This is the character roster for the Eternal Champions series.
Characters introduced in the original Eternal Champions:
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In General
- Bad Future: Most, if not all, of their deaths have caused at least one of these to pass, as well as their death having thrown the balance of the universe out of wack in general. Only by defeating the titular Champion will the surviving contestant be able to use their foreknowledge to invert this.
- Bittersweet Ending: Even if one of them defeats the Eternal Champion and restores the balance, the others will still be sent back to their own time to suffer their fate.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: Each and every single one of the fighters were supposed to die this way, only to be saved at the last minute by the Eternal Champion's intervention. However, he only has the power to only allow one of them to avert that fate while leaving the others to face their doom (that by telling the winner how they were supposed to die and giving them the knowledge to avoid it).
- The original game had Overkills for each of the main fighters as well, and Challenge From The Dark Side would also add Sudden Deaths (the loser dies thanks to falling into a trap on the stage), and Cinekills (where the Dark Champion captures the loser and kills them himself in his lair with their own greatest fears). Notably, this made the Updated Re-release one of the only 3 Sega Genesis games to get the 'Deep Water' rating and the only Sega CD game get it.
- For Want Of A Nail: The foreknowledge on how to avoid their own demise ensures the Bad Future in question doesn't come to pass and the balance of the universe will be restored.
- Set Right What Once Went Wrong: Only one of them will be able to do this, and restore the balance of the universe, should they defeat the Eternal Champion in battle.
Shadow Yamoto
"A moral code is only required for the weak who don't know the difference between wrong and right."
Time Period: 1993 AD
Fighting Style: Ninjitsu/Taijitsu
Fighting Style: Ninjitsu/Taijitsu
Shadow worked as a ninja assassin for the Tokyo-based Black Orchid Corporation until she found out that the organization punished failure with death — at which point she realized she couldn't bring herself to kill others when death sat so close to her. She tried to escape the Black Orchid in order to reveal its existence to the authorities, but she "fell" from the 101st floor of the group's headquarters before she could blow the whistle.
Winning the Tournament: Shadow escapes with her life and exposes the Black Orchid's darkest secrets, which affects numerous business strategies and the lives of thousands of people well into the 21st Century.
- Combat Stilettos: She always wears her stilettos no matter what surface she's on.
- Corporate Samurai: When it came to industrial espionage, she was second to none.
- Domino Mask: She always wears her domino mask, however it rather seems to be for aesthetic reasons.
- Hair Flip: She does this from time to time after winning a fight.
- Knife Outline: In her Cinekill, the Dark Champion swipes her shuriken and pins her to the wall of his lair with them. Then he goes for a headshot...
- Being that the Cinekills have the Dark Champion killing them with their deepest fears, this is likely Shadow knowing exactly how much power that the Black Orchid organization has on her and threatens to have her killed in the event of failure.
- Leotard of Power: Her standard appearance is with a leotard.
- Living Shadow: She can turn herself into a shadow temporarily which grants invincibility for a short time.
- Navel-Deep Neckline: Her outfit has a opening that goes down to her midriff.
- The Protagonist: She is arguably the main character.
- Resignations Not Accepted: The cartel doesn't allow resignations, so they arranged her fall from the 101st floor of Black Orchid's skyscraper.
- Smoke Out: This is one of the things she does after winning a round.
- Statuesque Stunner: Her fighting pose keeps her lower to the ground, but her intro and some win poses where she stands upright show her to be a fairly tall drink of water.
- Stock Ninja Weaponry: Throwing knives, shurikens, and smoke bombs.
- Teleportation: She can use teleport in a fight to avoid attacks and to launch an airborne attack.
R.A.X. Coswell
"Technology has been created to serve the needs of humanity. When the opposite becomes true, then our futures will be empty and destroyed."
Time Period: 2345 AD
Fighting Style: Muay-Thai kickboxing
Fighting Style: Muay-Thai kickboxing
R.A.X. (Robotic Artificial eXoskeleton) underwent painful surgery to have cybernetic implants put into his body; this allowed him to compete in "cyber fights" and remain relevant at a time when general interest in martial arts had waned. R.A.X. won many of his fights, but he also refused to throw any fight for money — and that decision led to R.A.X.'s downfall. At the end of a major tournament, R.A.X.'s manager triggered a virus hidden in the fighter's cybernetics to shut him down before he could land the winning blow — an act which also killed R.A.X..
Winning the Tournament: R.A.X. reveals the corruption of the cyber fights and returns the competition to more humane human-only fights, which leads to a resurgence in the popularity of martial arts around the world. While this means he can no longer fight, he uses the opening to become an advocate for the rights of other cyborgs.
- An Arm and a Leg / Eye Scream: For R.A.X.'s Cinekill, the Dark Champion uses telekinesis to rip out his cybernetic eyepiece and limbs.
- Being that the Cinekills have the Dark Champion killing them with their deepest fears, if the surgery was that painful, imagine how painful it would be having the cybernetic implants being ripped right off! It may represent his fear of feeling worthless without the enhancements.
