjoy this one (it's been REALLY panned in Japan and other places). But if you're a fan and you're not afraid to not understand any of the all-Japanese character dialogue or to never look at a picture of the "old" Eiji the same way again (...*sob*), then by all means, import yourself a copy. Coming from the viewpoint of an insane otaku, is it worth the trouble? Yes, oh God, yes. I'm saying that despite all the little nitpicking flaws, this is something NO Toshinden fan should miss out on. Let's all hope Sony decides to pick this game up; it'd be a pity to not expose the new characters and story to the North American TSD audience (believe me: they are THAT GOOD. SU~BA~RU~KUUUUN!!), and because if you are or consider yourself a diehard Toshinden fanatic, then you MUST experience Toshinden Subaru at least once. The Empress guarantees you will not be disappointed. Non-otakus need not apply for the experience.

Order Toshinden Subaru at:
National Console Support - $55 (Please note that it's currently sold out -- but a big thanks to everyone who's bought it! ^_^)
Game Bros. - $54.90 US (without tax / shipping costs; doesn't ship outside of the U.S.)

* Game will only work on a chipped PlayStation! Order a MOD chip at:
MOD-CHIP - $19 US / $28 CA (without shipping costs; check page for overseas ordering prices)

return to the revolution...

* * * * * * *
daga, kore mo unmei ka...

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This page owned and operated by Caitlin H. / The Empress Katzy of Toshinden.
Reproduction in whole or in part of this page without permission by the owner is prohibited.
Toshinden Subaru is copyright Takara Co., Ltd., and TamSoft Co. No rights reserved.
Last Updated: Nov.28 / 99
Toshinden Always and Forever!!

(And Overview)

return to the revolution...

* * * * * * * daga, kore mo unmei ka...

* * * * * * *
daga, kore mo unmei ka...