More Than River City Ransom / Super Dodge Ball: Kunio! (Kunio Three Kingdoms/RCG2 at TGS, Oct. 2/3)

[BigShad]

On October 2nd/October 3rd, ArcSys's spotlight in the Tokyo Gameshow will be showing off Kunio's Three Kingdoms and River City Girls 2!
New Kunio game announced for the 35th anniversary!
According to Google Translate, it's "Kunio-kun's Three Kingdoms".

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Spoiler: Support List

S SSBCandidates
Wonks
Freduardo
FamicomDisk
Arcadenik
DarthEnderX
MacDaddyNook
KirbyWorshipper2465
ThePocketPencil
tofuboi
thirsty-pocket
shinhed-echi
Torgo the Bear
Teeb147
tonygameman
Capybara Gaming
DevaAshera
kirbsmash
PokéfreakofBACON
UnderratedPlayer2401
RealLuigisWearPink
...and me! You could be next! You'll be added by default if you say you support the character.

Spoiler: Large Image

(Unsurprisingly) I never really many people freaking out over this lil' guy at all. People might know him best as "Alex," who starred in the cult-classic NES title -- River City Ransom -- a game which some may say still lives up to today's standards. Or, perhaps you know him as Crash from Crash 'N The Boys: Street Challenge or Sam from Super Dodgeball. Or, even more rarely, you might've played Renegade for NES, which featured... you guessed it, a westernized Kunio known as Mr. K. Nintendo World Cup is also a Kunio-kun game, and it even has a sequel!

So, now that you know Kunio's early Western days, it's advised that you take a glance at his Wikipedia page for even more in-depth info, but here I'll just list the basics from that page that relate to Nintendo and gaming in general.

• The series originated in arcades and on the Famicom, meaning that his origins were at least... somewhat with Nintendo, but more and more of his games became Famicom exclusives. Its first game was developed by Yoshihisa Kishimoto — who later designed Double Dragon.
• For those who've seen/played the Famicom games after River City Ransom, it's easy to see just how much the makers could push the system to its limits, making it very popular in Japan.
• A few of the early Kunio games for the NES were localized for the North American market. These include Renegade, River City Ransom, Super Dodge Ball, Crash 'n' the Boys: Street Challenge and Nintendo World Cup, which were heavily "Americanized" versions of the Kunio-kun games. Sadly, however, the rest were Japan exclusive (until Kunio-kun and Double Dragon: Retro Brawler Bundle)
• The Kunio-kun series has been around for over 35 years now, most of its games on Nintendo consoles (albeit some are on Steam and PS4).
• Surprisingly, the series is still going strong! River City: Rival Showdown for the 3DS earned a spot in one of GameSpot's Weekly Top Games, there's River City Girls, and Kunio-kun and Double Dragon: Retro Brawler Bundle is on Switch!
• Renegade was one of if not the first beat-em-up game on arcades and NES. If nothing else, it paved the way for most future beat-em-ups. Just about everything takes inspiration from it.

Spoiler: Big List of games on Nintendo consoles

NOTE: Some games, such as Game Boy ports and game collections, are omitted due to being extremely close to its source material. This includes Kunio-kun and Double Dragon: Retro Brawler Bundle.

1. Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun: Released on the Famicom on April 17, 1987. This was a port of the arcade version, and was Kunio's first debut on home consoles. This was later released as Renegade on NES.
2. Nekketsu Kōkō Dodgeball Bu: Released on the Famicom on July 26, 1988. This was later released as Super Dodgeball on the NES.
3. Downtown Nekketsu Monogatari: Released on the Famicom on April 25, 1989, and was the first Kunio game to be exclusive to home consoles. This was later released as River City Ransom in the US and Street Gangs in Europe.
4. Nekketsu Kōkō Dodgeball Bu: Soccer Hen -- Released on the Famicom on May 18, 1990. Was later released internationally as the Nintendo World Cup.
5. Downtown Nekketsu Kōshinkyoku: Soreyuke Daiundōkai -- Released on the Famicom on October 12, 1990.
6. Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun:Bangai Rantō Hen-- Released exclusively for Game Boy on December 7, 1990. Was later released internationally as Double Dragon II: The Revenge.
7. Downtown Special: Kunio-kun no Jidaigeki da yo Zen'in Shūgō! -- Released on Famicom and Game Boy on July 26, 1991.
8. Ike Ike! Nekketsu Hockey Bu: Subette Koronde Dairantō -- Released on Famicom on February 7, 1992.
9. Bikkuri Nekketsu Shinkiroku: Harukanaru Kin Medal -- Released on Famicom on June 26, 1992. This was released internationally as Crash 'n The Boys: Street Challenge.
10. Shodai Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun -- Released on Super Famicom on August 7, 1992.
11. Nekketsu Kakutō Densetsu -- Released on Famicom on December 23, 1992.
12. Kunio-kun no Nekketsu Soccer League -- Released on Famicom on April 23, 1993.
13. Kunio-kun no Dodgeball da yo Zen'in Shūgō!! -- Released on Super Famicom on August 6, 1993.
14. Nekketsu! Street Basket: Ganbare Dunk Heroes -- Released on Famicom on December 17, 1993.
15. Downtown Nekketsu Baseball Monogatari: Yakyū de Shōbu da! Kunio-kun -- Released on Super Famicom on December 17, 1993.
16. Shin Nekketsu Kōha: Kunio-tachi no Banka -- Released on Super Famicom on April 29, 1994. This is pretty much like how classic Sonic transitioned into Sonic Adventure 2.
17. Kunio no Oden -- Released on Super Famicom on May 27, 1994.
18. Nekketsu! Beach Volley da yo: Kunio-kun -- Released on Game Boy on July 29, 1994.
19. Super Dodgeball Brawlers -- Released on DS on March 29, 2008.
20. River City Super Sports Challenge -- Released on DS in Japan on February 4, 2010 and in the US on October 12, 2010.
21. River City Soccer Hooligans -- Released on DS in Japan on May 27, 2010 and in the US on June 9, 2010.
22. Downtown Nekketsu Dodgeball (ダウンタウン熱血どっじぼーる) -- Released on WiiWare in Japan on July 12, 2011.
23. Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-Kun Special -- Released on 3DS in Japan on December 15, 2011.
24. Riki Densetsu -- Released on 3DS in Japan on December 12, 2012.
25. River City: Tokyo Rumble -- Released on 3DS in Japan on August 8, 2013. Released in the west on September 27, 2016.
26. River City: Knights of Justice -- Released on 3DS in Japan on April 30, 2014. Released in the west on June 20, 2017.
27. Downtown Nekketsu Jidaigeki -- Released on 3DS in Japan on May 28, 2015.
28. River City: Rival Showdown -- Released on 3DS in Japan on October 27, 2016. Released in the west on November 21, 2017.
29. River City Girls -- Released on most platforms, including Switch, on September 5th, 2019.
30. Stay Cool, Kobayashi-san! -- On most platforms, including Switch, on November 7th 2019.

