Card Sagas Wars was a PC game being developed by Ahruon and Orkimedes. The game utilizes the M.U.G.E.N engine, but unlike other M.U.G.E.N games, all of the sprites are made entirely from scratch. This not only gives the game a uniform and "professional" artstyle, but it also allows for better control of balance.
Development for the game started in 2005, but was halted for several years before being quietly discontinued. In June 2018, Ahuron released a prototype of the game
from 2011 that featured the four marquee characters. At least two updates featuring more characters and stages are planned for release soon after, but beyond that, the game will receive no further updates or bug fixes.
In 2020, Card Sagas Wars Online was released by a team who updated the assets of the released prototype for the IKEMEN engine, applying re-balances, engine adjustments, bug fixing, and even some new stages and assist characters. It can be downloaded here in its dedicated MUGEN Guild thread. Though unofficial, it does have the okay from the original team. Right now, while in of itself still in development, it's probably the closest the project will get to ever being finished.
The playable cast includes:
- 4 characters released in the initial prototype demo:
- 8 more characters released later to be added on to the main game:
- At least 9 other characters that either were in development or planned as of the prototype release:
- Chun-Li, Leon Magnus, Reiji Arisu, Bowser, Donkey Kong, Chocobo, Sonic the Hedgehog, Nina, Yugo, Banjo the Bear, and other unannounced characters
- 101 Assist Characters (Click for list)
This game provides examples of:
- Assist Character: The Support Card System. By taking damage or blocking, the player can receive a random Support Card, which can be used to summon a character for an attack. Cards are ranked A-B-C, with Rank A cards being the most powerful but the hardest to get. This video shows how the system works.
- Some characters have their own assists appear in their specials. Soma Cruz and Crono in particular take this up to eleven, with Soma using his Souls and Crono using his teammates.
- Author Appeal: The likely reason for Ivy's current chest size;
according to Ahruon, Orkimides insisted on choosing the biggest size available for her sprite revision. The end result, however, has rather massive boobs."Ivy well... it's Ork who decided to go with that, I showed him various breast sizes but he went stubborn to don't make anything below that. " - Boss Battle: Confirmed as present via the Mugen Guild thread. The only revealed boss so far is Diablo as he's seen in Diablo II.
- Composite Character: Several members of the playable cast are this.
- Samus is a notable example. She's wearing the Super Metroid/Metroid Prime era Varia Suit, and is equipped with her standard arsenal of weapons, including Power Bombs, Super Missiles, and the Ice Beam. However, she also brings along the Grapple Lasso, the Overblast technique, and even the Zero Laser.
- Cool Versus Awesome: Any match is guaranteed to be this.
- Desperation Attack/Limit Break: The Crisis Card Attacks. See "Difficult, but Awesome" below.
- Difficult, but Awesome: The Crisis Card Attacks. Before you can even perform the attack, your health must be low enough to be flashing red and you must have both Alpha and Beta Meters filled. You then must successfully hit the opponent with a Chain Attack, which can be blocked and which will use up a Crisis Card no matter if it hits or misses. Keep in mind that you only get two cards per match, and they don't replenish. However, if you hit the Chain Attack you are treated to a 30-second cinematic of concentrated awesome as your character beats the living hell out of the opponent.
- Demoted to Extra: Many characters (such as King Dedede) were initially considered for the roster before being made into Support Cards. The most notable example is Mai Shiranui, who actually had pictures and gameplay footage of her as a playable character before she was downgraded to Support Card status.
- Dueling Games: Not so much the case with Card Sagas Wars itself, but some of the gameplay trailers pair characters from what could be considered rival franchises.
- Mega Crossover/Mascot Fighter: Being MUGEN-based, it's par for the course.
- Nuke 'em: Nova's attack as a Support Card calls in a nuclear strike. If the player targeted by Nova doesn't beat their opponent quickly enough, the nuke will reduce their health to zero instantly.
- Scenery Porn: The stages, whether you're in the Sacred Forest Meadow, on the surface of Valhalla, crossing Zenan Bridge, dodging traffic on the Central Highway, or inside the Ceres Space Colony, there's so much to look at, you just might find yourself forgetting about the fight at hand.
- Spell My Name With An S: Literally. Officially, the game's known as Card Sagas Wars, but you tend to find either spelling all over the place.
- Suddenly Voiced: Crono goes from being a Heroic Mime to fully voiced, despite his home game having no voice acting whatsoever.
- Super Move Portrait Attack: The Crisis Card attacks.
- There's No Kill like Overkill: The Crisis Card Attacks can come off as this.
- Overly Long Fighting Animation: This too.
- Token Minority: Though the combined cast covers an unbelievable amount of video gaming history, almost the entire known playable cast so far consists of characters from Japanese developers. The sole exception is Master Chief (A rare example where something American is the token). Whether or not this remains the case is yet to be seen.
