Saturday Night Slam Masters

Saturday Night Slam Masters
File:Saturday Night Slam Masters arcade flyer Capcom.jpg Promotional flyer for Saturday Night Slam Masters featuring an illustration by Tetsuo Hara
Developer(s)	Capcom
Publisher(s)	Capcom
Artist(s)	Tetsuo Hara
Platforms	Arcade, Genesis, Super NES, FM Towns Marty
Release date(s)	July 13, 1993 (Saturday Night Slam Masters) December 1993 (Muscle Bomber Duo) September 2, 1994 (Ring of Destruction)
Genre(s)	Wrestling
Mode(s)	Up to 4 players, cooperative (2v2)
Cabinet	Upright
Arcade system	CP System Dash + QSound
Display	Raster resolution 384×224 (Horizontal)

Saturday Night Slam Masters, known in Japan as Muscle Bomber – The Body Explosion (Japanese: マッスルボマー ザ・ボディー・エクスプロージョン), is a 1993 pro wrestling arcade game released for the CP System by Capcom. The game features character designs by manga artist Tetsuo Hara, famous for Fist of the North Star.

The game was followed by an updated version titled Muscle Bomber Duo in 1993, and a sequel called Ring of Destruction: Slam Masters II in 1994.

Gameplay

The original Slam Masters plays like a traditional wrestling game, only the game used a view similar to that commonly used in the fighting game genre. The game uses a three button configuration (grab, attack, and jump).

Each character has two special attacks: a non-grappling technique and a finisher. When an opponent's life meter is depleted, he must either be pinned for a three-count or forced to submit. Defeating all of the other wrestlers results in winning the championship belt, which must then be defended against the entire roster.

There are two game modes: Single Match, where the player fights in a series one-on-one matches against the CPU; and Team Battle Royale, where the player and another partner (controlled by another player or by the CPU) competes in a series of two-on-two matches. The game can be played by up to four players.

Characters

The game features a playable roster of ten wrestlers. Only eight of the wrestlers are selectable in the Single Match mode. The remaining two: Jumbo and Scorpion, are non-playable boss characters in Single Match and selectable only in Team Battle Royale. In the English localization, Capcom changed the names of all the characters and modified much of the backstory. The English names are used in this article, followed by the original Japanese names (when they differ) in parentheses.

File:Saturday Night Slam Masters (character selection).png

Character selection in Saturday Night Slam Masters. From left to right in the character selection row: Jumbo Flapjack, Biff Slamkovich, Gunloc, The Great Oni, Titanic Tim, El Stingray, Mike "Macho" Haggar, Alexander the Grater, King Rasta Mon and The Scorpion.

Biff Slamkovich (アレクセイ・ザラゾフ, Aleksey Zalazof)

The main protagonist of the series. In the Japanese version of the game, Zalazof is a Russian wrestler who trained under Haggar alongside his rival, Gunloc. No such character connection is established in the English version, although Biff makes a reference to "Comrade Zangief" in his losing quote. Alex from Street Fighter III bears a strong resemblance to Biff.

Gunloc (ラッキー・コルト, Lucky Colt)

In the Japanese version of the game, Colt is another apprentice of Haggar and Zalazof's rival, explaining the similar fighting styles. The English version implies that Gunloc is a relative of Guile (from Street Fighter II), a character relation that was mentioned again in the Street Fighter: The Movie arcade game where it is revealed that Gunloc is Guile's brother.

The Great Oni (ミステリアス・ブドー, Mysterious Budo)

A Japanese wrestler who dresses with a kabuki-like theme. He is apparently a rival of El Stingray. Possibly based on Keiji Mutoh.

Titanic Tim (タイタン・ザ・グレート, Titan the Great)

A huge English wrestler who uses both his size and strength to intimidate his opponents. His backstory explains that he was once a tag team partner to Birdie of the Street Fighter series. Considering some details about his appearance, he probably was based on the French wrestler André the Giant. He could also be possibly based on Giant Baba.

El Stingray (エル・スティンガー, El Stinger)

A Mexican luchador who amazes the crowds with his high-flying speed and techniques. He's based upon the Mexican wrestler Lizmark, who is very popular in Japan. He could also be possibly based on Santo and/or Owen Hart's "Blue Blazer" character.

Mike "Macho" Haggar (マイク・”マチョ”・ハガー)

Originally one of the main characters from Final Fight. The Japanese version establishes that Haggar's appearance in this game takes place before being elected as the new Mayor in Final Fight. However, the English version refers to Haggar as the "former Mayor of Metro City". His daughter, Jessica (also from Final Fight), sometimes enters into the ring to celebrate with him when he wins a match. Haggar and Jessica's portrayal in Saturday Night Slam Masters seems to be possibly based on Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth.

Alexander the Grater (シープ・ザ・ロイヤル, Sheep the Royal)

An Australian wrestler who has a merciless attitude in the ring. He is possibly based on Big Van Vader.

King Rasta Mon ("ミッシングIQ" ゴメス, "Missing IQ" Gomes)

A wild jungle-like man who acts like a beast in combat. He is always accompanied by his pet monkey, Freak, who happens to be his "manager". He is possibly based on Bruiser Brody.