Games I'd personally recommending starting with:

• The NES classics, which you can easily get with Kunio-kun and Double Dragon: Retro Brawler Bundle on Switch. This obviously includes River City Ransom, Super Dodgeball, Crash 'N The Boys: Street Challenge and the Nintendo World Cup, but if you wanna get your history on you can't forget Renegade (even if it has awkward controls).
• River City: Tokyo Rumble on 3DS. It's a rather short game if you know what you're doing, but it is pretty fast-paced. In my opinion, this is kinda on the "meh" tier, but it's still worth trying out.
• River City: Rival Showdown on 3DS. If you have a 3DS, this is the game to get. While they could still do better in the music instruments department, this game's pretty damn amazing if you know what you're doing. (Protip: No shame in starting on the lowest difficulty, you kinda have to)

The one game I'd recommend NOT starting out with, however, is River City: Knights of Justice. It's a perfectly fine game, but it really isn't a good intro to the series and it feels pretty rushed. You can kick the ever-loving crap out of orcs and dragons, though, so that's a cool touch.




Now for the fun stuff: Let's see the pros and cons of even considering Kunio for Smash Bros.

PROS:

• The potential for a vast move set and a vast variety of palette options. If you thought River City Ransom's moves were plentiful, I implore you to grab River City: Rival Showdown (or at least find some way to see the moves list) and take a look at just how many moves this guy has. Most are rather simple to code into a game like Smash Bros. as well. There could be some basic stuff like Dragon Feet (which is literally just kicking in lightning-fast rapid succession) all the way to grabs and throws like the Frankensteiner, or even Kunio just pulling a trash can out of nowhere and dunking it on someone's head.
• Shining new light on an old series. Again, most people only know Kunio for River City Ransom -- this could be a chance to give River City Ransom fans new light on what the series really is and how much they missed, since for some reason, despite the Retro Brawler Bundle, many haven't made the connection between RCR and Kunio-kun. ...or River City Girls and the Kunio-kun series for that matter, but still. (Seriously how does this **** happen?)
• While Kunio is technically not Nintendo-exclusive anymore, most of his classic games were, take that how you will.
• A small, human "anime" character who does not rely on swords -- but instead straight up, scrappy and dirty street brawling. Kunio never had an official anime (as far as I know), though, but he did have a Japanese drama series and some manga.
• A fun personality, though I'm not sure if this belongs here. Kunio is a hot-blooded thug who seems (and can be) a bit of a hot-headed ass, but again, if you've played River City: Rival Showdown or even some of his classics, you'll know he and his world can be pretty goofy.

CONS:

• Generally obscure in the west, though it can change! Much like Shantae, her series's popularity boosted thanks to threads like these, and I firmly think Kunio, even if he may not get into Smash, at least deserves more exposure.
• Modern Kunio games can be kinda... strange. I dunno how to word this, but obviously his games won't click for everyone at first glance, and considering the somewhat poor English translation for River City Super Sports Challenge: All Star Special and its arena-based spinoff, it may seem somewhat unprofessional. Plus, its graphics rely on a weird mix of using classic sprites in realistic backgrounds, which can either be a pro or con to some. That's why I keep such a high focus on playing the classics first.
• As explained in the "Pros" section, Kunio's kinda moved on from being Nintendo-exclusive, and is still third-party, meaning his chances may get lowered. Plus, his series is now mostly owned by Arc System Works, so I'm not sure how well that'd play out for his chances either.

So, in Smash, what would his character be like?

