History VideoGame / AkaiKatana

* AbsoluteCleavage -- Nazuna, the boss of stage 5 (''Akai Katana Shin'' only), wears an outfit with this.

* ArrangeMode -- The limited White and Red modes only available on a "Limited Edition" PCB has a stage select option and can only be played on Free Play mode. In the White mode, the option has a shorter tether, and bomb invincibility is reduced. In addition, while in Phantom mode, Gold, which gains its value from the HIT counter, is sucked in, as opposed to orbiting the phantom. Red mode is a harder mode of White mode, with rearranged enemy placements and bullet patterns. In addition, the HIT counter only resets when the player is hit, instead of when the player exits Phantom mode.

* TheAtoner -- All of the rebels.
* AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever -- In-game, the 'human' half of the player's team appears larger than the plane half and the boss models are giants as well. This is '''not''' GameplayAndStorySegregation.
*BiggerIsBetter -- In an interview with director Hiroyuki Kimura, he states that “Having a giant ninja do battle against a giant battleship that has been summoned by another giant ninja looks normal and natural in this game though!"
* {{BFG}} -- The spirit ninjas carry big guns, even relative to the size of their bodies.
* {{BFS}} -- Part of some of the new game modes in Shin. Killing things while being in Ninja mode summons giant blades around your character that are unleashed when the player switches back to the plane (but ''not'' when the green bar runs out).
* BlindWeaponmaster -- Botan Saionji is this for not just katana, but also ''piloting a fighter plane''.
* BrotherSisterTeam -- Kikyou and Botan
* ButterflyOfDeathAndRebirth -- Shumeigiku, the boss of stage 2, wears a butterfly in her hair.
* CastFromLifespan -- Shion Kobayakawa, the pilot of the third set of characters, bonded with a Blood Katana but lost her youth in the process.

* [[spoiler: CuteIsEvil -- ''All'' of the cute child-like characters are evil, including Suzuran.]]
* CoDragons - Boss 5
* DarkerAndEdgier -- It might be the darkest game CAVE put out since [[VideoGame/DonPachi DaiOuJou]]. Doesn't help that Creator/{{Treasure}} was involved in it as well...
* DefectorFromDecadence -- Tsubaki and Sumire, although they more or less agree with the Gekka Battalion's goals. Tsubaki left the organization due to its arrogant actions.
* DieselPunk -- The game's setting has the visual aesthetic and technology level of UsefulNotes/WorldWarII.

* DrunkOnTheDarkSide -- For starters Emperor Basho killed his own wife just to get his own Blood Katana. Shakunage also counts; his bloodlust causes him to try and kill his sister, Suzuran, for even more power. [[spoiler: Suzuran kills Shion in their route in order to use the blood katana.]]
* DualWielding -- The final boss does it - one Blood Katana made from his wife, and one made from himself.
* DyingAsYourself -- Shakunage apologizes to Suzuran and Shion before dying, suggesting that he recovered his memories of them, which he lost after his soul was consumed by a blood katana.
* EvilMentor -- Hiiragi is this to Sumire and Tsubaki.
* EvilOverlord -- Basho, the emperor of Japan.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes -- Nazuna is in love with her mentor Hiiragi, Shumeigiku is in love with Shakunage, and Hiiragi has a wife, Karin.
* FanservicePack -- In the ''Slash'' edition, Boss 4, Nazuna, gets a {{Stripperiffic}} ninja costume.
* FlowerMotifs -- The three planes are named after flowers. Marigold, Sakura (Cherry Blossoms) and Orchid. The members of the Ten Suns, as well as the Gekka Battalion (as they were former Ten Suns members), have flower names as well.
* GreenEyedMonster -- Shumeigiku hates Suzuran, the younger sister of her LoveInterest Aogiri/Shakunage, since she always pesters him.
* [[spoiler: HeroicSacrifice: The True Ending.]]
* HighlyVisibleNinja -- Every Phantom is around fifty feet tall, flying around in ninja garb shooting lasers.
* HitboxDissonance
* HumanSacrifice -- The Blood Katana require these to be created.
* IHateYouVampireDad -- Kikyou and Botan fighting against their Phantom father.
* ImportantHaircut -- Tsubaki makes one as she decides to live as a man to atone for her actions as a member of the Ten Suns.
* ItsPersonal -- Nazuna faces the protagonists after they kill Hiiragi, whom she was in love with.
->Nazuna: I don't care about the past! It's I who takes revenge for my master!
* KatanasAreJustBetter -- As if the title of the game was not enough, all of the player characters also carry one inside of their airplanes.
* [[spoiler: KillEmAll: The True Ending.]]
* LastChanceHitPoint -- Taking a fatal hit while on your last life will empty your stock of {{Smart Bomb}}s instead of killing you.
* MightMakesRight -- Hiiragi believes in this. "Power IS justice! I will use any means in order to acquire it!" Leads to a MyGodWhatHaveIDone moment. Also doesn't stop him from being defeated both times he's the boss.
* MoreDakka -- This goes with the genre, but is made even more explicit in this particular game because the spirit ninjas also carry massive rotary cannons.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone -- War Deity Hiiragi (Boss 4) acquired his power through sacrificing his wife, Karin, which now plagues him with regret.
* OurGhostsAreDifferent -- These ghosts are humongous phantoms with massive weapons, including chainguns that are the size of trains.
* PinballScoring -- Maybe not on the same level as ''VideoGame/GigaWing'', but in some modes, it's possible to reach the first extend in Stage 1.
* RebelliousPrincess -- Botan
* RecurringBoss -- Hiiragi is fought twice.
* SpiritualSuccessor -- To ''VideoGame/{{Progear}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Guwange}}''.
* SummonMagic -- The bosses use this to summon ''mundane'' things like battleships, aircraft carriers, hordes of fighter planes, and so on.
* SupportingProtagonist -- The first pair of characters, the ones initially highlighted upon game start-up. The box art for the UsefulNotes/Xbox360 port features the second pair of characters.
* TankGoodness -- Yep, goes with the typical Creator/{{Cave}} enemy design.
* [[spoiler: TogetherInDeath -- Sumire decides to do this to be with Tsubaki.]]
* WholesomeCrossdresser -- Tsubaki Shinjo, who decided to live like a man to atone for her past.
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity -- These seems to have happened to all of the imperial loyalists.
* YouRebelScum -- Most of the Ten Suns call the Gekka Battalion members this.

