Tenchi Muyou! Game Hen
Encyclopedia
, also known as Tenchi Muyo! RPG, is a Japanese
role-playing
strategy game developed by Banpresto
for the Super Famicom, released on October 27, 1995. It was licensed by AIC and the now former Pioneer LDC. While Tenchi Muyou! Game Hen was never officially translated and released for international consoles, the later dumped ROM image
of the game was hacked
and translated into English on two occasions. Lina`chan, Nuku-Nuku & Filia's Translations, or LNF, released their functional iteration in 2000, albeit some bugs and textual imperfections.
perspective. The game focuses entirely on fighting monsters within progressive worlds, all of which contain linear paths with predetermined battles. As such, the player does not freely roam or interact with the world.
There are a total of 12 playable characters in the game: Tenchi
, Ryoko, Ayeka
, Mihoshi
, Sasami
, Mizuki, Ryo-Ohki
, Katsuhito, Yukinojyo, Azaka
, Kamidake and Washu
. The player starts with the beginning four, acquires the subsequent two later, and, by visiting more varied locations, can acquire the remaining six. In prototypical role-playing fashion, each character has different movements, skills, personal advantages, attacking power, health and defense. Unlike the commonly instituted experience points system, however, characters level up by the accumulated number of monsters they defeat in battles. There is a cap of eight levels that each player character can earn (unlike the Final Fantasy series and Chrono Trigger
where each character's level can go up to 99). Up to four characters can be brought into combat at once and matches continue until all members of either side are eliminated.
and other planet
s. The characters Mizuki and Kusumi, new to the franchise, make an only appearance in the game.
On an otherwise ordinary sunny morning, Tenchi, Ryoko, Ayeka, Mihoshi and Ryo-Ohki sit to breakfast as Sasami finishes serving food. Realizing that Washu is not present, Sasami and Ryo-Ohki go to fetch her. Shortly after leaving, the house begins to wavily glow; ghastly monsters appearing in the hall.
Fighting and defeating the intruders, the group is approached by Mizuki, a mysterious girl who explains the obscure reason for her visit: test and measure the strengths of everyone. All but Ryoko take her objective with any real care until Mizuki presents Sasami as a hostage, garnering the now dire attention of the group. Acting the sportsman however, Mizuki agrees to surrender her captive in return for any one of the group injuring her in a fight. Much to her angst, Mizuki loses; refusing to go through with her end of the deal. She offers the group a future rematch as compensation and, leaving them with her next location, teleports Sasami and herself to her outbound spaceship.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
role-playing
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
strategy game developed by Banpresto
Banpresto
is a Japanese toy company, best known in America for game development, headquartered in the Shinagawa Seaside West Building in Shinagawa, Tokyo. It was founded April 1977 as Hoei Sangyo, Co. Ltd. The company was renamed Coreland in 1982, and during the 1980s it worked mainly as a subcontractor for...
for the Super Famicom, released on October 27, 1995. It was licensed by AIC and the now former Pioneer LDC. While Tenchi Muyou! Game Hen was never officially translated and released for international consoles, the later dumped ROM image
ROM image
A ROM image, or ROM file, is a computer file which contains a copy of the data from a read-only memory chip, often from a video game cartridge, a computer's firmware, or from an arcade game's main board...
of the game was hacked
ROM hacking
ROM hacking is the process of modifying a video game ROM image to alter the game's graphics, dialogue, levels, gameplay, or other elements. This is usually done by technically inclined video game fans to breathe new life into a cherished old game, as a creative outlet, or to make essentially new...
and translated into English on two occasions. Lina`chan, Nuku-Nuku & Filia's Translations, or LNF, released their functional iteration in 2000, albeit some bugs and textual imperfections.
Gameplay
Tenchi Muyou! Game Hen is a turn-based game played from an isometricVideo games with isometric graphics
In video games, "isometric" refers to some form of parallel projection where the viewpoint is rotated slightly to reveal other facets of the game environment than are visible from a top-down perspective or side view, thereby producing a three-dimensional effect...
perspective. The game focuses entirely on fighting monsters within progressive worlds, all of which contain linear paths with predetermined battles. As such, the player does not freely roam or interact with the world.
