Playing Berserk:Sword of Berserk Guts rage on dreamcast, was one of my first games on dreamcast as a kid, and i remember when my dad showed me the 97 anime. It really made me a fan of the series, love and collected the manga series along with Miura's writing, characters, and direction. It's really sad with Miura's passing but i'm happy that more people are getting into his work, he definitely left a legacy for other creators to be inspired by his work.❤🔥
Someone needs balls to make a franchise out of Berserk, no censorship 'n manga fidelity but not focusing everything in one game, they can make at least 3 games from various parts of Guts life
Like the first game covering the Golden Age.. the second covering the Black Swordsman, Lost Children, and the Conviction... then the third covering the Millennium Falcon all the way Fantasia. A natural evolution upon each one. And maybe once the third game comes into play introducing the Berserker armor, they can release a patch or something where the Berserker armor becomes accessible in the previous games y'know?
Sword of the Berserk was so good. I honestly hope any studios looking to do a Berserk anime adapts the game's story. It fits in the main story perfectly and Miura even did the story & designs. Not to mention he did an Easter Egg reference in the manga.
@@scrungo7610 During their visit at Flora's secret hideout Isidro pulls out a plant that looks a lot like the Mandragora from the game. The 2016 anime also adapted that moment which alludes to the game being somewhat canon.
@@RandomBlackGamer The game is more than "somewhat" canon. I believe it's totally canon. Miura wrote it, did the character designs, and it fits just fine into the timeline.
If anyone is going to do a video game adaptation of Berserk, it’s either Hidetaka Miyazaki or Yoko Taro. They both have similar styles and often go into dark places.
And they are both heavily inspired by berserk. I mean Miyazaki is a parent everyone points out that but Yoko Taro with his drakengard series is heavily influenced by berserk. I would even say nier is a bit.
While I definitely agree and I'm a huge Yoko Taro stan, I don't think he'd do a Berserk game, he seems to be more of a free spirit kinda guy. Miyazaki though? I'm sure he'd do it at the drop of a hat, if he can give Guts an unlockable Moonlight Greatsword xD
@@BlackEyedJester Yes as Yoko Taro is more of his own dude as he can stand out with his concepts. Miyazaki is better as he understood the soul of making a Berserk Game
Or Keiji Inafune, oddly enough, since Soul Sacrifice/Soul Sacrifice Delta knocked the concept of Berserk as an Arcadey Monster Hunter about body horror sorcerers and the Holy Grail out of the goddamn park, with some of the best writing, aesthetics, music, voice acting, and gameplay of its generation.
I commented to say, my first experience with Berserk was with "Sword of the Berserk: Guts Rage". I didn't even read manga at that point, I was still like 12, born in 1990. I loved the dreamcast, and my dad got me a lot of games for it. When I was 19 I brought up the game in casual conversation and he replied "You know that's based on a manga right?" Since then I've reread Berserk at LEAST 10 times. It is easily my favorite manga, followed closely by Vagabond and Vinland Saga. It's very cool to see it mentioned here.
4:45 Actually this game was my introduction to Berserk, and I purchased the game just because I liked what I saw on the description of the game on the box. After that I found out about the anime and after I finished watching the anime I was like wait, this is it? And that's when I found out about the manga.
best part is that game was canon miura himself said it's after they leave rickert and erica but before serpico farnese and isidro cath up with them it's japanese title says it all (Berserk Millennium Falcon Arc: Chapter of the Flowers of Oblivion) it also provided reasons why guts let new companions into his circle he realised he was going down the same path as balzac if he didn't do so
@@1lb2rt4t4rr2s no problemo best part for me is Guts is voiced by Raziel from Legacy of Kain series and his 90s anime Seiyu Nobutoshi Canna of Lancer from Fate Stay/Night fame
The censorship in Band of The Hawk really took away from an otherwise fairly solid game imo. I datamined the game myself and found that they were originally going to include more medieval torture devices like spike cages and the such for the conviction arc levels of the game.
I think the reason band of the hawk wasnt popular was due to the fact not many knew it was out. Hell the only reason i learned of its existence was finding a fan edit of guts getting his iconic armor using scenes from the old games, band of the hawk and the anime.
Agreed. For a short while I came across the game a few times on the shelves at my local game stores for around $20-30 bucks then at some point (before Kentaro Muira's passing) the game started creeping upwards which I'm guessing was because of the Golden Age movies. I think the culmination of Dark Souls success, the increasing following of the series and the passing of Mr. Muira the series has exploded in the way a lot of cult classic manga seems to nowadays. Overall though it sounds like all 3 games are at the very least fun, if not remarkable.
“If you’re Halfway through Golden Age and didn’t realize Griffith was the villain” It’s shown in Black Swordsman that Guts and Griffith do not like each other, so they had to have skipped that arc lol
I literally discovered berserk in highschool after playing this game. After i beat it there was an option to read the synopsis of the main story and i found the manga and hooked ever since.
The dreamcast game got me into the series. I was a wee child and my brother's friend introduced me to something I was too young for, I'm so glad he did because Berserk is my favorite story to come out of Japan.
A TH-camr I watch did a stream playing the band of the hawk after Miura died. And the steam was temporarily blocked several time when playing the game. If I remember right the scenes that got hit were The Hundred man fight, and The Eclipse.
First learned of Berserk through the 97 anime series, followed by the manga not too long after. Didn't know of the games till much later. And I loved the tribute to Miura in Elden Ring. RIP Miura.
Sword of the Beserk is kinda fun because it's technically Canon. Kentaro Miura worked on the writing for it. It's basically a filler arc turned into a video game. Which I think is cool. Is love to see the game get an official PC port, even if it was just emulated.
Oh my goodness thank you for covering these games! I was so hyped for the 2016 Berserk game right up until all the bad reviews on release, which scared me away from it until I promptly forgot it existed. I'm so glad you covered it in so much detail! I feel like I've finally righted a wrong in the universe by seeing an actually balanced view of it, and ngl I'll probably buy it now that I have a better idea of what to expect. It was lovely to get your full summary of all three games as well - it really put them all in perspective and I'm kind of blown away by some of the things the first two did during their time periods. Great work as always!
The best way a Berserk game could have ever been handled is a full-out 'Souls-Game' experience Berserk-themed. Souls Games were even influenced by the Berserk universe to begin with, and the story that influence this so loved genre, never had a faithful game in this genre, it's quite sad. Thank you very much for this video, I appreciate the hard work you did on it.
I can confirm that the dreamcast game was my first exposure to Berserk. My cousin brought the game because it showed a dude with a huge sword on the back of the game. We had zero idea it was based on a manga until the dub dropped in the early 2000s. We actual thought Gutz design was ripping off of cloud from ff7 lol.
I streamed the whole Berserk ps2 about a year ago, and it completely blew my mind how many details in combat it has and how good it looked for a ps2 game, and the parry and execution animations changing per enemy is crazy unheard for a game at the time, the opening song SIGN is so good, a real shame it never came out on the US, it easily could have been one of the greatest action games for the console here in the west.
Brit here - had never heard of Berserk, got the video game as a young'un very early in the Dreamcast's lifecycle, was scared shitless of the "loss of self" horror of its Mandragora villains, never finished it due to jank and difficulty. Didn't know Berserk was anything else until a long time later.
Sword of the Berserk was my first exposure to Berserk. My childhood friend and I rented a Dreamcast from a local Tommy K's Video in CT back in 2000 during Summer vacation and we rented a few games, Gut's Rage being one of them. We were entranced by the characters and the presentation. It had the feel and confidence of a property that was well-established, and we only found out a few years later that it was based on a popular manga.