* YoungerThanTheyLook -- Shion Kobayakawa, who is only 17 years old but looks like she is in her 70s as a result of her bond with the blood katana. [[spoiler: This also happens to Suzuran when she ends up with the same curse that Shion had.]]

* ZettaiRyouiki -- Sumire, Botan, Suzuran, Shumeigiku, and Nazuna all wear this.

''Akai Katana'' (2010) is a BulletHell ShootEmUp by Creator/{{Cave}}. It is Cave's third HorizontalScrollingShooter and revisits the concept of the pilot and gunner being different characters, such as in ''VideoGame/{{Progear}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Ketsui}}''. Programming was done by S. Yagawa of Creator/EightingRaizing fame. Music was composed by the late Ryu Umemoto. There is an Xbox 360 port, titled ''Akai Katana Shin''. Those with a Japanese X-box 360 can download a free trial of the first two stages. It has been localized for Europe and the US by Rising Star Games as simply ''Akai Katana'' (although having the same content as ''Akai Katana Shin'').

* YoungerThanTheyLook -- Shion Kobayakawa, who is only 17 years old but looks like she is in her 70's as a result of her bond with the blood katana. [[spoiler: This also happens to Suzuran when she ends up with the same curse that Shion had.]]

Set in a parallel world resembling Japan's Taisho period, the people have discovered the powerful Blood Swords, the titular [[TitleDrop Akai Katana]]. Requiring human sacrifices to unleash their immense destructive power, these swords have been used by the empire to crush neighbouring countries. However, all the bloodshed and power gained through sacrificing close family members has made some of the swordsmen reconsider. With new fighter planes and the powered up swords at their disposal, this small band of rebels now fight back against the tyrannical empire.

* SpiritualSuccessor -- To ''VideoGame/{{Progear}}''.

* PinballScoring -- Maybe not on the same level as ''GigaWing'', but in some modes, it's possible to reach the first extend in Stage 1.

''Akai Katana'' (2010) is a BulletHell ShootEmUp by Creator/{{Cave}}. It is Cave's third HorizontalScrollingShooter and revisits the concept of the pilot and gunner being different characters, such as in ''VideoGame/{{Progear}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Ketsui}}''. Programming was done by S. Yagawa of [[EightingRaizing 8ing/Raizing]] fame. Music was composed by the late Ryu Umemoto. There is an Xbox 360 port, titled ''Akai Katana Shin''. Those with a Japanese X-box 360 can download a free trial of the first two stages. It has been localized for Europe and the US by Rising Star Games as simply ''Akai Katana'' (although having the same content as ''Akai Katana Shin'').

''Akai Katana'' (2010) is a BulletHell ShootEmUp by {{Cave}}. It is Cave's third HorizontalScrollingShooter and revisits the concept of the pilot and gunner being different characters, such as in ''VideoGame/{{Progear}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Ketsui}}''. Programming was done by S. Yagawa of [[EightingRaizing 8ing/Raizing]] fame. Music was composed by the late Ryu Umemoto. There is an Xbox 360 port, titled ''Akai Katana Shin''. Those with a Japanese X-box 360 can download a free trial of the first two stages. It has been localized for Europe and the US by Rising Star Games as simply ''Akai Katana'' (although having the same content as ''Akai Katana Shin'').

