Last Bronx ~Tokyo Bangaichi~, often shortened to just Last Bronx, is a weapons-based 3D Fighting Game developed by Sega AM3 for arcades in 1996. It was ported for the Sega Saturn in 1997 and the following year for PC. It was later ported to the PlayStation 2 in 2006 as part of its Sega Ages 2500 lineup to celebrate the 10 year anniversary of the game.
The game takes place in a fictionalized dystopian version of modern-day Tokyo, Japan (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Tokyo"), where the burst of the bubble economy and following recession in the early 90's gave rise to crime, gang warfare and violence, leading to the first All-out Street War. One day, a gang known as "Soul Crew" stepped in and put an end to the bloodshed through fair-handed dealings and raw muscle. The peace was short-lived as the leader of the Soul Crew was mysteriously murdered, destroying the balance of power which led to a second All-out Street War. At the peak of the fighting, a gang called Redrum issued a challenge to every major gang in Japan to put an end to the violence through a fighting tournament, which would also determine which gang would reign supreme over Tokyo. While the challenge was shrugged off by the other gangs as a joke or trap set up a rival gang, things changed when they found their members floating lifeless in Tokyo Bay. No one would be allowed to refuse the invitation.
Last Bronx was developed by Sega AM3, whose recent hits at the time included the first Sega Rally and Virtual-ON. While the game shares some similarities to AM2's Virtua Fighter with an identical button layout, the game was unique in that each character fought with their own unique weapon and was one of the first 3D games to fully utilize motion capture along with Bandai Namco Entertainment's Soul Edge. Unlike many other weapons-based fighters at the time, which took place in fantastic or historical settings, stages in Last Bronx took place in actual and familiar places in Japan. Fights were short, brutal and not nearly as flashy as its weapons-based competition, but had a surprising amount of depth that emphasized combos, air juggles, and cancelling and feigning attacks by guarding. Fights took place in walled arenas, and the stage barriers could jumped on and be used to attack.
Unique to the Saturn and PC versions was a story mode where the final fight was instead against the character's rival. It also included an intro FMV, animated by TMS Entertainment under their Telecom label, who also animated each of the character's endings in the story mode. Exclusive to the Japanese Saturn version was a second disc that featured extensive tutorials explained by the cast in something of a classroom format. The Sega Ages 2500 version omits these, but introduces several video options and different play modes, such as having big heads and weapons, a homerun mode that would launch opponents high into the air, and more. All of these retain the arcade game's 60 frames-per-second gameplay, and while the Saturn version does have graphical glitches at times, it was otherwise hailed as an "arcade-perfect" port on par with the Saturn port of Virtua Fighter 2.
The game follows the leaders of eight gangs:
- Yusaku Kudo is the 19-year old leader of the street gang Neo-Soul, a successor of Soul Crew. Once the third in command in Soul Crew before its leader was murdered, he becomes Neo-Soul's leader after Joe leaves and puts him in charge. Uncertain if he has what it takes to lead them, Yusaku seeks him out to discover why.
- Joe Inagaki is the 23-year old leader of Shinjuku Mad, and was previously Number Two in Soul Crew before its leader was murdered. Disgusted with the fighting, he left to form his own gang of like-minded bikers and put Yusaku in charge of Neo-Soul.
- Yoko Kono is the 20-year old leader of the G-Troops, which specializes in war games, survival tactics and military training. She co-founded the group along with her brother, Ken Kono, who was seriously injured in a fire after refusing Redrum's challenge and hasn't been seen since, and she's out for revenge.
- Saburo Zaimoku is the 26-year old leader of the Katsushika Dumpsters, and was previously in Soul Crew with Yusaku and Joe. Seeking a fresh start, he vowed to leave the gang life behind and work for his dad in construction, but formed the Dumpsters after Redrum started threatening his workmates.
- Lisa Kusanami is the 17-year old leader of the high school rock-gang, the Orchids. A mixed Japanese-American high school student coming from a broken home, she trained along with Tommy in her grandfather's dojo.
