Yie Ar Kung-Fu

Overview

Yie Ar Kung-Fu (sometimes stylized as Yie Ar KUNG~FU) is a fighting game developed and released by Konami for arcades in January 1985 (in Japan) and March 1985 (worldwide).

One of the progenitors of the traditional fighting game genre, Yie Ar Kung-Fu has players controlling martial artist Oolong as he uses kung fu to challenge masters of various weapon disciplines to become the "Grand Master" and honor the memory of his late father. The game's title is based on the pinyin romanization "Yī Èr Gōngfū", or "One-Two Kung-Fu".

Unlike most fighting games of the era, which focus on either the sport of fighting (such as Karate Champ) or the use of realistic techniques (such as Karateka), Yie Ar Kung-Fu brings a more free-form take to the genre. Both Oolong and his opponent have vitality meters, which deplete when they get hit by opposing strikes. When either character's meter is empty, that character is knocked out and the other character is victorious. The game's controls utilize a joystick and two attack buttons, one for punching and one for kicking. While the joystick can be used to move Oolong around the screen to avoid strikes, it can also adjust his attacks, which vary in range and utilize three different height areas: high, middle, and low.

Released at the same time as the arcade version is the home MSX version of the game, which has numerous differences. Rather than fighting 11 opponents as Oolong, players fight 5 opponents as "Lee", with bonus mini-games appearing in-between certain matches. This version of the game was later ported to the Famicom on April 22, 1985 and received a sequel in 1986, known as Yie Ar Kung-Fu II: The Emperor Yie-Gah - Yie-Gah Koutei no Gyakushuu.

The arcade version received multiple home computer ports in Europe, and was later included in multiple compilations and digital re-releases. While it received no official sequel, the similar 1985 game Shao-Lin's Road was sometimes marketed as a follow-up.

Ports

The arcade version of the game was ported to multiple home computers throughout 1985-1986 in Europe by Imagine, first for the Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, and ZX Spectrum in 1985, then for the Commodore 16 and BBC Micro in 1986. It was later included in the 1998 arcade compilation Konami 80's AC Special (which was ported to the PlayStation as Konami Arcade Classics), received a port for the Game Boy Advance as included in the 2002 compilation Konami Collector's Series: Arcade Advanced, received a Japan-exclusive port for the PlayStation 2 in 2005 as part of HAMSTER's Oretachi Geesen Zoku series, received a port for the Nintendo DS as included in the 2007 compilation Konami Classics Series: Arcade Hits, and received a digital re-release for the PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch in November 14, 2019 as part of HAMSTER's Arcade Archives series. It also received an enhanced digital version for the Xbox 360 on July 18, 2007, adding new higher-fidelity graphics and audio.

Opponents

Arcade Version

• Buchu - Dressed in white pants, Buchu is a burly opponent whose weapon is his massive body. He often uses a flying leap to move around the screen safely.

• Star - Dressed in pink garb, Star augments her attacks by throwing shurikens for ranged combat.

• Nuncha - Dressed in yellow garb, Nuncha utilizes nunchaku in his attacks.

• Pole - Dressed in green pants, Pole attacks by swinging a bo staff around him.

• Feedle - Unlike other opponents, Feedle is a series of identical opponents wearing black-and-yellow pants that move across the screen from both sides, attacking Oolong if possible. One attack knocks them out of the screen and depletes a part of the opponent's "vitality". It is unknown whether Feedle is one man utilizing illusions or a series of identical men. Feedle is not present in some home versions of the game. In the GBA multiplayer mode, only one Feedle is present as a normal opponent.

• Chain - Dressed in blue pants, Chain slings a hooked chain for long-ranged attacks. Does not appear in some home versions of the game.

• Club - Dressed in green garb, Club wields both a spiked club and a shield, the former for close-ranged attacks and the latter for blocking certain attacks. Does not appear in some home versions of the game.

• Fan - Dressed in a red qipao, Fan attacks primarily by throwing barrages of steel fans, which flutter around before launching. Does not appear in some home versions of the game.

• Sword - Dressed in light-blue garb, Sword uses a dao and is adept at launching aerial attacks at the player. He can also wrap around from one side of the screen to the other.

• Tonfun - Dressed in light-green garb, Tonfun utilizes dual tonfa in his attacks. Does not appear in some home versions of the game.

• Blues - Dressed in white pants, Blues utilizes a similar form of kung fu as Oolong. Does not appear in some home versions of the game.

In the GBA version, inputting the Konami Code in the game's title screen allows the player to access two hidden opponents: Bishoo and Clayman. They are fought against after defeating Blues, and can be played in multiplayer.

• Bishoo - Dressed in white garb, Bishoo augments her attacks by throwing daggers for ranged combat.

• Clayman - A hulking living statue with a large sword.

MSX Version

• Wang - Dressed in blue pants, Wang is armed with a bo staff. However, he is not as effective with it as Pole.

• Tao - Dressed in pink pants (purple in the FC version), Tao augments his basic attacks by spitting fireballs for ranged combat (similar to Star).

• Chen - Dressed in green garb, Chen slings a hooked chain for long-ranged attacks.

• Lang - Dressed in red garb, Lang augments her quick attacks by throwing shurikens for ranged combat (similar to Star). In the FC version, her appearance is identical to Star.

• Wu (known as Mu in the FC version) - Dressed in gray pants (white in the FC version), Wu augments his basic attacks by performing a flying leap attack (which, unlike Buchu's, can hurt the player's character).