The Dreamcast was my first real console system and I still love that thing to this day like no other. Anyway, I saw the case for Sword of the Berserk on the wall when I looked at the sadly paltry selection of DC games available during one of my trips to the EB Games in the mall one day. I was immediately intrigued due to the character design. You're 100% correct. That was my first exposure to Berserk in any medium and I have to say, I loved it! It led me to check out the first anime (still pissed they didn't continue with that one..that music is/was FIRE) and then later the manga itself. As for Sword, I had a great time with it. I haven't thought about the game for a while now, and I've paused this near the beginning so I can try to remember some of the good and bad points of it. I definitely remember the titular sword being an issue in some hallways, which hilariously, is accurate. And I seem to remember using a lot of throwing knives. And finally, I remember the story being an original one and a bit of a side story to the main series.
Sword of the Berserk is what got me interested in Berserk and Susumu Hirasawa as a kid lol. Whenever my sword bounces off the wall in any game it brings back Sword of the Berserk nightmares. I specifically remember a spiral staircase everytime.
Hi, I'm the guy whose first exposure to Berserk (2002ish, we didn't see a release of the '97 anime in the UK until late-2007) was the Dreamcast game, AMA! I still own my copy of the game, actually. It's one of maybe six DC games I still own physically. One thing you sadly missed out in your coverage of the game was that it was brought over to the West by Eidos (before they became a part of Square Enix), who announced that they would be upping the gore and dismemberment compared to the original Japanese release. One gaming magazine, probably EGM, asked if they thought that was gratuitous, to which they replied "what, we're only upping the gore by 25%, I don't think that's too bad!" Also, Musou games are perfect podcast games for me: put on headphones, line up a bunch of episodes, let the afternoon pass you by. I was surprised that they were releasing a Berserk game in the series though, in the Golden Age, Guts killing a hundred men in one night is considered his crowning achievement. In a Musou game, if you haven't hit three digits in the first three minutes of a map, you're not even trying.
@@ThBrando I'd been into anime for a long, long time at that point, but the release of the game was the first time I'd actually heard of the series. Most of the reviews and previews at the time made note that it was based on a 'hyper-violent' anime and, since we were still in the middle of the big anime boom of the late-90s/early-2000s, everywhere that covered the game was quick to point that out. It was about another five or six years before I got to read the manga through the miracle of fantranslations, which was about the time I also saw the '97 anime - a guy I knew at the time bought the US DVDs from an anime convention, so I was able to borrow them off him. Like a lot of people at the time, I called it 'Sword of the Berserk', since there wasn't an official release of anything but the game at the time, and we were used to companies changing names of properties seemingly on a whim when releasing them in the West. Besides, there was a bloody big sword front and centre in the series, why would you call it anything else?
I'm with you on the Musuo comments; the game has a teenage Guts kill over 500 enemy soldiers, single-handed, in the first battle. Aside from making the 100-man kill seem trivial, it serves to weaken all aspects of the story and combat. Battles barely involve tactical decisions, Guts' life is never really threatened, so there's no emotion, tension, or real stakes to the fights in the game. Just seems like a big grind without even any meaningful gameplay variation.
I think it's important to note that the ending of Guts' Rage with Casca regaining her memory (SPOILERS) is incredibly similar to the response she gives when she ACTUALLY wakes up and says that she felt like she was dreaming for a long time. Glad Miura kept this for the sake of continuity
I found out about Berserk from the trivia tab on a Dark Souls wiki entry for the Crypt Blacksword. I was so fascinated with the design of the weapon that as soon as I found out it was "inspired" by the main character's sword in some manga, I was like, "It's probably gonna be weird but I need to read this." I was right on both counts.
I got this game on my Dreamcast when I was a little kid in around the year 2001... Now I'm 31, and still obsessed with Berserk. So wild that I experienced the first US piece of translated Berserk media
5:50 I'm one of those weirdos that was introduced to the whole Berserk story through the Dreamcast game. I actually really enjoyed it for it's time and as you mentioned a few years later it popped up in an anime that I rented in a video store. Checked them out and got just devastated by the end and from there on, hooked. Online fan translated manga from there on. I do love the Berserk Deluxe Volumes being released lately and would suggest that as the best way to experience Berserk but with the DC Games soundtrack and the Animes soundtrack in the background.
Hey guys for whoever cares my crew of voice actors actually turning Berserk lost children into a motion comic series Here is the first episode 🤙 Berserk Lost Children motion comic Part 1 th-cam.com/video/wN0uHSk9MGU/w-d-xo.html
Brando , i have to say , i have NO idea's why your vids have such low views ... Every SINGLE ones of them are awesome and , literally , made me complete the game. (Once more)
Haha, thanks I'm glad you liked it. The video has only been out for a few days and it's pretty long, so I'm sure the views will climb up with time. I'm not a big name in the TH-cam game or anything, so it's totally expected when I do a video on a relatively niche topic like this it ain't gonna hit them big numbers, but I don't mind. Honestly, people leaving comments like this and telling me about their own experiences with the game is a bigger motivating factor than a high view count to me anyways.
@@ThBrando Still amazing you keep making such polished,high quality video's and .. so few people watches them. I have seen way , WAAAAY less -refined- videos with 100x times the views. Alot of them actually. You sir. Deserve fame,glory and internet points.
The Berserk DC game was indeed my first exposure to the series, and is ultimately what got me "into" Berserk to begin with. I have memories from when I was around 10 or 11 of pretending to be Guts while playing outside with my cousin. I think a large part of what made such a big impression on me at the time, was the sheer wealth of cool combat options that Guts had at his immediate disposal. A diesel sword tied to a power-up mode, an alternate unarmed moveset accompanied by a repeating crossbow, throwing knives, sticky bombs, and a literal hand cannon. It's easy to take this kind of stuff for granted now, but at the time I was much more used to this sort of game just providing me with a [Primary Weapon] and a couple alternatives that could be swapped to via menus or between levels. What led to me getting into Berserk proper was just how apparent the game made it that there was a much larger story surrounding Guts that I was missing out on. In particular, the Zodd fight & post-credits Skullknight scene really captured my imagination. I also remember looking at a walkthrough on GameFAQs and reading something about "Griffith's rape of Casca" and wondering what the hell was going on. It wasn't long after that I was posting stupid shit on the Berserk fansites/forums that were around at the time. When the '97 series DVDs started releasing in N.A., I bought the first couple as soon as I had the money, and some friends and I took turns buying each of the subsequent DVDs as they released. And yeah, the voice acting was comically bad in that game for sure. There's this one line where Puck's flying around in a tizzy and moans "Ooohh Gattsu!" and for w/e reason the exact way he said it is still seared into my mind decades later.
Btw, just want to add that there was def quite a bit of hype surrounding the pending release of the PS2 game within the western Berserk fanbase, as well, even despite the fact that many of us weren't anticipating an official release. I had that main trailer with "Sign" playing in it downloaded, and I watched that shit constantly.
5:30 100% correct! I bought Sword of the Berserk: Gut's Rage on a whim back in the day. I had no idea what Berserk was, just that the game looked badass and I loved it. When you beat it, it shows stuff from the manga and I was like WHAT!? IT'S A COMIC!? But late 90s and early 2000s was a different time when it came to access to manga and anime so it was kind of hard tracking down the VHS releases of that original animated series a few years later. I will always be grateful to that game for tuning me into Berserk so relatively early.
Sword of the Berserk was my first awareness of the existence of Berserk back in 99. For a game released in 99,developed in 98, being a first generation Dreamcast game by developers not experienced in action games. The game came out pretty good all things considered. Also PS2 is the same generation as Dreamcast. PS2, Dreamcast, GameCube and Xbox all the same generation. Segas previous generation console before Dreamcast was the Saturn
I recently got berserk band of the hawk but tbh I love it there are definitely some problems with it like the repetitiveness but it’s pretty fun especially endless eclipse mode also yeah the boss fights are annoying when they put you in a corner
I actually did get into the series after getting the Dreamcast one with my cousin. I went to the school library and they actually had the first three volumes. Been hooked ever since. I was 12. Which was wild finding it in the school library at the time nestled between Dragonball and Cowboy Bebop.
