Power Stone [Power Stone Collection (PSP, 2006)]: Playthrough as Ayame (normal difficulty)
2Footage is being captured off the PPSSPP emulator. The actual run starts at 3:00.
Happy "Earth turning around the Sun once" Day (lol). With Tekken 8 being the ultimate destination for this January, I decided to try to kill the time leading up to the 26th by playing some games that haven't had a chance to shine on the channel yet that really bring me back. One of said games is a long-since forgotten Capcom fighting game that originally helped kick-start the Sega Dreamcast way back in 1999, named "Power Stone" (and no, not one of the Infinity Stones that Thanos uses from Marvel). This series had two games: both of which eventually found their way into the Sony PlayStation Portable years after the Dreamcast's demise with various enhancements, like the ability to use the characters originally only in a particular of the two games in the other [ie: the two bosses Kraken and Valgas of Power Stone 1 could be played in Power Stone 2 by unlock, as well as the newcomers of Power Stone 2 playable in Power Stone 1 (though they would not have story endings at the end of the game)], new items and various new settings.
Like any other fighting game, the ultimate goal is to KO your opponent, but the way you do that in Power Stone more resembles something you'd see in a stamina game of Super Smash Bros than a standard Capcom fighting game like Street Fighter. Gameplay is set in a small 3D arena, and the colorful cast of characters can do battle by either using their own arsenal of attacks (by using the punch, kick, or throw buttons..... NO block button at all!) or by using either the prop items littering each stage (you can throw or launch small objects like chairs and benches at people as attacks, or vault off walls using the Dpad + throw button, swing off poles, ceilings.... OR even knock them into environmental hazards depending on the stage. If you can think it, you name it: the game was VERY imaginative on how you can do damage), or ACTUAL items that spawn in through portals, ranging from swords, Molotov cocktails, mini-guns.... or even items that ultimately aren't from the 19th Century setting like ray guns.
That being said, this wouldn't be called Power Stone for nothing. The strongest items in the game are a set (3 by default, max of 5 in the settings) colorful Stones (...Chaos Emeralds, if you may) that you gotta fight your opponent over for a big advantage in the bout. If your foe has stones, you gotta hit them with a powerful attack to make them drop them. If you collect three at any time, your character temporarily transforms into their Powered self (called the Power Change mode) and you gain access to their REAL special moves which replace the basic Punch and Kick buttons (named Power Drives, usually 3 per character, with some exceptions), and the ability to use one of their super attacks (named Power Fusions, which again, are usually two of, with some exceptions). You take less damage from attacks and gain hyper armor during this, though you can still be thrown, so being careless isn't wise either by being drunk with power.
Anywho, I have two playthroughs here to bring in the New Year, first starting off with my original fave character, the cutie kunoichi & traveling dancer, Ayame. The second one will be coming in right after. Oh, and the fact not a SINGLE character from this series was ever playable in a Capcom crossover almost 20 years later outside of extremely minor cameos is an absolute disgrace.