Ani-Mayhem: Difference between revisions

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Released in 1996 during the [[Collectible Card Game]] boom, ''Ani-Mayhem'' was noteworthy for being one of the two first [[Anime]]-themed CCGs<ref>The other being the obscure ''Anime Madness''</ref> and was the first multi-license CCG. Since the game was produced by [[Geneon|Pioneer]], in many ways it existed to [[Merchandise-Driven|advertise their own properties]], which serves to explain the inclusion of some lesser-known series like ''[[~~Armitage III (Anime)|~~Armitage III]]'' and ''[[Phantom Quest Corp]]''.

Released in 1996 during the [[Collectible Card Game]] boom, ''Ani-Mayhem'' was noteworthy for being one of the two first [[Anime]]-themed CCGs<ref>The other being the obscure ''Anime Madness''</ref> and was the first multi-license CCG. Since the game was produced by [[Geneon|Pioneer]], in many ways it existed to [[Merchandise-Driven|advertise their own properties]], which serves to explain the inclusion of some lesser-known series like ''[[Armitage III]]'' and ''[[Phantom Quest Corp]]''.

The plot ([[Excuse Plot|as such]]) is that some kind of cataclysm threatens the anime [[Multiverse]], and heroes from several universes must recover important artifacts in order to prevent [[The End of the World As We Know It]]. Unusually, ''Ani-Mayhem'' was designed with solitaire play in mind, though it can support multiplayer.

The plot ([[Excuse Plot|as such]]) is that some kind of cataclysm threatens the anime [[Multiverse]], and heroes from several universes must recover important artifacts in order to prevent [[The End of the World as We Know It]]. Unusually, ''Ani-Mayhem'' was designed with solitaire play in mind, though it can support multiplayer.

== Types of Cards ==

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The series represented in ''Ani-Mayhem'':

* Set 0: ''[[Bubblegum Crisis]]'', ''[[El-Hazard: The Magnificent World ~~(Anime)~~|El Hazard the Magnificent World]]'' (original OVA), ''[[Ranma One Half]]'', ''[[Tenchi Muyo! ~~(Anime)~~|Tenchi Muyo]]'' (original OVA and ''Universe'')

* Set 0: ''[[Bubblegum Crisis]]'', ''[[El-Hazard: The Magnificent World|El Hazard the Magnificent World]]'' (original OVA), ''[[Ranma One Half]]'', ''[[Tenchi Muyo!|Tenchi Muyo]]'' (original OVA and ''Universe'')

* Set 1: ''[[Ah! ~~My Goddess (Manga)|Ah~~ My Goddess]]'' (promotional cards only), ''[[~~Armitage III (Anime)|~~Armitage III]]'', ''[[Dominion Tank Police]]'', ''[[Phantom Quest Corp]]'', ''[[Project ~~a Ko~~]]'' (first two movies)

* Set 1: ''[[Ah! My Goddess]]'' (promotional cards only), ''[[Armitage III]]'', ''[[Dominion Tank Police]]'', ''[[Phantom Quest Corp]]'', ''[[Project A-ko]]'' (first two movies)

* Set 2: ''[[Dragonball Z]]'' (covers through the [[FUNimation]] dub, with some later characters including Super Saiyans as extras)

The game had problems from the start, not the least of which was needlessly complex and occasionally opaque rules<ref>Rather infamously, the first edition rulebook's only note on exploring a location was "Flip over the first Disaster. Deal with it".</ref>. Fans almost unanimously blame Set 2 for killing off the game, as the inclusion of ''Dragonball'' characters destroyed any semblance of balance; why bother with characters like Tenchi and Leona, who need two or three Power cards to be effective, when you could just use Goku instead?

In the end, ''Ani-Mayhem'' is generally viewed as little more than a footnote in the long history of [[Collectible Card Games]], one of the many games that [[Follow the Leader|rushed to after the surprise success of]] ''[[Magic ~~the~~ Gathering]]'' and dying a quiet death. Its main legacy is being ahead of its time with the concept of the multi-license game, a concept which would be pulled off with more success by the likes of the VS System and Universal Fighting System.

In the end, ''Ani-Mayhem'' is generally viewed as little more than a footnote in the long history of [[Collectible Card Games]], one of the many games that [[Follow the Leader|rushed to after the surprise success of]] ''[[Magic: The Gathering]]'' and dying a quiet death. Its main legacy is being ahead of its time with the concept of the multi-license game, a concept which would be pulled off with more success by the likes of the VS System and Universal Fighting System.

=== ''Ani-Mayhem'' is the [[Trope Namer]] for ===

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* [[Awesome but Impractical]]: Tenchi can be brought up to the level of a ''DBZ'' character, but it requires '''six''' separate cards, four of which are Items and all of which are rare. And this ''still'' leaves him deficient in some areas (his Health doesn't change and all his Energy goes into buffing his stats).

* [[Competitive Balance]]: As mentioned above, any balance went out the window with the introduction of ''[[Dragonball Z]]''. Before that things were more even; though tech-based characters need Equipment to fight on equal footing with dedicated warriors, they make up for it by having better skill sets and nice unique effects.

* [[Distracted By the Sexy]]: If the player wins Charm Combat, they can make the Disaster hand over an Item, move, or attack either another Character or Combat Disaster at the same location. If the player loses, that Character can't participate in combat until the Disaster attacks them; if all your Characters get Charmed, the Disaster takes one of your Items and runs.

* [[Distracted by the Sexy]]: If the player wins Charm Combat, they can make the Disaster hand over an Item, move, or attack either another Character or Combat Disaster at the same location. If the player loses, that Character can't participate in combat until the Disaster attacks them; if all your Characters get Charmed, the Disaster takes one of your Items and runs.

* [[Duel of Seduction]]: Every combat begins with one round of Charm Combat before the fists start flying (provided, of course, that the Disaster ''has'' Charm).

* [[Game Breaker]]: The ''[[Dragonball Z]]'' characters in general.

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* [[Joke Character]]: [http://www.ani-mayhem.com/binder/card027.jpg Farmer with Shotgun], whose only redeeming trait is that he gives everyone in his party a Movement of 4.

* [[Killed Off for Real]]: What happens when a Character's Health is reduced to negative its base value (I.E., if the Character has 4 Health, being knocked to -4 is fatal).

* [[Lethal Chef]]: Since the game includes both [[Ranma One Half|Akane Tendo]] and [[Project ~~a Ko~~|C-Ko Kotobuki]], it was inevitable. There's a Disaster representing each of their..."meals", and C-Ko's will automatically join with Akane's to effectively turn the Location radioactive, destroying everything except the Location itself unless you have three Cooking skills present (or, alternately, you can remove Kasumi from the game to deal with it).

* [[Lethal Chef]]: Since the game includes both [[Ranma One Half|Akane Tendo]] and [[Project A-ko|C-Ko Kotobuki]], it was inevitable. There's a Disaster representing each of their..."meals", and C-Ko's will automatically join with Akane's to effectively turn the Location radioactive, destroying everything except the Location itself unless you have three Cooking skills present (or, alternately, you can remove Kasumi from the game to deal with it).

* [[Luck Manipulation Mechanic]]: Combat Cards, which affect both standard and Charm-based combat.

* [[Mythology Gag]]: The Movement icon is normally six arrows going in random directions, but for Ryoga Hibiki it was an arrow that looped back on itself, in a nod to his [[No Sense of Direction|nonexistent sense of direction]]. Unfortunately, this lead to some confused players asking Upper Deck if it meant Ryoga could only move in a circle...