History VideoGame / WorldHeroes

* CatSmile: Ryoko does this frequently in ''Perfect''.

A series of fighting games developed for the UsefulNotes/NeoGeo by Creator/{{ADK}} and also co-created with Creator/{{SNK}}. Imagine Hattori Hanzou, Kotaro Fuuma, Rasputin, Joan of Arc, Genghis Khan, Bruce Lee, Hulk Hogan, and a Nazi super-cyborg coming together and battling each other for the right to fight an alien shapeshifter bent on taking over the world. That's ''World Heroes'' in a nutshell; a one-on-one fighter built around NoHistoricalFiguresWereHarmed versions of famous people beating the snot out of each other.

The ''World Heroes'' series in general is possibly the most known series from ADK, being ported to various other consoles than UsefulNotes/NeoGeo, like [[UsefulNotes/SuperNintendo SNES]], UsefulNotes/GameBoy, UsefulNotes/PCEngine, UsefulNotes/MegaDrive and recently UsefulNotes/VirtualConsole. As the years passed by, it's actually become a CultClassic of sorts and was compiled by [[Creator/{{SNK}} SNK Playmore]] by the name of ''World Heroes Anthology[=/=]Gorgeous'' for UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 in 2007 as part of their [[CompilationReRelease Greatest Hits Compilations]].

* ''World Heroes 2 Jet'' (1994)[[note]]Also has a SuperDeformed port for UsefulNotes/GameBoy in 1995[[/note]]

* ''World Heroes Anthology''[[note]]called as ''World Heroes Gorgeous'' in Japan[[/note]] (2007); UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 compilation of the 4 games made by [[Creator/{{SNK}} SNK Playmore]].

* UsefulNotes/JackTheRipper: He's a mashup of the Ripper and [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spring-heeled_Jack Spring-heeled Jack]], an UrbanLegend from the same era, who was said to have metallic claws, a devilish face, could breath blue fire and (hence the name) [[{{In a Single Bound}} jump incredible distances]].

* SuperDeformed: The UsefulNotes/GameBoy port of ''World Heroes 2 Jet'' uses this style.

** The inventor of the time machine is a certain [[Film/BackToTheFuture Dr. Brown...]] Also, Neo-'''Dio''' is an Ultimate Life Form fond of phrases such as "Useless, useless, useless!" and [[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure "WRYYYYYYY!"]] and uses sabers coming out of his arms just like Baoh and Kars.

* AlternateCompanyEquivalent: Hanzou and Fuuma were clearly modeled after ''[[VideoGame/StreetFighter Street Fighter's]]'' Ryu and Ken, from [[ShotoClone their basic moveset]] to [[ColorCodedForYourConvenience their respective colors.]]

* LoveFreak: Rasputin... in a [[DepravedBisexual decidedly]] [[AnythingThatMoves R-rated]] way.

** Zeus in ''World Heroes 2 Jet'' is very strong, but he returns as a BonusBoss in ''World Heroes Perfect'' that you aren't required to beat. In ''Perfect'', his moves have absolute priority and no startup, as well as being extremely overpowered. One of his super moves is a ordinary-looking punch that hits five times for 20% damage each hit. If it connects perfectly, it [=KOs=] the player regardless of how much health they have.

Also see the SpinOff ''VideoGame/AggressorsOfDarkKombat'', an OriginalGeneration FightingGame with a touch of BeatEmUp where Fuuma appears as GuestFighter, and ''VideoGame/WorldHeroesSupremeJusticeExtra'', an arcade BeatEmUp game where players assume one of the various characters in the game to beat up hordes and hordes of mooks.

* HoaxHogan: Muscle Power is a blatant rip-off of Hulk Hogan, having not just the look but the personality and even the intro of ripping off his t-shirt before a fight. Even when the developers said he wasn't a Hogan expy and changed some of their attirbutes (like shaving his moustache since ''2'') to avoid copyright issues, he's still considered his expy, and one of the most famous of them.
** In an interesting case, there's a VideoGame/{{MUGEN}} recreation of Hulk Hogan where the creator used Muscle Power as a base.

* ImprobableWeaponUser: Captain Kidd ''throws sharks and ghost ships'' as projectiles.
** These appear to be [[MakingASplash made of water]].

* NoHistoricalFiguresWereHarmed: All the characters except Hanzo, Fuma, Captain Kidd and Rasputin have their names changed. Jack is arguable, since he's based on Jack the Ripper, but that wasn't the guy's ''real'' name... far as we know. Mudman and Brocken, as noted above, are the only characters who aren't based on any specific figures from history.

