Bishi Bashi

Bishi Bashi (ﾋﾞｼﾊﾞｼ) is a series of Konami arcade games and PlayStation games. All games in the series comprise playing through a wide variety of competitive minigames against other players. The arcade games support 1 to 6 players and the PlayStation game allows 1 to 8 players; the game will provide computer opponents if there are not enough players.

Arcade games

The arcade games released so far include:

• Bishi Bashi Championship Mini Game Senshuken, or Bishi Bashi Champ in 1996
• Super Bishi Bashi Champ and Handle Champ in 1998
• Hyper Bishi Bashi, Gachaga Champ and Step Champ in 1999
• Hyper Bishi Bashi Champ and Anime Champ in 2000
• Salaryman Champ in 2001
• Great Bishi Bashi Champ in 2002
• Bishi Bashi Champ Online in 2005
• "Bleach Champ" in 2006
• The★BishiBashi in 2009

The arcade game controls are very simple; each player has a red, blue and green button, positioned left, right and centre respectively. Each minigame explains its controls before play commences. (Some titles of the series, however, make use of a lever, steering wheel or dance pad for the controls instead of the 3 buttons.)

The★BishiBashi uses the yellow button (start button) in most mini-games to finish the mini-game before time runs out.

PlayStation games

Some of the minigames from the arcade games have been ported to the Sony PlayStation and released under the name Bishi Bashi Special (ビシバシスペシャル). Salaryman Champ have also been ported to the same console.

• Bishi Bashi Special was released in 1998 in Japan
  • Includes the minigames from Bishi Bashi Champ, Super Bishi Bashi Champ and Handle Champ.
• Bishi Bashi Special 2 was released in 1999 in Japan
  • Includes the minigames from Hyper Bishi Bashi Champ and Gachaga Champ.
• A European edition titled Bishi Bashi Special was released in 2000 and compiles Bishi Bashi Special 1 and 2 on one disc, retitled Super Bishi Bashi and Hyper Bishi Bashi.
• Bishi Bashi Special 3 was released in 2000 in Japan only
  • Includes the minigames from Step Champ.

Unlike the arcade game, the ported minigames do not always use the red, green and blue buttons of the PlayStation joypad; "button bashing" minigames allow the player to use the analog sticks or the shoulder buttons as well as the regular buttons.

• Salaryman Champ: Tatakau Salaryman was released in 2001 in Japan only (Developed and Released by Success)

Bishi Bashi Special

The European release of Bishi Bashi Special is a compilation containing two games; Super Bishi Bashi and Hyper Bishi Bashi, published for the PlayStation by Konami. In Japan these games were released separately as Bishi Bashi Special and Bishi Bashi Special 2. It is possible for up to eight players to play simultaneously via two PlayStation Multi Taps. Each game in the compilation contains mini games, some are loosely based around arcade classics such as Breakout ("Car Destroyer) and Pac-Man ("Super Gulper"). Other games, such as "Perm-Mania," in which the player plays as a dancer and has to keep in time with the rhythm to make his dancer's afro hairstyle grow, and "Jump for the Meat", in which the player plays a bodybuilder on a pogo-stick who has to jump high in order to grab a piece of meat, appear to be more original creations.

Each game begins with a brief set of instructions in order to give the player an idea as to what to do in the game ahead. The game has a rather Japanese feel to it with the accents of the narrator and general theme of many of the games being of Japanese origin.

Bishi Bashi Special was released in the European PlayStation Store for PS3 and PSP on April 24, 2008.

Examples of minigames

Hyper pie throwing

A bride, with the groom holding her train, must run from the altar of a church down the aisle to where the wedding guests are seated. The faster the player mashes two of the game buttons, the faster the bride runs. Once she reaches the front row, the player presses and holds the third game button (much like the javelin event in International Track & Field, or indeed in Bishi Bashi 3), which allows them to pick an angle for the pie's trajectory. Letting go of the button unleashes the pie, which flies several rows back and hits one of the wedding guests. All wedding guests, except the pied victim, stand and applaud. The game is judged on how many rows the pie flew, and the winner is whoever threw their pie the furthest.

Shake the can into outer space!

Players mash all the game buttons to shake a soft drink can. After a fixed period of time, all cans are placed on Space Shuttle launchpads, and launched into space with their pent-up fizz. The winner is whoever's can flies the furthest from Earth. If the player is particularly good, their can will be powerful enough to slam into the moon.