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With so many references to games and machines from the Arcade Renaissance era, High Score Girl might as well be called "The History of 90s Arcade Gaming: The Series".


  • Early on in the middle of Volume 1, Doi tries impressing Oono with his knowledge of flower symbolism at a botanical garden. At one point he points out a Liverleaf, which he says stands for "a shy person".
  • A Heiankyo Alien cocktail cabinet is seen inside the Cracked Skull arcade, along with the original "rubber buttons" version of the first Street Fighter game and machines of Elevator Action and Pooyan.
  • Raiden is seen calling down lightning bolts outside the Yaguchi household during a thunderstorm. Haruo and Akira also discuss the mondegreen relating to his flying attack.
  • When Haruo rushes after Akira towards the airport, Bub and Bob, Hammerin' Harry, Ryu, Blanka, the R9 fighter, Opa-Opa, King Arthur, Wonder Boy, Rocky, Geon, Anda-Obaasan, the biker from OutRun and King Fossil all show up to cheer him on, among various other characters.
  • Akira accidentally knocks Haruo into the trash compactor at the end of Mission 1 in Undercover Cops, killing his character instantly. Haruo then notices that something was wrong when Akira acted all meek about it.
  • Haruo's examinee number during the Jouran High entrance test is 1942, leading him to lampshade the fact that if he fails even once here, it's over. Unfortunately, he does fail.
  • During the Rescue Romance mini arc, Edi is shown spitting out his infamous chewing gum, after which Guy picks it up and eats it in front of a disgusted Guile.
  • When Haruo looks out of a hotel window, the streets below look like a scene straight out of Capcom's old top-down Beat 'em Up Hissatsu Buraiken.
  • During Akira's ride home after her first day at a video arcade, the Vic Viper is shown flying alongside her limousine, while Strider Hiryu, the R9, Zangief, Mike Haggar, Kunio-kun and the kunoichi from The Ninja Warriors join her in the backseat.
  • One of the volume covers shows Hidaka and Akira cosplaying as Baby Bonnie Hood and Hsien-Ko, respectively.
  • Akira wins a copy of Final Fantasy VI at a summer festival shooting gallery. She then tries to win a Neo Geo console at the same game, but fails due to the box being too heavy to knock over with a cork gun.
  • When showing Akira the UFO Catcher prize game, Haruo remarks how its music was composed by the J-Pop band Dreams Come True.
  • When Guile is explaining to Haruo how men must sometimes suffer pain while fighting for their loved ones, a panel shows Billy Lee getting beat up by Black Warrior thugs.
  • In the last match against Hidaka, Air Man is shown trying to blow Haruo away with tornadoes during Guile's Internal Monologue on Haruo's Character Development.
  • Haruo admits to being bad at shmups after failing to do a no-bomb run in DonPachi.
  • Haruo later praises Darius Gaiden as a game even non-shmuppers would want to play for its craftsmanship.
  • Akira's elder sister Makoto gifts Haruo with a copy of Tokimeki Memorial in an effort to teach him about how guy-girl relationships work.
  • Haruo's skill gets noticed by the Shibuya arcadegoers after he defeats Kaiser Knuckle's notoriously tough Final Boss.
  • Hidaka manages to get revenge on an unprepared Haruo by trouncing him in Fighting Vipers.
  • At one point, Zangief utters a very familiar line while trying to convince Akira of Haruo's goodness:
    "Since I know very well what it feels like...to be labeled the bad guy..."
  • Haruo's self-appointed nickname is "Beastly Fingers", a play on Daigo Umehara's "The Beast" moniker. This is made more obvious by his character choices of Guile and Bishamon, both of whom are Daigo's mains.
  • Guidance Counselor Numata-san, a minor side character from the second and third volumes, resembles Lau Chan and even shares his fighting style.
  • The "I must use Haoh Sho Ko Ken" meme from Art of Fighting is referenced a few times in the story for comedic purposes. This comes back in a triumphant way when Haruo bodies Hidaka's Boss Team during their KOF '95 match using none other than Ryo Sakazaki himself, and guess which move he opens with against Hidaka's Saishuu right after wrecking Rugal?
  • Haruo demonstrates the Super Famicom port of RPG Maker to Makoto, when she asks if a game specially made for Akira could possibly exist.
  • We see a group of guys in the third OVA talking about "episode 8" and how Asuka is best girl.
  • In episode 4 of the second season, Makoto and Haruo's mother alternate between punch him and turning away and punching the air in the same manner as Haggar and Guy's famous infinite combo glitch in Final Fight. Their exact choice of characters even mirrors Akira and Haruo's choice of characters in Final Fight.
  • While Akira and Koharu are heading off to Mizonokuchi Arcade for a serious match, Koharu is freaked out by Akira's silent but turbulent demeanor, which she refers to as a Surge of Murderous Intent.

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