Way of the Warrior FAQ V0.85!

Frequently Asked Questions List V0.85, maintained by Brad Davidson <Brad Davidson>, Mosaic version by Michel Buffa <michel.buffa@cmu.edu>
/\__ ___ /\___ /\__ ____ /\___ /\_____ / | \/ \/ | \ / \ \ / | \ . \ : / / \ \ ____/ \ / \ ) _: \__ __/ / \ \ \ \ . / \_ \/ \ \ / / _/ \___: /____: \ \ \ ' / \ |__/ |_____/____/ \_____/\____\ _ 3DO's Way Of The /\_______/\_____ /\_______ / \ Warrior FAQ / / : \\ ____/ _/_ _\_ V0.85 \__ / \__/ __:__ | __)_ _\ o o /(\ Pre-Release of / \ | : | \ (__ O __/ / \| | | \ |__ __| How to find the WAY! \______/|___| |________/ (___|___) | : ___ : // \ /\__ ___ /\___ /\______/\______ \___/ /\___ /\______ / | \/ \\ _ \ _ \ ___ / \\ _ \ / | \ . \ | __/ | __// \/ \ \ | __/ \ / \ ) _: \ \| \/ \ \ \ \ \ . / \_ \ \ \ \ / / \ \___: /____: \: \ : \_____/ ' /___: \ |__/ :_____/|_____) |_____) \_____/ |_____) : . [WiGaN] . : . Maintained By: Wigan Ludgate (wludgate@wam.umd.edu) Please send corrections and additions to me.

The Legend:

An obscure sect of mystical monks live in a secluded monastery in the peaks of a high mountain range; the monks believe in a form of personal enlightenment and karmic balance through martial prowess. The High Abbot (who is racially some sort of dragon) oversees a special tournament once every hundred years, gathering the greatest fighters in the world for an opportunity: The winner has his/her name inscribed in the holy book as the greatest warrior in the world.

FAQ Organization:

Section 1: Character Profiles

Konotori:

Born of American businessman Michael Cash and his wife Delores Cash during a business trip in Japan, Jeremy Cash began his life in the fast paced world of international business. By the age of two he had been in over 28 countries. Tragically, his parents perished shortly before his fourth birthday in a plane crash that left him barely alive in the Japanese mountains.

Rescued and adopted by a local Japanese farmer, Jeremy began his formative years as the only gaijin (foreigner) in the town of Kyosaka where he was raised. In order to help him, the farmer began to teach Jeremy the martial arts. Rapidly overtaking his master, Jeremy quickly developed his own individual techniques, taking advantage of his seemingly supernatural light weight to allow him to extend his talents past that of other martial artists.

Soon after his 16th birthday, Jeremy returned to witness the death of his adopted father at the hands of the Ninja. Hired by a wealthy land owner, the Ninja had been sent to "convince" Jeremy's father to sell his family's land to the local baron. Swearing to average his father, Jeremy disappeared into the underworld of Tokyo to hone his skills.

Reemerging as Konotori, the Stork, with his father's death to avenge, Jeremy has entered the tournament for revenge and not glory.

The Ninja:

The head of the Shitake clan of Ninjas, not much is known of the one they simply call "The Ninja". What is known is that his services are affordable only to the very richest, that his methods are known only to him, and that his service record is perfect.

The Ninja has many enemies -- Konotori and the Dragon are but two. His only "friends" are the members of his clan and a select group of outsiders whom he has met on one or more of his missions. It is known that one of these people is Major Gaines, who the Ninja has found himself fighting alongside in more than one private war. It is also known that if the price were right, his friendship would be put aside and the Ninja would fight anyone.

Little is known of the Ninja. Beware.

Major Gaines:

A violent child since birth, Simon Gaines was destined for the military. No one realized exactly how good Gaines was at combat, however, until the military started training him in the arts of war. Quickly rising in skill and rank, it was not long until someone in the brass saw his potential for the covert operations department of the British Military, the SAS.

