Waku Waku 7

Waku Waku 7 (わくわく7) is a SUNSOFT fighting game initially released as an arcade game for the MVS / Neo Geo system in 1996. It was later ported to the Sega Saturn. An arcade-perfect port is included in the 2008 PlayStation 2 release, Sunsoft Collection. The Neo Geo version will be ported to the Japanese Virtual Console in April 2010. The game is not a sequel; it is instead named after its seven main characters. It remains the first and so far only Waku Waku game. The word "Waku Waku" is Japanese onomatopoeia for sounds of excitement. It was later ported in a two-in-one game collection titled Sunsoft Collection (サンソフトコレクション), along with Galaxy Fight: Universal Warriors, another fighting game developed by Sunsoft.

Plot
"It is said that the person who collects all sevens of the legendary Wheenisian balls will have their dearest wish granted. Those who find one of the balls become obsessed with the ruthless desire to obtain the others, who will be victorious in the bitter battle to become the owner of all the balls. Victory or defeat - it all lies in your hand."

Gameplay
Waku Waku 7 has an irregular feature set for a fighting game of its time, and includes features common to SNK fighting games (four basic attacks, screens zooming, etc.).


 * The game has a roster of nine characters (Two of which were available only in the Versus mode of the console ports). Each has a significantly different playstyle and parodies a well-known character from another game.


 * Each character has a powerful special move (Referred to as the Harahara movement, or Harahara motion). They had several factors that made them unique, including:
 * They were easy to execute;
 * They needed to be charged. (during which the character concentrates, says something, strikes a pose or blows a fanfare)
 * They were unblockable and difficult to dodge, but could be interrupted while charging.
 * While charging, the game flashes a warning and sounds an alarm.


 * Characters could be launched through the screen to hit the other corner, and attacked while on the ground; but could also dodge or attack while getting up.

Characters

 * 🇯🇵 Rai

Full name Rai Bakuoh, a 15-year old young boy, he's convinced he's the hero. He behaves and looks like a cocky anime protagonist. In his stage, is seen practicing BMX tricks. Rai has black hair, and wears goggles on his head. He wears a black, collared shirt with a white sleeveless jacket, white short shorts suspended by a black belt with black gloves and boots. He also wears a long, red scarf around his neck.


 * More than once Rai has been compared to Terry Bogard. Most of his special moves use some sort of dark electric power. He is able to jump very high, and even double-jump. Though the elements are switched, he is the Ken to Arina's Ryu (Ken is to fire as Ryu is to electricity; Arina is to fire as Rai is to electricity).


 * 🇯🇵 Arina

Full name Arina Makihara, she is a 17-year old young girl with bunny ears clad in leotard and a short-sleeve jacket. She is said to have learned to fight in an extracurricular compulsory class in high school. She is often seen with her friends and little brother.


 * Arina is often compared to Ryu or Ken Masters, although some moves seem inspired by Athena Asamiya / Mai Shiranui. Her appearance and position as 'main character' mirrors Rai's.


 * Dandy-J

A treasure hunter, who is after the Waku Waku balls solely because he was hired to go after its treasure. In this quest, he's accompanied by his daughter Natsumi and pet cat 'Rampoo' (sometimes mentioned as Ramp or Rump; perhaps it is an instance of engrish). Dandy-J uses a whip in his battles, with Natsumi and Rump sometimes making single attacks at the opponent. He appears to be based on Joseph Joestar from the third series of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, as well as Indiana Jones.


 * Many of Dandy-J's attacks work better at very close range -- one of his attacks with the whip consists on pulling the opponent to a closer range. Additionally, most of his moves can only be activated at the end of another move, making him similar to some versions of Kyo Kusanagi.


 * 🇯🇵 Mauru

'Marurun' in the Japanese version, is a purple forest creature resembling Totoro. He carries with him Mugi, a lost little girl. He likes fruit and singing.


 * Gameplay-wise, Mauru is similar to Darkstalkers' Sasquatch, with many moves mimicking near-verbatim, while his character being accompanied by a child resembles Donovan or Huitzil, both also from Darkstalkers (though it should be noted that Huitzil gained a companion in the third installment of the Darkstalkers series, which came after Waku Waku 7).


 * 🇺🇸 Politank-Z

Politank-Z is a tank-mecha of the police department. It is piloted by the Chief (who bears an odd resemblance to Wario) and his trusty sidekick, the Mechanic, who is a dog. It comes equipped with a wide array of weapons, including bombs, spikes, drills, and mines.