- Artificial Limbs
- Computer Virus: During R.A.X.'s surgical operation to affix the implants, his promoter planted a virus in R.A.X's brain to shut him down if necessary.
- Cybernetics Eat Your Soul: And they're stealing our jobs, too.
- Eyepatch of Power
- I Coulda Been a Contender!
- Retired Badass: His victory ensures that, with the end of cyber fights, he too retires from fighting, which he uses to become an advocate to other cyborgs.
- Throwing the Fight: R.A.X. was murdered because he refused to do this voluntarily.
Jonathan Blade
"If you're coming on, come on!"
Time Period: 2030 AD
Fighting Style: Kenpo karate
Fighting Style: Kenpo karate
Blade became a bounty hunter in his home country of Syria after his anger management issues led the police to toss him out. At the time of his death, Blade pursued a mad scientist who had threatened to destroy the human race with a lethal virus. After he trapped the scientist in an alley, Blade attempted to retrieve the virus — but both men died via a barrage of lasers (presumably fired by agents of Blade's own government). The scientist dropped the vial containing the virus as a result...
Winning the Tournament: Blade saves the scientist from the setup, retrieves the vial, and forces himself to restrain his anger. He reports the incident to his superiors and the public, which helps bring about several worldwide government reforms and establish a world peace council to bring stability to the world.
- Bounty Hunter: Following his dismissal, Blade returned to Syria to become a mercenary, allowing him to indulge his quick temper.
- Chest Insignia
- Cool Shades
- Future Spandex
- Hot-Blooded: His Fatal Flaw as a cop. Winning the tournament gives him the knowledge to mellow himself out and avert this flaw, and in turn, his original fate.
- Incredible Shrinking Man: In his Cinekill, the Dark Champion shrinks Blade down from his own perspective and crushes him with his fingers.
- Being that the Cinekills have the Dark Champion killing them with their deepest fears, one could read this as Blade fears he's just a cog in the machine.
- Scary Black Man: A very physically large guy with a hair trigger temper.
- Super Wrist-Gadget: Blade's wrist cannon, which has a stun and kill setting.
- Turn in Your Badge: He once beat a suspect to near-death, and the suspect sued the police afterwards.
Jetta Maxx
"The only revolution worth having is one which would leave humanity forever with an everlasting peace, and nothing short of this outcome is worth a single loss of life."
Time Period: 1899 AD
Fighting Style: Savate/Pencak Silat
Fighting Style: Savate/Pencak Silat
Jetta abandoned her aristocratic lifestyle in Russia to become a circus acrobat and travel the world. During a tour of China, several of the country's government officials encouraged her to help end the Boxer Rebellion by infiltrating a particular group and manipulating them into becoming paficists before military forces from afar could intervene. Jetta soon became the target of a Chinese revolutionary, and she fell to her death during a performance for the grand emperor of China after her sabotaged tightrope and safety net snapped.
Winning the Tournament: The Chinese government expresses shame over the attempted murder of Jetta and demands peaceful negotiations from certain groups to settle on a peace plan and implant full democratic control of the country.
- Battle Boomerang: Comes equipped with a gold boomerang as her projectile attack.
- Ceiling Cling: Jetta can grab the top of the screen where she throws several boomerangs.
- Circus Brat
- Dies Wide Shut
- Groin Attack: When practicing savate, the hands are kept open and low to defend against this trick.
- Hollywood Costuming: Her costume is little more than a bikini. Even for a circus performer, it's a little too revealing for the nineteenth century.
- Improbable Weapon User: Jetta can use a cloth strip from her outfit to put her opponents in a chokehold.
- Pstandard Psychic Pstance: To use her powers.
- Psychic Powers: Has some form of psychic resonance ability, enabling her to speed herself up and slow down her opponents. In the sequel, she also uses it to kill opponents as her finishing move.
- The Dark Champion also uses these powers to kill her in the Cinekill, revealing Jetta's fear of having her powers turned against her.
- Rebellious Princess: A cousin of the Tsar who ran away to join the circus and learned acrobatics and martial arts.
- Russian Gal Suffers Most
- Spectacular Spinning: Jetta has a lot of rolling attacks that richochet.
- Stage Names: As a youth, she changed her Russian name to sound more like a performer.
- Stripperific: Jetta's outfit seems to be nothing more than a few cloth strips wrapping her body.
- Super-Speed: Jetta has a move where she can temporarily enhance her speed to ridiculous levels.
Slash
"Club good, people bad!"
Time Period: 50,000 BC
Fighting Style: "Pain" (as in, "to cause as much pain as possible")
Fighting Style: "Pain" (as in, "to cause as much pain as possible")
Slash, a caveman in the Prehistoric Great Rift Valley, showed superior intelligence compared to the rest of his tribe. This led him to express ideas (such as the implementation of agriculture) that could free his clan from a life of hunting-and-gathering. His revolutionary ways of thinking drew the ire of his tribe's elders, who lured him to a meeting and stoned him to death for daring to speak out against them in public.
