Battle High is an indie versus Fighting Game created by PointFive Projects, available on PC and Xbox Live Arcade. The story revolves around a special school in San Bruno, California, designed specifically for teenagers with special elemental powers. All of the kids are brash and prone to fight, and every character have some sort of connection with at least one other character.Battle High: Team-Up was the initial beta, featuring tag team gameplay, which is absent from later installments.
Battle High: San Bruno is the PC version, made available in demo installments, before being more-or-less shelved. It's said that a final version will be available in 2012.
The more-or-less complete version of San Bruno, Battle High: Elemental Revolt, was made available for Xbox Live Arcade in early 2011. The first game is no longer available due to the Xbox Live Indie game store closed down in fall of 2017. However...
Battle High 2, which adds 4 new playable characters and an unlockable boss as well as voice acting, released in March 2013 for Xbox Live Arcade (which is also no longer available) and Windows, later being released also for Mac, Linux, and OUYA/Razer Forge TV. Battle High 2 A+, an upgraded release which adds 2 new playable characters and a remixed soundtrack, hit the Xbox One in 2015 and on PC/Steam in 2017.
Examples
- Acrofatic: Arvid. He's a chubby sucker, but he can bound through the air and stomp on your head. Semi-justified because he uses his wind powers to move himself around swiftly.
- Amazing Technicolor Population: Bryan's skin is blue.
- April Fools' Day: "Nettou Battle High" in 2012, a supposed DSiWare release that echoed the "Nettou" series of fighting games available for the Game Boy in the early 1990's.
- Art-Style Dissonance: Battle High 2's character art is very cartoony. This is in stark contrast to the sprite art, which is much more realistic (if slightly anime-esque), and the storyline, which is a bit dark.
- Ascended Fanboy: One of the voice actors in the sequel (and indeed the one who brought the idea of voice acting to the table) was simply a big fan of the first game.
- Big Scary Black Man: At 6' 11", Heavyweight towers far above the rest of the first game's cast (second largest is Bryan at 6' 6"), and he definitely is strong and imposing. Subverted in that although he is the bodyguard of a gang leader, he's actually not a terrible guy.
- Blind Black Guy: Jada, who blinded herself showing off with her powers.
- Blow You Away: Shinji, Arvid, and Klein
- Calling Your Attacks: Most of the cast just yells taunts or grunts, but both Arvid and Mai call out their attack names at times.
- Camp Straight: Klein in spades. Wordof God confirms he's not gay, though.
- City of Adventure: San Bruno, California, where San Bruno High School is located (naturally).
- Dishing Out Dirt: Jiro and Kazuo
- Early-Bird Cameo: Kazuo, a character in Battle High 2, is mentioned in Shinji and Jiro's stories. He's their older brother.
- There's also, Michelle, who was also mentioned in the Ozawa brothers' stories And Arvid's ending in the first game.
- Electric Black Guy: Jada again.
- Elemental Powers: The game's premise involves people suddenly developing elemental powers.
- Expy: Bryan, for Jason Voorhees. Specifically, his palette is very close to that of Jason's in the original Friday the 13th NES game.
- Michelle is very close in gameplay and temperament to Phoenix.
- Funny Foreigner: Arvid and Klein
- Imagination-Based Superpower:
- While most characters can make bricks and spikes with their elemental powers, Bryan creates actual, physical objects with a few of his attacks, like desk chairs, computer monitors, chainsaws, fire axes, and machetes.
- The Principal seems to favor making giant fists out of his psychic energy, as well as body doubles.
- Love Dodecahedron: The main characters, brothers Jiro and Shinji, each dated Michelle. Then Shinji started dating Mai. Then Mai got fed up with Shinji and started chasing Jiro. And now, it seems Michelle is with Arvid of all people!
- Though that last one may not be canon.
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Word of God confirms it's not. However, it looks like Kazuo is manipulating Michelle for his own needs. That woman just can't stay away from the Ozawas!
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- Though that last one may not be canon.
- Luke, I Am Your Father: Principal Frederick Regisworth is actually failed scientist, Bryan Regis Harrisworth II
- Making a Splash: Khai, Mai, and Beat, although Mai uses her power in more of a way to make her An Ice Person.
- Megaton Punch: Seeing as how has training in boxing, Heavyweight has these as most of his attacks. He's not an Extremity Extremist, though, as he has a few kicks for normals (justified, as one wouldn't use just fists in a real fight even if they were a boxer).
- Misplaced Retribution: Ryken lost his father and arm in an auto accident. His mother told him that Chris Morgann, aka Heavyweight, was to blame. Upon beating down Morgann and finding out he has no idea what Ryken was after him for, his mother admits that she lied to him. He seems to just accept that.
- Playing with Fire: Heavyweight, Michelle, and Lucio. Also Michael from the ill-fated Team-Up game.
- Psychic Powers: The mysterious Principal.
- Shock and Awe: Ryken, Bryan, and Jada
- Suddenly Voiced: Everyone, in the sequel.
- Swiss-Army Superpower: Every character uses their powers differently, ensuring that no two characters fight alike, even those with the same element.
- Troll: Klein. His entire reason for being seems to be to piss people off.
- Walking Shirtless Scene: Heavyweight, Ryken, and Lucio
- White Mask of Doom: Bryan
- You Killed My Father: Ryken to Heavyweight. Except that it isn't true. The Principal killed him.