- Hiroshi Tomiie, or "Tommy", is the 18-year old leader of Helter Skelter. A skater and a thrasher who lives a split life in America and Japan, he once trained with Lisa in her grandfather's dojo, but left and formed his gang to fight the tyranny that Tokyo's gangs cause on the streets. He participates in the tournament just so he can impress her.
- Nagi Hojo is the 23-year old boss of Dogma, a women-only gang. An ultra feminist and a lesbian, Nagi has her sights set on Yoko, but also carries an immense hatred against Kurosawa and will attack him on sight.
- Toru Kurosawa is the 25-year old leader of the Roppongi Hard Core Boys, who were once the long-time rivals of Soul Crew. Kurosawa sees their collapse as an opportunity to wipe out whatever remains of it and show everyone who's really the toughest of them all.
- Red Eye serves as the boss of the game, a red-skinned psychotic and bloodthirsty maniac who wears a mechanical headset over his eyes and fights on behalf of Redrum. Yoko decides to take her revenge out on him, believing he was the one responsible for her brother's injuries and disappearance.
A product reflective of Japan's mood and culture at the time, Last Bronx was a huge hit in Japan and expanded into various other mediums including manga, comics, radio dramas, a novel, and even a live-action Direct to Video movie. The game was also praised for its social commentary that resonated with Japanese audiences, such as Lisa's backstory of being mixed Japanese-American, a product of a teen pregnancy who was later abandoned by her mother. Unfortunately, the impact of this was completely lost on international audiences when it was released overseas, and didn't find success in arcades or the Saturn in those regions. Despite its success in Japan, a sequel never surfaced, and the game stands out as AM3's only fighting game of this kind.
Last Bronx ~Tokyo Bangaichi~ contains examples of:
- The '90s: The game is very reflective of "The Lost Decade
", a period in Japanese history where the bubble economy of the 80's burst and led to an economic recession in the 90's. The game also serves as something of a social commentary that reflects the culture and mood at the time. - Adapted Out:
- The Sega Ages 2500 version omits the story mode and animated sequences found on the Saturn and PC versions.
- Red Eye doesn't appear in The Movie.
- All Love Is Unrequited: Tommy has a massive crush on Lisa, but she doesn't see him as anything more than a good friend and is completely unaware of his feelings for her. Worse, some material suggests she has a crush on Yusaku instead.
- All There in the Manual: You probably wouldn't know anything about the game's story or the character backgrounds by playing the arcade game alone, and while the home versions included some information in the instruction manuals, there's still a slew of lore that was never translated to the west. Along with Lisa's crush on Yusaku mentioned above, Yusaku was also a close friend of Ken Kano, Yoko's brother, and the two get along rather well.
- Amazing Technicolor Population: Justified with Red Eye's uncanny red skin, as a result of Redrum setting him ablaze. Not so much with his 2P alternate "outfit" that gives him blue skin.
- An Offer You Can't Refuse: Redrum makes this extremely apparent that their Second All Tokyo Street War Tournament demanding all representative gang leaders to honorably fight for full ownership of Tokyo's streets is a very serious affair, going as far as targeting and brutally killing members of the more active and veteran gangs like the RHCB and Dogma, and dumping their bodies out in Tokyo Bay for the morgue to fish out when no one takes them seriously, to let the city know they are not fucking around.
- Anime Theme Song: A short version of "Jaggy Love" by D'SECRETS plays in the opening animated video for the Saturn and PC versions. The same group would also provide the ending song for The Movie, "Kaze no Street".
- Ass Kicks You: Zaimoku's airborne down attack has him jumping in the air and using his whole body to crush you, and comes down butt first.
- The Atoner:
- Zaimoku left the gang life to make up for the problems he caused in his younger days and wants to reform himself through hard work, but was still targeted by Redrum due to his days in Soul Crew.
- Red Eye after he's defeated by Yoko, which snaps him out of being controlled by Redrum.
- Ax-Crazy: Red Eye is absolutely nuts and wouldn't hesitate to destroy anything in front of him.