Gaines moved up quickly in the SAS, and eventually he became leader of the Iron Hawks, a quick attack unit that the SAS used in dire situations. Often sent on suicide missions, an Iron Hawk has a life expectancy of 1.7 missions. Gaines had survived 16 missions before he was sent on the mission code-named "Jungle Death".

Sent to South America to retrieve a kidnapped British Minister from Carlos Bano, the second biggest drug lord in the world, Gaines lost all but one of his men fighting to enter the highest room in Bano's hacienda. There the drug lord, gun to the Minister's head, offered Gaines five million dollars and the position of Major of his commandos if Gaines would only spare his life. Gaines accepted Bano's offer by placing a bullet squarely between the eyes of the British Minister and the last member of his own troop. During his stint as head of Bano's bodyguards, Gaines received an experimental steroid injection implant from the drug lord's chief chemist. Activated on demand, the implant temporarily boasts Gaines' size and strength, although use of the steroids slowly wears at his body and makes him more susceptible to damage during boost periods.

Five years later, after accepting ten million dollars from Bano's rival drug lords to assassinate him, Major Gaines is available to those who can afford him.

Shaky Jake:

Born and raised 1,100 miles from the nearest neighbor in the outback of Australia, Jake Querious knew no other children while he was growing up. In fact, until he was 17 his parents neglected to inform him that there were other people on the earth besides him and them. By six years old Jake was more than able to fend for himself. Gone for weeks at a time with nothing but his trusty staff, Jake survived on the meat of the snakes that were attracted to him by the rattlesnake rattles that adorned his belt. It is these rattles that would later earn him his nickname.

On his seventeenth birthday Jake's parents decided it was time for him to find a wife. His parents gave him some money (which took some explaining) and pointed Jake toward Melbourne. Twenty-two hours later, slightly tired but full of anticipation, Jake and his handy staff entered the first brightly lit building that he had ever seen.

Jake stood awestruck in the entrance of The Rowdyhouse bar and grill for nearly thirty seconds before the local toughs tried to relieve him of his money. Not thirty seconds later the proprietor was offering Jake a shot as he swept out the half dozen toughs who now littered the floor. Jake took the shot of whiskey, gulped it down, and mysteriously blew his first fireball.

He never went home.

The Dragon:

Chin Liu is a model martial artist. Sound of mind, body, and heart, the young Liu quickly grew in skill and finesse, eventually earning an apprenticeship at the Beijing Opera House. Here he training with other prodigies under the best masters that China has to offer. Graduating first in his class, two classes early, Chin Liu's rapid kicks and punches, as well as a smattering of seemingly superhuman skills, earned him the nickname "The Dragon".

After graduating at 16, the Dragon toured the world competing and teaching for three years, then began a promising career as a movie star. The Dragon has starred in "A Kick Before Dying", "Naked Punch", "Close Encounters of a Violent Kind", and some of the "BloodFisted Kickboxer" series (I, II, III, V, and VIII).

Recently, during the shooting of "A Kick Before Dying II: Kick Me If You Can!", the Dragon barely survived an attack by the Ninja, who had been hired by the Yazuka, the Japanese mafia, to settle a royalty dispute pertaining to the Japanese release of "Close Encounters of a Violent Kind".

Although above revenge, the Dragon would not mind a fair fight with the Ninja in order to "show him the error of his ways".

Nikki Chan:

Over 1,000 years ago the god XingTso fell in love with a mortal girl whose beauty was so great that it inspired him to cross the great bridge between heaven and earth. This girl, however, was betrothed to the mad magician king Quan Ming.

Furious that a mere god would try to steal away his property, the king used his powers to warp the soul of the young girl, binding her to the Wheel of Great Transmigrations in such a way as to insure that she would be reincarnated time after time with no hope of release to heaven and in such a form that even her divine lover could not find her. Even to this day the legacy of this great evil mars the celestial harmony of heaven, causing an unidentifiable agony among the gods.

