| Kizuna Encounter: Super Tag Battle | |
| Developer: | SNK |
| Publisher: | SNK |
| Director: | Kanbei Hama Mitsuzo I. |
| Producer: | Akira Goto Hiroshi Matsumoto Takashi Nishiyama |
| Programmer: | Bashi Jaron |
| Artist: | Akairo Megane G. Ishidaman Nishi Futatsu |
| Composer: | Mitsuo Yasuo Yamate Yoshihiko Kitamura |
| Platforms: | Arcade, Neo Geo AES |
| Released: | Arcade Neo Geo AES |
| Genre: | Fighting |
| Arcade System: | Neo Geo MVS |
Kizuna Encounter: Super Tag Battle is a 1996 weapon-based fighting game produced by SNK for the Neo Geo arcade and home platform. It is the sequel to Savage Reign. The European Neo-Geo home cartridge PAL release was rare, with only five known copies, making it a sought-after item in video game collecting (the Japanese AES version is not rare and is identical except for the packaging and inserts).[1] [2] [3] [4]
Like its predecessor, it was ported to PlayStation 2 (released in Japan only), this compilation was re-released in the PlayStation Store for PlayStation 4 in December 2016.[5] The Neo Geo version was released for the Wii Virtual Console in Japan on June 28, 2011.
The Kizuna Encounter fighting system is similar to the Real Bout Fatal Fury fighting system. Notable additions include the tag system, in which players have the ability to switch characters in-game by pressing the tag button while standing in their team's tag area.[6] If a player loses one character, regardless of their other character's vitality, they lose the match. A roll system similar to the one used in The King of Fighters is also present in Kizuna Encounter as well.
One year ago, King Leo had made and held the Battle of the Beast God tournament in order to see who was worthy enough to challenge and fight against him from within their own given time and opportunity. Nine fighters had entered the tournament upon sight and that each of them had battled against one another from within a strong and relentless manner, but in the end, Sho Hayate had proven to be the strongest warrior and that he had won the tournament while defeating both King Leo and his fake impersonator King Lion from within the finals of the competition. To seek revenge against Hayate and those who caused his humiliating downfall, King Leo has organized a second version of the Battle of the Beast God tournament, but this time, there's a new rule: teams of two people must work together from within this new tournament so that they can either ensure victory or face defeat. The competitors from last year's tournament have learned of King Leo's new tournament and that each of them have decided to join forces with each other on either friendly or temporary terms. With the exception of Carol Stanzack (who decides to skip the tournament in order to continue her gymnastics training) and Nicola Zaza (who's too busy in having to work on his latest scientific project), Hayate and the fighters from the previous tournament have returned for combat and that they're ready to face the latest challenge that's presented to them by King Leo. However, the previous fighters aren't the only ones from within this tournament, as two new challengers have entered into the fray as well and that they have their own reasons in participating from within King Leo's new competition. The gathered fighters must be ready and prepared to not only fight against each other and King Leo from within this tournament, but also, they must deal with an unknown threat that lies directly from within the shadows of this competition as well.