Jumbo Flapjack (キマラ・ザ・バウンサー, Kimala the Bouncer)

A very large and sadistic wrestler who enjoys making his opponents bleed in his time. He is the right-hand man of the Scorpion and was based on Abdullah the Butcher and Earthquake.

The Scorpion (アストロ, The Astro)

The game's final boss and main antagonist of the series. The appearance of this character was inspired by the legendary "luchador" Tinieblas, one of the first Mexican wrestlers to tour Japan in 1974. Scorpion's moves are also possibly based on those of Tiger Mask and his name comes from The Black Scorpion.

Ports

The original Slam Masters was ported to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Sega Genesis and FM Towns Marty. The Super NES version retains the Team Battle Royale mode (which can be played with the multitap for up to four players), while the Genesis version replaces it with an exclusive Death Match mode. The Genesis version is also the only version of the game that allows the player to select The Scorpion and Jumbo for the Single Battle mode. In contrast to the arcade version, which only used Tetsuo Hara's artwork for promotional illustrations, the console versions of Slam Masters for the Super NES and Genesis use Hara's actual artwork in the game.

Special attacks

• Jumbo – Pancake Toss
• Biff – Head Rocker
• Gunloc – Gut Crush
• Oni – Neck Wrecker
• Titan – Titan Breaker
• Stingray – Atomic Diver
• Haggar – Spinning Piledriver
• Grater – Tornado Toss
• Rasta – Dread Lock Drop
• Scorpion – Slam Spiral

Reception

Reviewing the Super NES version, GamePro praised the four-player gameplay, the variety of moves, and the unique graphical touches to each of the characters. They concluded "If you want a breather from intense fighting games, this wrestling cart's a refreshing break."

Sequels

Muscle Bomber Duo

Muscle Bomber Duo – Ultimate Team Battle, released in Japan as Muscle Bomber Duo – Heat Up Warriors, is an updated version of the original Slam Masters which eliminates the Single Match mode from the original game, focusing solely on the two-on-two Team Battle mode. The same character can now be chosen by more than one player and each wrestler now has two additional special moves: a dual side attack and a vacuum move. Duo is the only game in the series to retain the Muscle Bomber title for its international releases.

Although the players can choose and pick their team as they please, there are five "official" combinations that the game will recognize and give a name to. The official tag teams are as follows:

• Hyper Cannons (Biff and Gunloc)
• Exotic Warriors (Rasta and Oni)
• Deadly Brothers (Titan and Stingray)
• Knuckle Busters (Haggar and Grater)
• Silent Assassins (Scorpion and Jumbo)

Ring of Destruction

Ring of Destruction – Slam Masters II, released in Japan as Super Muscle Bomber – The International Blowout, is a sequel to Slam Masters released exclusively for the arcades as a CPS-2 game. The game's format was changed to play like a traditional one-on-one 2D fighting game (similar to Street Fighter II), with the action restricted to one plane. The game's configuration was changed to a five-button setup (two punch buttons, two kick buttons and a grappling button). The objective of each match is to deplete the opponent's life bar in two out of three rounds. It is no longer necessary for the player to pin their opponent to win a match, although all the other moves have been retained.

All ten characters from the original Slam Masters returned, along with four new selectable characters:

• Victor Ortega (ヴィクター・オルテガ) – A legendary champion wrestler who vanished from the ring for years and has come out of retirement. Ortega was the wrestler who appeared in the original game's opening intro. His special move is the backdrop. He is possibly based on both Hulk Hogan and Superstar Billy Graham. The "Ortega" surname comes from Jess Ortega, who toured Japan in the 1950s and 1960s.
• The Wraith (ザ・レイス) – A supernatural-themed wrestler from New Delhi, India. His special move is the guillotine drop. He is possibly based on The Undertaker.
• Rip Saber (リップ・セイバー) – A military-themed wrestler from Calgary, Canada who attacks with dangerous weapons. He is possibly based on Bret "Hitman" Hart and Owen Hart.
• Black Widow (ブラック・ウィドー) – A fully costumed wrestler from Hanover, Germany with a spider-motif. Widow's ending reveals that she's actually a female wrestler in disguise. Her special move is the Frankensteiner. Widow is mentioned in Hugo's end sequence in Street Fighter III: 2nd Impact.

In other media

In the Street Fighter animated series episode "New Kind of Evil", Mike Haggar appears in a fight against Blanka, and the human forms of the three guys who become monsters resemble that of Gunloc, The Great Oni, and Jumbo Flapjack. It is also mentioned in the 1994 arcade game "Street Fighter: The Movie" that the "Blade" character is actually a deep cover agent named Gunloc in disguise as one of Bison's Shock Troops, and is shown to be Guile's brother (playing into the well-known rumor that the two are related). It should be noted that this is not canon for either game series, as the Japanese version of Slam Masters does not have him related to Guile in any way, shape, or form, and this connection made between the two is nothing more than a reference to a popular video game rumor.

External links

• Saturday Night Slam Masters at the Killer List of Videogames
• Saturday Night Slam Masters at MobyGames
• Saturday Night Slam Masters at 1UP.com