Tobal 2 (トバル2 Tobaru 2) is a 3D fighting video game developed by DreamFactory and released by Square in Japan in 1997. It is the sequel to Tobal No. 1. The game was re-released in 2007 under Square Enix's "Legendary Hits" label.
The game holds the record for the largest character roster in a fighting game with a grand total of 200 playable characters to choose from, as well as a greatly expanded Quest Mode compared to its predecessor.
Gameplay
The fighting system in Tobal 2 is the same as in the previous game. The player can freely navigate 3D fighting arenas under the condition that they face the opponent. High, medium, and low attacks can be executed using assigned buttons. As in Tobal No. 1, the grappling and blocking system offers the player a variety of offensive and defensive maneuvers. An unblockable fireball attack has been added for each character. Tobal 2 was released on the same day as Sony's Dual Analog Controller in Japan, noted as the first game compatible with the peripheral. Graphically, the game features Gouraud shaded and higher-resolution character models compared to Tobal No. 1, but still runs at 60 frames per second.
The "Quest Mode" from Tobal No. 1 makes a return in Tobal 2. The game contains six dungeons (Practice Dungeon, Pyramid, Desert Spaceship, Molmoran Mine, Castle and Final Dungeon) to conquer. Unlike the dungeon-enclosed Quest Mode of the original, it also offers an explorable town that allows the player to eat, sleep, and shop. In each floor of the dungeons, the player will battle against a variety of monsters. When defeated, the monsters will drop either food, stones, potions, money or weapons. As the player progresses through the game, the character gains experience for each body part or type of attack (the most important being each arm, each leg, throwing and guard). The higher the level of the characters arms and legs and throw, the more damage an attack using that part will yield. Similarly, the higher the guard level, attacks on the character will yield less damage. Both attack and defence levels can be increased/decreased by potions and stones. Guard experience can also be accumulated by eating food when the stamina bar is (nearly) full.
By defeating monsters in the Quest Mode, the player has the option of capturing the monsters for use in the versus fighting mode, making the number of playable characters a maximum of 200. Some monsters are unique, such as the chocobo, but many of them are palette swaps with attributes raised for higher level monsters. Monsters can be captured by throwing a purple stone at them when they are nearly defeated. The progress of the game can be saved using the church buildings in the town, and the character (consisting of additional data such as max hit points and attack/defence levels) can be used in the arcade and versus mode.