- Badass Biker: Yusaku is seen riding a motorcycle in the Saturn and PC opening movie. It's also said that Soul Crew and Joe's gang, Shinjuku Mad, are biker gangs.
- Badass in a Nice Suit: Kurosawa wears a blue suit as his default outfit. His alternate is a white one.
- Battle Cry: Zaimoku unleashes one as his win pose.
- The Big Guy: Zaimoku is the largest character in the cast, and his hammer causes heavy damage.
- "Blind Idiot" Translation:
- The game's title. The actual Bronx refers to a location within New York City which is nowhere to be seen, as the game takes place entirely in Tokyo, Japan. It's likely that the creators mistakenly thought that "Bronx" was a word that described the conditions commonly associated with it.
- Some of the stage names might qualify, such as Naked Airport and Lust Subway.
- Blood Knight: Red Eye, not surprisingly. He's eager to fight and clearly loves the carnage he inflicts.
- Bloodless Carnage: While all weapons are non-lethal, or are stopping power focused weapons for a reasonable fight, you'd think that some attacks would cause blood loss by breaking skin or maiming facial orifices due to how some of the moves can be difficult to watch because of how brutal they are.
- Bowdlerize:
- Nagi's homosexuality is never mentioned in the English releases, nor her one-sided attraction to Yoko. Her bio in the English manual simply mentions that she wouldn't mind a tomboy like Yoko joining her gang.
- Averted with the European release where nunchucks, which had been censored in other games, remain intact. And while not present in the game itself, the official UK Sega Saturn Magazine proudly declared that Nagi was gaming's first homosexual.
- Brainwashed and Crazy: Red Eye. He comes to his senses after he's defeated by Yoko, and reveals that he was being controlled by Redrum.
- But Not Too Foreign: Lisa is mixed Japanese-American.
- The Cameo: Sonic the Hedgehog appears on one of the buildings in Tommy's stage.
- Card-Carrying Villain:
- Red Eye unapologetically declares in his story ending that he's discovered the power of evil.
- Kurosawa has a move called "Sorry, I'm just evil."
- The Chains of Commanding: Both Yusaku and Yoko are leaders of their respective gangs but neither of them are confident that they really have what it takes to lead and feel the world has been placed on their shoulders. This isn't as apparent with Yoko in-game since she's more concerned with getting revenge on Red Eye, but supplemental material suggests that this is a struggle they share together.
- Cool Board: Tommy is seen riding one in the opening movie for the Saturn and PC versions.
- Crapsack World: Downplayed. Last Bronx casts modern-day Tokyo in a more dystopian light in which Japan has become completely overrun by crime, violence and gang warfare as the result of the country's economic recession at the time of the game's release. However, it also contains many contemporary elements such as featuring actual locations as stages that are faithfully represented, which made it feel more like a fictionalized account of current times.
- Depending on the Artist: Red Eye varies between having red brownish skin or incredibly bright red skin.
- Did Not Think This Through: Lisa originally formed The Orchids to pursue her love of music, form a rock band, and escape from her grandfather's intense regiments and old fashioned scheduling, but as her band got bigger in renown in economic depression dystoptian Japan, gangs and other unsavory types soon began to harass the band and even extort "services" from them. Their fans and even she and her fellow bandmates soon took to the streets and met force with even more skilled and overwhelming force, but this also lead to drawing out the attention of Redrum, and as their actions tell to those who refuse their invitation to the Second All Tokyo Street Wars (i.e. participate or end up in a bodybag), Lisa has no other choice but represent her gang.
- Died in Your Arms Tonight: In Yoko's ending, after defeating Red Eye in the finals, he reveals the truth behind his actions and eventually dies in Yoko's arms.
- Does Not Like Men: Nagi, a feminist who leads a women-only gang and is also a lesbian. She claims she doesn't hate men, but expects them to serve her. Despite having the hots for Yoko, the final boss of her story mode is Kurosawa, who she was once involved with and has an immense hatred toward.
- Dramatic Drop: In the anime intro, Yoko's tonfa falls to her feet after she witnesses her brother being engulfed in flames.