Beaning trash cans, smashing peoples' faces in with lead pipes, and riding on soccer balls.
Kunio would be, more or less, a small-sized character with average weight, kind of like how Wario is average-sized but heavy weight. He'd play as a primarily ground-based character, encouraging his player to fully analyze the situation and punish the opponent accordingly depending on what move was made, much like you do with boss fights in River City. Depending on the situation, he would either use a fast move that does little damage and has low range (but can lead into some combos) such as his famous Dragon Feet. Alternatively, he could use a hard-hitting, decent-ranged but punishable move such as a killer headbutt. If you look at the move set idea you could even give him two unique items with their own set of rules

However, much like Ryu, Kunio would have the problem of most of his moves simply hitting in front of him rather than all around him, although Kunio could have a couple of all-around moves such as a Chopper Kick and a Leg Drop in the air

His walking speed would be fairly average, and his run speed would not be the fastest around. So, in order to avoid projectiles, you'd have to shield, collide, and jump accordingly. Fortunately, your smaller frame helps you get through these a lot easier.

Spoiler: What his model would likely look like

Either the one on the left or on the right (but in my opinion, the former), of course in HD and without the action figure bits.

We've also got a clean model from some Japanese baseball gacha game, like seriously, look at it, it's great.

And then this.

Hired a dude on IG to sculpt a Kunio-kun figure for me. From the old NES Title "Downtown Nekketsu Monogatari" aka RRiver City Ransom.

Image on the left is a REALLY old & no longer available figure. Right image is the one i paid for. Worth the $. pic.twitter.com/mpOOs7F50a

— NYF『ジェレミー』🇵🇸 (@NYsFinestGFX) March 23, 2021

Spoiler: Moveset Idea

Basic A Press: A simple one-two jab with decent range, but could be beaten out by frame one jabs. If the player is holding A, Kunio will do a rush using Stone Hands and end with punching the opponent into the air with low cooldown. If the player just taps A three times, the combo will end with that finisher. Not much shield damage.
In the case of the Item Selection move being his B-Move, this could be replaced with Dragon Feet.

Side Tilt: Dragon Feet -- Kunio's famous move. Kicks three times in rapid succession, with very little charge time and very little cooldown, allowing you to start and string combos easily. There's not much range nor too much damage, but it's a snap to use.

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Crouch: Lies flat, belly-down on the ground like he does in Kunio-Kun's Nekketsu Soccer League.
Crawl: Crawls about like an inchworm, from the same game. While crawling, he has something close to Luigi's walking friction.
Crouch attack: Pops up and charges using momentum with an elbow butt. You can follow this up with an air or special move to return him to standing or do nothing to keep him crouching.

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Up-Tilt: Kunio kicks upward in front of him. Tap A again to do a combo and kick downward afterwards. If your opponent's not being careful around the ledge, this could spike if you don't hit with the first kick.
Alternate: Uses Nekketsu Counter. Think Olimar's Up-Tilt.

Dash Attack: Preforms a drop-kick. This works a lot like Link's dash attack in which it can kill, but is easily readable. Hitting them will cause Kunio do to a backflip off of them, while missing will make him slide a bit.
Alternate: Preforms a Lariat like he does in Renegade. This ropes opponents in, and is semi-quick.

Side-Smash: Kunio prepares his left leg while charging, and preforms a slow but heavy hitting kick called "Big Boot." Good range and shield pressure, alongside doing a lot of damage for a quick kill, but can easily be read and punished. If used on a Trash Can, Tire, or Dodgeball, this'll especially make it go flying.

Up-Smash: Kunio prepares to jump while charging, and much like Sonic's Up-Smash, he suddenly leaps into the air to preform a quick knee attack. This is an alright anti-air, and does the most damage if you're in close proximity to Kunio (much like Luigi's Up-B). Use this on a dodge ball, trash can, or tire to make it go flying straight up.

(no image)
Down Smash: Kunio flares up his hot-blooded aura around himself, doing multihit damage like Fox's Up-B before exploding, sending opponents flying in the exact opposite direction they approached him from. Decent damage, and good for surprising opponents at close range.

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Neutral-Special
Based on Wonk's idea, pressing B would have Kunio search his pockets, and take out an item exclusive to his series -- a chain, brass knuckles, a rock, a tire, a kendo stick/iron pipe, or a trash can (Eat your heart out, Danny Devito). Much like Shulk's B-Move, you can change what item it is by mashing B, or a menu can pop up and you can just hold B and press a direction.
These items will slightly change Kunio's attacking properties. Throwing the chain, brass knuckles, kendo stick, and rock will cause them to go in a straight line like Mega man's B-Move, and the tire/trash can will be angled downwards, rolling on the ground for a bit (and like the crates, you can ride on them!). If Kunio presses B while holding the item (or any item for that matter), he'll use Grand Slam, a series of three super-fast strikes with it. The chain/rock/kendo stick/brass knuckles/dodge ball (from his Side-B) will be faster but do less damage, while it's the opposite for the tire/trash can.

