{{short description|1992 video game}} {{good article}} {{Infobox video game | title = Soldier Blade | image = Soldier blade boxart.jpg | caption = North American cover art | developer = Hudson Soft | publisher = Hudson Soft | designer = Uriko Uribo | composer = Keita Hoshi<br />Makiko Tanifuji | series = ''Star Soldier'' | released = {{vgrelease|JP|July 10, 1992|NA|September 1992}} | genre = Scrolling shooter | modes = Single-player | platforms = TurboGrafx-16 }}
{{nihongo foot|'''''Soldier Blade'''''|ソルジャーブレイド|Sorujā Bureido|lead=yes|group=lower-alpha}} is a 1992 vertically scrolling shooter developed and published by Hudson Soft for the TurboGrafx-16. Controlling the titular starship, the player is tasked with completing each of the game's seven stages in order to wipe out the Zeograd Army, an alien race bent on conquering Earth. The game is the fourth entry in the ''Star Soldier'' series and shares many similarities with its predecessor ''Super Star Soldier'', with ''Soldier Blade'' having a heavy emphasis on speed.
The initial idea for ''Soldier Blade'' came from Hudson designer Uriko Uribo's conversations with other employees over which game to use for the company's upcoming Caravan video game tournament. With the event only six months away, Uribo was hesitant to begin production, however executives from Hudson pushed for him to go forward with the idea. Miscommunication between Uribo and staff lead to several mechanics being altered or changed by mistake, such as several stronger enemies instead being easy to kill.
Although the game was rushed to meet its deadline, critics liked its gameplay, visuals and power-up system, though some thought it lacked originality and felt inferior to Hudson's previous shooters for the system: ''Blazing Lazers'' and ''Final Soldier''. Retrospective reviews were much more positive, with some labeling it one of the TurboGrafx-16's definitive shooter games for its fast-paced gameplay and easy learning curve.
==Gameplay== thumb|left|The player exchanges shots with the first stage boss. ''Soldier Blade'' is a vertical-scrolling shooter video game, and the fourth in Hudson's successful ''Star Soldier'' series. The player assumes the role of the titular starship, which must complete each of the game's seven stages (referred to as "operations" in-game) in an effort to wipe out the Zeograd Army, an alien race bent on conquering Earth.<ref name="Manual">{{cite book |title=Soldier Blade instruction manual |date=10 July 1992 |publisher=Hudson Soft |location=Japan |url=http://www.videogameden.com/hucard/extra/sob.pdf |access-date=7 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170105221534/http://www.videogameden.com/hucard/extra/sob.pdf |archive-date=5 January 2017 |language=Japanese}}</ref> Gameplay is often compared to its predecessor ''Super Star Soldier'', sharing many of its gameplay elements and mechanics, but with a heavy emphasis on speed.<ref name="IGN"/><ref name="EGM"/>
The Soldier Blade begins the game with a standard "Vulcan" projectile, which can destroy most enemies with a single shot, and can collect other weapons by acquiring different colored power capsules; these include a wave gun and a deadly laser that wipes out anything in its path.<ref name="Manual"/> Collecting a power capsule will also cause a pod-like craft to join the player, which provides additional firepower.<ref name="Manual"/> The Soldier Blade can be destroyed by colliding with either an enemy or a projectile; by collecting up to three power capsules, the player can take up to three hits.<ref name="Manual"/> The player can also store three power-up items in a storage box placed towards the bottom of the screen, which can be deployed at any time.<ref name="Manual"/> Weapons can also be destroyed to give the player a devastating screen-clearing superweapon, which can wipe out all enemies on the screen.<ref name="Manual"/> A miniboss will need to be fought towards the middle of the stage, followed by an actual boss at the end.<ref name="NLife"/> Bosses can be destroyed by shooting at its weak point.<ref name="Manual"/>
Akin to other games in the series, ''Soldier Blade'' has two "Caravan" time attack modes, a two-minute version and a five-minute version.<ref name="NLife"/><ref name="Manual"/> In both of these, the player is tasked with scoring as many points before the time runs out.<ref name="Manual"/> Completing the main game will give the player access to a stage select, allowing them to play whichever area they choose.<ref name="Manual"/>