- The Dreaded: Nagi is known as the "Dangerous Queen" and "Raving Lesbian" amongst the street gang underworld.
- Redrum, as the story of Last Bronx tells. No one knows who they are, or what their purpose is, but if they want it, they'll get it, or else, and they will shed blood if it means getting what they want.
- Drunk on the Dark Side: In Red Eye's ending in the Saturn/PC mode, he turns on his sister Yoko, fully embracing the power he's always desired.
- Dude, Where's My Respect?: In Yusaku's story ending, he tells Joe that he's not giving him the respect he deserves. Joe fires back asking Yusaku why he fights and why he became the leader, which he can't bring himself to answer.
- Dual Wielding: Lisa, Yoko, Nagi, and Red Eye fight with a pair of their weapons.
- Dub-Induced Plotline Change: People who know a small bit of Japanese might notice that the subtitles don't match the spoken dialogue. The subtitles for the opening movie don't match what's being sung at all, which was perhaps changed due to its suggestive lyrics, and the dialogue before and after the final battle for the Saturn/PC mode isn't quite on the mark either.
- Evil Laugh: Red Eye does this as his victory pose and in his story ending.
- Final Boss: Red Eye in arcade mode. In the Saturn/PC modes, he's the penultimate boss while a rival character serves as the final opponent, but played straight for Yoko who instead fights him last.
- Forehead of Doom: The official character art has everyone with large foreheads.
- Gentle Giant: Zaimoku is actually rather friendly when he's not kicking your ass. He also desired to leave the gang life behind and only formed the Dumpsters to protect his workmates.
- Hair Color Dissonance: Although Lisa appears to be a strawberry blonde, her hair color is hardly consistent in official artwork. Her anime-styled art can have her with bright blonde hair, and you could mistake her for a brunette in her 3D renders.
- Handwraps of Awesome: Red Eye sports these. Yoko also has some on her right arm.
- The Heavy: Red Eye serves as this for the Redrum gang.
- Heir to the Dojo: Lisa's mother was supposed to be the successor of the Kusanami dojo, but she ditched her family for a wealthy life in America instead. Lisa's grandfather has since placed it upon her to be the next successor, but she's far more interested in living young and hanging out with her friends.
- The Hyena: Red Eye is constantly laughing when fighting him. He even lets out a weak laugh if you lose playing as him.
- Inferiority Superiority Complex: Yusaku has shades of this. He's angered that he doesn't get the respect he thinks he deserves, but also isn't sure if he has what it takes to be Neo-Soul's leader. Joe and Zaimoku tell him to be less dependent and more confident respectively.
- It's Personal: Yoko is the only one with a personal grudge against Redrum, as her brother Ken was seriously injured by them and went missing after refusing to accept the invitation to their tournament.
- Japanese Gangbangers:
- Neo Soul, as headed by Yusaku, takes on after the OG bosozoku gang of Tokyo's streets, and succeeds by tradition of its original famous street gang of Soul Crew.
- Shinjuku Mad, as headed by Joe, is implied to be a more western styled motorcycle bosozoku gang, boasting choppers and using the iron cross as their symbol. They share the same Free Soul philosophy of Neo Soul, but are not its defining representatives.
- The Kazushika Dumpsters, as headed by Zaimoku, are a makeshift construction crew gang formed out of response to Redrum's intrigues, and do so out of self defense.
- The G-Troops, as headed by Yoko, like the Kazushika Dumpsters, were only a hardcore survival game turned military martial arts interest group upon the economic crash of Japan.
- Dogma, as headed by Nagi, are a super feminist gang who engage in some heavy misandry.
- The Roppongi Hardcore Boys, as headed by Kurosawa, is a ruthless yankii thug gang. As their turf and identity indicates, they are more engaged in the criminal underworld and most likely have connections with the Yakuza.
- Helter-Skelter, as headed by Tommy, is a boarder gang who have formed to make space in Tokyo to skate and thrash without needing to owe anyone anything.
