Unholy Night: The Darkness Hunter

Unholy Night: The Darkness Hunter[lower-alpha 1] is a 2017 fighting game developed by Foxbat Corporation with assistance from Nu-Gaia and published exclusively for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in Japan by BlazePro, North America by Retroism and Europe by JoshProd. Set during modern times, the game follows six fighters from three groups as they face-off in a conflict to confront the vampire Katatonia. Its gameplay consists of one-on-one fights, with a main three-button configuration, featuring special moves and four playable modes.

Unholy Night: The Darkness Hunter
Developer(s)Foxbat Corporation
Nu-Gaia
Publisher(s)
Producer(s)Tatsunori Mano
Designer(s)Hiroto Namada
Wakama2
Programmer(s)Take Spirit
Artist(s)Sachie Okumoto
Takachan Onishi
Yoshi
Composer(s)Maz
Platform(s)Super Nintendo Entertainment System
Release
  • JP: April 8, 2017
  • NA: June 19, 2017
  • EU: July 10, 2017
Genre(s)Fighting
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Headed by Foxbat CEO Tatsunori Mano, Unholy Night: The Darkness Hunter was created by former SNK members who worked on several fighting game franchises, being first launched through Kickstarter but failed to meet its crowdfunding goal before Retroism acquired the publishing rights for release. The title was met with mixed reception from players and critics since its release, many of which felt divided in regards to several design aspects.

Gameplay
Gameplay screenshot showcasing a match with Nightmare and Reinhardt.

Unholy Night: The Darkness Hunter is a fighting game similar to Street Fighter II. The player fights against other opponents in one-on-one matches and the fighter who manages to deplete the health bar of the opponent wins the first bout.[1][2][3] The first to win two bouts becomes the winner of the match. Each round is timed, which can be adjusted or deactivated in the game options; if both fighters still have health remaining when time expires, the fighter with more health wins the round. Basic attacks include a light, medium, and heavy strike.[3]

In story mode, the player can choose from six playable characters and fight against computer-controlled fighters.[1][3][4] A hidden character can be selected by fulfilling certain conditions. If all of the opponents are defeated, the player will be able to fight against a final boss. Like Street Fighter II, performing various motions on the direction pad along with button presses will execute special attacks that are unique to each character;[2][3] The "Synchro Gauge" acts as a super meter that (when full) can be used to unleash a "Super Special Attack" (a more devastating special attack). Other game modes include a local two-player versus mode, survival and training.[1]

Synopsis

Plot

As the fear and enemy of humankind since ancient times, the "Darkness" clan disappeared from the rise of civilization but did not perish and remained alive hunting but those willing to fight back are known as "Hunters". One day, a rumor was heard for those who lived in the darkness about a coffin that sealed the strongest vampire from the Middle Ages, Katatonia, had been moved from its entombment and placed in the "Dragon Palace". The sea that gathers the "Dragon Aura" in the palace weakens and will eventually break. Katatonia will awake with his power greater than before. The Darkness clan wants the power for Katatonia while the Hunters try to contain him.[3]

Characters

The playable cast is broken into six playable characters with one unplayable boss, three "Hunters" and three "Darkness":[2][3][5]

  • Blaze: A "Danpiel" since birth, possessing human and vampire abilities.
  • Reinhardt: A top hunter of the "Saint Knights", who mercilessly punish those who disobey the knight order.
  • Emily: A proud hunter who enters an old house as maid to find out members of the darkness clan to kill them.
  • Cronos: A vampire revived in present times and rival of Blaze.
  • Wurzel: A werewolf warrior of the "Wolfe" clan, who continues to fight humans since ancient times.
  • Nightmare: A "Dream Evil" born in modern society and devours human desires.
  • Katatonia: Final boss of the game. A vampire feared for his strength before being sealed by the Saint Knights.

Development and release
Unholy Night: The Darkness Hunter for the SNES was developed by former SNK members, being the first fighting game for the console in 21 years.