Each one will also change the animation for Kunio's F-Smash.
With the rock, Kunio will wind up and throw it hard, though it'll burn up not long after being thrown, making it more like MegaMan's F-Smash but a lot smaller. This'll do less damage than his real F-Smash,
With the chain, he'll wind it up and whip it in a narrow line. Faster than his real F-Smash, but will do less damage. If it hits when fully charged, the chain will violently break. Savage!
With the brass knuckles, he'll actually spend his charge time putting them on and getting ready to throw a really painful slug. Due to his size, this will likely hit big characters where the sun don't shine
With the Kendo Stick, it works like a nerfed bat but is also effectively like Ganon's Sm4sh U-Tilt. Hitting with it will be tough, but it's arguably deadlier than even Nasty Dunk. Plus, you even get to hear the sweet sound of wood snapping in half in the impact. The Iron Pipe is much the same, except it dents.
With the tire, he'll throw it like a bowling ball, meaning it'll immediately roll on the ground, though it'll do the least damage out of all of them -- in fact, it'll only be mere item damage. The projectile speed, however, will be the fastest.
Finally, with the trash can, Kunio's F-Smash will be changed to him preforming Nasty Dunk. Kunio leaps forward in the air and dunks the trash can downward. If the opening on the can lines up perfectly with the opponent, their head will be trapped inside the trash can for a small bit or until hit again -- this will reverse directional inputs and make the opponent only able to walk. It sounds broken, but trust me, it's super hard to pull off. If Kunio uses this near the edge this works a lot like Ganon's Side-B if it had already grabbed someone. It's a risky, stupid idea to do -- but if you succeed I guarantee everyone in your venue will go mad.

Most of Kunio's moves can also be used on trash cans and tires to send them flying in other directions. Projectile problems? Just smack a tire at a missile, you'll be fine. You could also throw stones and chains at them too. These items stick around like Wario's bike, which also means any of these can be destroyed, and will require you to either destroy them or send them off screen if you want to select a different item.

Side-B: Spear Shot (also called Nut Shot... yeah) Kunio prepares a dodge ball ala Wii Fit Trainer. Press B during the animation to spike it downward, or do nothing and let it drop to the ground as an item you can pick up, or just kick around (like in Kunio's Soccer/Football games) like the trash cans and tires, only faster and with less damage. Also sticks around like Wario's bike, and you can ride on it as well. If you're holding an item, this will Spear Shot it instead of the dodgeball. Now you can bean someone with a Pokeball.

Up-B: Ninja Kick. Functions a lot like Zero Suit Samus's Up-B, except pressing B again causes you to dive down. Theoretically, you'd use his other B-Moves to gain a bit of air before using this if you're trying to recover.

Down-B: Chopper Kick. Works like Ryu's Side-B, except with the rising power and movement freedom of Luigi's Down-B.

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Neutral-Air: A simple, somewhat long kick that takes a little bit to come out, but has a long-lasting hitbox and little landing lag.

Up-Air: Kunio flips himself and does an overhead kick in the air with its hitbox aiming somewhat downwards towards the ground. This does quite a bit of damage and comes out quick, though its hitbox is weird to use and you'll need to time it just right if you want your opponent back on the ground for more punishment. Has kinda bad landing lag if you cannot cancel it out.

F-Air: Skull Chop. Kunio raises his hands high and brings them right down on the opponent's noggin'. You're gonna need to aim super specifically if you want it to meteor. Not too much landing lag.

B-Air: Sobat Kick. Kunio prepares for a strike, then kicks hard, slightly propelling him forward. This does the most damage, but is incredibly easy to read. Has the most landing lag.

D-Air: Leg Drop. Kunio fast-falls as he brings his leg down. Good for getting a quick hit in or trying to quickly get out from being juggled. Note: Different from a hip drop!

Double-Tapping Y will make Kunio use Acro Circus. This move only gives Kunio one ball-shaped jump (kinda like Sonic) if he's unarmed and on the ground, so only use it to fake out your opponent! This move can chain into a lot of other moves, though it most likely will not be chaining into his B-Air.

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Grab: Not the fastest, but also not the slowest. Like Kunio's normal grab in River City: Rival Showdown, his hand actually looks as though it's briefly increasing in size, meaning its range is pretty impressive for a small character. Easy to punish if it misses.

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Pummel: Quick, simple knees to the abdomen (or... the groin. Ouch.) ala Captain Falcon. Always good to pummel before throwing.

F-Throw: Like Donkey Kong's F-Throw, Kunio will lift the opponent over his head and can freely move with whoever he's holding. He can walk, run, and jump with no problem, alongside being able to use Grand Slam and beat an opponent with another opponent, however, he can only throw the opponent forward in a long-range. Anything caught in the thrown opponent's path will take damage, however, the range means there's no hoo-hah on my watch. Don't take too long though, otherwise they'll break out of it.

B-Throw: Kunio leaps up, taking his opponent's upper body between his legs and does a Frankensteiner on 'em. Like Snake's D-Throw, this will forcibly put them on the ground, though because they're behind Kunio, that means Kunio's player will have to do a read to properly follow up.
Alternate: Does a sweeping hip throw like he does in Renegade. Opponents in the throw path will take damage, and the one who is thrown will be grounded.

D-Throw: Kunio faceplants the opponent to the ground and preforms Fatal Steps, a three-hit kick that works kind of like Kirby's D-Throw.

U-Throw: Kunio preforms an Izuna Drop. Like Kirby's and Charizard's U-Throw, this will take the opponent up into the air and drop them both on the highest platform.