Nikki Chan is the latest reincarnation of this tortured girl's soul, and although she does not know why, the soul of that ancient girl has driven her on a path that will make her known to heaven, and therefore to her long lost lover. She has applied herself with manic devotion to the creation of her own acrobatic style of Kung Fu which she intends to use to vanquish all of her opponents in the great contest. The Book of Warriors is of such renown in heaven that should she win the contest her name will become known in that greater plane and her soul be released from its bondage to the Wheel of Great Transmigrations, allowing her to join her lover once again.

Nobunaga:

Nobunaga epitomizes the Japanese desire for inner perfection. The child prodigy of a Kendo master, Nobunaga took to the sword before walking. Rigorously schooled in classic Kendo by his parents by day while heading out after dark to practice and learn from other masters at night, Nobunaga quickly became one of Japan's foremost young Kendo champions.

Swearing off all but swordplay, Nobunaga rarely speaks, rarely eats, and rarely sleeps. His technique has been called superhuman, and surely some of his moves can be classified as supernatural.

Recently, Nobunaga's concentration was broken for the first time. Seeking out foreign techniques to further his skills, he was introduced to Nikki Chan in China after watching a performance of Chinese opera. Upon first sight of Nikki Chan, Nobunaga felt insecure in a way he had never felt before, and has been unable to concentrate ever since.

Although he had shown no interest in entering the tournament when its existence was first revealed to him, he has now realized that it represents what may be his only hope of either winning Nikki Chan's heart, or ridding his heart for her forever. Ironically, he does not know that her heart and her soul belong to another far more powerful than he.

Fox:

Malcolm Fox is the son of an African ambassador to France. As a child, he rebelled against his father, and his father's impeccable sophistication, by roaming the streets of Paris in gangs and eventually becoming the leader of the largest band of toughs in Paris.

One night, while "wilding" in the streets, Malcolm's gang came upon and quickly began mugging a wealthy Thai businessman. Watching in awe as Malcolm single-handedly dispensed his three internationally renowed bodyguards and fearing that he was next, the businessman made Malcolm a deal that he couldn't refuse. Without pause, Malcolm turned on his gang, and minutes later, with their bodies littering the alleyway, he swore an oath and began his life as a bodyguard.

While in Thailand with the businessman, Malcolm spent his free time studying Muy Thai. He has integrated these techniques with his street fighting and has now become one of the most sought after bodyguards in the world.

Working for thousands of dollars an evening and following his employers to high society functions all around the planet, Malcolm has also, ironically, acquired all the manners and sophistication that he disliked in his father.

Crimson Glory:

Nationality: American Real Name: Crimson Smith Age: 24 Height: 5'09" Weight: 114 lbs Weapons: Bottle of kerosene & a match A classic modern American cowgirl, Crimson Glory rides her iron horse across the paved planes of the middle and western United States. The only daughter in a family of 12 children, Crimson was a "tom-boy" as a child. She showed no interest at all in dolls or other typical "girl toys" but instead took up wrestling and boxing to fill her time. It wasn't until her early teens when she started becoming a woman that the men she had hung out with started to treat her as anything but one of the boys.

Deciding that she was not going to change her ways for anyone, Crimson surmised that the best way to gain the guys' respect was to beat the living hell out of them. By 22, she had done just that, one, two and often dozens at a time, in just about every sleazy bar west of the Mississippi River.

Crimson sees the competition as just another bar filled with men, and although seeing her in action has often been called "the show of a lifetime", the truly wise have always fled the bars that Crimson Glory enters.

Kull (Boss):

The second-to-last boss, an extremely well-rendered 3D model (SGI Indigo Extreme II did the rendering work) is rapidly being entered. HE IS TALLER THAN THE SCREEN when the camera is fully zoomed in. That's right; he's more than 480 pixels tall. Don't ask why he's that tall...

High Abbot (Boss)

A 3D rendered model. Tough as nails. Speaking of nails, he's got really big ones.

Section 2: FAQ

[1] What is Way of the Warrior?

