Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: All Star Battle Gets Western Release

Japanese games have waned in popularity as of late; fighting games enjoyed a renaissance recently, but they seem to have gone back to being a niche genre again. In a surprising move, Namco Bandai has decided to release their new fighting game Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: All Star Battle in North America and Europe.

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: All Star Battle is based on the Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure manga. The series has gone on for over two decades. There have been two animated adaptations as well as a few video games (one being a charming Capcom fighting game.)

All Star Battle has received rave reviews from Japanese publications. According to VG24/7, Famitsu gave it a perfect 40/40 score.

The game has characters from all throughout the series 8 different parts. Many of the characters and their stands (sort of like humanoid representation of specific characters’ powers) are named after Western music groups, albums, and songs. Some of them include Speedwagon (from REO Speedwagon), Iggy (Iggy Pop), Vanilla Ice, Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap, and, of course, Dio (Ronnie James Dio.)

There is no specific release date yet, but Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: All Star Battle is set to be released released in North America and Europe sometime in 2014 for the PS3.