Winning the Tournament: Slash uses the skills learnt from competing in the tournament to defeat the elders and become leader of his clan, where his ideas will advance mankind's progress into a history of peace and intelligence.
- All Cavemen Were Neanderthals
- Beard of Barbarism
- Burn the Witch!: The Elders eventually tired of Slash's yapping and declared him possessed by an evil spirit, which was good enough cause to kill him on the spot. If he wins the tournament, he uses the skills he learned to turn the tables on them to become the new leader.
- Carry a Big Stick: A spiked club.
- Challenging the Chief: Interrupting a clan meeting can be hazardous to your health. Unless you win the tournament, that is.
- Dumb Is Good: Slash's fellow tribesman stuck to this belief, to put it mildly, as he himself learned the hard way.
- Noble Savage
- Taken for Granite: In his Cinekill, the Dark Champion unleashes a mist that turns him into a stone statue. It may represent Slash's fear of stagnation.
Trident
"I may have been created by man, but man I'm not."
Time Period: 110 BC
Fighting Style: Capoeira
Fighting Style: Capoeira
The genetically-engineered gladiator Trident received his name after losing his hand during a fight with a shark and replacing it with a trident. He represented Atlantis and its people in a battle against the Romans; had he won, Atlantis would have received a share of land alongside the Romans. A Roman gladiator's treachery caused a stone pillar to fall on Trident before he could strike the winning blow. Trident's death doomed the people of Atlantis to live underwater forever.
Winning the Tournament: Trident defeats his Roman opponent, but doesn't kill him. He opts instead to work towards forming an alliance between Romans and Atlanteans so that both cultures will survive — and unite each other's empires into an advanced utopian future.
- Dance Battler: Trident uses Capoeira as part of his fighting style.
- Fish People: We don't know if Trident only looks this way because he's genetically engineered or if everyone from Atlantis looks like him.
- Forced Transformation: For Trident's Cinekill, the Dark Champion turns him into a goldfish and then casually stomps him.
- Hook Hand: Has a trident for a hand after losing it in a struggle with a shark.
- Man-Eating Plant: In his Overkill, after the loser is grabbed by some living green vines and pulled underwater. A struggle ensues, followed by one more splash, and blood rises up from their watery grave.
- Prongs of Poseidon: Trident is an Atlantean fish person who replaced his hand with a trident.
- Squashed Flat: Crushed by a toppled stone pillar. Winning the tournament gives him the knowledge to avoid this and defeat his opponent before it can happen.
- Extends to his Cinekill, may symbolize that he's afraid of feeling helpless.
- They Call Him "Sword": He got his name after he got his arm replaced with, well, a trident.
Xavier Pendragon
"Power doesn't corrupt absolutely, it instead gives corrupted people absolute power."
Time Period: 1692 AD
Fighting Style: Hapkido/cane fighting
Fighting Style: Hapkido/cane fighting
As a blacksmith, Xavier found little success in 17th century Salem, Massachusetts. He soon turned to alchemy — and eventually discovered a clean (and unlimited) source of energy as part of his research. When he showed his discovery to the townspeople, they denounced Xavier's science as witchcraft and burned him at the stake.
Winning the Tournament: Xavier tricks the townspeople into burning his tools with him. This small change lets him use his newfound energy source to break free from his bonds — and travel throughout history to help humanity increase both its knowledge of science and its tolerance of the unusualnote . His escape also fools the townspeople into believing they'd burned the last warlock, which brings an end to the Salem witch trials.
- Black Cloak
- Burn the Witch!: Probably not a good idea to unveil your scientific breakthroughs in Salem.
- Cane Fu: Xavier's primry fighting style.
- Clarke's Third Law
- Dark Is Not Evil: He's a good guy through and through despite his spooky and sinister appearance, which probably didn't help Xavier much when it came to convincing the townsfolk that he wasn't a warlock.
- Ditto Fighter: Inverted — Rather than copy his opponents' moves, Xavier swaps bodies with them entirely.
- Giving Radio to the Romans
- Glowing Eyes
- Faking the Dead: If he wins the tournament, he uses the knowledge he gained to trick the townspeople into burning his tools alongside him in order to escape. It works.
- Kill It with Fire: How he originally died. If he wins, he encourages the townspeople into burning his tools with him, allowing him to escape, while tricking the townspeople into thinking they burned the last warlock, ending the Salem witch trials.
- Kung-Fu Wizard: Just replace "Kung Fu" with "Hapkido Cane Fighting."
- Magic Staff
- Magic from Technology: To be fair, you can hardly blame the puritans for being confused, seeing as this guy can shoot a magic dragon out of his staff or turn people into gold. Honestly, he'd be considered a warlock by today's standards as well, not least of all because his unlimited source of energy defies the laws of thermodynamics.
- Midas Touch: One of Xavier's moves is an energy ball that can turn an opponent into gold.
- Motor Mouth: In the gamebooks (and the comics as well to an extent)."They all wish you luck in their different ways. Xavier launches into a long speech and has to be shut up."
