The Grand Sumo

Overview

Ōzumō: The Grand Sumo is a side-view sumo wrestling game developed and released by Data East for arcades (using their DECO Cassette System) in Japan on May 1984.

It is one of the two earliest known video game adaptations of the sport of sumo, with the other being Technōs Japan's Shusse Ōzumō. Players control an unnamed sumo wrestler as they attempt to rise through the ranks of the sport's highest division by winning bouts of traditional sumo against a random variety of opponents (with tougher higher-ranked opponents granting bonus points).

While the premise is similar in Shusse Ōzumō, it uses a less-comical approach and uses a grappling system similar to some early wrestling games (where players perform a roaming cycle of techniques).

Data East used a similar approach to the sport of karate shortly after with the release of Karate Champ (which, ironically, was developed by Technōs Japan).

Gameplay

In The Grand Sumo, players attempt to win bouts of traditional sumo by either pushing their opponent out of the ring or throwing them down on the ground. Along with a joystick, the game uses two buttons (Blue and Red) to determine the technique used and its efficiency. While there is a two-player mode, it alternates player-vs-CPU matches.

The game is played in multiple "steps" of three bouts, and players must win two of the three bouts to proceed to the next (otherwise they receive a game over). After each fifth step, players are promoted upward through the division, from maegashira (前頭) up to komusubi (小結), sekiwake (関脇), ōzeki (大関), and then yokozuna (横綱).

Each bout has players fighting an opponent of a random rank, with the difficulty determined by both their rank and their stamina (green, then yellow, then red). Players earn score on winning bouts based on the technique used (most being worth 300 pts.), with bonus points on defeating higher-ranked opponents.

Techniques

At the beginning of each bout, players position themselves using the joystick and then charge forward (by holding forward on the joystick). Being closer to the center puts wrestlers in a standard grapple, while being farther from the center puts the wrestlers in a pushing match. Failing to charge forward causes the opponent to immediately win with an Abisetaoshi (浴せ倒し, "Backward Force Down").

Grappling

While grappling, the name of the next technique will flash. Pressing the Blue button activates the technique, which shows a gauge that must be filled up by tapping the Red button to successfully perform. Failing to perform a technique in time cancels it, and failing to perform any technique after a time causes the opponent to perform theirs (which can sometimes be countered by wiggling the joystick left and right).

Basic throwing and pinning techniques include the Sotogake (外掛け, "Outside Leg Trip"), Uwatenage (上手投げ, "Overarm Throw"), and Shitatenage (下手投げ, "Underarm Throw"). The Tsuridashi (吊り出し, "Lift Out") and Yorikari (寄り切り, "Frontal Force Out") techniques are unique in that they push both wrestlers toward the opponent's side of the ring, require players to keep the joystick held right, and allow the player to repeat the technique to potentially push them out of the ring. The Tsuridashi, in which the wrestler lifts the opponent up by his mawashi and walks forwards a bit, can be countered into a Abisetaoshi (浴せ倒し, "Backward Force Down").

NOTE: The flyer says something about three other techniques: Hatakikomi (はたき込み, "Slap Down"), Tsukidashi (つき出し "Frontal Thrust Out"), and Utchari (うっちゃり, "Backward Pivot Throw").

Pushing

When both wrestlers are charging forward from a great distance, they go into a pushing match, showing a "tug of war" style meter that can be pushed towards the opponent's side by tapping the Red button while holding the joystick rightward. After some time, or by wiggling the joystick, it'll become a normal grapple. The meter shows the momentum both wrestlers will move, and it's possible to push the opponent out of the ring for Oshidashi (押し出し, "Frontal Push Out")