==Development== thumb|right|''Soldier Blade'' was originally titled ''Sonic Blaster F-92'', which had to be changed due to trademark issues. The initial idea for ''Soldier Blade'' was conceived by Hudson Soft designer Ukiuki Uribo, during conversations with others about which game to use for the company's upcoming Caravan video game tournament.<ref name="Interview">{{cite web |last1=Uribo |first1=Ukiuki |title=Soldier Blade – 2012 Developer Interview |url=http://shmuplations.com/soldierblade/ |website=Shmuplations |access-date=7 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181025031007/http://shmuplations.com/soldierblade/ |archive-date=25 October 2018 |date=2012}}</ref> Hikaru Aoyama suggested creating a new shooting game with the tournament in mind; Uribo was hesitant to begin working on it due to it being around six months away, but Hudson executives pushed for the idea to go forth anyway.<ref name="Interview"/> During early stages of production Uribo was simultaneously working on several Game Boy titles, which gave him less time to focus on the new game until these were completed.<ref name="Interview"/> Planning for the project was known to be constantly under pressure via time and memory constraints, with employees simply throwing in ideas on the spot and creating the game as they went.<ref name="Interview"/> It was originally called ''Sonic Blaster F-92'' in early versions, named after the player's ship designed by artist Tatsuya Doe, however trademark issues caused it to be renamed ''Soldier Blade'' instead.<ref name="Interview"/> It began development on a 6-megabit HuCard, reduced to a 4-megabit one later on.<ref name="Interview"/>
Uribo originally wanted enemy sprites to have more diversity and variety, which due to memory limitations had to be cut.<ref name="Interview"/> Miscommunication between Uribo and the rest of the development team within the planning documents caused some elements of the game to be altered by mistake, such as the large "Bay Wolf" battleships in the first stage being near-defenseless and easy kills and the "missile pod" enemies in the sixth stage to fire a simple spread shot instead of homing missiles.<ref name="Interview"/> The development team were interested in including an asteroid belt stage with diagonal scrolling and enemies using the asteroids as shields, however time and hardware constraints forced it to be scrapped.<ref name="Interview"/> Composers Keita Hoshi and Makiko Tanifuji composed the music.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://vgmdb.net/release/9429 |title=Soldier Blade - VGMdb |website =VGMdb.net}}</ref> Per Uribo's request, Keita Hoshi created a medley theme featuring music from each stage of the game to be played at the end credits.<ref name="Interview"/> Atsushi Kakutani designed the Caravan Mode almost entirely alone, although Uribo provided some minor assistance.<ref name="Interview"/> The cover art was created by Yuji Kaida, a famed Japanese illustrator known for producing art for series such as ''Godzilla'', ''Ultraman'' and ''Macross''.<ref name="Interview"/>
==Release== ''Soldier Blade'' was released for the PC Engine in Japan on July 10, 1992.<ref name="Famitsu"/> It was released in North America for the TurboGrafx-16 two months later in September.<ref>{{cite news |title=Soldier Blade |url=https://archive.org/details/Electronic_Gaming_Monthly_038/page/n153?q=Soldier+Blade+turbografx |access-date=7 December 2019 |agency=Electronic Gaming Monthly |issue=38 |publisher=EGM Media, LLC. |date=September 1992 |pages=154–155}}</ref> Uribo wished that he and the development team had more time to correct and refine many of its mechanics and features, but the time constraints forced them to release it in its current stage.<ref name="Interview"/> After its release Uribo began drafts for a potential ''Soldier Blade II'', an idea that was never fulfilled.<ref name="Interview"/> For their Caravan tournament, Hudson produced a modified version of the game called ''Soldier Blade Special Version'', which only features the two Caravan time attack modes.<ref name="BEEP!"/> It was produced in very limited quantities, and typically commands high prices on online auction sites.<ref name="BEEP!">{{cite web |title=【宅配買取】PCエンジン キャラバン公認ソフト スペシャルバージョンを東京都江戸川区のお客様よりお譲りいただきました |url=https://www.beep-shop.com/blog/6739/ |website=BEEP! |access-date=7 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170706020405/http://www.beep-shop.com/blog/6739/ |archive-date=6 July 2017 |date=14 March 2017}}</ref>