Well you've done it again. Your Dragon Quest Speed Run video got me into the Dragon Quest series, and after watching this now I'm gonna go read Berserk haha
Dreamcast Berserk was my first introduction to the series. I knew it was based on an anime/manga which I watched & read later down the road. I distinctly remember when I told a Babbage's/Electronics Boutique employee that I started watching the anime he asked me if I wondered why there were no monsters in the anime except for the first episode. I assumed that flashback would be brief, not over 90 percent of the entire series. Where it ended was the cliffhanger that made me read & get into manga. Prior to Berserk manga I only watched animes or Japanimation as it was known back then. Thank you Miura & co.
The Dreamcast game was my first experience with Berserk. I got the game for super cheap when the Dreamcast was bombed. Didn't pick up the manga until Miura passed and so many players of ff14 showed an outpouring of love for him.
Yeah, Guts's Rage was my first exposure to Berserk. After finishing the game, I hopped on eBay and bought a bootleg DVD collection of the first series. It had four discs and an amazing folding case with great artwork, all for around $30 or so at the time. I also remember the subtitles being exceptionally good. Thank you, Hong Kong.
My first foray into the Berserk world was thru the Dreamcast game as a kid. I watched the golden age movies and the 2016 anime, but I didn’t fully get into Berserk until I rewatched the golden age movies last year. Since then, my hunger for Berserk content grew immensely.
I played Berserk on PS2, while my long-time best friend (who, coincidentally, also introduced me to Berserk) made backseat gaming. Fun times. But damn, some of those corridors are long af and I hate those trees xD I was also mad enough to put almost 60 hours into the Berserk Musou game. I wanted to go platinum on PS, I finished the Endless Eclipse with all characters, but I couldn't find all those stupid items and give up. Omega Force had so much potential to make a great Berserk game and they squandered it
also, as a little ad dendum, I'm surprised you didn't mention the Berserk Opening Intro Theme from the PS2 game (named "Sign"). It's absolutely superb (imo, better than "Behelit" and other themes from the 1992 anime. Same composer, anyway). It just... SCREAMS Berserk
Nah Berserk musou is really good. The game makes you feel like Guts throughout the whole game. In fact, a lot of complaints that Brando has are also present in the Dreamcast game which he compared to. It's crystal clear that musou games aren't for everyone and the consent for that is thoroughly given from the beginning of the review for the musou game.
Honestly, yeah. Sword of the Berserk was the first time I had ever heard of the series. I never bought it because I never owned a Dreamcast but I remember playing it a bit at kiosk they had set up at Circuit City. I didn't even hear about the manga until someone showed me the anime based on the Golden Age arc in 2008, and I don't think I made the connection until a few years later
Yeah, Sword of the Berserk was my first introduction to Berserk. One of the few games I had for the Dreamcast when it came out. Absolutely loved it at the time. And you've made me realize that's why I liked Demon's Souls mechanic of the weapon bouncing off walls. Kinda hate when they just cut through like the walls don't exist.
Berserks rage was one of my favorite dreamcast games as a kid. So many things done in this game that would be done later in games like DMC. I'm also 37 so that might be why I played this at launch and am one of the few that was there lol. This was my introduction to berserk as well.
Came across the dreamcast game as a kid when a friends mom dumped all her games on me when ps2 dropped. Years later as an adult im on volume 6 of the deluxe editions. So happy that experience stayed with me. Good show bro!
Hello! I'm the person who discovered Berserk through the dreamcast game, back when there was no other official berserk media released. And yeah, it got me *super* enraptured with the idea of Berserk, partially because i had so little idea of what was going on. The aesthetics and concepts were so striking and surreal that it felt like a weird tone poem of a beat 'em up, and the surreality was only heightened by not understanding any of the context. It was a little like Angel's Egg that way. The real culture shock, then, was when the anime was finally released here. I excitedly checked it out, hoping for more adventures in this weird world, but-it's a medieval war show? where's puck? casca can talk?!?!?! In a way I suppose it mirrored the shock of moving from the beginning of the manga to the golden age, only from the other side. Of course I fell in love with the anime, and knowing the game first, I was in constant fear and excitement of what could possibly turn this world into that one. When the eclipse finally hit, I was blown away, waiting on baited breath-and of course, that's when the anime ends. As I recall it would take another year or so before the manga releases caught up to where the anime ended, but by then I was hooked, and ever since I've never been able to shake this story. Miura truly was a legend, and he will be missed. But also, the kings name is ballsac, and that's as funny now as it was when i was 12.
I had your video playing in the background and as soon as I heard your opinion on Michael Bell's voice acting for the Dreamcast game, I was shook! Deeper voiced characters aren't his thing but he did his darnedest, dangit! 😂 Honestly, I was also just shocked to learn that he was Guts (as well as other background characters) and the Narrator was Tony Jay! Both are main characters in the Legacy of Kain series, as well as many MANY 80s and 90s cartoon characters 🥰
Crazy as it may sound, Sword of the Berserk is exactly how I was introduced to Guts and his world. I actually saw the game for rent in a Hollywood video and it never left my mind. I was like "I get to be a Berserker!? Sign me up!" This game is one of the major reasons I got a dreamcast back then (silly I know) it wasn't the best game but I beat it and I enjoyed the story. Never forgot the characters. Years later when I saw the Box of War with the first DVD in an FYE I got it immediately! Side note: I love how Cam Clarke voices Puck in the game. Aside from Liquid Snake like you mentioned, he is also the original Leonardo from TMNT and the first English dub of Kaneda from Akira
Sword of the Berserk Guts Rage was the first I had heard of the lore. I still own my copy on Dreamcast and love it! Might pick up Band of the hawk now that is on sale.
Considering how almost all DBZ games cover all 4 sagas of the anime, i'd wager the number is around 25, though sometimes segmented like for the RPG titles. I had heard about the Dreamcast Berserk game in the past but never check on my own, same goes for Band of the Hawk while i knew nothing about the PS2 game. This was informative. -Teo
I remember having a Dreamcast as a kid, playing the Berserk game and loving it even though I had no idea about the storyline. Now 20 years later I'm getting into the anime/manga and my mind is blown. 😳
I bought the Dreamcast game the day it came out cause game informer did a preview and called it the most violent game ever created. I saw the anime shortly after and the love affair began. The only issue I recall making me frustrated was the sword bouncing as you mentioned.
I rented a Dreamcast for my 11th birthday and rented the sword of the beserk game. Fast forward twenty years and when the author died and I’ve fallen in love with the lore. Just wanted to shout out time capsule :) I had no clue it was inspired by a manga or if I did I had no idea it was anything more than a “typing of the dead” looking dynasty worries clone ;)
since it was brought up in the video, an interesting note is that Toshiyuki Morikawa and Takahiro Sakurai were also both in the DiU anime with Morikawa as Kira (He also voiced Diavolo in EoH and ASB) and Sakurai as Rohan
I owned Sword of the Beserk. It has been by far the most memorable game of my life. My cousin, brother, and I beat the games multiple times over a summer. We would throw on a Song called Horns of Destruction on repeat. Purely amazing!
Hey man, I just recently discovered the channel. In like 2 days I’ve torn through like 8hrs of your content and cannot tell you how entertaining and fun it’s been. Thank you so much for the hard work and looking forward to future videos 👍🏻
Sword of the Berserk was my first encounter with Berserk. A friend of mine in Jr. High owned it and let me borrow it, probably around 2000-20001. While I don’t remember much of the game, other than hating the Mandragoras, I do remember really liking Guts, which started my deep dive into the world of Berserk.
