Arcana Heart
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| Arcana Heart | |
|---|---|
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| Developer(s) | Examu |
| Publisher(s) | JP AQ Interactive NA Atlus |
| Designer(s) | Sakuraitooru |
| Series | Arcana Heart |
| Platform(s) | Arcade, Playstation 2 |
| Release date(s) |  2006-12-22 (Arcade)2007-04-? (Arcade, FULL!) |
| Genre(s) | 2D Versus fighting |
| Mode(s) | Up to 2 players simultaneously |
| Rating(s) | CERO: B ESRB: Teen |
| Media | 1 DVD-ROM (PS2) |
| Input methods | 8-way Joystick, 4 Buttons (arcade) DualShock 2 (PS2) |
| Cabinet | Upright |
Arcana Heart (アルカナハート Arukana Hāto) is a 2D arcade fighting game developed by Examu Inc. (formerly Yuki Enterprise). The first edition was released to arcades (mostly in Japan, but a few in other countries) in late 2006. The game features an original all-female cast (each a variation of the moe Anime-Girl archetype), and after choosing a character the player chooses an "elemental alignment" which determines the character's special moves.
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[edit] Development
In mid-April 2007, a patch was released for Arcana Heart called "Arcana Heart FULL". The patch fixed a variety of issues, toning-down overly-powerful characters and "buffing up" weaker characters. A controversy arose, however, due to the fact that the patch (which is physically housed on a single custom chip) costs ¥78,000 each, whereas similar patches for similar games have been released for free (such as the patch for Melty Blood: Act Cadenza).
[edit] Console version
On July 4, 2007 it was announced that a console version of the game is slated for release on PlayStation 2 in Japan on October 11, 2007.[1]
The home version allows the option of playing individual characters in "Original" or "Full," reflecting the original and patched versions of characters from the arcade. Voice acting was also added to all story segments.
On April 11, 2008, the game was released in North America. A notable difference between Arcana Heart and most other US PlayStation 2 titles is that the game has only Japanese voiceovers and no English voiceovers. Atlus removed the voices present in the Japanese console version's story mode as well as prebattle and victory screens, but kept the voices used in battle.
[edit] Arcana Heart 2
| Arcana Heart 2 | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Examu, Inc. |
| Publisher(s) | Examu, Inc. |
| Designer(s) | Sakuraitooru |
| Series | Arcana Heart |
| Platform(s) | Arcade |
| Release date(s) | 2008-03-21 (Arcade) 2008-04-28 (Arcade, ver 2.1) |
| Genre(s) | 2D Versus fighting |
| Mode(s) | Up to 2 players simultaneously |
| Input methods | 8-way Joystick, 5 Buttons |
| Cabinet | Upright |
| Arcade system | eX-BOARD |
Arcana Heart 2 is the sequel to Arcana Heart, which was developed by Examu as the first Examu title published after the rights of the franchise had been transferred to EXAMU, Inc. The base platform was changed to eX-BOARD, the first game for the system.
Arcana Heart 2 was unveiled in AOU2008 Amusement Expo.
New feature is the 6 extra fighters (with unique arcana), Arcana blast, Arcana homing, Critical heart.
- Arcana blast: By consuming 1 power gauge, player becomes temporarily invulnerable.
- Arcana homing: By consuming 1 homing gauge, player can split and perform homing cancel.
- Critical heart: By consuming 3 power gauges, player can use the fighter's specific move when there is a specific distance between opposing fighters.
[edit] Suggoi! Arcana Heart 2
| Suggoi! Arcana Heart 2 | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Examu, Inc. |
| Publisher(s) | AMI Co.,Ltd. (arcade)
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| Designer(s) | Sakuraitooru |
| Series | Arcana Heart |
| Platform(s) | Arcade, Playstation 2 |
| Release date(s) | 2008-10-30 (arcade) 2009-02-27 (arcade update) |
| Genre(s) | 2D Versus fighting |
| Mode(s) | Up to 2 players simultaneously |
| Rating(s) | CERO: B |
| Input methods | 8-way Joystick, 5 Buttons |
| Cabinet | Upright |
| Arcade system | eX-BOARD |
It is the updated version of Arcana Heart 2. Added fighters include Nazuna Inuwaka, Akane Inuwaka, Parace L'Sia. Added Arcana include Cayatshime (Flower), Fenecs (Sound), Parace L'sia (Life).
[edit] Adaptations
A manga based on the video game was serialized on the March 2008 issue of Comp Ace magazine, published on 2008-01-26.[2]
[edit] Audio Drama
The Arcana Heart Fan Disc was sold in 2007-08-17 in Comic Market 72. The package includes 1 DVD and 1 CD. DVD contains 3 audio dramas and interviews. CD contains 3 character songs, and instrumental songs.
A drama CD was included with the limited release of Japanese PS2 game.
Arcana Heart Drama CD Heartful Situation was published by TEAM Entertainment. Episodes were released in 2007-10-24 and 2007-11-21.
[edit] Arcana Heart Stick
It is a limited edition PlayStation 2 controller for the game, manufactured by HORI.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
[edit] Arcana Heart
- Examu AH Website - Arcade version
- AQ AH Website - PS2 version
- Atlus AH Website
- Official English Forum
- A short insertcredit article about the patch
- Hori Arcana Heart Stick page