''Soldier Blade'' was digitally re-released for the Wii Virtual Console worldwide in January 2007.<ref name="NLife"/> It is included in the 2008 PlayStation Portable compilation ''Soldier Collection'' alongside its predecessors ''Super Star Soldier'', ''Final Soldier'' and ''Star Parodier''.<ref>{{cite web |last1=North |first1=Dale |title=Pew-Pew-PSP collection of Star Soldier games might be on the way |url=https://www.destructoid.com/pew-pew-psp-collection-of-star-soldier-games-might-be-on-the-way-92855.phtml |website=Destructoid |access-date=7 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100317073714/http://www.destructoid.com/pew-pew-psp-collection-of-star-soldier-games-might-be-on-the-way-92855.phtml |archive-date=17 March 2010 |date=29 June 2008}}</ref> It was re-released for the PlayStation Network service on February 17, 2010 in Japan under the ''Game Archives'' brand.<ref>{{cite web |title=ソルジャーブレイド |url=https://www.jp.playstation.com/software/title/jp0555npjj30022_00soldierbladejh24.html |website=Official PlayStation Store Japan |publisher=SIE Worldwide Studios |access-date=18 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160426200139/https://www.jp.playstation.com/software/title/jp0555npjj30022_00soldierbladejh24.html |archive-date=26 April 2016}}</ref> A digital version for the Wii U Virtual Console was released in 2014.<ref>{{cite web |title=Soldier Blade |url=http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/game/38587/soldier-blade-wii-u-vc-tg-16 |website=Nintendo World Report}}</ref>
==Reception== {{Video game reviews | EGM = 7/10, 7/10, 7/10, 6/10<ref name="EGM">{{cite magazine|magazine=Electronic Gaming Monthly|title=Review Crew|last1=Harris|first1=Steve|last2=Semrad|first2=Ed|last3=Alessi|first3=Martin|author4=Sushi-X|date=October 1992|volume=5|issue=10|publisher=Sendai|ISSN=1058-918X|p=32|url=https://archive.gamehistory.org/item/1c9108c0-b9e6-4c14-9d4f-3287bf973212|accessdate=October 27, 2025|via=Video Game History Foundation}}</ref> | EuroG = 7/10<ref name="EuroG">{{cite web |last1=Parkin |first1=Simon |title=Virtual Console Roundup |url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/r_vcroundup_220607_wii?page=4 |website=Eurogamer |access-date=7 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170604171128/http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/r_vcroundup_220607_wii?page=4 |archive-date=4 June 2017 |page=4 |date=23 June 2007}}</ref> | Fam = 8/10, 7/10, 7/10, 5/10<ref name="Famitsu">{{cite magazine|magazine=Famicom Tsūshin|title=New Games Cross Review|authorlink1=Hirokazu Hamamura|first1=Hamamura|last1=Tsūshin|first2=Giorgio|last2=Chuji|last3=Watnabe|first3=Miki|author4=Taco X|issue=187|publisher=ASCII Corporation|date=July 17, 1992|p=38}}</ref> | GameFan = 80%, 88%<ref name="GameFan">{{cite news |author1=Skid |author2=Brody |title=Viewpoint - Soldier Blade |url=https://archive.org/details/Gamefan_Volume_01_Issue_02_December_1992/page/n7 |access-date=7 December 2019 |agency=GameFan |issue=2 |publisher=DieHard Gamers Club |date=December 1992 |volume=1 |page=9}}</ref> | GSpot = 7.2/10<ref name="GSpot">{{cite web |last1=Provo |first1=Frank |title=Soldier Blade Review |url=https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/soldier-blade-review/1900-6165628/ |website=GameSpot |access-date=7 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191207155052/https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/soldier-blade-review/1900-6165628/ |archive-date=7 December 2019 |date=8 February 2007}}</ref> | IGN = 7.5/10<ref name="IGN">{{cite web |last1=Bozon |first1=Mark |title=Soldier Blade VC Review |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2007/02/22/soldier-blade-vc-review |publisher=IGN |access-date=7 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190503125747/https://www.ign.com/articles/2007/02/22/soldier-blade-vc-review |archive-date=3 May 2019 |date=22 February 2007}}</ref> | NLife = 9/10<ref name="NLife">{{cite