A: Way of the Warrior is the first 32-bit fighting game for the 3DO. It is comparable to MKII in graphics and SSF2T in game play. It is also the first 32-bit fighting game to ever hit the home video game platform. (Sorry, Jag owners. Kusami Ninja has until Aug. 30 to be the first. Will it be ready?)

[2] Who is Naughty Dog Inc.?

A: Naughty Dog INCORPORATED is made of head programmer Andy Gavin, who is also president, and head artist Jason Rubin. From time to time they hire others; for their next game at least one other programmer will probably be on board.

[3] I have seen many different versions of WOTW. What are they?

A: TV ads, videotapes, and the such are showing lots of different versions of WOTW, most of which are far inferior to the present version. Here's a summary of the evolution of the game:

Versions:

[4] How many characters are there?

A: More than 9 playable digitized characters. (If you are good) Each digitized from full-motion video and smoothly rendered from approximately 250 frames of animation each and anti-aliased through Naughty Dog's own proprietary technology. More than two unique CPU opponents. (If you are good) At least two are 3D non-human creatures rendered of SGI boxes. In fact, David Liu suggests that if you are really good, finding more than... say 14 or 15 characters that you can PLAY should be possible.

[5] How many moves are there?

A: More than 65 standard moves per character. Each character has 15-20 character specific or unique moves.

Here's a sampler of Way's specials moves:

This list is getting too long. I covered about 5 of the characters.

[6] Are there fatalities?

A: Yes. More than 25 fatalities, and each character has at least 2 specific fatalities. More than 6 fatalities are background dependant (as in Eternal Champions) so that brings the total to more than 8 fatalities per character.

[7] Is WOTW being censored?

A: No, WOTW is not censored in any way. Universal Interactive has done nothing but support and assist the Dogs.

[8] Are there any secrets?

A: Lots of it!! IF YOU ARE GOOD ENOUGH you will find 33-50% more characters in the game than you first thought were there. Also, lots of other secrets besides secret characters... there may (or may not be) several secret backgrounds to find, maybe even a secret totally unrelated to fighting... or two.

[9] How do I block?

A: The controls resemble those of Mortal Kombat in that the five buttons are used for weak/strong kick, weak/strong punch, and block. The advantage of having a block button is that it allows the player to move backwards when his opponent is attacking; in Street Fighter II -style games in which block is away on the directional pad this is not possible.

[10] How does the AI compare to SSF2 or MKII?

A: WOTW undoubtedly has the most sophisticated AI of any fighting game CPU opponent. It goes through an extremely complex vectored analysis of your predicted trajectory and its predicted possible countermove trajectories then selects the best one and executes. This sophistication doesn't mean it is too difficult, just that it plays more like a human (with MOODS, aggressions, grudges against you) and less like a robot.

[11] How fast is the game play?

A: This question is very complex and somewhat ambiguous. Your walking speed is say 4-5 body lengths per second. However, because the entire game zooms in and out to capture all the action, "speed" in absolute terms depends on the camera's perspective. There is a variety of speeds in Way's moves. Some are instant (e.g. teleports), others are very fast (e.g. flying kicks, charge moves [some]), others are standard fighting speed.

The arena is HUGE both horizontally and vertically. Thanks to the zooming, you can literally go just about anywhere. This means that you can jump pretty high, and thus you stay airborne longer than most fighting games.

Perhaps the best way to convey my feeling of fast gameplay in concrete terms is to say that you can execute more moves of any type per unit time than any other fighting game. You can jump, then WHILE IN THE AIR, jab kick and punch an airborne opponent (three moves in the air!) then catch him as he tries to stomp on you and backbreak him. This all takes about one second.

[12] What is this magic I have been hearing about?

A: Some magic (which replaces the traditional score pts.) changes the entire nature of your character. Not just the expected "increase life", "hurt more", etc. magic, but some that change the entire way your character looks and plays.

[13] How are the graphics?

