JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is one of the most iconic manga ever released, and has spawned many a video games based on the franchise. One game that stands out the most was Capcom’s fighting game, JoJo’s Venture, and its update JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Heritage for the Future. The game was made using the CP System III arcade board that was used for Red Earth and the Street Fighter III games, and was even made by the same team that made the Street Fighter III sub-series. JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Heritage for the Future can be thought of as a spiritual sequel to the Street Fighter III games, and a perfection of its ideas as well.
The game had the same basic setup as the Street Fighter III series, and of course had the same basic attack options and super meter, but there was something else the game had as well. This is of course the inclusion of Stands from the manga. These are projections of a character’s aura and were made part of the overall move set, with characters possessing an active Stand that they could bring into and out of the fight with a specific command. The Stands were a game changer, since they could increase attack power, enable unique techniques, and a variety of new abilities and options. You could even receive have some Stands attack separately from your fighting, but if the stand was attacked, your fighter would also take damage.
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Heritage for the Future brilliantly incorporated the unique fights of the manga into the fighting mechanics of Street Fighter, and the result was special. This was a treat for fans of the manga, but fighting game fans also fell in love with the game. It was a different type of fighter that still managed to have a sense of familiarity. The game also had a story Mode, which was a single player campaign for each character and sort of followed the manga’s story. This enabled people to both learn more about the manga and feel like you were playing it.
The game has some other neat additions as well, such as special stages between matches, like side scrolling areas and special battles. There was a much more extensive story mode as well, but that was only in the PlayStation version of the game. The PlayStation version was based on the revision of the game, but the Dreamcast version was considered better. It contained both the original version and the revision, and was a far better playing experience that has aged like a fine whisky.
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Heritage for the Future is a licensed game that makes perfect use of its genre and license. The amazing fights of the manga merged wonderfully with Street Fighter style gameplay, and Capcom managed to make the game stand out well. The game did get an HD remaster, but the game was pulled from online stores after the license ran out. I would love to see this game get a new HD re-release, and maybe even a physical version this time. It is something fans of the fighting game genre and the JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure manga both deserve.
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