Legend of Raven

Release Date: August 13, 2011

Fighting, 2D, for 2 players, splitscreen, multiplayer, singleplayer

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A console port of an independent old school fighting game, Yatagarasu, which became quite a success in 2011 in Japan. Legend of Raven takes us to 25th December 1926, when Japan faces a revolution. The government establishes a secret organization of assassins, who are ordered to restore the order and kill anyone opposing the authorities. For its symbol, the group takes a mythical three-legged raven Yatagarasu.

Legend of Raven is a console port of an old-school fighting game Yatagarasu, which was rather successful in 2011 in Japan. Both original game and its new version were developed by independent team of Circle Edge, which consist of three former workers of SNK company (known from The King of the Fighters series). It has been published by Nicalis company, best known from e.g. Cave Story, NightSky and The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth. At first it was planned for Nintendo 3DS handheld, but a huge interest from players convinced developers to prepare the game for more popular and more powerful platforms. Compared to original title, Legend of Raven offers completely new soundtrack and better backgrounds, as well as improved multiplayer, which lets two players compete through LAN – there also is a cross-play variant for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita, for which the game is available in cross-buy model. This means that copy bought for one platform can be used to play freely on the other as well.

Plot

The story of Yatagarasu/Legend of Raven for PS4, XONE and etc. starts in December 26 1926, when Japan must face a revolution that tries to bring the former glory of “Gods Land”. Due to the raising disturbance, Japanese government decides to establish an organization of assassin’s, which is tasked with bringing back the order and nipping the rebellion in the bud.

Game mechanics

Yatagarasu/Legend of Raven for PS4, XONE and etc. is a classic, two-dimensional fighting game with old-school style, resembling earlier entries in Street Fighter series. Players can choose from 8 characters, each with basic moves and a set of unique attacks. Gameplay is fast-paced and uses 4-button controls, with addition of upper and lower guard, which play a huge role. Well-timed usage of these can surprise our opponent, possibly changing the flow of a battle.

Technical aspects and game modes

The game for PS4, XONE and etc. offers hand-drawn backgrounds and sprite-based characters. Aside from single player mode, there is also local multiplayer for 2 players.

Last updated on January 7, 2017