- The Orchids, as headed by Lisa, are like the G-Troops and the Kazushika Dumpsters, in that they are a band who have a gang crowd of fans of their music, and are formed to protect themselves from hecklers, rival bands, and criminal extortion in economic depression Tokyo.
- Japanese Ranguage: The announcer can clearly be heard declaring the start of each new "Lound" in a given match.
- Jerkass:
- Kurosawa is probably the only character who's a total ass and doesn't have a good reason behind it. He's a violent thug and a ruthless bastard who only cares about proving that he's the toughest out there.
- Red Eye of course, but at least he has the excuse of being Brainwashed and Crazy.
- Joke Weapon: Cheats can be used to unlock one for each fighter.
- Kick Them While They Are Down: Like Virtua Fighter, each character can attack a fallen opponent, which is usually done by leaping in the air, leaving them open for attack if they fail to connect.
- Lost in Translation: Interestingly, the US Saturn manual mentioning the hidden Japan emerging, it says "Biker gangs and Chinese mafia;...", rather than "Bōsōzokus and Yakuzas;..."
- Martial Arts Headband: Yusaku, Tommy and Kurosawa sport one.
- Market-Based Title: An odd case. The name was shortened to Last Bronx in other regions in flyers and advertisements, but the "Tokyo Bangaichi" subtitle remains on the arcade cabinet and the game itself. The game was simply released as Last Bronx for the Saturn and PC versions in all regions, including Japan, which also removed the subtitle from the loading screens. The Sega Ages 2500 version retained the game's full title.
- Mighty Glacier: Zaimoku is not as fast as many of the others, but that hammer of his hurts a lot.
- The Movie: A live action film was directed by Takashi Shimizu and released a year after the game was.
- Ms. Fanservice: Lisa. You'll be seeing her panties a lot given how short her skirt is.
- Names to Run Away from Really Fast: Redrum
- Parents as People: Although Lisa's grandfather comes off as intensely old fashioned and strict, his age strongly implies that he knows what he is doing and thinking is best for Lisa. Along with his age suggesting that he lived through the US Occupation of Japan post World War II, a very harsh and crime ridden time before General MacArthur gave Japan her autonomy again as her own nation, he knows that such times by their incarnation of the events of Last Bronx have made their way back again, and likely does so in knowing that if Lisa isn't going to listen and stay home and be safe, he'd best give her the best of their family's martial arts tradition to survive in disparate and violent economic depression urban hellscape dystopian Japan going out the door.
- Parental Abandonment: Lisa's mom ran off with the son of a wealthy American lawyer to live in the US. Her grandfather is the only family she has left.
- Perpetual Smiler: Red Eye wears a wide, proud grin throughout his fight and most artwork, which doubles as a Slasher Smile.
- Pink Is Feminine: Lisa wears a pink shirt as part of her 2P uniform.
- Pointless Bandaid: Yoko wears a bandage on her left cheek.
- Product Placement: Numerous brands were placed into the backgrounds of the game, but were all replaced in international versions of the game with Sega and Saturn logos. A poster for "Act Against Aids" was added to the Lust Subway stage in the PC version, however.
- Raised by Grandparents: Since Lisa's mother ran off with a lawyer to live in America, her grandfather has placed it upon her to be the successor of the family dojo instead. His strict upbringing and training regiment has left her very frustrated, and formed the Orchids and plays the drums so she can vent out her frustrations creatively.
- Real-Place Background: Adding to the game's sense of realism, many stages are based on actual locations in Tokyo, with some stages showcasing certain landmarks. The 109 building, a landmark of the Scramble Crossing in Shibuya, appears in Tommy's stage. Yusaku's stage takes place outside the Haneda Airport, Lisa's stage is the Moonlight Garden of the Takeshiba Passenger Ship Terminal, and Tokyo's Rainbow Bridge can be seen in Nagi's stage.
