Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid
Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid | |
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Developer(s) | nWay |
Publisher(s) | nWay Lionsgate Games Limited Run Games |
Series | Power Rangers |
Engine | Unity |
Platform(s) | Stadia, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One |
Release | Xbox One, Nintendo Switch
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Genre(s) | Fighting |
Mode(s) | Single-player, versus multiplayer |
Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid is a fighting game developed by San Francisco-based game developer nWay, featuring characters from the Power Rangers franchise. It was released digitally for Xbox One and Nintendo Switch on March 26, 2019, for PlayStation 4 on April 2, 2019, for Microsoft Windows on September 24, 2019, and for Stadia on June 1, 2020. Limited Run Games released a standard physical version on the Switch and PlayStation 4 alongside a more expensive Mega Edition in November 2019. A Super Edition containing all previous downloadable content was released digitally in May 2021 and physically in August 2021.
Gameplay[]
Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid is a fighting game in which players compete in battle using characters with different fighting styles and special attacks. Players select teams of three characters to engage in one-on-one combat, and can choose to switch between them at any point during the match, as well as call teammates to perform assists. Players can also call on Megazords to assist with the battle, via a meter that fills as their team members take damage. When all three opposing teammates have been eliminated, a victory is declared.[1]
The game features Ranked Online, Arcade, Versus, Casual Online, Training and Tutorial modes, along with a Story Mode loosely based on the Power Rangers comic book storyline "Shattered Grid".[2]
Characters[]
The game features 12 playable characters, with 14 additional characters available as downloadable content.[3][4][5][6]
- Jason Lee Scott - MMPR Red Ranger
- Trini Kwan - MMPR Yellow Ranger (Dragon Armor)a
- Kimberly Ann Hart - Ranger Slayer/MMPR Pink Ranger
- Tommy Oliver - MMPR Green Ranger/White Ranger
- Adam Park - MMPR Black Ninja Rangerb4
- Rita Repulsab4
- Goldar
- Lord Zeddb1
- Scorpinab3
- Trey of Triforia - Zeo Gold Rangerb1
- Mike Corbett - Magna Defender
- Jen Scotts - Time Force Pink Rangerb1
- Eric Myers - Time Force Quantum Rangerb2
- Anubis "Doggie" Cruger - S.P.D. Shadow Rangerb2
- Kat Manx - S.P.D. Kat Ranger
- Udonna - Mystic Force White Rangera
- Robert "RJ" James - Jungle Fury Wolf Rangerb3
- Dai Shi - Black Lion Warrior/Phantom Beast King b2
- Lauren Shiba - Samurai Red Rangerb3
- Gia Moran - Super Megaforce Yellow Ranger
- Poisandrab4
- Cenozoic Blue Rangera
- Mastodon Sentry
- Lord Drakkon
- Ryu - Crimson Hawk RangerbSF
- Chun-Li - Blue Phoenix RangerbSF
^a Added via free post-launch update
^b Paid downloadable content character; number denotes which season pass the character is included in
Plot[]
The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers are training in the Command Center when it is breached by Lord Drakkon, an alternate future version of Tommy Oliver trained by Rita Repulsa who killed her and the other Rangers in his dimension. Despite the arrival of Time Force Ranger Jen Scotts from the future, Drakkon manages to kill the younger Tommy and escapes. With his Chaos Crystal now charged by Tommy's green chaos energy, Drakkon and his forces begin travelling across time and space, using his Dragon Cannons to remove Rangers' powers and steal their morphers. Zordon sends a warning through the Morphin Grid and, with Jen's help, begins sending Rangers through time to protect other Rangers being pursued by Drakkon.
During an encounter with the Ranger Slayer, a future version of herself from Drakkon's universe, Kimberly Hart manages to free her from Drakkon's control, though Ranger Slayer continues to feign loyalty to avert suspicion. The Rangers regroup at Corinth, where Dr. K is working on a way to disrupt the Dragon Cannons, but they come under attack by Drakkon's forces, including several Power Rangers placed under his control. Drakkon, who has powered himself up using the stolen morphers, arrives and overwhelms the Rangers, forcing them to retreat to the Command Center. Ranger Slayer arrives and reveals Drakkon's plan is to gain full control of the Morphin Grid and rewrite reality, using the morphers to increase his resonance with it. She suggests destroying his tower in their home dimension, preventing him from crossing dimensions and sharing his morphers' powers with his armies. Knowing they will be unable to do so alone, Zordon asks Rita to help stop Drakkon.
Led by Jason Lee Scott, a united group of Power Rangers storms Drakkon's tower. They are attacked by Drakkon and the Rangers under his control, but Mike Corbett is freed by the spirit of the Magna Defender and defects back to Zordon's forces. Rita infiltrates the tower and uses a Powerdraining Candle to weaken Drakkon, forcing him to retreat to stop her. Trini Kwan uses her Dragon Armor to grow and topple the tower's antennae, causing Drakkon's forces to lose their powers and breaking his control of the other Rangers. Rita attempts to kill Drakkon, but his minion Finster-5 disarms her and the other Rangers. Finster-5 attempts to stop Drakkon from using additional morphers to restore his powers, believing the process will be fatal, but Drakkon kills him and proceeds. As he powers himself up, he is challenged by Tommy, restored to life through the Chaos Crystal's powers. Tommy defeats Drakkon, whose body has become unstable due to the morphers' power, and he escapes as Drakkon explodes, destroying himself and the tower. Zordon thanks all the Rangers for their help, and Ranger Slayer reassures Tommy that he will never become like Drakkon thanks to his bonds with his team.