My first introduction to the world of Berserk was through the 1999 Dreamcast game, believe it or not but i actually hold that game in high esteem, it's obviously not perfect even less today but it did many things right, the music by Susumu Hirasawa was magical and just like the anime i could never get the tunes out of my head, they were magical. They story for a simple hack and slash was great. I loved Guts, Puck and Kaska, even without knowing their backstory, so the personalities definitely shines through. As for the graphics they were pretty amazing for the era, i remember showing them to my friends who was a PC buff and even he was amazed at certain detailed characters and general geometry of the game. The game play while wonky at first did actually have a rhythm to it and certainly made you develop tactics depending on where you were fighting, whether it was open places or confined places, it also had several types of attacks and combos that were extra useful depending on the enemy. Concluding i understand how some people may brush this game aside but personally i often look at games and sense if the effort was made and it certainly was there, the glossary, the characters and the story comes out on top i would say.
I was in 9th grade when the Dreamcast Berserk game came out, and I was only a neophyte in manga, so indeed the Dreamcast game was my first introduction into the Berserk series. I didn't realize it was such a unique experience.
Only have read book one and currently reading book two delux edition but I’ve spend HOURS watching lore videos this series is amazing ! Now I want to go back and be Guts in Elden ring
Hilariously, I’m one of the few who first experienced this anime/manga with this Dreamcast game... I was fascinated and when (a few years later) I saw the anime on dvd at a comic convention (a bootleg fan translation) I bought it up at once
Your videos are very good, and i love berserk. I've seen the three vídeos about final fantasy and become a fan since then. Sorry for my poor English i'm portuguese.
Really awesome video, I can feel the dedication and admiration you have for berserk in general. I honestly didn’t even know about anything berserk until last year.. it’s truly eye opening how much soulsborne games have taken from berserk and I absolutely love it.. appreciate you for making this.
I had sword of the berserk and that game left a haunting impression on me that just kept getting more deep and intimate as I got older, and now I look at a world as it is and see how prophetic it has become. its hard not to say I don't see it as a spiritual thing for myself. I honestly cant say anything else has had such a visceral and pure relation to my life as berserk not even people have helped me like following this story. often I have been separated from people and things, left in dire circumstances and the such and Id just think back of how I wanted to deal with the circumstances of life. to live id take a page from guts and destructively throw myself to the wind and see if fate would take me. be myself destroyed or the barrier's that held me in the Myer of my problems. that will be 25 years ago soon. I've seen things that possesses me still, things I cant stop seeing. but I hold out to see if guts finds his way, also to spite the forces that would like to see me fall in life. Id like to think guts found a way to spite expectation, what Id like is a revived sense of self empowerment but with a resolve in spite of fate or circumstance. like conan a king by his own hand.
I had a dream cast and I bought this game on a total whim back in early 2000. The game blew me away back in the day and was in fact my first experience with Berserk. I freaking loved the game and played all the way through and just dove into the lore and story afterwards. I thought it was awesome for the time period
Sword of the Berserk was in fact my first experience with Berserk as a child. I rented it and enjoyed the game. Found Berserk a few years later and realized "hey, that's from that one game!" It is now my favorite story ever created(the manga not the game LOL.)
Waaaay back in the day when I was a young dude, I got a subscription to Dreamcast magazine for Xmas to go along with my new Dreamcast. I remember the FIRST ISSUE I got in the mail had this Berserk game on the included demo disk and I played the hell out of it several times. Tbh I sort of feel bad that my son and his little buddies will never know the joy of getting a magazine DEMO DISC in the mail.
Sword of the Berserk: Guts Rage was my first exposure to Berserk. I didn't know it was a manga or anime for like 20 years. I just recently bought the Berserk anime on blu ray to check it out.
First game I ever played as a kid was segas berserk. Loved it. Dad bought it for me with a couple other games. He probably Didn't realize how bloody it was but let me play it. Was probably 8 or 9. Beat it 30 times probably. Then around 16 I bumped into the Manga and anime. I had no idea that game I played years ago and loved was part of a piece of anything. Played catch up for the love of my first game that made an influence on me. Best game ever.
I rememeber playing Berserk: Sword of Berserk Guts rage and I always had a memory of the graphics and gameplay. And I had ABSOLUTELY NO FRICKEN IDEA what Berserk was. I did'nt actually discover berserk until 2012
1:06:50 you never mentioned how u get a Berserker Armor transformation when u actually start wearing the armor. In the red guage when the yellow guage fills, u get the option to press RT and actually use the armor's full power, will all new moves and finishers. Which makes the bosses ez af they all become pull overs. Very fitting for Berserker Armor tbh
I got into Berserk due to the previews of Sword of the Berserk back in 98 for Dreamcast. The Dreamcast game IS referenced in the manga in passing talking about the mandragora that are featured in Sword of the Berserk. Miura apparently wrote the story entirely for Sword of the Berserk.
Playing Berserk:Sword of Berserk Guts rage on dreamcast, was one of my first games on dreamcast as a kid, and i remember when my dad showed me the 97 anime. It really made me a fan of the series, love and collected the manga series along with Miura's writing, characters, and direction. It's really sad with Miura's passing but i'm happy that more people are getting into his work, he definitely left a legacy for other creators to be inspired by his work.❤🔥
That's amazing
dope ass fucking profile pic respect
@@machismo9332 Lol yup, it was a very shocking moment.
@@cjm4563 Thanks! Jonathan Ingram from Policenauts by Kojima, i felt was a good pic.
Your pic of Solid Snake is great too.😎
@@thegreatachiever4651 Policenauts and Snatcher are too underrated
I have only just explored half the starting area but Elden Ring feels more like a collab with Miura than with Martin
Also, please do an hour long video essay on Elden Ring
The director of From Software (Miyazaki) has stated several times that Berserk is a major inspiration, so that's why you had that feeling
Lmfao that game is why im getting into beserk😂 NO chance of me getting into got tho😭
@@gibby3767 got was so good and it became so bad, it's worth watching for that, it's an amazing fall from grace.
No idea about the books though
Not a collab, pretty girl, inspiration. Dr. Kentaro Miura is a creative genius.
Someone needs balls to make a franchise out of Berserk, no censorship 'n manga fidelity but not focusing everything in one game, they can make at least 3 games from various parts of Guts life
Like the first game covering the Golden Age.. the second covering the Black Swordsman, Lost Children, and the Conviction... then the third covering the Millennium Falcon all the way Fantasia. A natural evolution upon each one. And maybe once the third game comes into play introducing the Berserker armor, they can release a patch or something where the Berserker armor becomes accessible in the previous games y'know?
I think fromsoftware can make it 100%
It'd be 100% banned here in Australia if it was like that :(
Idk, I feel like berserk themes work better in a game than the actual story. That's why dark souls got so popular, and these didn't
@@MemeLordCthulhu
Well, maybe berserk isn't well known as Dragon Ball but it's still consider as cult classic and have millions of fans.
Sword of the Berserk was so good. I honestly hope any studios looking to do a Berserk anime adapts the game's story. It fits in the main story perfectly and Miura even did the story & designs. Not to mention he did an Easter Egg reference in the manga.
What’s the Easter egg??
@@scrungo7610 During their visit at Flora's secret hideout Isidro pulls out a plant that looks a lot like the Mandragora from the game. The 2016 anime also adapted that moment which alludes to the game being somewhat canon.
@@RandomBlackGamer Oooh interesting. Very cool. Thanks dude!
@@RandomBlackGamer The game is more than "somewhat" canon. I believe it's totally canon. Miura wrote it, did the character designs, and it fits just fine into the timeline.
If anyone is going to do a video game adaptation of Berserk, it’s either Hidetaka Miyazaki or Yoko Taro. They both have similar styles and often go into dark places.
And they are both heavily inspired by berserk. I mean Miyazaki is a parent everyone points out that but Yoko Taro with his drakengard series is heavily influenced by berserk. I would even say nier is a bit.