- Red Baron: The original Soul Crew. In one of Tokyo's darkest times, where troubled teens and gangs ruthlessly fought each other everyday for power and turned Tokyo's streets upside down by anarchy in the wake of total economic devastation, Soul Crew was the gang that was said to have blazed through like wildfire down the pavement, unifying the youth of the city by their philosophy of "Free Soul" that allowed for equanimity of youth expression, while dishing out fair handed dealings and iron fisted fighting skills to beat back and stomp out those less savory from getting a chance in Tokyo's underworld. While they could have used their skills to completely dominate Tokyo, their actions helped to bring peace in those bloody times, and still ring resonant on the streets of Tokyo.
- Red Eyes, Take Warning: Red Eye, who else? Although only one of his eyes glows from his headgear. The other is a green targeting reticle.
- The Reveal: Red Eye is actually Yoko's Brainwashed and Crazy brother, Ken.
- Ring Out: While the barriers of each stage prevents this from happening regularly, it's still possible to lose this way. Most characters will jump off the barrier the moment they touch it, but accidentally doing another backflip or getting attacked in the process will send them past the edge and disqualify them.
- The Rival:
- Yusaku and Joe.
- Tommy and Lisa.
- Yoko and Red Eye.
- Rooftop Confrontation: Joe's stage takes place on the roof of a building in Shinjuku.
- Sdrawkcab Name: Redrum. It's more apparent in their gang logo where the letters are also backwards.
- Secret Character: Red Eye can be unlocked in the arcade version after beating the game with every character and putting in a code at the character select screen. He can also be unlocked in the Saturn/PC modes after beating the game with every character and moving the character selection cursor off screen.
- Shout-Out: Two of Tommy's moves are named "AC-DC Thrash" and "AC-DC Cartwheel".
- Spoiled Brat:
- Lisa. Despite her grandfather's harsh training, he can be too gentle on her which has led her to become a rebellious high school prima donna.
- Nagi describes herself as one and has no apologies for it, being the only daughter of a wealthy businessman.
- Stripperiffic: With Nagi's torn pants, small shirt and leather jacket, you'd be forgiven if you thought she was actually a hooker. She's not.
- Superboss: Beat arcade mode in less than four minutes and you'll be treated to an extra fight, which is a Mirror Match against a metallic version of yourself. The game will end whether you win or lose and isn't counted towards your play time. The Sega Ages version allows you to play as this version of your character.
- Super-Deformed: Exclusive to the Japanese version of the Saturn port is a second disc that includes in-depth tutorials, which is narrated by chibi-like versions of the cast.
- Teen Pregnancy: Lisa's mother had her when she was a teenager.
- Tomboy: Yoko is stated to be this, and was the co-founder of the G-Troops along with her brother. She's got a Tomboyish Ponytail to boot.
- Totally Radical: Kurosawa's stage is called "Radical Parking Lot."
- Truth in Television: The Orchids take on after a real life phenomena regarding famous J-Rock band X-Japan, where in the 1980s, X-Japan got the idea to gather their more crazed fans as a personal army to crack down hard on enemy rival bands and even music critics.
- The Roppongi Hardcore Boys being one of the more brutal and nasty gangs. Roppongi used to be a neighborhood notorious city-and-worldwide for being a hotspot for Yakuza activity and some of the highest nightly crime rates throughout Tokyo around the 1980s and the 1990s. It's cooled off since then, but the area still is weary to be around at night.
- Unskilled, but Strong:
- Since a hammer isn't your ordinary weapon, Zaimoku relies more on its raw strength as well as his own to dominate his enemies.
- Kurosawa is very rough and unpolished when it comes to his sword skills, but the raw and violent power he puts behind every move makes him intimidating and dangerous.
- Vocal Dissonance: Tommy is clearly voiced by a woman in the Korean version, in what seems like an attempt to give him a childish voice.
- Walking Shirtless Scene: Zaimoku doesn't wear a shirt in his default outfit, but wears one in his 2P alternate outfit. Red Eye is completely shirtless in both outfits. His character art depicts him wearing an open vest with his chest exposed, but isn't present in the game itself.
- Wooden Katanas Are Even Better: Kurosawa's weapon is a wooden sword.
- Year X: An arcade flyer indicates the game takes place in "199X".