(no image) Wall Jump: A quick wall jump that has Kunio simply leap off of a wall using his hands and briefly kicking in the air like Renegade. You likely won't be hitting with this, but if you do you can chain it into some neat stuff.

(no image) Final Smash - Around The World / World-Wide (y'know, if that's too close to Daft Punk): Kunio Nitro Ports up to the nearest character, and a cutscene begins to play. This shows Kunio stomping his unlucky victim to the ground, picking them up, and using Sonic Swing to send them in orbit. After seeing them circle around the entire planet (which might vary in different stages), we see a silhouette of Kunio Nitro Porting again right in their trajectory to do an overhead kick that sends them plummeting right down.

Spoiler: Spirit Battle Ideas

Kunio Spirit: Kunio as your opponent. Characters will stay in air longer as a reference of the floatiness of RCR. Kicks from either side will do more damage and have faster animations.
Riki Spirit: Riki as your opponent, Little Mac if Riki isn't included. Characters will stay in air longer as a reference to the floatiness of RCR. Punches from either side will do more damage and have faster animations. If the opponent is Little Mac, his air moves become far deadlier.
Mizuzu Spirit: Bowser as your opponent. Bowser will have even more super armor, and is more likely to grab and pummel you before tossing you aside.
Sabu Spirit: A small horde of slowed down, predictable Jokers at CPU Level 1 (or, anyone who uses a knife to fight). They'll be more likely to use their knives, and if they hit it's an insta kill. At the end you face Falco, whose lasers are also an instakill.
Yamada Spirit: Mewtwo as your opponent, on a stage with a slope, with a reflector on. Crates and barrels will roll, and Mewtwo will try to reflect them right back at you.
Misako (Shin Nekketsu) Spirit: ???
Kyoko (Shin Nekketsu) Spirit: ???
Misako & Kyoko (RCG) Spirit: Peach with heavier damage and more hitstun on you and Daisy using a Home Run Bat as your opponents. Try to avoid Peach locking you in so Daisy doesn't get a free kill.

Spoiler: Unorganized Fun Ideas, Taunts and other stuff

If Kirby inhales Kunio and copies his ability, he'll gain his brown hair and mad eyebrows ala Bowser. Kirby will have access to Kunio's items he gets with his neural-special.

One of Kunio's taunts will be him pretending to barf, basically just opening his mouth sticking his tongue out at his opponent, while pointing to his tongue. This is in a vague reference to River City Ransom's infamous enemy death message... which is people just saying "BARF!!"
His other taunt would be the one in NeoGeo Super Dodgeball, where he does that "come on" pose."

The last taunt would be if Kunio is unarmed or not. If unarmed, Kunio crosses his arms and laughs.
Brass Knuckles - he'll spin them on his finger while giving a sinister grin.
Stone - tosses it up and down in his hand
Stick/Pipe - Brandishes it like a sword
Chains - Swings them around
Trash Can - Points the opening towards his face, looks disgusted, goes back to holding it normally
Tire - A tire swingset poofs out of nowhere, and Kunio swings in it, looking quite happy. He suddenly remembers he's in a fight, and gets off of it and holds his tire again (Reference to Crash 'N The Boys Japan Version where your manager could swing on a swingset)
Dodge ball - Briefly plays hackey-sack. You can tap A when the ball's about to hit, and if you do it enough times he'll kick it up and do a nasty overhead-kick spike.

Stage Entrance: Pounds his fists together
Idle 1: Yawns
Idle 2: Cracks his knuckles
Win Animation 1: Technos pose
2: Acro Circus into running around happily with his fists pumping
3: Punch into fist-pump, like in Nekketsu Fighting Tournament.
Lose: Rants about how his loss was BS, may or may not throw controller.

Snake Codec:
Otacon: Snake! Watch out!
Snake: For who? You mean this kid in the jacket? What's he doing here, this isn't a field trip!
Otacon: That's Kunio, and he's no slouch! He started out in the arcades way before you were even born!
Otacon: Watch out for his Spear Shot! He'll throw any item he has at you like a speeding bullet, especially if he's in air!
Snake: "Wait, what? That makes no sense, this kid's supposed to be way older than me, but he looks no older than 17."
Otacon: "He's got a bit of what I like to call 'The Ash Syndrome.'"
Snake: ...the what syndrome?

Palutena's Guidance:
Viridi: Excuse me, what is a HUMAN doing here?
Palutena: Wait, that's not just any human. That's... oh, I remember!
Pit: Did something happen between you and him, Lady Palutena?
Palutena: ...Sort of. Remember the time that a bunch of souls started fluttering up here?
Pit: Of course! I-It was a massacre! Only an evil god of war could've done that! ...Speaking of, what happened to them?
Palutena: Oh, they were fiiine. It just turns out this kid hit them with dodge balls so hard that their spirits temporarily left their bodies.
Pit: Wow... what's a dodge ball?
Palutena: You're gonna find out real soon, Pit. Watch out for his Spear Shot! If he doesn't have an item in his hands, he'll use a dodge ball instead. If you're quick enough, you can reflect it, but he can also kick it right back. Stay on your toes.
Pit: Thank you, Lady Palutena!
Viridi: Sigh... dodge ball. Another stupid way for humans to destroy nature to make their stupid arenas. ...Maybe I should watch this Kunio guy. If he's making other humans' souls leave, maybe I can make that a biiit more permanent.