A: A solid 30 frames per second (25% faster than films), Photorealistic 3D backgrounds, and VERY smooth panning and zooming (Ala Samauri Shodown) of the camera, giving the players absolute freedom of movement along with a complete view of the action. Weather effects, true perspective shadows and reflections (details that take advantage of 3DO's texture mapping and transparency hardware) Dynamic scaling and rotating of game objects and special magic bonus items

[14] Why does the fighting animation seem jerky or not as smooth as in MK or MKII?

A: WOTW has over 250 frames per 256 color character. The programmer could have made a teflon-smooth fighter by distributing these 250 frames over say 10 moves as many fighting games do, however he wanted to make a fighting game that has much more variety than most games. Each character has a standard complement of weak, strong, and superstrong punch + weak, strong, and superstrong kick standing, crouching, and in the air but in addition, each character has say around 15 special moves, plus a subset of more than a dozen magics, plus multiple fatalities. All these take frames and thus memory.

Although there are roughly 250 frames of animation per character (which indeed is a great deal for a 256 color character in a fighting game), there are WAY [pun] WAY WAY more moves in WOTW than in say MK/SFII/SSho per character. Knowing that the 3DO's RAM size is finite, even under Andy's skilled hands, WOTW crams two sets of 250 frames plus background and program into a limited amount of memory (some access tricks are used which really makes the amount of data available more like [my guess] 10 megaBYTES). BUT since there are say 60ish moves total per character (or more), this doesn't leave many frames per move as one would find in a game where there are say 30 moves total per character. So even though WOTW has more jelly, the piece of bread it covers is also larger than normal.

Also, since the WOTW characters are very large, the distance covered between frames is greater. For example, if I have a small character doing a kick, having 5 frames on that kick will look smoother than if the character is twice as large since the leg moves twice the distance in the same time in the latter case.

MK and MKII use lots of shortcuts in its fighting engine which make it possible to get away with a smaller, well-defined set of needed character animations. For example, all characters are the same height. Your character can stand ONLY on one of 30 discrete standing points on the arena; if you try to stand in between these points, the result is that your character gets forced to the nearest point. These facts make the set of possible things you can do very discrete and limited; if you are X distance points away from enemy and do a jump kick then it will hit at the same place always. It's a clever way to handle things, and allows for a smaller number of possible moves to have to be drawn. However, you lose having complete freedom and flexibility of movement (not to mention variety of character size and moves). I believe this is the reason behind many player's complaints that MKII has lousy gameplay.

[15] How are the voice effects and sound effects?

A: These are being added quickly. All of the sounds are sampled at CD quality of 44KHz. Each character has an estimated 20 or so sound effects plus the referee's 80 voice comments. There is more sound effects in Way of the Warrior than four times a 16 megabit cartridge, and almost as much memory devoted to sound effects as all of fatal fury 2 for the Neo Geo. Currently there is a content library test music score. In the finished version there will be a major label band doing the soundtrack.

[16] What is the big band's name doing the soundtrack?

A: The best rumor so far is White Zombie.

[17] Is Dragon a member of or related to anyone at Naughty Dog?

A: No, Dragon is Asian and none of the programmers are related to him.

[18] How much will WOTW cost?

A: WOTW will cost what 3DO CD's normally cost. (50 to 60$)

[19] When will WOTW be coming out?

A: WOTW is scheduled for a August 30 1994 release date. WOTW should be hitting the arcades in fall 94.

Section 3: Moves

Note: Moves listed in the manual, will not be listed in this FAQ.

Sorry, no moves until game arrives.

Section 4: Tricks

Sorry, no tricks until game arrives.

Credits:

David Liu- Most of the pre-release information has been obtained, thankfully, from David. Due to his efforts as a WOTW pre alpha, alpha, and beta-tester, he has been able to help impliment many of the requests that internet users, mostly members of the Rec.Games.Video.3DO forum, have made. We all gladly welcome his commentary well into the future in the R.G.V.3DO forum.

Rick Reynolds- Kudos for being the best (and only) 3DO rep I know. Rick has also been good at giving 3DO fans information about up and coming software.

Disclaimer:

This FAQ or the author are no WAY affiliated with the 3DO Company or Naughty Dog Incorporated.