More Facts Emerge from The Bouncer

Square has revealed new details on its PlayStation 2 title, The Bouncer. Described by the makers as an RPG-action game, this new title will feature beat-'em-up gameplay elements and CG cut scenes in between to convey the storyline. Also called the "seamless action battle system" by Square. The gameplay is broken down into three main parts - movies, real-time events, and action. There is loading time between the action and story events, but it is kept to a minimum. The movie parts of the game will also have an option that lets players skip the cutscenes. The game remains unchanged for the Japanese, North American, and European versions; however, the voice-over will be set to the default language of the respective versions. In addition, every version will feature multiple language tracks and subtitles.

The game will sport several game modes - story mode, team battle, versus mode, and survival mode. According to Square, the story mode takes about seven to eight hours to play through once, but this may take longer if players choose to develop characters in order to acquire additional special moves. Since you can pick from one of three characters, players are encouraged to play the game more than once so that they can view key events from the different characters' perspectives. Although specific details have not been disclosed, the versus mode will contain three submodes that all support the PS2 Multitap, which allows for four-player simultaneous play.

The story starts out at a bar called Fate, where members of the Special Forces strike team, led by Mugetsu, kidnap a young girl named Dominique. Sion, Volt, and Kou - the three bouncers who also happen to be the three main characters - attempt to rescue her but fail as the enemies manage to escape. The game initially focuses on rescuing Dominique, but as players progress they will learn that they must also stop the Mikado Corporation's secret plans to destroy the world. Players will travel through different environments, ranging from subways to outer space.

Characters in the game gain experience through the bouncer points in order to acquire special moves. Analog support is fully implemented in the game, and different attacks (such as weak punches and strong kicks) are executed depending upon the pressure exerted on the buttons of the Dual Shock 2 controller. There will be about 20 different moves that can be learned and developed per character. Each character's development in the story mode can be carried into the versus mode.

The Bouncer for the PlayStation 2 is expected for a January 2001 release in North America. A winter release is expected in Japan, while a spring 2001 release is expected in Europe.