Spoiler: Palette Ideas

Most of these were made by an anonymous artist who, well, prefers to stay anonymous. But I still think some sort of credit should be given since these look super sweet.

From left to right:

1. Kunio's more modern look... kinda reminds you of a certain person from Yakuza, huh?
2. Based on Riki (Ryan), Kunio's eternal rival.
3. Based on Benny and Clyde's school uniform, with the blue shirt vaguely referencing their jeans in RCR.
4. Based on Gouda, a Kunio-kun character that seems to be popular on Pixiv, at least. The black shirt's a placeholder. Gouda, in RCR, is known as "Ivan," the headbutting buffoon who guards the gates to River City High.
5. Based on Reiho High's school uniform, taking some colors from Hasebe (aka Roxy). In RCR, Reiho is the final area, though it's called "River City High."
6. Based on a palette choice from NeoGeo's Super Dodgeball.
7. It's just Alex.
8. Sir Alexander from River City: Knights of Justice.
9. Based on the outfit from the Renegade Arcade game. ...of course, surely Kunio would have some fanservice-y muscle to show off, right?
10. Ryan swap.
11. A swap for Riki himself.
12. Kunio's original, white school uniform.
13. Riki's original, blue school uniform.
14. (Not shown yet) - Kunio's Samurai uniform from that sort-of sequel to River City Ransom
15. Riki, but with the colors from the first boss of Renegade. Would still be called Ryan.
16. Kunio's in-general sports uniform.
17. (Not shown yet) - Riki's in-general sports uniform.
18. Riki's modern look with Kunio's modern colors. Red belly-band, white jacket and pants.
19. Shadow Kunio - from the final boss of Super Dodge Ball.
20. Shadow Riki. Though he isn't a final boss, I may as well put him in anyway.

Spoiler: Banners/Stock Icon

NOTICE: For whatever reason, at the time of this writing the Kunio for Smash banner refuses to work. Here is the imgur link.

For now, that's really all I have, and I will be updating this post with more stuff. I really just wanted to get this thread out as a chance to expose Kunio to more people, and to see what people may think of him from more of a character standpoint.

If you'd like to help this thread...
Reply with your opinions, spread the word, give some ideas to make this post better, or just do whatever you wanna do to help keep the thread alive. Thanks for reading!

 

[SSBCandidates]

Add me as a Kunio supporter.

 

[Wonks]

Sign me up! 100% on board.

I'd love for him to be able to produce random combat weapons like a tire, garbage can, chain, and a rock.

Riki could be a pallet swap character. (It is Riki, right? I'm so used to using the Americanized Alex & Ryan.)

 

[BigShad]

Sign me up! 100% on board.

I'd love for him to be able to produce random combat weapons like a tire, garbage can, chain, and a rock.

Riki could be a pallet swap character. (It is Too I, right? I'm so used to using the Americanized Alex & Ryan.)

That sounds cool! Maybe his special B move could have him do that ala Pac-Man, and his A press combo could be Dragon Feet. And yeah, Ryan is Riki, and he could work just fine as a swap character considering he can get the same exact skills.
Added you to the support list, btw!

 

[Freduardo]

Oh hell yes!

Can’t wait till the next river city game comes out on Switch.

 

[FamicomDisk]

I meant to comment here a while back! Kunio would be a really fun addition - River City Ransom is one of my favorite games on the NES, and while I don't love all of his games since then, he'd be a fun character for sure. I'd want costumes of the Japanese uniforms, and then also costumes of the simple shirt and jeans that the translated game uses. I definitely support him!

I wonder if they'd use the name Alex outside of Japan, or if they'd call him Kunio everywhere?

 

[Freduardo]

I meant to comment here a while back! Kunio would be a really fun addition - River City Ransom is one of my favorite games on the NES, and while I don't love all of his games since then, he'd be a fun character for sure. I'd want costumes of the Japanese uniforms, and then also costumes of the simple shirt and jeans that the translated game uses. I definitely support him!

I wonder if they'd use the name Alex outside of Japan, or if they'd call him Kunio everywhere?

Ideally set up an alt so you can pick the name between the two.

 

[BigShad]

I meant to comment here a while back! Kunio would be a really fun addition - River City Ransom is one of my favorite games on the NES, and while I don't love all of his games since then, he'd be a fun character for sure. I'd want costumes of the Japanese uniforms, and then also costumes of the simple shirt and jeans that the translated game uses. I definitely support him!

I wonder if they'd use the name Alex outside of Japan, or if they'd call him Kunio everywhere?

I think every game past River City Ransom EX started calling him Kunio even in the west. That being said, like Freduardo said, I could see Alex's name being used with the shirt & jeans. Likewise, and just to throw out something for fun, I could also see Riki's shirt and jeans palette being called "Ryan."

Something I really wish Technos would do, though, is make more "original" Kunio games. Tokyo Rumble was definitely a step in the right direction. If they could make something kinda original like Tokyo Rumble but have the cutscenes and overall "feel" of Rival Showdown, that'd be so good.

 

[Arcadenik]

Not one of my most wanted characters but I support anyway. I have River City Ransom and Super Dodge Ball on my Wii. They were fun, especially the latter.