Finally someone acknowledges yoko taro him and Miyazaki have made my favourite games. NieR franchise and soulsborne franchise
While I definitely agree and I'm a huge Yoko Taro stan, I don't think he'd do a Berserk game, he seems to be more of a free spirit kinda guy. Miyazaki though? I'm sure he'd do it at the drop of a hat, if he can give Guts an unlockable Moonlight Greatsword xD
@@BlackEyedJester Yes as Yoko Taro is more of his own dude as he can stand out with his concepts. Miyazaki is better as he understood the soul of making a Berserk Game
Or Keiji Inafune, oddly enough, since Soul Sacrifice/Soul Sacrifice Delta knocked the concept of Berserk as an Arcadey Monster Hunter about body horror sorcerers and the Holy Grail out of the goddamn park, with some of the best writing, aesthetics, music, voice acting, and gameplay of its generation.
I commented to say, my first experience with Berserk was with "Sword of the Berserk: Guts Rage". I didn't even read manga at that point, I was still like 12, born in 1990. I loved the dreamcast, and my dad got me a lot of games for it.
When I was 19 I brought up the game in casual conversation and he replied "You know that's based on a manga right?"
Since then I've reread Berserk at LEAST 10 times. It is easily my favorite manga, followed closely by Vagabond and Vinland Saga. It's very cool to see it mentioned here.
Chad dad
Me too. I thought the game had really detailed lore for a standalone.
Me as well...all of it except for pops 👌🏾
4:45 Actually this game was my introduction to Berserk, and I purchased the game just because I liked what I saw on the description of the game on the box. After that I found out about the anime and after I finished watching the anime I was like wait, this is it? And that's when I found out about the manga.
Legend.
best part is that game was canon miura himself said it's after they leave rickert and erica but before serpico farnese and isidro cath up with them it's japanese title says it all (Berserk Millennium Falcon Arc: Chapter of the Flowers of Oblivion) it also provided reasons why guts let new companions into his circle he realised he was going down the same path as balzac if he didn't do so
@@selemanecu No way, I didn't know that. Thanks for the info.
@@1lb2rt4t4rr2s no problemo best part for me is Guts is voiced by Raziel from Legacy of Kain series and his 90s anime Seiyu Nobutoshi Canna of Lancer from Fate Stay/Night fame
@@selemanecu The best thing is that I still have the original game and a working Dreamcast. With that info now they have become Relics, thanks man.
Fun fact: Michael Bell is the Voice Actor for Guts in the Sword of the Berserk.
Aka. The voice of Raziel from Soul Reaver.
Sounded like Doug Cockle I thought it was him ! 😂
thank you for making this, it's a niche topic but this is probably the best video on the berserk games out there right now
Haha thanks, figured these games deserved at least a little attention
The censorship in Band of The Hawk really took away from an otherwise fairly solid game imo. I datamined the game myself and found that they were originally going to include more medieval torture devices like spike cages and the such for the conviction arc levels of the game.
Just the times we live in. Especially with a smaller budget and fanbase. Stuff just doesn’t fly like it used to.
I think the reason band of the hawk wasnt popular was due to the fact not many knew it was out. Hell the only reason i learned of its existence was finding a fan edit of guts getting his iconic armor using scenes from the old games, band of the hawk and the anime.
Agreed. For a short while I came across the game a few times on the shelves at my local game stores for around $20-30 bucks then at some point (before Kentaro Muira's passing) the game started creeping upwards which I'm guessing was because of the Golden Age movies. I think the culmination of Dark Souls success, the increasing following of the series and the passing of Mr. Muira the series has exploded in the way a lot of cult classic manga seems to nowadays.
Overall though it sounds like all 3 games are at the very least fun, if not remarkable.
“If you’re Halfway through Golden Age and didn’t realize Griffith was the villain”
It’s shown in Black Swordsman that Guts and Griffith do not like each other, so they had to have skipped that arc lol
Most people do 😔
@@ThBrando thats depressing, black swordsman slaps
@@takumijager2372 And its even Just
below 10 chapters
@@billymaguire5769 yeah, i dont get why people skip it, its an amazing beginning to beserk
@@takumijager2372 honestly my first go around i did skip it, and it really made the eclipse so much harder hitting
I literally re-read all of Berserk just last month xD
What perfect timing!
Lol i was just re-reading Berserk recently as well.🤣👍
One of my favorite longtime manga series.🔥
I literally discovered berserk in highschool after playing this game. After i beat it there was an option to read the synopsis of the main story and i found the manga and hooked ever since.
The dreamcast game got me into the series. I was a wee child and my brother's friend introduced me to something I was too young for, I'm so glad he did because Berserk is my favorite story to come out of Japan.
A TH-camr I watch did a stream playing the band of the hawk after Miura died. And the steam was temporarily blocked several time when playing the game.
If I remember right the scenes that got hit were The Hundred man fight, and The Eclipse.
Japanese MPAA out for blood
First learned of Berserk through the 97 anime series, followed by the manga not too long after. Didn't know of the games till much later.
And I loved the tribute to Miura in Elden Ring. RIP Miura.
between Lady Emily’s video, Super Eyepatch Wolf, and now this, I guess it’s FINALLY time for me to start Berserk 😩
@Dante Toshiro64 she made a really good breakdown of each berserk adaptation, highly recommend watching
If you spend a lot of time on Twitter, then you most likely will be offended by how much violence there is against women in berserker
Enjoy the journey, struggler.
lol both lady emilys and wolfs videos are so fucking awful, fucking sjws should stay far away from berserk. shits way too real for them
@@denglong7180 just like real life
I got into Berserk from Berserk Muso. I played through the story and thought "damn, this story is pretty cool. I should read it the real way."
Sword of the Beserk is kinda fun because it's technically Canon. Kentaro Miura worked on the writing for it. It's basically a filler arc turned into a video game. Which I think is cool. Is love to see the game get an official PC port, even if it was just emulated.
The dreamcast game was my first exposure to Berserk! I was 13 when it came out, but didn't discover the manga until just a few years ago. Crazy!
Oh my goodness thank you for covering these games! I was so hyped for the 2016 Berserk game right up until all the bad reviews on release, which scared me away from it until I promptly forgot it existed. I'm so glad you covered it in so much detail! I feel like I've finally righted a wrong in the universe by seeing an actually balanced view of it, and ngl I'll probably buy it now that I have a better idea of what to expect.
It was lovely to get your full summary of all three games as well - it really put them all in perspective and I'm kind of blown away by some of the things the first two did during their time periods. Great work as always!
Good luck buying it. It’s like $80 now.
The best way a Berserk game could have ever been handled is a full-out 'Souls-Game' experience Berserk-themed. Souls Games were even influenced by the Berserk universe to begin with, and the story that influence this so loved genre, never had a faithful game in this genre, it's quite sad. Thank you very much for this video, I appreciate the hard work you did on it.
I love all 3 of the Berserk games, and I'm also a big Musou fan. I didn't even start watching the series until after I played all of them either.
I can confirm that the dreamcast game was my first exposure to Berserk. My cousin brought the game because it showed a dude with a huge sword on the back of the game. We had zero idea it was based on a manga until the dub dropped in the early 2000s. We actual thought Gutz design was ripping off of cloud from ff7 lol.
I streamed the whole Berserk ps2 about a year ago, and it completely blew my mind how many details in combat it has and how good it looked for a ps2 game, and the parry and execution animations changing per enemy is crazy unheard for a game at the time, the opening song SIGN is so good, a real shame it never came out on the US, it easily could have been one of the greatest action games for the console here in the west.
It's a damn tragedy that they didn't released it in the west, absolutely crazy as the quality was through the roof.
Brit here - had never heard of Berserk, got the video game as a young'un very early in the Dreamcast's lifecycle, was scared shitless of the "loss of self" horror of its Mandragora villains, never finished it due to jank and difficulty.