** Zeus in World Heroes 2 Jet is very strong, but he returns as a BonusBoss in World Heroes Perfect that you aren't required to beat. In Perfect, his moves have absolute priority and no startup, as well as being extremely overpowered. One of his super moves is a ordinary-looking punch that hits five times for 20% damage each hit. If it connects perfectly, it [=KOs=] the player regardless of how much health they have.
** Neo-Dio, the final boss of Perfect, may not do as much damage as Zeus, but he makes up for it with his unmatched speed, his spin attack, and a sweep with a lot of reach.

* UpdatedRerelease: Subverted with ''World Heroes 2 Jet''. While it sounds like a revamped version of ''World Heroes 2'', ''Jet'' is actually modified enough to be an installment entirely unto its own. It retains the character roster from ''2'' but most of them received new and modified moves and fighting statistics. ''Jet'' also introduces two new playable characters to the roster, Jack and Ryofu, alongside with a new FinalBoss named Zeus. Additionally the game features a unique arcade mode that is structured more like a global tournament than your standard "ThreeRoundDeathmatch then move onto the next opponent" (though this typical structure eventually shows up further into the arcade mode; you can also play regular ThreeRoundDeathmatch fights by selecting the alternate single player mode). The word "Jet" in the title not only refers to faster movement, but also the ability to perform forward and backward dashing. Another new addition is when two attacks hit each other, they'll rebound. Lastly, the word itself, "Jet" was simply [[TakeThat a jab]] at Creator/{{Capcom}} with its numerous ''VideoGame/StreetFighterII'' derivatives (specifically ''Street Fighter II′ Turbo'').

* ILoveNuclearPower: Zeus' desperation move which is [[ShoutOut based loosely on]] the [[VideoGame/FatalFury Kaiser]] [[VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters Wave]].

** Neo-Dio, the final boss of Perfect, may not do as much damage with his moves as much as Zeus, but he makes up for it with his unmatched speed, his spin attack, and a sweep with a lot of reach.

* AllAmazonsWantHercules: Janne laments how she can't find a suitor who's stronger than she is.
** And then she meets J. Carn and falls for him, of course.

* {{BFS}}: Janne.
* BadassLongcoat: Captain Kidd

* CuteBruiser: Ryoko Izumo.

%%* FlamingSword: Janne's sword predates [[VideoGame/SoulSeries Ivy's]].

* HollywoodCyborg: Brocken, obviously.

%%* MightyGlacier: J. Carn, Ryofu.

* RuleOfCool and RuleOfFunny: The last entry in particular leans toward the latter.

* SNKBoss: Neo-Dio of course.
** Zeus in World Heroes 2 Jet is very strong, but he returns as a BonusBoss in World Heroes Perfect that you aren't required to beat. In Perfect, his moves have absolute priority and no startup, as well as being extremely overpowered. One of his super moves is a ordinary-looking punch that hits five times for 20% damage each hit. If it connects perfectly, it [=KOs=] the player regardless of how much health they have.

* WalkingShirtlessScene: Kim Dragon, Mudman and Captain Kidd

%%* WhipSword: Janne's sword predates [[VideoGame/SoulSeries Ivy's]].

Not to be confused with ''Anime/SDGundamWorldHeroes'', the second entry in the ''Franchise/SDGundam World'' series, or ''Roleplay/AWorldOfHeroes'', a PlayByPost roleplay hosted on Wiki/TVTropes.

* IHaveTheHighGround: The player's character is first shown atop a skyscraper at the start of Jet's tournament mode.

Unfortunately, cool characters and gimmicks weren't enough to make the series stand out, and it languished into obscurity, during only between 1992 ans 1995. The only appearance it made ever since was in ''VideoGame/NeoGeoBattleColiseum'', where Hanzou, Fuuma, and Mudman were playable characters and ''2''[=/=]''Perfect'' BigBad Dio was one of the bosses (in his form from ''Perfect'', Neo Dio.) This is because after its bankruptcy ADK was bought by SNK Playmore and the series actually become part of the SNK's ExpandedUniverse. Janne (now spelled "Jeanne") also shows up in the 2018 all-girls fighting game ''VideoGame/SNKHeroinesTagTeamFrenzy'' as a DownloadableContent character, marking the first time a ''World Heroes'' character has appeared since ''Battle Coliseum''.

* KnifeNut: Jack, in ''Jet'' and ''Perfect''; Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet-style.

Also see the SpinOff ''VideoGame/AggressorsOfDarkKombat'', an OriginalGeneration FightingGame with a touch of BeatEmUp where Fuuma appears as GuestFighter.

* FightingAcrossTimeAndSpace: This is the main premise of series: a scientist and time-traveler calls out famous {{Historical Domain Character}}s from different eras to fight against a big menace in different times, being reflected in their stages, when they can fight in diverse time periods, including Prehistory, Ice Age, the French Revolution and so on.