Update: August 8, 2008
«©NCSX» Rival schools are at war and only short-skirted students with strength, determination, and large bosoms can rise above the ranks to reach the mantle of Ikki Tousen which translates into one knight who is worthy of 1000 knights. Built as a 3D fighting game, Shining Dragon pits players against a cast of 10 fighters which include Hakufu Sonsaku, Ryomou Shimei, Ryofu Housen, Kakouen Myosai, and Kanu Unchou. A new character named Chosen (Cicada) is also featured in the game who's a buxom blonde with red eyes, a snappy demeanor and a blue dress.
The STORY MODE allows players to choose one character and live through her battlefield tribulations against the backdrop of original stories that were written exclusively for the game. The MISSION MODE features 50 stages of targeted objectives which mixes up the action. To add to the authenticity of the game, the voice actresses from the animation were hired to provide the utterances and battle cries of the combatants in the game. When fighting, the clothes of the girls may be shredded just like they are in the animation series. There's no outright nudity but skin is exposed that otherwise wouldn't get exposed. For example, when a girl's shirt is split near the bosom area, stringy threads will still keep it together.
View the back cover and screenshots on the main NCSX website.
Region Lock-out
Please note Japanese Playstation 2 games will not boot on USA or European PS2 consoles due to the inherent region-lockout on Playstation 2 game discs.
NCS Game Notes
» Upon booting, the game shows the various girls such as Kanu and Ryomou in 3D fighting action that's spooled from the game along with anime sequences of the girls which are mixed with the in-game battling. The show lasts for about 90 seconds.
» The title screen features the following game mode selections:
STORY MODE / Choose a character from six choices and experience their unique stories
MISSION MODE / Rage through 50 missions with targeted objectives
???? / Needs to be unlocked before selectable
???? / Needs to be unlocked before selectable
OPTION / Load/Save data, set Difficulty Level, etc
» If you play as Sonsoku Hakufu, her cousin Shuyu Koukin appears and speaks to Ryomou. The dialogue is accompanied by voice acting provided by the actors from the animation series. Sonsaku joins the conversation and she and Shuyu eventually go outside where they're met by Chouhi Ekitoku who's best described as a mushroom-haircut girl with red eyes and Sailormoon outfit. Inner power in the form of blue hazy light wells up within Sonsaku and a battle against four school girls in matching blue/white outfits starts.
» Movement is controlled through the L-Analog and the button commands are as follows:
TRIANGLE / High kick
SQUARE / Punch
CIRCLE / Special attack
R1-TRIGGER / Guard
L1-TRIGGER / Recover health
» The schoolgirls are fairly aggressive and will gang up on poor Sonsaku with a volley of punches and kicks. They also block blows and mix up the action. Once they're beaten, Chouhi Ekitoku appears and engages Sonsaku in a one-to-one battle. She's a patsy however and after the battle, you're graded on your overall efforts, hit percentage, and time of battle.
» Between battles, the points that you've earned may be used to upgrade Sonsaku's skills. You'll also be prompted to save your progress to memory card after each successful bout.
» After defeating Chouhi, a new character named Cicada enters the scene and speaks to the assembled group which includes Ryofu Housen. Later in recovery, Sonsaku speaks to her cousin and Ryomou. However, after the interaction, Sonsaku's off to battle again where she faces off against another four schoolgirls that regenerate a few times before their bosswoman appears. This time it's Ryomou who swaggers in with her trademark French maid's outfit and eyepatch. She's not much of a fight either but maybe she's holding back.
» The next battle pits Sonsaku against four male bruisers. If you've upgraded Sonsaku's skills, she can perform a ground-level whirlwind kick where she pirouettes on one foot and spins around so she'll knock everyone surrounding her off their feet. The boss lady in the third battle is Ukitsu who throws a hard hitting forward thrust move with her hands.
» The schoolgirls return in the next battle and the boss lady is Choun Shiryu with her pastel blue hair and mysterious persona. Choun attacks with a sword and is can break Sonsaku's guards with her weapon. She can also perform a cinema-accompanied special attack where she seemingly pokes Sonsaku in the stomach and knocks her down for the count.
» Ikkitousen Shining Dragon is a video game that's built on fan service. Sonsaku's shirt is remarkably short and the bosoms found in the game tend to be large and juggle during battle. That's right, juggle. The destruction of clothing is also an interesting feature.
This document is ©NCSX 2007. All rights reserved. No reproduction in whole or in part of this document may be made without express written consent of National Console Support, Inc.