There are a total of 12 playable characters in the game: Tenchi
Tenchi Masaki
is the main protagonist of the Tenchi Muyo! series. Tenchi's name means 'Heaven and Earth'. It is the same as 'Tenchi' in the Shinto Kojiki which contains some of Japan's oldest myths and legends.-Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Ohki:...
, Ryoko, Ayeka
Ayeka Masaki Jurai
is a key character in the various Tenchi Muyo! anime series by AIC. While details of her character differ between the various series, Ayeka is typically shown as the beautiful first princess of the planet Jurai who has fallen in love with the title character, Tenchi Masaki...
, Mihoshi
Mihoshi Kuramitsu
is a Galaxy Police detective in the fictional Tenchi Muyo! anime and manga series. Her given name "Mihoshi", , literally means "Beautiful Star", and is derived from a town in the Okayama Prefecture formerly known as Bisei.-OVA:...
, Sasami
Sasami Masaki Jurai
is a fictional character in the anime series Tenchi Muyo! and its various spin-offs.-Personality and series role:In most series, Sasami is the younger sister of Ayeka and so is also a princess of Jurai. Within the family group Sasami usually takes on the dual role of younger sister/mother. She...
, Mizuki, Ryo-Ohki
Ryo-Ohki
, is a fictional character in the Japanese anime series Tenchi Muyo! and its spinoffs. Ryo-Ohki's appearance is similar to a cross between a cat and a rabbit, and for this reason Ryo-Ohki is commonly referred to as a cabbit...
, Katsuhito, Yukinojyo, Azaka
Azaka and Kamidake
and are fictional characters in the manga and anime series Tenchi Muyo!Azaka and Kamidake, Ayeka's guardians, in the form of floating logs. They can generate a barrier that allows them to protect Ayeka and paralyze their target, though their powers pale in comparison to the power held by the Royal...
, Kamidake and Washu
Washu Hakubi
, the self-proclaimed greatest scientific genius in the universe, is a fictional character in the anime and manga Tenchi Muyo!. Her character differs depending on the continuity, though she sometimes displays a number of innate powers which she rarely uses, preferring to solve problems with reason...
. The player starts with the beginning four, acquires the subsequent two later, and, by visiting more varied locations, can acquire the remaining six. In prototypical role-playing fashion, each character has different movements, skills, personal advantages, attacking power, health and defense. Unlike the commonly instituted experience points system, however, characters level up by the accumulated number of monsters they defeat in battles. There is a cap of eight levels that each player character can earn (unlike the Final Fantasy series and Chrono Trigger
Chrono Trigger
is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1995. Chrono Triggers development team included three designers that Square dubbed the "Dream Team": Hironobu Sakaguchi, the creator of Square's Final Fantasy series; Yuji Horii, a...
where each character's level can go up to 99). Up to four characters can be brought into combat at once and matches continue until all members of either side are eliminated.
Setting and plot
Like the other mediums of the series, Tenchi Muyou! Game Hen begins on the Masaki residence, progressively branching from the property to spacecraftSpacecraft
A spacecraft or spaceship is a craft or machine designed for spaceflight. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, earth observation, meteorology, navigation, planetary exploration and transportation of humans and cargo....
and other planet
Planet
A planet is a celestial body orbiting a star or stellar remnant that is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity, is not massive enough to cause thermonuclear fusion, and has cleared its neighbouring region of planetesimals.The term planet is ancient, with ties to history, science,...
s. The characters Mizuki and Kusumi, new to the franchise, make an only appearance in the game.
On an otherwise ordinary sunny morning, Tenchi, Ryoko, Ayeka, Mihoshi and Ryo-Ohki sit to breakfast as Sasami finishes serving food. Realizing that Washu is not present, Sasami and Ryo-Ohki go to fetch her. Shortly after leaving, the house begins to wavily glow; ghastly monsters appearing in the hall.
Fighting and defeating the intruders, the group is approached by Mizuki, a mysterious girl who explains the obscure reason for her visit: test and measure the strengths of everyone. All but Ryoko take her objective with any real care until Mizuki presents Sasami as a hostage, garnering the now dire attention of the group. Acting the sportsman however, Mizuki agrees to surrender her captive in return for any one of the group injuring her in a fight. Much to her angst, Mizuki loses; refusing to go through with her end of the deal. She offers the group a future rematch as compensation and, leaving them with her next location, teleports Sasami and herself to her outbound spaceship.