Didn't know Berserk was anything else until a long time later.
Sword of the Berserk was my first exposure to Berserk. My childhood friend and I rented a Dreamcast from a local Tommy K's Video in CT back in 2000 during Summer vacation and we rented a few games, Gut's Rage being one of them. We were entranced by the characters and the presentation. It had the feel and confidence of a property that was well-established, and we only found out a few years later that it was based on a popular manga.
i'm currently reading beserk and i see why people love/adore the manga! Rest In Peace Kentaro Miura
The Dreamcast was my first real console system and I still love that thing to this day like no other. Anyway, I saw the case for Sword of the Berserk on the wall when I looked at the sadly paltry selection of DC games available during one of my trips to the EB Games in the mall one day. I was immediately intrigued due to the character design. You're 100% correct. That was my first exposure to Berserk in any medium and I have to say, I loved it! It led me to check out the first anime (still pissed they didn't continue with that one..that music is/was FIRE) and then later the manga itself. As for Sword, I had a great time with it. I haven't thought about the game for a while now, and I've paused this near the beginning so I can try to remember some of the good and bad points of it. I definitely remember the titular sword being an issue in some hallways, which hilariously, is accurate. And I seem to remember using a lot of throwing knives. And finally, I remember the story being an original one and a bit of a side story to the main series.
Sword of the Berserk was my entry to the series in 2000; my mom and grandma loved the story and would watch me play it to completion.
Thats so wholesome
Okay... Baron Ball sack- sorry, I mean Baron Balzac made me laugh the hardest I've laughed in a long while.
Sword of the Berserk is what got me interested in Berserk and Susumu Hirasawa as a kid lol. Whenever my sword bounces off the wall in any game it brings back Sword of the Berserk nightmares. I specifically remember a spiral staircase everytime.
Hi, I'm the guy whose first exposure to Berserk (2002ish, we didn't see a release of the '97 anime in the UK until late-2007) was the Dreamcast game, AMA! I still own my copy of the game, actually. It's one of maybe six DC games I still own physically. One thing you sadly missed out in your coverage of the game was that it was brought over to the West by Eidos (before they became a part of Square Enix), who announced that they would be upping the gore and dismemberment compared to the original Japanese release. One gaming magazine, probably EGM, asked if they thought that was gratuitous, to which they replied "what, we're only upping the gore by 25%, I don't think that's too bad!"
Also, Musou games are perfect podcast games for me: put on headphones, line up a bunch of episodes, let the afternoon pass you by. I was surprised that they were releasing a Berserk game in the series though, in the Golden Age, Guts killing a hundred men in one night is considered his crowning achievement. In a Musou game, if you haven't hit three digits in the first three minutes of a map, you're not even trying.
How long was it before you found out about the series as a whole?
@@ThBrando I'd been into anime for a long, long time at that point, but the release of the game was the first time I'd actually heard of the series. Most of the reviews and previews at the time made note that it was based on a 'hyper-violent' anime and, since we were still in the middle of the big anime boom of the late-90s/early-2000s, everywhere that covered the game was quick to point that out. It was about another five or six years before I got to read the manga through the miracle of fantranslations, which was about the time I also saw the '97 anime - a guy I knew at the time bought the US DVDs from an anime convention, so I was able to borrow them off him. Like a lot of people at the time, I called it 'Sword of the Berserk', since there wasn't an official release of anything but the game at the time, and we were used to companies changing names of properties seemingly on a whim when releasing them in the West. Besides, there was a bloody big sword front and centre in the series, why would you call it anything else?
I'm with you on the Musuo comments; the game has a teenage Guts kill over 500 enemy soldiers, single-handed, in the first battle. Aside from making the 100-man kill seem trivial, it serves to weaken all aspects of the story and combat. Battles barely involve tactical decisions, Guts' life is never really threatened, so there's no emotion, tension, or real stakes to the fights in the game. Just seems like a big grind without even any meaningful gameplay variation.
I think it's important to note that the ending of Guts' Rage with Casca regaining her memory (SPOILERS) is incredibly similar to the response she gives when she ACTUALLY wakes up and says that she felt like she was dreaming for a long time. Glad Miura kept this for the sake of continuity
I found out about Berserk from the trivia tab on a Dark Souls wiki entry for the Crypt Blacksword. I was so fascinated with the design of the weapon that as soon as I found out it was "inspired" by the main character's sword in some manga, I was like, "It's probably gonna be weird but I need to read this."
I was right on both counts.
I got this game on my Dreamcast when I was a little kid in around the year 2001... Now I'm 31, and still obsessed with Berserk. So wild that I experienced the first US piece of translated Berserk media
5:50 I'm one of those weirdos that was introduced to the whole Berserk story through the Dreamcast game. I actually really enjoyed it for it's time and as you mentioned a few years later it popped up in an anime that I rented in a video store. Checked them out and got just devastated by the end and from there on, hooked. Online fan translated manga from there on. I do love the Berserk Deluxe Volumes being released lately and would suggest that as the best way to experience Berserk but with the DC Games soundtrack and the Animes soundtrack in the background.
Hey guys for whoever cares my crew of voice actors actually turning Berserk lost children into a motion comic series
Here is the first episode 🤙 Berserk Lost Children motion comic Part 1
th-cam.com/video/wN0uHSk9MGU/w-d-xo.html
Brando , i have to say , i have NO idea's why your vids have such low views ... Every SINGLE ones of them are awesome and , literally , made me complete the game. (Once more)
Haha, thanks I'm glad you liked it. The video has only been out for a few days and it's pretty long, so I'm sure the views will climb up with time. I'm not a big name in the TH-cam game or anything, so it's totally expected when I do a video on a relatively niche topic like this it ain't gonna hit them big numbers, but I don't mind. Honestly, people leaving comments like this and telling me about their own experiences with the game is a bigger motivating factor than a high view count to me anyways.
@@ThBrando Still amazing you keep making such polished,high quality video's and .. so few people watches them. I have seen way , WAAAAY less -refined- videos with 100x times the views. Alot of them actually. You sir. Deserve fame,glory and internet points.
The Berserk DC game was indeed my first exposure to the series, and is ultimately what got me "into" Berserk to begin with. I have memories from when I was around 10 or 11 of pretending to be Guts while playing outside with my cousin.
I think a large part of what made such a big impression on me at the time, was the sheer wealth of cool combat options that Guts had at his immediate disposal. A diesel sword tied to a power-up mode, an alternate unarmed moveset accompanied by a repeating crossbow, throwing knives, sticky bombs, and a literal hand cannon. It's easy to take this kind of stuff for granted now, but at the time I was much more used to this sort of game just providing me with a [Primary Weapon] and a couple alternatives that could be swapped to via menus or between levels.
What led to me getting into Berserk proper was just how apparent the game made it that there was a much larger story surrounding Guts that I was missing out on. In particular, the Zodd fight & post-credits Skullknight scene really captured my imagination.
I also remember looking at a walkthrough on GameFAQs and reading something about "Griffith's rape of Casca" and wondering what the hell was going on. It wasn't long after that I was posting stupid shit on the Berserk fansites/forums that were around at the time. When the '97 series DVDs started releasing in N.A., I bought the first couple as soon as I had the money, and some friends and I took turns buying each of the subsequent DVDs as they released.
And yeah, the voice acting was comically bad in that game for sure. There's this one line where Puck's flying around in a tizzy and moans "Ooohh Gattsu!" and for w/e reason the exact way he said it is still seared into my mind decades later.
Btw, just want to add that there was def quite a bit of hype surrounding the pending release of the PS2 game within the western Berserk fanbase, as well, even despite the fact that many of us weren't anticipating an official release.
I had that main trailer with "Sign" playing in it downloaded, and I watched that shit constantly.
