• nl Nederlands
  • en English
AVO Magazine - One click closer to Japan
  • AVO Magazine
    • AVO Magazine, who?
      • AVO Magazine presents
    • About us (日本語)
    • Join the AVO Magazine team
    • Submit News to AVO Magazine
    • AVO Magazine Podcast
    • Join AVO Magazine’s Discord Server
    • Support AVO Magazine
    • Colophon
    • Contact
  • Staff picks
  • Music
    • Music News
      • Concerts and festival news
      • Musical Snack
    • Curtain-raiser
    • Weekly MV Roundup
      • About: 7 New Music Videos You Need To Check Out
  • Events
  • Interviews
  • Reviews
  • Reports
  • Colophon
No Result
View All Result
  • nl Nederlands
  • en English
No Result
View All Result
AVO Magazine - One click closer to Japan
Dutch language / Dutch language
Home News Staff picks

Shonen Jump Heroes Unite For Jump Force

What We Know and What Can We Expect

AlexD by AlexD
4 July 2018
Reading Time: 5 mins read
A A
0
© Bandai Namco

© Bandai Namco

Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on RedditShare on LINE

Announced at E3 during Microsoft’s presentation, Jump Force is a fighting game featuring characters from various Shonen Jump series. At present the only playable characters we know are: Goku and Frieza from Dragon Ball; Naruto and Sasuke from Naruto; Luffy and Zoro from One Piece. Light and Ryuk from Death Note are also involved but it has been confirmed they will not be playable, only serving a role in the story.

During E3 we were treated to a theatrical trailer and some gameplay footage. The story of the game is about our world clashing with the world of Shonen Jump, thus the heroes must band together to not only figure out what is happening but take down their villains counterparts. Reflecting this the fighting stages are confirmed to be real life places which have a combination with Shonen Jump such as Times Square having the World Tree from Naruto. I reckon the way Light and Ryuk are shown at the end of the trailer, they are likely to be involved in why the two worlds are colliding. I wouldn’t be surprised, this is Light after all!

Moving to the gameplay, this has shown us 1 on 1 fighting. However, each side has up to 3 fighters and a player can switch between them when they desire (and in the process you can do a tag team combo). Yet they all share the same health bar. So the aim is to whittle down your opponent’s health bar until there is none left over knocking out every fighter! Further to this, each character has their own unique fighting style, designed to how they are presented in their respected series. This includes an awakened state, where characters may transform (such as Goku turning Super Saiyan). Of course, not all characters have a transformation in Jump, so they will most likely get an awakening boost state to make it fair.

So that’s what we know, but what more can we expect?

© Bandai Namco

© Bandai Namco

Some of you may know this is not the first Shonen Jump collaboration fighting game (despite it strangely being advertised that way). In the west, we got J-Stars Victory+ (released on PS3, PS4, and PSVita) but even that game is not the first! It started back on the Famicon with 2 games simply called Jump Famicon. Then there was Battle Stadium D.O.N. (PS2), which only featured; Dragon Ball, One Piece, and Naruto. Lastly, there were two Jump Super Stars on DS. It is interesting these games are not directly linked in name but is a long-running game series. Based on what I saw, I would say this looks directly like an up-scaled and improved J-Stars Victory+. However, there are already two critical differences so far which makes me wonder if those features are returning.

First, you only controlled one fighter in Victory, but the fights were up to 3 v 3 at the same time. Where it was fun, it could be chaotic and a pain to do competitively. The stages were also larger to accommodate all 6 fighters at the same time. Yet it seems with Jump Force they are changing this for fighting 1 v 1, yet you still keep the team of 3 but they just fight one at a time. I also noticed the stages are smaller, which would make sense to avoid fights being needlessly drawn out and people just running away. They also seem simplified, again this would support the new 1 v 1, but they have seemingly added special stage attacks so if you manage to knock your opponent to a specific part of the stage you can deal some extra damage. It will be interesting to see if the 3 v 3 format returns as an alternate mode but I have a feeling it won’t.

Secondly, there seemed to be lack of support characters in the demo shown at E3. This could have just been because they haven’t finished programming this or simply just did not want to show it just yet. Still, I do wonder if they will choose to bring it back as the feel of this game seems to be more serious. The support characters could be summoned to either provide an attack or give some sort of stat boost. In the last version, a support character could be any of the playable characters or even some extra ones who were only supported. This is a good way to include more series and characters who are not fighting based. Particularly as they were included in the introduction scenes of each fight which made them feel just as involved. It is completely possible this is where Light and Ryuk come in as they aren’t playable, but could be support characters. This one we will have to wait and see for further information. I do hope they return as it is a nice game mechanic but may be confusing with the 3 different fighters you already control.