- Phlebotinum Overload: For the Cinekill, the Dark Champion causes Xavier's scepter to overload, disintegrating him.
- Might symbolize that the world suddenly became afraid of him on account of his status as a designated warlock.
- Shrink Ray: His Vendetta move.
- Taken for Granite: As an Alchemist, he has a little more style though; he turns you to gold instead.
Mitchell Middleton Knight ("MidKnight")
"When the science of man attempts to step beyond the mortal realm, its mortality will be the most likely price for such knowledge."
Time Period: 2100 AD
Fighting Style: Jeet Kune Do
Fighting Style: Jeet Kune Do
In 1967, the CIA hired Knight, a London-born biochemical scientist, to create a biological weapon that the US could pour into the water supply of Vietnam during the war. A freak accident exposed Knight to the virus and turned him into a vampire-like creature. "MidKnight" escaped from the CIA and spent over a century trying to invent a cure for his dilemma — as well as a cure for those afflicted with his same problem (since the CIA used his virus anyway). Knight refused to harm or kill others despite his inherent bloodlust, but his decision would not save him, as a vampire hunter drove a magnesium stake through MidKnight's heart before he could finish work on a possible cure.
Winning the Tournament: MidKnight survives the surprise attack, escapes to his lab, and finishes his work in perfecting the cure. While his cure works on others, Knight remains unable to heal himself due to the unique chemistry of his affliction. MidKnight uses his immortality to benefit humanity, though: he becomes president of the World Science Organisation and diligently eradicates all known diseases.
- Bad Powers, Good People
- Big Ol Eye Brows
- Bittersweet Ending: If he wins the tournament, he never recovers from his condition, but he uses his immortality to his advantage, becoming president of the World Science Organisation and going on to eradicate all known diseases.
- Body Horror: His hands and feet are just bones, the decay is spreading up his limbs and he has a gaping hole in his chest, and the only way to fix it would be to kill someone.
- Cursed with Awesome: Downplayed. If he wins, while he still has his undesirable condition, he actually uses his newfound immortality to help end all known diseases.
- Dark Is Not Evil: Despite being an Humanoid Abomination, he utterly refused to take a human life.
- Freak Lab Accident: Managed to take a nine-story drop into a chemical vat. The impact of his fall loosened the seal on his container of the virus, which also spilled into the vat.
- Hypnotic Eyes: Has a move to this affect. It forces the opponent to approach Midknight, giving him a free attack.
- Immortality Hurts: His exposed bones are the result of not feeding off enough people.
- Holy Burns Evil: Well, "evil" isn't really an apt description for Midnkight, but his Cinekill has the same basic premise, with the light shining through a window burning him to ash. May represent his fear of the monster he's become.
- Our Vampires Are Different: Midknight's Vampirism is the result of a bioweapon he designed, and he is cursed to rot away unless he drinks blood from humans, which he refuses to do.
- Red Eyes, Take Warning
- Steven Ulysses Perhero
- Vegetarian Vampire: Despite wasting away from lack of energy, Midknight refused to harm or kill others. There are no workarounds like raiding blood banks or drinking animal blood for Midknight; only fresh blood taken from a human victim can nourish him. Subverted in the sequel where he was forced to drain the entire life energy of a government agent in self defense sent after him due to the agent continually trying to kill Midknight.
Larcen Tyler
"Violence is an acceptable option when your opponent doesn't have the common sense to use any other skills."
Time Period: 1920 AD
Fighting Style: Praying Mantis Kung-Fu
Fighting Style: Praying Mantis Kung-Fu
Former cat burglar Larcen worked for a Chicago mob during the Prohibition Era; while he carried out many dubious jobs for his bosses, he adamantly refused to kill anyone. At the time of his death, Larcen had received orders to plant false evidence in the hospital room of a rival crime boss. Upon his arrival at the hospital, Larcen found Chicago's Chief of Police instead of the rival boss. Larcen tried to toss the package he'd carried with him out the window, but he couldn't get it out in time, and the bomb inside killed him, the Police Chief, and most of the people in the hospital.
Winning the Tournament: Larcen disposes of the bomb before he makes it to the Chief of Police, who later commends the now-ex-mobster for his bravery. Larcen eventually becomes part of a special governmental task force devoted to organized crime and takes down all of his former bosses while helping the task group ensure the eradication of organized crime forever.
- Badass in a Nice Suit
- Badass Normal: The only character to have neither powers, size advantage or high-tech equipment and holds his own against them anyway.
- Ceiling Cling: Larcen can jump up and grab the top of the screen which he cn move about to do a diving attack.
- Chain Pain
- Classy Cat-Burglar
- Epic Flail: Uses his grappling hook as one.
- Gameplay and Story Segregation: A big part of his character is that he refuses to kill people... but in-game he has no qualms about repeatedly stabbing his opponent to death as his vendetta.
- Gutted Like a Fish: Eviscerates his opponent with a butterfly knife as a finishing move.
- The Mafia: Worked for the Taglalini crime family before being set up.
- Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot: A cheesy mix of a prohibition-era gangster, a ninja, and Batman.
- Power Fist: A pair of spiked gauntlets.
- Punny Name
- Reformed Criminal: The end result of his victory is that he ends up wiping out all organized crime permanently.
- The Roaring '20s: Lived (and died) in this time period.
- Tricked-Out Shoes: He has knife blades on the tips of his shoes.
- Why Am I Ticking?: His Cinekill has the Dark Champion teleporting a bomb into his chest. Since the Cinekills are said to represent the characters' greatest fears, this might suggest Larcen has been traumatized by the explosion that claimed his life.
- You Got Murder: The setup that got him killed, even though he only realized it too late. Winning the tournament, however, gives him the knowledge to avert this setup and save not only his own life, but countless others.
Eternal Champion
The Eternal Champion, an extraterrestrial who monitors the cosmic balance of good and evil, resides in the far future (9999 AD) where mankind has already destroyed itself. The Champion summons all of the fighters above to compete against each other for a chance to face him and reclaim their soul. If the tournament's surviving fighter can best the Champion, they will return to their timeline armed with the knowledge and ability to change their fate and restore balance to the universe.
- Animal Motifs: Assumes the attributes of a Dragon, Tiger, Hawk and Shark.
- Version Two practices Unicorn, Elephant, Millipede and Electric eel style.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: The Inciting Incident for this game involves him yanking all the above fighters from their own time just before they suffer this fate, giving them the chance to avert it, and in turn, prevent the Bad Future that resulted from their death from coming to pass. If (and that's a big
if) the surviving champion can defeat him, he will proudly arm them the knowledge and skills to avert that original fate and change the future for the better. - Disappointed in You: Losing against him results in him lamenting your failure to defeat him and, therefore, inability to change the future, as he returns you back to your time period to die the death you originally succumbed to.
- Game-Over Man: Replaced by the Dark Champion in the sequel.
- Glowing Eyes
- My Rules Are Not Your Rules: Has infinite inner strength, which means he can spam moves as much as he wants, as well as suck as much strength out of you as he needs by taunting. Secondly, he has five different forms (NINE in the sequel if you count his base form), and you must beat all of them in one round. Lose the match against him, and you get a bad ending.
- Point of No Continues: Lose against him once and it's game over, no matter how many credits you have left.
- Set Right What Once Went Wrong: He only has the power to allow one of them to do this with their original fates, and in turn, restore the balance of the universe. But only if they can defeat him in the final battle.
- Wreathed in Flames: In the midst of switching movesets.
Characters introduced in Challenge from the Dark Side:
Riptide
"The sea derives its power from its depth and cold nature, and I believe these same elements supply my personal strength as well."
Time Period: 1566 AD
Fighting Style: Kajukenbo
Fighting Style: Kajukenbo
Once a member of an infamous Italian family, Sophia de Medici eventually renounced her name and status when she decided to become a pirate. When fellow pirate/crime boss Hannibal killed Riptide while protecting some buried treasure, he discovered her true identity — and soon destroyed the entire de Medici family through his criminal organizations. Hannibal's path of destruction resulted in the destruction of works by Leonardo DaVinci that could have resulted in a future renaissance.
Winning the Tournament: Riptide survives the attack by Hannibal, works to protect her family (and ensure that future renaissance), and forms a powerful organization to protect the oceans from the threats of piracy, illegal hunting of sea animals, and pollution.
- Kiss of Death: Her finisher is a literal one.
- Shovel Strike: Bludgeoned with Hannibal's shovel from behind.
- When Trees Attack: For Riptide's cinekill, the Dark Champion summons vines out of thin air to entangle her, snapping her neck.
Ramses III
"Great leaders are created from the strength and character of their followers."
Time Period: 151 BC
Fighting Style: Hung-Gar Kung-Fu
Fighting Style: Hung-Gar Kung-Fu
As the last strong pharaoh of Egypt, Ramses III could have fathered the son that would have become his successor and successfully prevented the downfall of Egypt via outside invasion — had he not been killed by an assassin who knew that Ramses never learned how to swim. After Ramses drowned in the Nile River, invaders conquered Egypt; over the centuries, the new Pharaohs raised armies strong enough to stop Alexander the Great and his Roman legions from taking over Persia and Egypt. The Egyptian Empire grew powerful and lasted well beyond the 21st century. Many countries that would have fallen under the control of the Roman Empire either fell under the Egyptian Empire's control or ended up driven out of their homelands into what would have become Russia. This change in the timeline created a future devoid of many different cultures, which drained humanity of its originality and spirit.
Winning the Tournament: Ramses eliminates those who threaten to usurp his rule and makes sure to preserve many of the treasures and knowledge of his people so mankind would have the chance to learn from them and ascend to higher knowledge in the future.
- Awesome Anachronistic Apparel: A pair of nunchaku.
- Forgot I Couldn't Swim
- I'm Melting!: Ramses' Cinekill involves the Dark Champion doing this to him.
- He is aquaphobic, after all.