 

[DarthEnderX]

I want him. With Riki as his Echo Fighter.

Seriously, River City: Rivals Showdown was so freakin' good.

 

[BigShad]

I want him. With Riki as his Echo Fighter.

Seriously, River City: Rivals Showdown was so freakin' good.

Glad to have ya on board, bud. Make sure to give some of the classics a try too, you're gonna love 'em.

Semi-unrelated, but does anyone have an account on that really old and dead Kunio-kun forum? Seems there's no admins there to approve any newbies, but I kinda want a way to link this thread there. Probably the best non-Japanese spot to put the thread.

 

[DarthEnderX]

Glad to have ya on board, bud. Make sure to give some of the classics a try too, you're gonna love 'em.

Oh I know. I played River City Ransom and Super Dodgeball back on the NES. And I've played Tokyo Rumble, Rival Showdown and Underground(I know, not technically a Kunio game) recently.

Didn't even realize Rival Showdown was a remake of the original RCR until, like, my second playthrough.

 

[BigShad]

Oh I know. I played River City Ransom and Super Dodgeball back on the NES. And I've played Tokyo Rumble, Rival Showdown and Underground(I know, not technically a Kunio game) recently.

Didn't even realize Rival Showdown was a remake of the original RCR until, like, my second playthrough.

Good on ya. Though I ain't gonna say where because that'd very likely get me banned, there do exist some fan-made English translations for the other Famicom games. There's actually a "sequel" to River City Ransom called Downtown Special: Kunio-kun no Jidaigeki da yo Zen'in Shūgō! that I mentioned in the OP, and there's a hella lot more sports games there beyond Super Dodgeball. There's stuff like ice hockey, basketball, and what's basically a Crash 'N The Boys prequel.

 

[SEGAGameBoy]

No Final Smash?

 

[PsychoIncarnate]

I'm really disappointed the English version of NES Mini didn't get River City Ransom.

 

[BigShad]

No Final Smash?

Not yet, but that's because I've yet to think of anything. Kunio does have some ultra moves in Rival Showdown, but they're nothing that final smash worthy imo.

I'm really disappointed the English version of NES Mini didn't get River City Ransom.

I know, right? It's like even the classics of the westernized Kunio were all but forgotten by Nintendo. I hope it had nothing to do with Arc System Works taking over or anything like that.

 

[DarthEnderX]

Kunio does have some ultra moves in Rival Showdown, but they're nothing that final smash worthy imo.

Disagree. Twin Stone Hands is pretty much the same as DK and Little Mac's Final Smash.

And Sonic Swing is even better. Feels almost designed to be a Final Smash.

 

[PsychoIncarnate]

Super Dodgeball is also one of my favorite NES games

 

[BigShad]

Disagree. Twin Stone Hands is pretty much the same as DK and Little Mac's Final Smash.

And Sonic Swing is even better. Feels almost designed to be a Final Smash.

I guess that's true -- I was looking at more stage-wide Final Smashes like Turbo Stone Hands or Freight Train Punch.
Actually, a modified Sonic Swing would be god-tier, now that I think about it. You press B and Nitro Port straight forward, and if you catch someone, you start a Sonic Swing that pulls in everyone like a tornado, flare up your aura for extra damage (like Nekketsu Counter), and finally release and destroy nearly everything.

 

[DarthEnderX]

Actually, a modified Sonic Swing would be god-tier, now that I think about it. You press B and Nitro Port straight forward, and if you catch someone, you start a Sonic Swing that pulls in everyone like a tornado, flare up your aura for extra damage (like Nekketsu Counter), and finally release and destroy nearly everything.

Exactly!

I wish I could find a video clip or gif of Sonic Swing in use, but I've looked around the net and haven't been able to find one.

 

[BigShad]

Yo, so this is pretty dope: turns out Kunio had a scrapped game that might've been a potential crossover with Double Dragon.
I honestly hope Technos decides to come back to this but with the iconic artstyle. It'd also be really nice to see a rendition of the real Kowloon, Hong Kong; kinda like how Yakuza has a kinda realistic Japan going on.

 

[DarthEnderX]

Feel like I should point out that Technos doesn't exist anymore, and Arc System Works owns their old IPs.

 

[BigShad]

Feel like I should point out that Technos doesn't exist anymore, and Arc System Works owns their old IPs.

Oof, for real? Had me tricked then, I saw the Technos logo back in the RCRS title screen and thought they were just published under Arc System Works (at least temporarily), but I dunno how I feel about them being full-on owned now. It could be worse, and at least we do have Kunio back.

 

[DarthEnderX]

Oof, for real? Had me tricked then, I saw the Technos logo back in the RCRS title screen and thought they were just published under Arc System Works (at least temporarily), but I dunno how I feel about them being full-on owned now. It could be worse, and at least we do have Kunio back.

Considering that both Tokyo Rumble and and Rival Showdown(and also Double Dragon 4) were made by ArcSys, I'd say ArcSys is doing way more with it now than Technos had done for years. And they're doing the best stuff in the series(sadly, the same can't be said for Double Dragon).

 

[FamicomDisk]

Surprised nobody’s posted this here yet!