* TankGoodness -- Yep, goes with the typical {{Cave}} enemy design.

* SupportingProtagonist -- The first pair of characters, the ones initially highlighted upon game start-up. The box art for the Xbox360 port features the second pair of characters.

* ImperialJapan -- The empire is explicitly described as an alternate Taisho-era Japan.

* DieselPunk -- The game's setting has the visual aesthetic and technology level of UsefulNotes/WorldWarTwo.

* BlondesAreEvil -- Shumeigiku, Ran, and Ayame all count.

** [[spoiler: In the True Ending, all six of them destroy the Blood Katana together, [[KillEmAll and they all die]] [[BittersweetEnding for a better world]].]]

* InstantAwesomeJustAddNinja

** [[spoiler: In the True Ending, all six of them destroy the Blood Katana together, and they all die for a better world.]]

* DieselPunk -- The game's setting has the visual aesthetic and technology level of WorldWarTwo.

* DarkerAndEdgier -- It might be the darkest game CAVE put out since [[DoDonPachi DaiOuJou]]. Doesn't help that Creator/{{Treasure}} was involved in it as well...

* [[spoiler: MismatchedEyes -- Botan has a red eye and a blue eye.]]

* DrunkOnTheDarkSide -- For starters Emperor Basho killed his own wife just to get his own Blood Katana. Shakunage also counts; his bloodlust causes him to try and kill his sister, Suzuran, for even more power. [[spoiler: Suzuran kills Shion in their route in order to use the blood katana. Turns out that listening to your brother isn't the brightest idea.]]

* DyingAsYourself -- Shakunage has shades of this. The reason why Shion and Suzuran joined the Gekka Battalion is because Suzuran's brother, Shakunage, tried killing her in his bloodlust. Come their boss fight in the third stage, and he seems shocked that he has to face the two in battle. When you defeat him and he dies, he says "Suzu ... Shion ... I'm sorry."

* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes -- Nazuna is in love with her mentor Hiiragi. Shumeigiku is also in love with Shakunage.

* FlowerMotifs -- The three planes are named after flowers. Marigold, Sakura (Cherry Blossoms) and Orchid. Most of the Ten Suns have flower names as well.

* SuddenNameChange -- It is mentioned in her profile that Suzuran was almost killed by her brother, Aogiri. His name is never mentioned again in the story or the character profiles. Rather, [[http://www.cave.co.jp/gameonline/nesica/akaikatanasin/character/ this character chart]] shows that Suzuran is the sister of Shakunage. When and why he changed his name is unknown.

* EvilMentor -- Hiiragi is this to Sumire.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes -- Nazuna is in love with her mentor Hiiragi.

* DrunkOnTheDarkSide -- For starters Emperor Basho killed his own wife just to get his own Blood Katana. [[spoiler: This also happens to Suzuran.]]

* FanservicePack -- In the ''Slash'' edition, Boss 4, Nazuma, gets a {{Stripperiffic}} ninja costume.
* FlowerMotifs -- The three planes are named after flowers. Marigold, Sakura (Cherry Blossoms) and Orchid.

* ImperialJapan -- The empire is explicitly described as similar to Taisho-era Japan.

* SupportingProtagonist -- The first pair of characters, the ones initially highlighted upon game start-up. The box art for the Xbox360 port features the second pair of characters. It's sort of ironic when you read the trope directly below.

* YoungerThanTheyLook -- Shion Kobayakawa, who is only 17 years old but looks like she is in her 70's. [[spoiler: This also happens to Suzuran when she ends up with the same curse that Shion had.]]
* ZettaiRyouiki -- Sumire, Botan, Shumeigiku, and Nazuna all wear this.

* DarkerAndEdgier -- It might be the darkest game CAVE put out since [[DoDonPachi DaiOuJou]]. Doesn't help that {{Treasure}} of GunstarHeroes fame was involved in it as well...

''Akai Katana'' is a BulletHell ShootEmUp by {{Cave}}. It is Cave's third HorizontalScrollingShooter and revisits the concept of the pilot and gunner being different characters, such as in ''VideoGame/{{Progear}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Ketsui}}''. Programming was done by S. Yagawa of [[EightingRaizing 8ing/Raizing]] fame. Music was composed by the late Ryu Umemoto. There is an Xbox 360 port, titled ''Akai Katana Shin''. Those with a Japanese X-box 360 can download a free trial of the first two stages. It has been localized for Europe and the US by Rising Star Games as simply ''Akai Katana'' (although having the same content as ''Akai Katana Shin'').