- In Spite of a Nail: Whether Ramses wins the tournament or perishes in his fated demise, Egypt is conquered by outsiders regardless. That said, his survival is considered better than the alternative where Egypt takes over half the known world, leading to dystopian, homogeneous future where little cultural diversity exists, having been stamped out by the repressive Egyptian superpower.
- Royals Who Actually Do Something: In his ending, he successfully defeats the usurpers, ensuring the treasures and knowledge of his people will survive well into the future.
- Voluntary Shapeshifter: Transforms into a giant scarab beetle and eats his opponent as a finisher.
Raven Gindar
"Real magic is only given to true believers, otherwise it perverts into the worst type of evil."
Time Period: 1802 AD
Fighting Style: Hsing-I Kung-Fu/Tae Kwon Do
Fighting Style: Hsing-I Kung-Fu/Tae Kwon Do
Kidnappers transplanted Raven from her native home and integrated her into a village in Trinidad, where she became a voodoo priestess. She eventually won the hearts of the villagers through an unusual healing power centered around an ancient artifact handed down through her family: an hourglass that allows someone to control a small portion of time in exchange for part of their life. Raven eventually drew the ire of the village's aging high priest, who lured her into his tent, used the hourglass to kill her, and rejuvenated his own life in the process.
Winning the Tournament: Raven reverses the spell to drain the high priest of his power and his life, then fills the hourglass to a perfect balance between good and evil. She then hands it to the Eternal Champion before becoming his companion — which allows both of them to continue keeping mankind safe.
- Animated Tattoo: The snake tattoo can come to life and be used as a projectile.
- Facial Markings
- Hollywood Voodoo
- Interspecies Romance: Raven and the Eternal Champion are heavily implied to be a couple in Thanatos's ending.
- Leaning on the Fourth Wall: Capable of adding or subtracting seconds from the timer.
- Loincloth
- Rapid Aging: Her Vendetta move.
- Snakes Are Sexy: Her leg tattoo.
- Deconstructed in her Cinekill, which results in the python mauling her instead. Whoops. May represent her fear of having her magic turn on her.
- Time Master
Dawson McShane
"The only luck I even needed was skill."
Time Period: 1849 AD
Fighting Style: A hybrid style referred to as Shotowando(a mix of Shotokan, kickboxing, and barroom brawling)
Fighting Style: A hybrid style referred to as Shotowando(a mix of Shotokan, kickboxing, and barroom brawling)
Notorious gambler Dawson traveled from his native Scotland to America's Wild West in search of adventure (and a good fight), but his arrival in a small mining town triggered his death. Dawson ran afoul of a powerful landowner whose son had killed the sheriff; the sheriff deputized Dawson in his final act, Dawson managed to capture the landowner's son but was ambushed on his way to the makeshift courthouse and strung up by the landowner before the circuit judge could hear the case. The landowner and his son escaped prosecution because no one in town would testify against them.
Winning the Tournament: Dawson prevents his hanging and kills both the landowner and his son. His actions turn a flexible sense of justice into a fearsome but incorruptible force in the Wild West, which helps all good folk live free.
- Abandoned Mine: His stage.
- Boom, Headshot!: His Vendetta finisher consists in pulling out a Winchester rifle and making his adversary's head a-splode.
- Doesn't Like Guns: This ends up being his fatal flaw in the original timeline. In the new timeline, he grabs a gun to defend himself and survive.
- Frameup: Taking the rap for a a wealthy landowner's son.
- The Gambler: How he made a living.
- A Handful for an Eye: Spitting tobacco at his opponents.
- The Man They Couldn't Hang: Winning the tournament gives him the knowledge to avoid the hanging which he originally succumbed to in the original timeline.
- The Sheriff
Thanatos
"Death is but a door, and I'm the doorman."
Time Period: 1692 AD
Fighting Style: Fate, Time, and Fisticuffs
Fighting Style: Fate, Time, and Fisticuffs
Thanatos, the Greek God of Death who controls Time and Fate, had his work interrupted by an indeterminate force. This force weakened Thanatos to the point of defeat and used powers greater than Thanatos' own to transform the god into a mortal marked as a warlock by the residents of 17th century Salem, Massachusetts. The mysterious force took over the God of Death role and changed the rules of death so it could take numerous lives before their time. Thanatos, on the other hand, died via execution during the Salem witch trials.
Winning the Tournament: The Eternal Champion and Raven give Thanatos a new role: the master of Time itself. Thanatos replaces Kronos — who went mad from an assault by the same force that attacked Thanatos — and prevents time from falling apart.
- Enemies with Death
- The Grim Reaper: Literally, though he's been made mortal during the events of the game.
- Klingon Promotion: The unknown force who usurped him.
- Palette Swap: of Xavier.
- Sinister Scythe: His signature weapon.
- Undeath Always Ends: His backstory reveals he was forced into mortality by a mysterious force, allowing him to be killed in the Salem witch trials.
Chin Wo
"As a point of a needle can both heal and hurt, so can a man. In my life, I have done both, one by choice, the other by force."
