Reference articles on history, science, culture and more
Encyclopedia

Compati Hero

Banpresto video game series

Image credit is listed at the end of this article.

Compati Hero is a video game series published in Japan by Banpresto and Bandai Namco Entertainment that began in 1990 and features 16 crossover teams between Ultraman, Kamen Rider (also known as Masked Rider) and Gundam. Characters from other franchises have also been featured in some of the initial games, as well as in the Compati Sports series such as Mazinger, Getter Robo, Devilman and Godzilla.

It was the first video game series to involve a crossover between animated giant robots and live action tokusatsu heroes from different established franchises. The series makes this possible by using caricaturized versions of the characters (officially referred to as "SD" or "super deformed" characters), which allowed the different heroes and villains to co-exist and interact with each other without the need to reconcile their contrasting styles, settings, or sizes. This also made them appear cute. The first game in the series, SD Battle Ōzumō: Heisei Hero Basho for the Famicom, which mixed franchises that were originally licensed to Popy, was developed as a congratulatory present to Yukimasa Sugiura when he was promoted to president of Banpresto at the time, and was soon followed by series of spin-offs and related games featuring the same cast of characters that developed into the Compati Hero Series. The crossover was also possible due to Banpresto's parent company Bandai holding the merchandising rights for all the properties associated with the series.

The series was successful with children thanks to the SD Gundam craze, but after the release of Charinko Hero for the GameCube it took nearly eight years for the next Compati Hero game to release. Banpresto released a new game in the series titled Lost Heroes for the Nintendo 3DS and the PlayStation Portable in September 2012.

01List of video games

The Great Battle

Game Details
SD The Great Battle
Original release date(s):
  • JP: December 29, 1990
Release years by system:
1990, Super Famicom
Notes:
  • The first game in the Great Battle series.
  • A top-down shoot 'em up with platforming elements.
  • A North American version titled The Great Battle was slated for a June 1992 release but ultimately cancelled.
The Great Battle II: Last Fighter Twin
Original release date(s):
  • JP: March 27, 1992
Release years by system:
1992, Super Famicom
Notes:
Great Battle Cyber
Original release date(s):
  • JP: December 25, 1992
Release years by system:
1992, Famicom
The Great Battle III
Original release date(s):
  • JP: March 26, 1993
Release years by system:
1993, Super Famicom
Notes:
Tekkyu Fight! The Great Battle Gaiden
Original release date(s):
  • JP: July 30, 1993
Release years by system:
1993, Game Boy
The Great Battle Gaiden 2: Matsuri da Wasshoi
Original release date(s):
  • JP: January 28, 1994
Release years by system:
1994, Super Famicom
The Great Battle IV
Original release date(s):
  • JP: December 17, 1994
Release years by system:
1994, Super Famicom
Notes:
The Great Battle V
Original release date(s):
  • JP: December 22, 1995
Release years by system:
1995, Super Famicom
Notes:
The Great Battle VI
Original release date(s):
  • JP: April 11, 1997
Release years by system:
1997, PlayStation
The Great Battle Pocket
Original release date(s):
  • JP: December 3, 1999
Release years by system:
1999, Game Boy Color
Great Battle Fullblast
Original release date(s):
  • JP: March 1, 2012
Release years by system:
2012, PlayStation Portable
Notes:
Lost Heroes
Original release date(s):
  • JP: September 6, 2012
Release years by system:
2012, Nintendo 3DS, PlayStation Portable
Notes:
  • Published by Bandai Namco
  • A version of the game called Lost Heroes - Bonus Edition was released with limited editions of Lost Hereos 2
Lost Heroes 2
Original release date(s):
  • JP: February 2, 2015
Release years by system:
2015, Nintendo 3DS
Notes:

Battle Sports

Game Details
SD Battle Ōzumō: Heisei Hero Basho
Original release date(s):
  • JP: April 20, 1990
Release years by system:
1990, Famicom
Notes:
Battle Dodge Ball
Original release date(s):
  • JP: July 20, 1991
Release years by system:
1991, Super Famicom, 1992, Game Boy
Notes:
Battle Soccer: Field no Hasha
Original release date(s):
  • JP: December 11, 1992
Release years by system:
1992, Super Famicom
Notes:
Battle Baseball
Original release date(s):
  • JP: February 19, 1993
Release years by system:
1993, Famicom
Notes:
Battle Dodge Ball II
Original release date(s):
  • JP: July 23, 1993
Release years by system:
1993, Super Famicom
Battle Soccer 2
Original release date(s):
  • JP: November 25, 1994
Release years by system:
1994, Super Famicom
Battle Crusher
Original release date(s):
  • JP: January 27, 1995
Release years by system:
1995, Game Boy
Battle Pinball
Original release date(s):
  • JP: February 24, 1995
Release years by system:
1995, Super Famicom
Battle Racers
Original release date(s):
  • JP: March 17, 1995
Release years by system:
1995, Super Famicom
Notes:
Battle Formation
Original release date(s):
  • JP: November 13, 1997
Release years by system:
1997, PlayStation
Battle Dodge Ball 3
Original release date(s):
  • JP: February 26, 2013
Release years by system:
2013, PlayStation Portable
Notes:
  • Published by Bandai Namco
  • Only sold packaged with limited editions of Great Battle Fullblast

Super Hero

Game Details
Super Hero Sakusen
Original release date(s):
  • JP: January 28, 1999
Release years by system:
1999, PlayStation
Tokusatsu Bōken Katsugeki Super Hero Retsuden
Original release date(s):
  • JP: July 27, 2000
Release years by system:
2000, Dreamcast
Notes:
Super Hero Sakusen: Diedal's Ambition
Original release date(s):
  • JP: November 22, 2000
Release years by system:
2000, PlayStation
Super Tokusatsu Taisen 2001
Original release date(s):
  • JP: September 6, 2001
Release years by system:
2001, PlayStation
Super Hero Generation
Original release date(s):
  • JP: October 23, 2014
Release years by system:
2014, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita
Notes:

Other games

Game Details
SD Hero Sōkessen: Taose! Aku no Gundan
Original release date(s):
  • JP: July 7, 1990
Release years by system:
1990, Famicom
Notes:
Versus Hero: Kakutō-Ō e no Michi
Original release date(s):
  • JP: August 7, 1992
Release years by system:
1992, Game Boy
Shuffle Fight
Original release date(s):
  • JP: October 9, 1992
Release years by system:
1992, Famicom
Notes:
Hero Senki: Project Olympus
Original release date(s):
  • JP: November 20, 1992
Release years by system:
1992, Super Famicom
Notes:
Gaia Saver: Hero Saidai no Sakusen
Original release date(s):
  • JP: January 28, 1994
Release years by system:
1994, Super Famicom
Super Pachinko Taisen
Original release date(s):
  • JP: April 28, 1995
Release years by system:
1995, Super Famicom, Game Boy
Super Tekkyuu Fight!
Original release date(s):
  • JP: September 15, 1995
Release years by system:
1995, Super Famicom
Ganbare! Bokura no Compati Heroes
Original release date(s):
  • JP: July 31, 1996
Release years by system:
1996, Sega Pico
Charinko Hero
Original release date(s):
  • JP: July 17, 2003
Release years by system:
2003, GameCube
Heroes' VS
Original release date(s):
  • JP: February 7, 2013
Release years by system:
2013, PlayStation Portable
Notes:
Watch videos about Compati HeroExplainers and documentaries on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article Compati Hero, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

Images, from Wikimedia Commons:

Fathomly is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Wikimedia Foundation. Spotted a problem? Tell us.