Development and release[]
The game was released in March 2019 for Xbox One and Nintendo Switch, with ports for PlayStation 4 and Microsoft Windows following later in the year. An update in April 2019 added a story mode, written by Boom! Studios Power Rangers comic book writer Kyle Higgins, along with three additional characters, voice acting and two new stages.[7] The original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers actors Jason David Frank, Austin St. John, Johnny Yong Bosch, David J. Fielding, Kerrigan Mahan and Sabrina Lu reprise their respective roles as Tommy Oliver (both original universe version, and Lord Drakkon), Jason Lee Scott, Adam Park, Zordon, Goldar and Scorpina, while Power Rangers Time Force actor Daniel Southworth reprises his role as Eric Myers.[7][8]
An update in July 2019 added three characters via the first season pass, and additional features such as cross-platform play between the Switch, Xbox One, and Windows versions;[3] cross-platform support for PlayStation 4 was added via a later update in February 2020,[9] making it the first fighting game of the eighth generation of video game consoles to support fully platform-agnostic multiplayer.[10] A second season pass was announced alongside the game's Windows release.[4] A third season of content was announced on May 25, 2020.[5] On April 13, 2021, it was announced that Ryu and Chun-Li from Capcom's Street Fighter franchise would be added as playable characters via a "Street Fighter Pack", utilizing their designs from Power Rangers: Legacy Wars. The pack was released on May 25, alongside a digital "Super Edition" version of the game that includes all downloadable content up to that point. A physical release of Super Edition was released in August 2021.[11] A fourth season of content was announced on September 14, 2021.[6]
Reception[]
Aggregator | Score |
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Metacritic | (NS) 61/100[12] (PS4) 65/100[13] (XONE) 53/100[14] |
Publication | Score |
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IGN | 6.8/10[15] |
Nintendo Life | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Power Rangers Battle for the Grid has received mixed reviews, with reviewers praising the gameplay but criticizing the presentation and lack of content at launch.[12] IGN gave the game a 6.8 rating, praising the fighting system and tag mechanics but criticising the graphics, lack of modes and characters.[15] Mike Fahey of Kotaku also criticized the launch roster but praised the accessibility of the fighting mechanics for players at various skill levels.[17] Screen Rant praised the game for using the Marvel vs Capcom tag-team fighting system while adding new features like the assist-takeover move. They too criticised the lack of characters, non-existent story and highlighted the fact that for a game that was celebrating 25 Years of Power Rangers, it only featured characters from four series at launch.[18]
References[]
- ^ "Power Rangers Battle for the Grid Available Today". battleforthegrid.com. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
- ^ "Launch Features and Content". battleforthegrid.com. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Moyse, Chris (July 11, 2019). "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid adds crossplay, improved matchmaking and reveals three new DLC characters". Destructoid. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Romano, Sal (September 24, 2019). "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid Season Pass 2 trailer". Gematsu. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Power Rangers: Battle For The Grid [@Battle4TheGrid] (May 25, 2020). "Today we announced our upcoming Season 3 pass on @ComboBreaker's Retrospective stream! ⚡Jungle Fury Wolf Ranger ⚡Red Samurai Ranger ⚡and a soon to be revealed character! More info can be found at battleforthegrid.com Watch the trailer here: youtu.be/Ffw60sdNCIU" (Tweet). Retrieved May 25, 2020 – via Twitter.
- ^ Jump up to: a b https://www.ign.com/videos/power-rangers-battle-for-the-grid-official-season-4-trailer
- ^ Jump up to: a b "'Power Rangers: Battle For The Grid Shattered Grid Story Mode Trailer Revealed; Update Live Today". comicbook.com. April 30, 2019. Retrieved May 28, 2019.
- ^ https://news.xbox.com/en-us/2021/09/20/power-rangers-battle-for-the-grid-season-4-launching-september-21/
- ^ Makedonski, Brett (February 5, 2020). "Power Rangers morphs to add cross-play between all four platforms". destructoid. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
- ^ https://www.ign.com/articles/power-rangers-battle-for-the-grid-cross-play?sf123226342=1
- ^ https://www.ign.com/articles/street-fighter-crossover-coming-to-power-rangers-battle-for-the-grid
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid Switch Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
- ^ "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid PS4 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
- ^ "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid XBox One Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Saltzman, Mitchell (March 28, 2019). "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid Review". IGN. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
- ^ Reseigh-Lincoln, Dom (March 27, 2019). "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid Review". Nintendo Life. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
- ^ Fahey, Mike (March 28, 2019). "The New Power Rangers Fighting Game Could Use A Lot More Power Rangers". Kotaku. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
- ^ Raymond, Nicholas (March 31, 2019). "Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid Review - It's Missing Too Much". Screen Rant. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
External links[]
- 2019 video games
- Crossover video games
- Power Rangers video games
- Multiplayer and single-player video games
- Multiplayer online games
- Nintendo Switch games
- PlayStation 4 games
- Stadia games
- Versus fighting games
- Video games developed in the United States
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