Time Period: 1815 AD
Fighting Style: Monkey Kung-Fu
Fighting Style: Monkey Kung-Fu
Chin Wo had remarkable skill as an acupuncturist and healer, but his renown as a fighter led a cousin of China's ruling class to challenge him. Chin refused the challenge because losing would shame him and winning would force the ruling class to execute him. In an attempt to goad Chin into the fight, the cousin framed him for the murder of a beggar, but Chin still refused to accept the challenge, so the ruling class executed him for a crime he didn't commit.
Winning the Tournament: Chin uses a trick learnt from MidKnight to stare into the cousin's soul and force him to reveal the truth. Chin continues his life as a healer, but also becomes a symbol for truth, which allows him to implement a system of civil courts that solve the vast majority of China's civil rights issues well into the 21st Century.
- Bruce Lee Clone: In terms of looks, but interestingly not in terms of fighting style: he doesn't rely solely on martial arts; he also uses acupuncture needles and has several "element"-based moves, and he can use a "drunken monkey" move.
- Maniac Monkeys: The "Sudden Death" on Chin Wo's stage causes the opponent to be mauled to death off-screen by monkeys who come to life from being stone decorations on the temple.
- Rings of Death: Fights with a hoop.
- Take a Third Option: Chin Wo tried to do this, not that it did him any good: given a choice between being shamed by losing a fight or executed for winning a fight, he tried to take the third option of refusing to fight at all. Then he just got executed anyway for a crime he didn't commit.
- Xanatos Gambit: Was the victim of one set up by a cousin of the ruling class, which is what originally led to his death. If Chin Wo had won the fight, he would have been executed for attacking a ruling noble; if he had lost the fight, he would have been publicly shamed as a loser. And even trying to take a third option (refusing the challenge entirely) didn't work because the noble simply framed him for a crime and executed him anyway.
Thomas "Blast" Chavez
"Might doesn't always make right, but most of the time, a couple of good kicks to the head will cause most people to come around to your way of thinking."
Time Period: 1955 AD
Fighting Style: Green Beret Techniques
Fighting Style: Green Beret Techniques
As a skilled Green Beret, Blast worked as a gun-running chopper pilot during the Vietnam War — he dropped weapons to his allies in clandestine operations that sent him and his partner Redux behind enemy lines. Blast died during his final run: while the actual drop-off went off fine, Redux revealed himself as a Vietnamese double agent and tossed a grenade into Blast's helicopter before it could take off.
Winning the Tournament: Blast takes out Redux before the fateful betrayal, then dedicates his life to rescuing the men who had fought wars and been left behind — through both his own actions and an immense amount of funding efforts.
- Attack Reflector: Can pull out a riot shield to deflect ranged attacks.
- Et Tu, Brute?: He was killed by his treacherous partner via a grenade in his helicopter. Winning the tournament ensures he takes out the partner before the betrayal.
- Flipping the Bird: His ending mentions him giving Redux "an obscene symbol" before the grenade goes off.
- Grappling-Hook Pistol: Built into the gauntlets he wears.
- More Dakka: The "Sudden Death" finisher of his stage has the loser of the match being machinegunned to pieces.
- No One Gets Left Behind: Upon winning the Tournament, he dedicates the rest of his life to rescuing POWs in various conflicts.
- Throw Down the Bomblet: His Vendetta finisher has him throwing a bomb to his opponent to blow him/her to smithereens.
Dark Champion
"To your death."
The Dark Champion serves as the Yin to the Eternal Champion's Yang. Players face this champion as the true final boss of Dark Side.
- Bad Powers, Bad People: Unlike the Eternal Champion, his fighting styles are based on natural disasters.
- Badass Cape
- The Coats Are Off: As he enters the arena, his cloak erupts in flames and burns off.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: Whatever you do, do not end up on the business end of a Cinekill. If you do, the Dark Champion will teleport you away and use your own deepest, darkest fears to kill you himself.
- Evil Counterpart
- Evil Laugh: He chortles at the end of every cutscene.
- Feed It a Bomb: As part of Cinekill, the Dark Champion teleports sticks of dynamite into into Larcen's chest. Oh, Crap!.
- Finger Gun: The Dark Champion points this at Dawson during his Cinekill. You can guess the result.
- I Know What You Fear: In a Cinekill, the loser of the match dies in a way which mimics the victim's greatest fear. (For example, Ramses III is liquefied because of his aquaphobia)
- Knife-Throwing Act: For the Cinekill, the Dark Champion lobs Shadow's own shurikens back at her, impaling her against a wall in spread-eagle. He lands the finishing blow by hurling a last ninja star through her forehead.
- Literal Genie: Severing R.A.X.'s artificial limbs from his body.
- Pre-Mortem One-Liner: Just before the Dark Champion initiates a Cinekill on the hapless victim:"To your death."
- Spectacular Spinning: For her Cinekill, the Dark Champion uses his psychic powers to tie Jetta up with her own ribbons and then spin her rapidly, slicing her to bits with her own bladerangs.