Unholy Night: The Darkness Hunter was co-developed by Nu-Gaia and Foxbat Corporation, a Japanese developer composed of ex-SNK staff previously involved with series such as Art of Fighting, Super Sidekicks, Samurai Shodown, The King of Fighters and The Last Blade.[5][6][7][8][9] Foxbat CEO Tatsunori Mano acted as producer.[7][8] Hiroto Namada and "Wakama2" served as co-designers.[7][8] Former Brezzasoft programmer "Take Spirit" was responsible for coding.[7][8] Artists Sachie Okumoto, Takachan ".024" Onishi and "Yoshi" drew the characters and stages respectively.[7][8] The sound design was handled by composer "Maz".[8] Other members also collaborated in its development.[7][8]

Unholy Night: The Darkness Hunter was first unveiled to the public in a playable state at the 2016 Hong Kong Retro Game Expo.[6][10][11] The game was launched by BlazePro on Kickstarter in 2017 but proved unsuccessfully in reaching its funding goal of US$52,500, raising only half of its needed funds during the campaign.[7][12][13][14][15] However, publisher Retroism later picked up distribution rights to release the title.[14][15] It received coverage from outlets like Siliconera, The Verge and USgamer for being a new release on the Super NES, becoming the first fighting title on the platform in 21 years after Street Fighter Alpha 2.[9][16][17][18] It was first published in Japan by BlazePro on 8 April 2017, then in North America by Retroism on 19 June 2017 and later in Europe by JoshProd on 10 July 2017.[15][16][19][20][21] The cover art was illustrated by Hong Kong artist "Saigenton".[19]

Reception

Unholy Night: The Darkness Hunter was met with mixed reception from players and critics.[22][23] Argentinian magazine Replay praised its anime-style aesthetic and character designs.[24] Bloody Disgusting's Mike Wilson stated it was a "cool thing" seeing developers creating new games for old hardware but remarked that the title was not on par with fighting franchises such as Guilty Gear and The King of Fighters.[25] Anime News Network's Dustin Bailey regarded it to be a "ragged mess", criticizing its controls, limited character roster and audiovisual presentation.[26] Writing for his website The Video Game Critic, David Mrozek commended its digitized-esque graphics, simple controls and "Synchro Gauge" mechanic but criticized its poor English translation and unsophisticated fighting system, among other aspects.[27] Both USgamer's Mike Williams and Alan Ricardo de Oliveira of Brazilian publication WarpZone drew comparison with Darkstalkers due to its visual style.[18][28]

Notes
  1. Also known as Makai Hunter: The Darkness Hunter -Unholy Night- (Japanese: 魔界狩人: ザ・ダークネス・ハンター -アンホーリー・ナイト-, Hepburn: Makai Kariudo: Za Dākunesu Hantā -Anhōrī Naito-) in Japan.