Compared to the previous versions, Jump Force already seems to be more story driven than the previous versions. Indeed there has been story modes, but it is more of a case it was just put in there to extend the game. At their heart, they are just fighting games. J-Stars Victory+ for example does have a story mode where you pick one of three teams and you navigate through a combined Jump world, interacting with other heroes and such. This also had visual novel style cut-scenes which I loved as it was great seeing characters from different series interacting. However, it’s a safe bet to predict that Jump Force will have proper animated scenes which will be even cooler when the different characters interact.

From what we have been shown, it is already clear the creators are going to go all out on this one. Which has got to mean a bigger rooster than J-Stars Victory+. It will hopefully be a case of more series and also more characters from each series. Plus there have been plenty of newer series that are likely to join the fray. For instance, we have Black Clover, giving us Asta and Yuno who are no doubt likely going to be involved. Of course, the big new series is My Hero Academia that will have to be included. My bets are on: Deku; Bakago; All-Might; and Stain, all being playable characters. The tricky part will be how to balance this between series. Popularity and how fighting orientated the series is will be a huge factor so it will be interesting to see how it plays out. Again, if supports return it will be great to include a wide range of series.

On a personal note, I just want to see more Gintama characters. Particularly as in J-Stars Victory+ Gintoki was only really a joke character with only 1 basic combo. I hope they give him a more rounded style that actually fits with how he fights in the anime. Kagura (if she is not a support) and Takasugi would be another 2 good characters to just give Gintama the representation it deserves. It will be interesting to see if the joke characters do return such as; Lucky Man, Kankichi Ryotsu, etc., as they would not fit with the more serious tone. Yet I would still like to see their return as it just captures the heart of Shonen Jump’s variety.

Either way, as this is linked to the 50th Anniversary of Shonen Jump, it is sure to be a huge project that will bring all the great elements of the different series together. Jump Force will be published by Bandai Namco and released on PS4, Xbox One, and PC in 2019. Comment below if you agree with our predictions or have any of your own!

Tags: animenamco bandaivideogames
ADVERTISEMENT
AlexD

AlexD

Writer for AVO Magazine on anime, games, and music. Usually found reading or watching Shonen Jump series.

Related Posts

BRIDEAR © Setsuzoku Records
Music Announcements

All dates for BRIDEAR’s Decide to Survive European tour 2022 announced

by Francisca Hagen
9 August 2022
0

Almost a year after the ladies of metal band BRIDEAR toured Europe against all odds amidst the COVID-19 pandemic situation,...

Read more
© Paranoid Void

Paranoid Void touring the United Kingdom this August

4 August 2022
Collage of band photos from the bands MONO, Paranoid Void and MASS OF THE FERMENTING DREGS

MONO, Paranoid Void and MASS OF THE FERMENTING DREGS to perform at ArcTanGent Festival 2022

4 August 2022
© SABLE HILLS

Sable Hills on tour through Europe for the first time

2 August 2022
© Minyo Crusaders

Minyo Crusaders touring Europe for second time

29 July 2022
Next Post
The four members of LOUDNESS © KATANA MUSIC KK

LOUDNESS to tour Europe: Rise To Glory Over Europe

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

I agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Donate a digital coffee to keep AVO Magazine online
ADVERTISEMENT
Facebook Twitter Instagram Youtube Soundcloud Discord


Online magazine since 2012. AVO Magazine is a Japan-related entertainment website with information about events in especially The Netherlands, Belgium and the rest of Europe. There is a big focus on Japanese music. Other contents we publish are reports, reviews, informative articles, and interviews. AVO Magazine originated from AVO Forum, started on 16 May 2003.

Contact (Francisca Hagen): info[@]avo-magazine.nl

Please do not use text and photos made by AVO Magazine without permission. An email is easily created. Let's support each other!

Affiliates

JPU Records

1_General CDJapan

Featured on

HYPER JAPAN TV logo Lucydafirst - Crate Culture logo

AVO Magazine Approved

  • Arlequin Photography
  • Get Your Genki
  • Idol is SHiT
  • J-POP streaming
  • Japan Jams
  • Japone Artists
  • The Sushi Times

Join our Discord Server

©2003 - 2022 AVO Magazine - One Click Closer to Japan!
*Donate to keep AVO Magazine online *

No Result
View All Result
  • Events
  • Interviews
  • Reviews
  • Reports
  • Colophon
  • Keep AVO Magazine Online
©2003 - 2022 AVO Magazine - One Click Closer to Japan!
  • nl Nederlands
  • en English
This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.