- A Storm Is Coming: The landscape surrounding his fortress is covered in thunderclouds.
- Supervillain Lair: The final boss battle.
- Taken for Granite: For Slash's Cinekill, the Dark Champion decides to stone him. For real.
Joke Characters from Challenge From The Dark Side:
The Senator
"Violence is the problem with violence."
Time Period: 1995 AD
Fighting Style: "Dishonesty"
Fighting Style: "Dishonesty"
The Senator had spent his entire career supporting special interests, but after lobbyists discovered how he'd voted against them on a human rights issue, they turned their support to his opponent. The Senator's defeat in a landslide election — which he spent millions trying to win — caused him to have a heart attack.
Winning the Tournament: The Senator attempts to make up for his years of civil abuse by exposing all of his lies — as well as the lies of those around him in the halls of Washington. His scandalous revelations destroy his chances of re-election, but also mark him as a changed noble man... who makes millions with a tell-all book and subsequent talk show appearances.
- Badass Normal: Fights using "Dishonesty."
- Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": We don't know his actual name.
- Going Postal: For the Overkill, the Senator whips out a postal worker hat, magically transforming him into an uzi-packing mailman.
- Head Swap: Of Larcen.
- Hollywood Heart Attack: His cause of death.
- Kavorka Man: Has a mistress in every state except Hawaii.
- Patriotic Fervor: Parodied.
- Sleazy Politician: He was just as bad as the other politicians in Washington, even supporting the Iran-Contra affair and selling national secrets.
- Take That!: Very blatantly based on anti-video game crusaders such as Joseph Lieberman.
- V-Sign: His Victory Pose.
Hooter
This owl familiar from Salem, skilled in Owl-Kwon-Do, ended up burned at the stake right after his master Vaspian (the mortal form of Thanatos). Witch hunters noticed the owl always hanging around witch burnings; they'd hoped that burning him would help end them.
Winning the Tournament: Instead of being burned alive, Hooter and Xavier Pendragon are warped several hundred years to the future. The two would then dedicate their lives to fighting the Dark Eternal Champion.
- Cool Shades: He puts on a pair in his victory pose. Hilariously, it predates the "Deal with it" meme by a solid decade, despite otherwise looking like a perfect example of it in practice.
- Lethal Joke Character: His ability to fly all around the screen, coupled with the small size of all the animal fighters, makes him a force to be reckoned with.
Yappy
This dog from the 1950s has a proficiency in Shih-Tzu Fu (taught to him in a kennel by a lineage of the Chinese Emperor's dogs). A rich kindly woman in a New York penthouse willed her money to Yappy when she passed away, but a mean relative took the money and kicked Yappy out onto the street. The dog tried to chew the brakeline of said relative's car to cause her death in a crash, but ended up running himself over by accident in the process.
Winning the Tournament: Yappy leaks the brake fluid. As a result, the mean relative crashes into a gas truck. The driver was hitching a ride, while the relative was not so lucky. Soon after, Yappy is returned to his plush apartment.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: As upsetting as his fate is, it was ultimately self-inflicted.
- Pet Heir: Unfortunately, this didn't work out for him. Unless he wins, of course.
Crispy
This livestock chicken from Taiwan in 1967 knows Egg Fu (as all chickens do). After a horrendous midnight raid, he swore to protect his livestock from becoming someone else's dinner — but he died thanks to a helicopter strike.
Winning the Tournament: Crispy organizes the chickens and takes down the enemy helicopter. The humans realize the errors of their ways and help the chickens win the conflict. 1970s, Crispy retires to a commune, makes a killing on Wall Street in the 80s, then loses it in the 90s. However, he still improves human lives before dying peacefully.
- A Pig Named "Porkchop": At least he wasn't named "Grilled" or "Original Recipe".
- Lethal Joke Character: Despite his limited moveset, he's easily the most powerful of the animal characters, as he's nearly impossible to land a hit on, and his juggling ability rivals the main cast.
- Peaceful in Death: If he wins the tournament.
Zuni
This circus entertainer monkey from 1902, skilled in Monkey Fu, saw an oil lantern get knocked over and start a fire. As he ran to warn his trainer, an elephant accidentally crushed him, which shocked the audience and distracted them from the fire that eventually consumed the tent and killed everyone inside.
Winning the Tournament: Zuni jumps onto the elephant and directs it to extinguish the fire using its trunk. In the aftermath, Zuni becomes a star.
- Spectator Casualty: Of the characters' deaths, Zuni's probably had the highest collateral body count. A victory for him means saving the entire audience that day.
Slither
This rattlesnake from 1820 studied the ways of Brawling from humans. A bartender raised the snake from an egg, and he soon became the bar's security with its Brawling skills — until the night a criminal broke into the bar to steal from the register, shot the bartender, and Slither.
Winning the Tournament: Slither uses his body to put the criminal in a choke hold, then the bartender kills the crook, while the snake snaps the neck to be sure. Slither then becomes famous as the bartender's partner.
- Double Tap: If he wins, Slither does not take any chances with him and his master's would-be killer.