web |author1=Nintendo Life Staff |title=Soldier Blade Review (TG-16) |url=https://www.nintendolife.com/reviews/tg16/soldier_blade |website=Nintendo Life |access-date=7 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190509192558/https://www.nintendolife.com/reviews/tg16/soldier_blade |archive-date=9 May 2019 |date=9 January 2007}}</ref> | PO = 40%<ref name="Player One">{{cite news |author1=Chris |title=Soldier Blade |url=http://download.abandonware.org/magazines/Player%20One/playerone_numero023/Player%20One%20023%20-%20Page%20120%20(1992-09).jpg |access-date=7 December 2019 |agency=Player One |issue=23 |date=September 1992 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191207070809/http://download.abandonware.org/magazines/Player%20One/playerone_numero023/Player%20One%20023%20-%20Page%20120%20(1992-09).jpg |archive-date=7 December 2019 |page=120 |language=French}}</ref> }} The original TurboGrafx-16 version of ''Soldier Blade'' was met with a mixed response from critics. ''GameFan'' compared the game favorably to Hudson's own ''Blazing Lazers'',<ref name="GameFan"/> while ''Famitsu'' said it was one of the better shooters released for the console.<ref name="Famitsu"/> One reviewer from ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' labeled it "a hastily crafted title to herald the coming of the soon-to-be-released TurboDuo", but other reviewers from the magazine were more positive, despite noting the game's lack of originality.<ref name="EGM"/> Reviews were mixed on the gameplay. The reviewers from ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' rated it from average to very good.<ref name="EGM"/> ''GameFan'' greatly applauded it for its originality and fast-paced action.<ref name="GameFan"/> ''Famitsu'' said that while the gameplay was enjoyable, it was not as refined as Hudson's earlier shooters for the systems.<ref name="Famitsu"/> ''Player One'' magazine found it not well-designed and too easy, feeling it was disappointing compared to ''Final Soldier''.<ref name="Player One"/> Many praised the graphics for being detailed and colorful,<ref name="EGM"/><ref name="GPro">{{cite news |author1=Speedy Buns |title=TurboGrafx-16 Pro Review - Soldier Blade |url=https://archive.org/details/GamePro_Issue_039_October_1992/page/n85?q=Soldier+Blade+turbografx |access-date=7 December 2019 |agency=GamePro |issue=39 |publisher=International Data Group |date=October 1992 |page=100}}</ref><ref name="GameFan"/><ref name="Famitsu"/> with ''Player One'' adding that was one of the game's defining features.<ref name="Player One"/>
The Wii Virtual Console version garnered a more positive response. ''Eurogamer'' said it was "twitch gaming in its purest, most basic form",<ref name="EuroG"/> while ''Nintendo Life'' called it "one of the most respected games for the system".<ref name="NLife"/> ''IGN'' found it to be an excellent addition to the Wii Virtual Console library, saying that it stuck out from most shooters available for the service.<ref name="IGN"/> The gameplay itself was praised by many, with ''GameSpot'' applauding its easy learning curve and ''IGN'' liking its fast pace, saying it had some of the best on the TurboGrafx-16 as a whole.<ref name="GSpot"/><ref name="IGN"/> ''Eurogamer'' claimed it to be the fastest shooter on the system and for its gameplay being "surprisingly easy".<ref name="EuroG"/> Several praised the game's graphics, visual effects and soundtrack. ''Nintendo Life'' said that it added a "timeless quality" to it,<ref name="NLife"/> with ''GameSpot'' and ''IGN'' commending the graphics for being colorful and detailed.<ref name="GSpot"/><ref name="IGN"/> ''GameSpot'' also liked the game's visual effects for being impressive and well-made.<ref name="GSpot" /> Many publications greatly appreciated the power-up system for being unique and fun to use,<ref name="NLife"/><ref name="IGN"/> with ''GameSpot'' in particular liking its flexibility and for being easy to understand.<ref name="GSpot"/>
==Notes== {{notelist}}
==References== {{reflist}}
{{Star Soldier series}}
Category:1992 video games Category:PlayStation Network games Category:Scrolling shooters Category:Star Soldier Category:TurboGrafx-16 games Category:Video games developed in Japan Category:Virtual Console games Category:Virtual Console games for Wii U Category:Single-player video games