5:30 100% correct!
I bought Sword of the Berserk: Gut's Rage on a whim back in the day. I had no idea what Berserk was, just that the game looked badass and I loved it.
When you beat it, it shows stuff from the manga and I was like WHAT!? IT'S A COMIC!? But late 90s and early 2000s was a different time when it came to access to manga and anime so it was kind of hard tracking down the VHS releases of that original animated series a few years later. I will always be grateful to that game for tuning me into Berserk so relatively early.
Sword of the Berserk was my first awareness of the existence of Berserk back in 99. For a game released in 99,developed in 98, being a first generation Dreamcast game by developers not experienced in action games. The game came out pretty good all things considered. Also PS2 is the same generation as Dreamcast. PS2, Dreamcast, GameCube and Xbox all the same generation. Segas previous generation console before Dreamcast was the Saturn
I recently got berserk band of the hawk but tbh I love it there are definitely some problems with it like the repetitiveness but it’s pretty fun especially endless eclipse mode also yeah the boss fights are annoying when they put you in a corner
I actually did get into the series after getting the Dreamcast one with my cousin. I went to the school library and they actually had the first three volumes. Been hooked ever since. I was 12. Which was wild finding it in the school library at the time nestled between Dragonball and Cowboy Bebop.
Well you've done it again. Your Dragon Quest Speed Run video got me into the Dragon Quest series, and after watching this now I'm gonna go read Berserk haha
Dreamcast Berserk was my first introduction to the series. I knew it was based on an anime/manga which I watched & read later down the road.
I distinctly remember when I told a Babbage's/Electronics Boutique employee that I started watching the anime he asked me if I wondered why there were no monsters in the anime except for the first episode.
I assumed that flashback would be brief, not over 90 percent of the entire series. Where it ended was the cliffhanger that made me read & get into manga.
Prior to Berserk manga I only watched animes or Japanimation as it was known back then. Thank you Miura & co.
The Dreamcast game was my first experience with Berserk. I got the game for super cheap when the Dreamcast was bombed. Didn't pick up the manga until Miura passed and so many players of ff14 showed an outpouring of love for him.
berserk ps2 was one of my favourite ps2 games so I'm really glad there's a translation i'll probably look it up just for the nostalgia trip
I’m not gon’ hold you, Guts’ Rage was my first introduction to Berserk.
Rented it from Blockbuster.
Something about the story stuck with me. 😅
Yeah, Guts's Rage was my first exposure to Berserk. After finishing the game, I hopped on eBay and bought a bootleg DVD collection of the first series. It had four discs and an amazing folding case with great artwork, all for around $30 or so at the time. I also remember the subtitles being exceptionally good. Thank you, Hong Kong.
Something cool about the Dreamcast game is that a lot of the soundtrack is remix/sequel/inspired by the 97’ anime’s incredible ost
My first foray into the Berserk world was thru the Dreamcast game as a kid.
I watched the golden age movies and the 2016 anime, but I didn’t fully get into Berserk until I rewatched the golden age movies last year. Since then, my hunger for Berserk content grew immensely.
I played Berserk on PS2, while my long-time best friend (who, coincidentally, also introduced me to Berserk) made backseat gaming. Fun times. But damn, some of those corridors are long af and I hate those trees xD
I was also mad enough to put almost 60 hours into the Berserk Musou game. I wanted to go platinum on PS, I finished the Endless Eclipse with all characters, but I couldn't find all those stupid items and give up. Omega Force had so much potential to make a great Berserk game and they squandered it
also, as a little ad dendum, I'm surprised you didn't mention the Berserk Opening Intro Theme from the PS2 game (named "Sign"). It's absolutely superb (imo, better than "Behelit" and other themes from the 1992 anime. Same composer, anyway). It just... SCREAMS Berserk
Nah Berserk musou is really good. The game makes you feel like Guts throughout the whole game. In fact, a lot of complaints that Brando has are also present in the Dreamcast game which he compared to. It's crystal clear that musou games aren't for everyone and the consent for that is thoroughly given from the beginning of the review for the musou game.
Honestly, yeah. Sword of the Berserk was the first time I had ever heard of the series. I never bought it because I never owned a Dreamcast but I remember playing it a bit at kiosk they had set up at Circuit City. I didn't even hear about the manga until someone showed me the anime based on the Golden Age arc in 2008, and I don't think I made the connection until a few years later
Yeah, Sword of the Berserk was my first introduction to Berserk. One of the few games I had for the Dreamcast when it came out. Absolutely loved it at the time.
And you've made me realize that's why I liked Demon's Souls mechanic of the weapon bouncing off walls. Kinda hate when they just cut through like the walls don't exist.
Berserk Dreamcast was my first interaction with the series. I did not revisit it until 20 years later; blown away
Berserks rage was one of my favorite dreamcast games as a kid. So many things done in this game that would be done later in games like DMC. I'm also 37 so that might be why I played this at launch and am one of the few that was there lol. This was my introduction to berserk as well.
Came across the dreamcast game as a kid when a friends mom dumped all her games on me when ps2 dropped. Years later as an adult im on volume 6 of the deluxe editions. So happy that experience stayed with me. Good show bro!
Hello! I'm the person who discovered Berserk through the dreamcast game, back when there was no other official berserk media released. And yeah, it got me *super* enraptured with the idea of Berserk, partially because i had so little idea of what was going on. The aesthetics and concepts were so striking and surreal that it felt like a weird tone poem of a beat 'em up, and the surreality was only heightened by not understanding any of the context. It was a little like Angel's Egg that way.
The real culture shock, then, was when the anime was finally released here. I excitedly checked it out, hoping for more adventures in this weird world, but-it's a medieval war show? where's puck? casca can talk?!?!?!
In a way I suppose it mirrored the shock of moving from the beginning of the manga to the golden age, only from the other side. Of course I fell in love with the anime, and knowing the game first, I was in constant fear and excitement of what could possibly turn this world into that one. When the eclipse finally hit, I was blown away, waiting on baited breath-and of course, that's when the anime ends.
As I recall it would take another year or so before the manga releases caught up to where the anime ended, but by then I was hooked, and ever since I've never been able to shake this story. Miura truly was a legend, and he will be missed.
But also, the kings name is ballsac, and that's as funny now as it was when i was 12.
I had your video playing in the background and as soon as I heard your opinion on Michael Bell's voice acting for the Dreamcast game, I was shook! Deeper voiced characters aren't his thing but he did his darnedest, dangit! 😂 Honestly, I was also just shocked to learn that he was Guts (as well as other background characters) and the Narrator was Tony Jay! Both are main characters in the Legacy of Kain series, as well as many MANY 80s and 90s cartoon characters 🥰
Crazy as it may sound, Sword of the Berserk is exactly how I was introduced to Guts and his world. I actually saw the game for rent in a Hollywood video and it never left my mind. I was like "I get to be a Berserker!? Sign me up!"
This game is one of the major reasons I got a dreamcast back then (silly I know) it wasn't the best game but I beat it and I enjoyed the story. Never forgot the characters. Years later when I saw the Box of War with the first DVD in an FYE I got it immediately!
Side note: I love how Cam Clarke voices Puck in the game. Aside from Liquid Snake like you mentioned, he is also the original Leonardo from TMNT and the first English dub of Kaneda from Akira
Sword of the Berserk Guts Rage was the first I had heard of the lore. I still own my copy on Dreamcast and love it! Might pick up Band of the hawk now that is on sale.
Considering how almost all DBZ games cover all 4 sagas of the anime, i'd wager the number is around 25, though sometimes segmented like for the RPG titles.
I had heard about the Dreamcast Berserk game in the past but never check on my own, same goes for Band of the Hawk while i knew nothing about the PS2 game. This was informative.