 * The Politank is large and slow, making it easy to hit; but is able to deal large amounts of damage with small combos. While one can make a case for the Spinning Lariat used during HaraHara reminding them of Zangief, Politank-Z seems to have been designed as a spoof of the anime Patlabor.


 * 🇯🇵 Slash

Slash fits the stereotype of a 'cool bishōnen'. He's a calm and collected elf, with light green hair and blue trench coat.


 * Slash battles with a laser sword, in a manner similar to Strider, although he is sometimes compared to characters from Samurai Shodown in gameplay mechanics, with Ukyo Tachibana being a visual comparison. Most of his moves involve swipes and energy waves of some sort.


 * 🇫🇷 Tesse

The seventh robot built by Dr. Lombrozo, Tesse was made to cook and keep the house clean. She leaves after the Waku Waku gems to achieve her dream of becoming human.


 * Tesse has an unorthodox play style with a limited array of attacks. She fights using an assorted array of cleaning utensils, electricity attacks, and syringes. By using weaponry hidden in hammerspace, she seems to lampoon Hsien-Ko from the Darkstalkers series. Her floating in the air, stretching limbs, and ability to teleport (during HaraHara) seems to be taken from Dhalsim.

Selectable only in the versus mode:


 * 🇰🇷 Bonus-Kun

A living punching bag, of looks and motives that directly lampoon Ryu from Street Fighter. His origins lie in Galaxy Fight; he was Rouwe's (the game's boss) punching bag, until it became alive and was then trained by him.


 * Being a clear parody, Bonus Kun's attacks and moves are direct adaptations of Ryu's, including a version for each of his attacks such as Bonus Kun's Kou Shuu Tan, which parodies the popular Hadouken. His victory poses mimic those of Ryu's. Like Ryu he turns while his headband blows in the wind and his smile is similar to Ryu's smile and raised arm victory pose. Due to lack of limbs, he cannot crouch, block, or grab opponents.


 * 🇯🇵 Fernandez

Full name 'Makaitaitei Fernandez' (known as Fernandeath in the Japanese version), he's best described as a black sphere with stubby arms, legs and wings, a large grin and an irritating modulated voice. Fernandez is the game's last boss, and is as tall as a skyscraper. Through a variety of magical means, the other characters are enlarged so as to fight him on equal terms.


 * Fernandez lampoons many SNK bosses. He is large, but still agile, and deals high damage. His closest resemblance to SNK bosses is that he suffers from "SNK Boss Syndrome," which dictates that they are fast and nearly impossible to beat without constantly using one move to exploit a weakness. He is also notably cheap in this manner, as his HaraHara requires absolutely no charge. Most of his moves are simple attacks by using his oversized hands, the rest being more comical, such as eating his opponent, then blasting them out of his backside.

Music
The music was composed by Masato Araikawa, who also composed music for Galaxy Fight: Universal Warriors. A soundtrack of the music was released by Pony Canyon's Scitron label on May 7, 1996 exclusively in Japan.