References
  1. Brian (7 April 2017). "SNES is receiving a brand new game in 2017". nintendoeverything.com. Nintendo Everything. Archived from the original on 29 December 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  2. Kitsumeda (10 April 2017). "Unholy Night: The Darkness Hunter a New SNES Game in 2017". Rice Digital. Rice Digital Ltd. Archived from the original on 22 February 2018. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  3. Unholy Night: The Darkness Hunter instruction booklet (Super Nintendo Entertainment System, US)
  4. "Un nouveau jeu SNES en 2017 : Unholy Night The Darkness Hunter !". Gameblog (in French). Gameblog SAS. 30 March 2017. Archived from the original on 10 May 2017. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  5. McClusky, Kevin (13 December 2016). "New SNES fighting game set to launch in February 2017 - Yep, Super Nintendo". Destructoid. Enthusiast Gaming. Archived from the original on 10 November 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  6. MB, Frankie (13 December 2016). "Ex-miembros de SNK presentan su próximo juego de lucha... para Super Nintendo". Vida Extra (in Spanish). Webedia. Archived from the original on 16 December 2016. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  7. "Unholy Night SNES Fighting Game Console Cartridge Unreleased". Kickstarter. 15 February 2017. Archived from the original on 12 November 2020. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  8. Foxbat Corporation, Nu-Gaia (2017). Unholy Night: The Darkness Hunter (Arcade). Retroism. Level/area: Staff roll.
  9. Rosas, Víctor (9 April 2017). "Checa el nuevo juego de peleas para SNES - Unholy Night: Darkness Hunter es desarrollado por exmiembros de SNK". LevelUp (in Spanish). ComScore. Archived from the original on 2 January 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  10. "Antiguos programadores de SNK presentan un nuevo juego de lucha para SNES". RetroManiac (in Spanish). 13 December 2016. Archived from the original on 26 September 2020. Retrieved 16 November 2020.
  11. Williams, Carl (23 December 2016). "Interview – Dixon Wu Founder of Retro HK Annual Convention". retrogamingmagazine.com. Retro Gaming Magazine. Archived from the original on 1 February 2020. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  12. Cowan, David (16 February 2017). "Brand new SNES fighter 'Unholy Night' seeks funding for cartridge production". Digital Trends. Designtechnica Corporation. Archived from the original on 7 February 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  13. McFerran, Damien (16 February 2017). "New SNES Fighter Unholy Night Takes To Kickstarter To Fund Cartridge Production - Created by former SNK staffers, no less". Nintendo Life. Nlife Media. Archived from the original on 13 February 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  14. Lopes, Gonçalo (8 April 2017). "Super Nintendo's 'Unholy Night' Pre-Orders Are Now Live - Ex-SNK-developed fighter gets back up after Kickstarter KO". Nintendo Life. Nlife Media. Archived from the original on 28 January 2020. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  15. Roney, Austyn (22 April 2017). "The SNES fighter Unholy Knight finds new life through Retroism". Shoryuken. Complex Networks. Archived from the original on 3 July 2020. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  16. Casey (9 April 2017). "The SNES Gets A Brand-New Game With Unholy Night: Darkness Hunter". Siliconera. Enthusiast Gaming. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  17. Webster, Andrew (9 May 2017). "These are the developers creating new games for old consoles - Cartridges are back". The Verge. Vox Media. Archived from the original on 10 November 2020. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  18. Williams, Mike (10 July 2017). "SNES Receives Its Latest Release Today With Unholy Night - You can buy a new game for your Super Nintendo". USgamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on 20 January 2018. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  19. "なんと！スーパーファミコン向けの2D格闘ゲーム「Unholy Night 魔界狩人」が発売 - 中が透けて見えるゲームカートリッジを採用". AKIBA PC Hotline! (in Japanese). Impress Corporation. 8 April 2017. Archived from the original on 28 March 2019. Retrieved 16 November 2020.
  20. García, Fran (10 July 2017). "Unholy Night se lanza hoy para Super Nintendo - Un juego de lucha creado por antiguos desarrolladores de SNK". MeriStation (in Spanish). PRISA. Archived from the original on 12 December 2018. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  21. Lamy, Corentin (12 October 2017). "De nouveaux jeux sur cartouche pour Super Nintendo". Le Monde. Archived from the original on 12 November 2020. Retrieved 16 November 2020.
  22. Borrachero, David (15 June 2017). "El juego de lucha 2D para SNES 'Unholy Night' disponible en versión NTSC-U". RetroManiac (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 10 November 2020. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  23. Parish, Jeremy (30 June 2017). "Who needs the Super NES mini when the actual console has four new games arriving in July? - It's raining game tapes". Retronauts. USgamer. Archived from the original on 3 June 2020. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  24. "Start: Esos Nuevos Videojuegos Retro - No Vas A Conseguir Ninguno De Estos En Blockbuster, Porque Ya No Existe". Revisita Replay (in Spanish). No. 4. AReCIA. April 2017. p. 8. Archived from the original on 17 November 2020. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  25. Wilson, Mike (11 July 2017). "A Blast From The Past! 'Unholy Night' Now Available for the SNES". Bloody Disgusting. The Collective. Archived from the original on 30 October 2018. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  26. Bailey, Dustin (13 July 2017). "This Week in Games - Don't Dig Up Your SNES". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 9 November 2020. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  27. Mrozek, David (12 August 2017). "The Video Game Critic's Super Nintendo Reviews - Unholy Night: The Darkness Hunter". videogamecritic.com. The Video Game Critic. Archived from the original on 17 November 2020. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  28. de Oliveira, Alan Ricardo (November 2017). "Análise: Novo jogo de luta pra SNES já está nas locadoras! - Unholy Night: The Darkness Hunter" (PDF). WarpZone (in Portuguese). No. 2. WarpZone Editora. p. 25. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 November 2020. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
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