-Teo
I remember having a Dreamcast as a kid, playing the Berserk game and loving it even though I had no idea about the storyline. Now 20 years later I'm getting into the anime/manga and my mind is blown. 😳
I bought the Dreamcast game the day it came out cause game informer did a preview and called it the most violent game ever created. I saw the anime shortly after and the love affair began. The only issue I recall making me frustrated was the sword bouncing as you mentioned.
I rented a Dreamcast for my 11th birthday and rented the sword of the beserk game.
Fast forward twenty years and when the author died and I’ve fallen in love with the lore. Just wanted to shout out time capsule :)
I had no clue it was inspired by a manga or if I did I had no idea it was anything more than a “typing of the dead” looking dynasty worries clone ;)
Hi new vid from my favorite crater and about berserk, you make top tier content
Glad you enjoy it!
since it was brought up in the video, an interesting note is that Toshiyuki Morikawa and Takahiro Sakurai were also both in the DiU anime with Morikawa as Kira (He also voiced Diavolo in EoH and ASB) and Sakurai as Rohan
I owned Sword of the Beserk. It has been by far the most memorable game of my life. My cousin, brother, and I beat the games multiple times over a summer. We would throw on a Song called Horns of Destruction on repeat. Purely amazing!
What an entertaining video. Well done and your passion for Berserk comes through so often, I love it.
Hey man, I just recently discovered the channel. In like 2 days I’ve torn through like 8hrs of your content and cannot tell you how entertaining and fun it’s been.
Thank you so much for the hard work and looking forward to future videos 👍🏻
I appreciate that!
I'm kinda glad 2 of the 3 games didn't have subtitles, because I sometimes tend to start reading those instead of listening to the audio
42:55 You are absolutely *not* crazy there. I thought the *exact* same thing when I was playing through the Qliphoth area.
I'm still holding out hope for a truly great Berserk game.
I hope so
The only way would be for Fromsoftware or Team Ninja to make a Berserk game
Sword of the Berserk was my first encounter with Berserk. A friend of mine in Jr. High owned it and let me borrow it, probably around 2000-20001. While I don’t remember much of the game, other than hating the Mandragoras, I do remember really liking Guts, which started my deep dive into the world of Berserk.
That Dreamcast game was my first introduction to Berserk. The experience stuck with me and started my love of the Manga.
Congrats
The chad cloud and batman sepharoth had me lauphing 🤣
My first introduction to the world of Berserk was through the 1999 Dreamcast game, believe it or not but i actually hold that game in high esteem, it's obviously not perfect even less today but it did many things right, the music by Susumu Hirasawa was magical and just like the anime i could never get the tunes out of my head, they were magical. They story for a simple hack and slash was great. I loved Guts, Puck and Kaska, even without knowing their backstory, so the personalities definitely shines through.
As for the graphics they were pretty amazing for the era, i remember showing them to my friends who was a PC buff and even he was amazed at certain detailed characters and general geometry of the game.
The game play while wonky at first did actually have a rhythm to it and certainly made you develop tactics depending on where you were fighting, whether it was open places or confined places, it also had several types of attacks and combos that were extra useful depending on the enemy.
Concluding i understand how some people may brush this game aside but personally i often look at games and sense if the effort was made and it certainly was there, the glossary, the characters and the story comes out on top i would say.
I was in 9th grade when the Dreamcast Berserk game came out, and I was only a neophyte in manga, so indeed the Dreamcast game was my first introduction into the Berserk series. I didn't realize it was such a unique experience.
Only have read book one and currently reading book two delux edition but I’ve spend HOURS watching lore videos this series is amazing ! Now I want to go back and be Guts in Elden ring
The face resets during the band of the hawk section reminded me of those kayne happy angry memes lol, ur videos are pretty awesome dude.
Hilariously, I’m one of the few who first experienced this anime/manga with this Dreamcast game... I was fascinated and when (a few years later) I saw the anime on dvd at a comic convention (a bootleg fan translation) I bought it up at once
I can't say enough that the death of Miura turned Berserk into the "Venus de Milo" of the manga world
I only knew that band of the hawk existed, the other 2 games looks really cool
Holy shit I was not expecting this rn but I will gladly take it.
Your videos are very good, and i love berserk. I've seen the three vídeos about final fantasy and become a fan since then. Sorry for my poor English i'm portuguese.
Glad you like them!
Really awesome video, I can feel the dedication and admiration you have for berserk in general. I honestly didn’t even know about anything berserk until last year.. it’s truly eye opening how much soulsborne games have taken from berserk and I absolutely love it.. appreciate you for making this.
I appreciate that!
I had sword of the berserk and that game left a haunting impression on me that just kept getting more deep and intimate as I got older, and now I look at a world as it is and see how prophetic it has become.
its hard not to say I don't see it as a spiritual thing for myself.
I honestly cant say anything else has had such a visceral and pure relation to my life as berserk not even people have helped me like following this story.
often I have been separated from people and things, left in dire circumstances and the such and Id just think back of how I wanted to deal with the circumstances of life.
to live id take a page from guts and destructively throw myself to the wind and see if fate would take me.
be myself destroyed or the barrier's that held me in the Myer of my problems.
that will be 25 years ago soon.
I've seen things that possesses me still, things I cant stop seeing.
but I hold out to see if guts finds his way, also to spite the forces that would like to see me fall in life.
Id like to think guts found a way to spite expectation, what Id like is a revived sense of self empowerment but with a resolve in spite of fate or circumstance.
like conan a king by his own hand.
I had a dream cast and I bought this game on a total whim back in early 2000. The game blew me away back in the day and was in fact my first experience with Berserk. I freaking loved the game and played all the way through and just dove into the lore and story afterwards. I thought it was awesome for the time period
I remember playing Sword of the Berserk at a friends house in 2000. Good times!
Sword of the Berserk was in fact my first experience with Berserk as a child. I rented it and enjoyed the game. Found Berserk a few years later and realized "hey, that's from that one game!" It is now my favorite story ever created(the manga not the game LOL.)
Waaaay back in the day when I was a young dude, I got a subscription to Dreamcast magazine for Xmas to go along with my new Dreamcast. I remember the FIRST ISSUE I got in the mail had this Berserk game on the included demo disk and I played the hell out of it several times.
Tbh I sort of feel bad that my son and his little buddies will never know the joy of getting a magazine DEMO DISC in the mail.
I loved the Dreamcast Berserker game. Now it looks old but i had a great time and I'll never forget the Zod fight.
Sword of the Berserk: Guts Rage was my first exposure to Berserk. I didn't know it was a manga or anime for like 20 years. I just recently bought the Berserk anime on blu ray to check it out.
First game I ever played as a kid was segas berserk. Loved it. Dad bought it for me with a couple other games. He probably Didn't realize how bloody it was but let me play it. Was probably 8 or 9. Beat it 30 times probably. Then around 16 I bumped into the Manga and anime. I had no idea that game I played years ago and loved was part of a piece of anything. Played catch up for the love of my first game that made an influence on me. Best game ever.
I rememeber playing Berserk: Sword of Berserk Guts rage and I always had a memory of the graphics and gameplay. And I had ABSOLUTELY NO FRICKEN IDEA what Berserk was. I did'nt actually discover berserk until 2012
You explained what I exactly felt about the Band of the Hawk game lol especially the boss fights oh dear.
1:06:50 you never mentioned how u get a Berserker Armor transformation when u actually start wearing the armor. In the red guage when the yellow guage fills, u get the option to press RT and actually use the armor's full power, will all new moves and finishers. Which makes the bosses ez af they all become pull overs.
Very fitting for Berserker Armor tbh
I got into Berserk due to the previews of Sword of the Berserk back in 98 for Dreamcast. The Dreamcast game IS referenced in the manga in passing talking about the mandragora that are featured in Sword of the Berserk. Miura apparently wrote the story entirely for Sword of the Berserk.