A Kunio collection recently got announced for Japan, coming to Switch, Xbox One, PS4, and PC! Includes all of the Famicom games, plus the localized versions! It’s also got online play with friends or strangers! They also released some more information here, including that each game will contain missions that can be completed to earn avatars and nickname words (probably like adjectives and titles that go with your regular name) for the online play!

Currently only announced for Japan, but the Switch isn’t region-locked, so you can play the Japanese version if you want - like I said, it comes with a few of the English games, too! And maybe they’ll release it over here?

 

[DarthEnderX]

I wonder how many games that collection will have...the Kunio-kun series has over 50 games in it!

 

[BigShad]

Snip

I think the confirmed games were all of the NES classics, plus Shodai and one other game... not sure what though. Regardless, I do hope that there's gonna be an official English version where all of the games are finally officially translated (maybe even given Westernized names like Crash 'N The Boys: Ice Challenge or River City Samurai?)

 

[MacDaddyNook]

I'm in. I'd love to bean foes in the face with a super charged dodgeball.

 

[FamicomDisk]

I wonder how many games that collection will have...the Kunio-kun series has over 50 games in it!

Assuming they aren’t holding any back to announce later, it’s got 15 games! This article features an English list.

 

[BigShad]

Assuming they aren’t holding any back to announce later, it’s got 15 games! This article features an English list.

That's a good list... but not really that different from the one released on the Japanese 3DS. At least it's region-free though, and does feature online play and the English games. Hopefully they'll bring in all of the games as updates later on, and again, maybe give them English releases. If nothing else, I bet the Steam version can be modded to have the English fan translations.

 

[KirbyWorshipper2465]

Count me in as well. If Kunio can get in, maybe ArcSys could add Sol Badguy and Billy Lee someday as well.

 

[BigShad]

Count me in as well. If Kunio can get in, maybe ArcSys could add Sol Badguy and Billy Lee someday as well.

I dunno about Sol Badguy (but I wouldn't totally be against his inclusion since Guilty Gear is damn big... he's from Guilty Gear right), but Billy would honestly make a lot of sense too, considering Double Dragon's sheer nostalgia properties as well. If I ever see a splash screen with Smash Bros. Ultimate x Arc Sys Works though, I'm gonna freak the hell out dude.

Edit: Oh yeah, added everyone who said "I'm in" or something similar to the list. Remember, if you wanna be added in, ya gotta let me know in some sort of way.

 

[ThePocketPencil]

Yeah I'm totally on board with this, that moveset's legit as hell too!

 

[tofuboi]

Definitely on board with this, I’ve been hoping for Kunio since the Project M days.

 

[BigShad]

Glad to have you on board Pencil, Takumi, you both probably already know this but you two've been added.
By the way, I sent a PM to quite a few people so some of you might've already seen this, but check this out: Kunio's actually got a spot in Most Wanted Newcomers in a Smash-U poll in one of Japan's largest gaming magazines. This was posted all the way back in March I think but I only just recently learned about it.

 

[DarthEnderX]

I don't see a link.

 

[BigShad]

I don't see a link.

Truth be told the only source for that magazine I have is from an earlier Smashboards post who says it came from Famitsu, so take it how you will, Here's the post in question.
If nothing else, I do know that the Japanese highlighted there most certainly says Kunio-kun. I dunno how I can prove that, I just know that in any Japanese writing about Kunio it normally uses those exact same letters. I would throw it in Google Translate but honestly, even if it's one word I still think it ain't very good.

Edit to keep from double-posting:
So normally I save new posts for if someone else posts, but I kinda gotta let the steam out from how hard the delusion gears have been turning. Kunio might actually have a decent chance of being in this Smash's base game, and it's not because Sakurai would wanna surprise the Japanese audience. In the Nintendo Direct's video explanation for the online services, River City Ransom was shown in the base line-up for NES games, alongside Double Dragon. I'm like, near-certain that they would have to ask Arc System Works about that, since even on the 3DS VC River City Ransom says that it's by Arc System Works. I need to view the EU version and the Japanese version to see if there's anything similar (Street Gangs and Downtown Nekketsu Monogatari respectively). In the end, this could mean nothing, but it could also mean that Sakurai's at least semi-aware of Kunio too.
Double Dragon was also featured on the line-up, and to be fair considering how Sakurai's been apparently showing the west some love Billy and Jimmy might be in direct competion with Kunio too... unless Sakurai decides to be a big enough madman to add both Billy and Kunio in. I like both, so personally I don't mind who gets in over the other if that should happen.

 

[DarthEnderX]

Kunio is another piece of my puzzle.

 

[thirsty-pocket]

If Smash Bros was a series since Nintendo started making games, and 3rd parties were always on the table, you can bet your boots Kunio would have been a shoe-in. These days? I'm not so sure.

But I still support the character.

 

[BigShad]

If anyone's got a Twitter, it may or may not be a good idea to fire the American (or heck, whatever fits you) Arc System Works Twitter a mention and see about their stance on Kunio in Smash. The reason why I'm saying this is because they might be silent on like, one or two people, but if they stay silent on a lotta people asking that can at least create some tension to see just where Kunio is in-game. I honestly think his chances are better than ever, even if I've said that many times before.
Edit: Now I'm not saying that silence = OH MY GOD GUYS DROP EVERYTHING KUNIO'S IN but tensions and rumors are always nice to have for this lil' guy.