Tamsoft's long-running beat 'em up is making its return to the ring, with spectacular special moves and lightning combinations.
Gideon Kibblewhite

I remember the Toshinden Battle series: quick-fire anime beat 'em ups... one-button special moves... got quite a cult following.
Go to the top of the class! Indeed, and this latest, updated and overhauled incarnation is aimed at widening the game's appeal.

Oh yes? But I bet it's still based on the kind of bonkers story only the Japanese could dream up.
Oh yes. And it's got between-fight cut scenes to move the story on too. Set 10 years after the previous 'episode', Toshinden 4 continues to feature the series' hero Eji, who has mysteriously turned to the dark side, leaving his only son Subaru to uphold the family name. Subaru must makes his debut in the battle arena to discover the reason for his father's character transformation, ably helped by Kayin, another veteran of the Toshinden wars.

Any other old faces?
No, but there are lots of new ones, like Genma, the most strange-looking of Tosh 4's fighters, a magical creature with coins over his eyes and a sinister veil over his face. Then there's Rook, a blue-haired, pert-nosed, cheeky-looking chap; Bang Boo, a cyber fellow in the mould of Tekken's Gun Jack; the winged angel Eos; and a staff-wielding young gal called Fen.

Splendid. And these characters kick butt, do they?
Of course. Besides the usual kicking, punching, rolling and jumping attacks, these chaps have a couple of rather nifty special moves up their sleeves. Some of them have quite spectacular ones, in fact.

Really?
With the use of a right shoulder button, Subaru, for example, can pull off a marvellous wheel of fire trick, and the lovely Eos can summon a decidedly unlovely dragon.