Groove on Fight

Groove On Fight: Gouketsuji Ichizoku 3[lower-alpha 1] is a 1997 Japanese video game for the arcade and the Sega Saturn. It is a fighting game developed by Atlus, and the fourth in the Gouketsuji Ichizoku (Power Instinct) series. The game has a darker tone and is set in the future with only two characters from the prior games returning. Though the game's art and visual style was praised, critics were more lukewarm about the overall gameplay, giving it average scores.

Groove on Fight
Developer(s)Atlus
Publisher(s)Atlus
Platform(s)Sega Saturn, Sega ST-V
ReleaseArcade
  • JP: May 1997
Sega Saturn
  • JP: May 19, 1997
Genre(s)Fighting game
Mode(s)Single-player, Two player
Arcade systemST-V

Plot

The game is set 20 years after the last game in the series, and is set in the year 2015.[1]

Gameplay

Oume and Otane are the only returning characters from previous games.[2]

A tag system is introduced, taken from Gogetsuji Gaiden: Saikyou Densetsu.[1] Each match features four characters.[3] Tis gameplay mechanic is similar to X-Men vs Street Fighter, where the player picks two characters at a time and changes them at will. Also, the player can throw any other character, including their partner.[4]

The character Bristol can summon demons which are the same as the ones that have appeared in the Shin Megami Tensei series.[2]

After beating the game, a gallery mode can be unlocked showing concept art for the game, including some for characters who didn't make the final version of the game.[4]

The game features up to four players by using the Sega Multi-tap.[4]

Development and release

It is the fourth game in the Gouketsuji Ichizoku series.[2] The series is known as Power Instinct in the West.[4]

Artist Range Murata worked on the game and prior entries in the series, also worked on the Saturn title Wachenröder.[5][6]

The game uses the 4MB RAM expansion cart.[3][4]

The arcade version of the game was shown at the JAMMA 96 trade show at the Atlus booth alongside a 3D fighter known as Ultimate Domain. The arcade version used the Sega ST-V arcade board.[7]

The game was released for the Sega Saturn on May 19, 1997 only in Japan.[8]

Reception
Reception
Review scores
PublicationScore
GameFan71.7/100[3]
GameSpot6.3/10[9]
Sega Saturn Magazine (JP)6.33/10[10]
Super GamePower3/5[11]
Joypad79%[12]
Consoles +85/100[13]
Gamers81/100[14]

Brazilian magazine Super GamePower gave it a 3.0 out of 5.[11]

GameSpot gave it 6.3 out of 10.[9]

Three reviewers for GameFan gave the game scores of 70, 80, 65. One reviewer was highly critical of the game, noting that the extra 3MB of RAM the extra memory cart brought should have resulted in a better game, and noted the constant loading times, and animations as the same quality as Street Fighter II. Another reviewer praised the art and cast of characters, but said that the pace of the game was rather slow and the gameplay was "not bad". The last reviewer was more positive about the game, while noting that the animation quality was lacking, and the Super Moves system was easy to abuse. Despite this however, they praised the character designs, calling them "stunningly beautiful" and specifically calling out Solis' outfit and praised the gameplay calling it "wacky".[3]

Three reviewers for the Japanese Sega Saturn Magazine reviewed the game, and gave it okay marks.[10]

In 2006, Play magazine contributing editor Eric Patterson in listed the game's cover art, along with River City Ransom, as his favorite game covers of all time.[15]

Notes
  1. Japanese: グルーヴオンファイト 豪血寺一族３ Hepburn: Gurūvu on Faito Gouketsuji Ichizoku 3
gollark: I don't really like GUIs, but some crept in anyway.
gollark: I mean, for differing definitions of "GUI".
gollark: It has several.
gollark: Exactly.
gollark: Anyway, it *can't* spread easily over wireless networks because the only thing it had for that was (it's still there but disabled on SC by default) EZCopy, which does disks.

References
  1. "【次世代機／5月16日】今日は『グルーヴ オン ファイト』の発売21周年！【レトロゲーム】". ゲームドライブ（ゲードラ） - スマホ・アナログ・レトロ・新作ゲーム情報を毎日掲載中！. Retrieved 2019-05-20.
  2. "【5月16日のレトロゲーム】今日はSS『グルーヴ オン ファイト』の発売22周年！". Gamedrive. May 19, 2019. Retrieved 2019-05-19.
  3. Storm, E.; Shidoshi; Rox, Evil (July 1997). "Viewpoint: Groove on Fight". Gamefan. Vol. 5 no. 7. p. 16.
  4. Doc (July 1997). "Made in Japan: Groove on Fight". Japanmania (Superjuegos supplement) (in Spanish). No. 15. Spain. p. 21.
  5. "Incoming Games: Spy Fiction". GMR. January 2004. p. 38.
  6. Antonio Pineda, Rafael (2018-10-11). "Anime NYC to Host Illustrators Hiroyuki Asada, Range Murata". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 2018-10-14. Retrieved 2019-05-20.
  7. Next Gerneration staff writers (January 1997). "JAMMA 96: Konami joins coin-op's elite". Next Generation. p. 19.
  8. "グルーヴ・オン・ファイト 豪血寺一族3". Famitsu. Enterbrain. Retrieved 2019-05-19.
  9. Fielder, Joe (2000-05-02). "Groove On Fight (Import) Review". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 2019-03-20. Retrieved 2019-05-19.
  10. "Sega Saturn Soft Review: Groove on Fight". Sega Saturn Magazine (JP) (in Japanese). Vol. 16. May 16, 1997. p. 173.
  11. Baby Bethino (August 1997). "Saturn: Groove on Fight". Super GamePower (in Portuguese). No. 41. Nova Cultural. p. 24.
  12. "Zoom Japan: Groove on Fight". Joypad (in French). No. 66. July 1997. p. 107.
  13. "Groove on Fight". Consoles + (in French). No. 67. July 1997.
  14. "Saturn: Groove on Fight". Gamers. No. 21. 1998. p. 48.
  15. "Play: Staff roundup". Play (USA). No. 55. United States of America: Fusion Publishing. July 2006. p. 68.
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