Track List

 * 1) わくわく7オープニング WakuWaku Seban Ōpuningu/Waku Waku 7 Opening
 * 2) わくわくバトるぜ!(キャラクター選択) Waku Waku Batoru ze! (Kyarakutā Sentaku)/An Exciting Battle! (Character Selection)
 * 3) VS画面 Bi Esu Gamen/VS Screen
 * 4) ライステージオープニング Rai Sutēji Ōpuningu/Rai Stage Opening
 * 5) たたかえ!超冒険少年ライ(ライ・ステージ) Tatakae! Chō Bōken Shōnen Rai (Rai Sutēji)/Fight! Super Adventure Young Boy Rai (Rai Stage)
 * 6) ポリタンクZステージオープニング Poritanku Zetto Sutēji Ōpuningu/Politank-Z Stage Opening
 * 7) ゆけ!ゆけ!ポリタンクZ(ポリタンクZステージ) Yuke! Yuke! Poritanku Zetto (Poritanku Zetto Sutēji)/Go! Go! Politank-Z (Politank-Z Stage)
 * 8) アリーナステージオープニング Arīna Sutēji Ōpuningu/Arina Stage Opening
 * 9) わくわくがとまらない(アリーナ・ステージ) Waku Waku ga tomara nai (Arīna Sutēji)/The Excitement Doesn't Stop (Arina Stage)
 * 10) まるるんステージオープニング Marurun Sutēji Ōpuningu/Marurun Stage Opening
 * 11) 思い出の森 Omoide no Mori (Marurun Sutēji)/Forest of Memories (Marurun Stage)
 * 12) 勝ちテーマ Gachi Tēma/Win Theme
 * 13) 負けテーマ Make Tēma/Lose Theme
 * 14) ボーナスステージオープニング Bōnasu Sutēji Ōpuningu/Bonus Stage Opening
 * 15) やさしくゆるして(ボーナス・ステージ) Yasashiku Yurushi te (Bōnasu Sutēji)/Kindly Forgive Me (Bonus Stage)
 * 16) 乱入者来たる! Rannyū sha rai taru!/A Challenger Arrives!
 * 17) ダンディーJステージオープニング Dandī Jei Sutēji Ōpuningu/Dandy J Stage Opening
 * 18) 陽はまた沈む(ダンディーJステージ) hi ha mata shizumu (Dandī Jei Sutēji)/The Sun Also Sets (Dandy J Stage)
 * 19) ティセステージオープニング Tise Sutēji Ōpuningu/Tesse Stage Opening
 * 20) ドリーム・ワルツ(ティセステージ) Dorīmu Warutsu (Tise Sutēji)/Dream Waltz (Tesse Stage)
 * 21) スラッシュステージオープニング Surasshu Sutēji Ōpuningu/Slash Stage Opening
 * 22) 運命の肖像(スラッシュステージ) unmei no shōzō (Surasshu Sutēji)/Portrait of Fate (Slash Stage)
 * 23) レリーフ(妖精登場デモ) Rerīfu(Yōsei Tōjō Demo)/Relief (Fairy Appearance Demo)
 * 24) フェルナンデスステージオープニング Ferunandesu Sutēji Ōpuningu/Fernandez Stage Opening
 * 25) プロローグ・オブ・デス(フェルナンデスステージ) Purorōgu obu Desu (Ferunandesu Sutēji)/Prologue of Death (Fernandez Stage)
 * 26) 妖精(妖精デモ) Yōsei (Yōsei Demo)/Fairy (Fairy Demo)
 * 27) ライエンディング1 Rai Endingu Wan/Rai Ending 1
 * 28) ライエンディング2 Rai Endingu Tzu/Rai Ending 2
 * 29) ポリタンクZエンディング1 Poritanku Zetto Endingu Wan/Politank-Z Ending 1
 * 30) ポリタンクZエンディング2 Poritanku Zetto Endingu Tzu/Politank-Z Ending 2
 * 31) アリーナエンディング1 Arīna Endingu Wan/Arina Ending 1
 * 32) アリーナエンディング2 Arīna Endingu Tzu/Arina Ending 2
 * 33) まるるんエンディング1 Marurun Endingu Wan/Marurun Ending 1
 * 34) まるるんエンディング2 Marurun Endingu Tzu/Marurun Ending 2
 * 35) ダンディーJエンディング1 Dandī Jei Endingu Wan/Dandy J Ending 1
 * 36) ダンディーJエンディング2 Dandī Jei Endingu Tzu/Dandy J Ending 2
 * 37) ティセエンディング Tise Endingu/Tesse Ending
 * 38) スラッシュエンディング1 Surasshu Endingu Wan/Slash Ending 1
 * 39) スラッシュエンディング2 Surasshu Endingu Tzu/Slash Ending 2
 * 40) スタッフロール Sutaffu Rōru/Staff Roll
 * 41) コンティニュー Kontinyū/Continue
 * 42) ゲームオーバー1 Gēmu Ōbā Wan/Game Over 1
 * 43) ゲームオーバー2 Gēmu Ōbā Tzu/Game Over 2
 * 44) ゲームオーバー3 Gēmu Ōbā Suri/Game Over 3
 * 45) ライ Voice Rai Voice/Rai Voice
 * 46) ポリタンクZ Voice Poritanku Zetto Voice/Politank-Z Voice
 * 47) アリーナ Voice Arīna Voice/Arina Voice
 * 48) まるるん Voice Marurun Voice/Marurun Voice
 * 49) ダンディーJ Voice Dandī Jei Voice/Dandy J Voice
 * 50) ティセ Voice Tise Voice/Tesse Voice
 * 51) スラッシュ Voice Surasshu Voice/Slash Voice
 * 52) フェルナンデス Voice Ferunandesu Voice/Fernandez Voice
 * 53) ボーナスくん Voice Bōnasu-kun Voice/Bonus Kun Voice
 * 54) etc.Voice etc. Voice/Etc. Voice
 * 55) S.E.コレクション Esu Eto Korekushon/S.E. Collection