Immaterial And Missing Power
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, commonly abbreviated as IaMP in English speaking circles, is a
versus fighting game The fighting game video game genre, genre involves combat between multiple characters, often (but not limited to) one-on-one battles. Fighting game combat often features mechanics such as Blocking (martial arts), blocking, grappling, counter- ...
collaboratively developed by
Twilight Frontier , known as Tasofro for short, is a Japanese dojin game, ''dojin'' game video game developer, developer. They are best known for their collaborations with Team Shanghai Alice (ZUN (video game developer), ZUN), which include seven official games in ...
and
Team Shanghai Alice , formerly known as ZUN Soft, is a Japanese ''dōjin'' game developer. Since 1995, the sole member of the group, Jun'ya "ZUN" Ōta, has independently developed and self-published the '' Touhou Project'', a bullet hell shoot 'em up series, as ...
released in 2004. It is the first spinoff in the '' Touhou'' series, and it is numbered as the 7.5th installment as the game's events place between ''
Perfect Cherry Blossom is a 2003 vertically scrolling shooter bullet hell video game developed by Team Shanghai Alice. It is the seventh game in the ''Touhou Project'' series. Playable characters include returning protagonists Reimu Hakurei and Marisa Kirisame, with S ...
'' (seventh) and ''
Imperishable Night is a 2004 vertical bullet hell scrolling shoot 'em up video game A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, comput ...
'' (eighth), although it was released after ''Imperishable Night''. After the success of ''Immaterial and Missing Power'', the game was followed up with
Scarlet Weather Rhapsody is the second versus fighting game in the ''Touhou Project'', and is the spiritual successor to ''Immaterial and Missing Power'' by Twilight Frontier and Team Shanghai Alice. In the ''Touhou Project'' overall, it is labelled as the 10.5th Touhou ...
in 2008, the first of several ''Touhou'' fighting game sequels.


Gameplay

''Immaterial and Missing Power'' is a two-dimensional
fighting game The fighting game video game genre, genre involves combat between multiple characters, often (but not limited to) one-on-one battles. Fighting game combat often features mechanics such as Blocking (martial arts), blocking, grappling, counter- ...
in which players can select one of several ''Touhou'' characters to fight either against an AI, or other human players. Because of ''Touhou's'' origins as a
bullet hell , also known as manic shooter, is a subgenre of shoot 'em up video games with large amounts of projectiles the player is required to dodge. Introduced in 1993 with '' Batsugun'' and initially limited to vertically scrolling shooters, bullet ...
game, ''Immaterial and Missing Power's'' special moves have a focus on large amounts of projectiles. To help counter the large number of enemy projectiles, ''Immaterial and Missing Power'', allows the player to 'graze' enemy projectiles, which gets its namesake from the prior ''Touhou'' games. While in the
bullet hell , also known as manic shooter, is a subgenre of shoot 'em up video games with large amounts of projectiles the player is required to dodge. Introduced in 1993 with '' Batsugun'' and initially limited to vertically scrolling shooters, bullet ...
''Touhou'' games, grazing refers to having enemy projectiles collide with the player's sprite, but not their hitbox (which is several times smaller), in ''Immaterial and Missing Power'', the player can use an energy meter to completely circumvent enemy projectiles, though not all projectiles can be grazed. Spell Cards, a central aspect of ''Touhou'' since ''
Embodiment of Scarlet Devil is a 2002 bullet hell vertically scrolling shooter developed by Team Shanghai Alice. It is the sixth game in the ''Touhou Project'' series, and the first installment to be released for Microsoft Windows. The story follows either the ''miko'' Rei ...
'', appear in ''Immaterial and Missing Power'' as special moves that have to be announced before they can be used. Each character can choose 1 out of 3 normal spell cards, and 1 out of 3 overdrive spell cards to use before a match starts. The overdrive spell card replaces the normal spell card when the player's character has been defeated once. Also, when a spell card is announced, the player's HP replenishes for a certain amount. ''Immaterial and Missing Power'' contains a story mode, an arcade mode in which the player has to fight the entire cast while given only one life, a versus mode, and a practice mode. In the story mode, there are Spell Cards that are available only to the enemy characters. A Spell Card can be "collected" when the player defeats the enemy character in a limited amount of time when the enemy's Spell Card is in effect. After collecting enemy Spell Cards, they can be viewed in an in-game gallery.


Plot

During Gensokyo's summer, there occurred an incident called the Night Parade of Ten Thousand Demons Every Four Days (三日置きの百鬼夜行). In this incident, the
sakura The cherry blossom, or sakura, is the flower of trees in ''Prunus'' subgenus '' Cerasus''. ''Sakura'' usually refers to flowers of ornamental cherry trees, such as cultivars of ''Prunus serrulata'', not trees grown for their fruit (although ...
trees have since shed their blossoms, but the
hanami is the Japanese traditional custom of enjoying the transient beauty of flowers; in this case almost always mean those of the or, less frequently, trees. From the end of March to early May, cherry trees bloom all over Japan, and around the s ...
kept on going, with feasts being hosted day after day with no end in sight. Additionally, each time the feast is held, an unknown restless spiritual aura in Gensokyo also increases, but this spiritual aura itself had no effect, leading to suspicions of those who went to investigate it. As such, everyone who goes to the feast, be it human or
yōkai are a class of supernatural entities and Spirit (supernatural entity) , spirits in Japanese folklore. The kanji representation of the word comprises two characters that both mean "suspicious, doubtful", and while the Japanese name is simply ...
, appear to be very suspicious. Three days before the next feast, the player character sets out, each on their own, and attempt to investigate.


Characters

Eleven characters are available in ''Immaterial and Missing Power,'' including Suika Ibuki, who had her debut in this game. The characters Remilia, Yuyuko, Yukari, and Suika must be unlocked by defeating them in story mode, and Meiling is unlocked by downloading a patch, and completing the story mode, though she does not appear in it. *Reimu Hakurei (博麗 霊夢): The
miko A , or shrine maiden,Groemer, 28. is a young priestess who works at a Shinto shrine. were once likely seen as Shamanism, shamans,Picken, 140. but are understood in modern Japanese culture to be an institutionalized role in daily life, trained ...
of the Hakurei Shrine and perennial protagonist of the ''Touhou Project''. She is troubled by the constant feasts in the shrine that she has to host, and goes to attack whoever she thinks is responsible. Like in the
bullet hell , also known as manic shooter, is a subgenre of shoot 'em up video games with large amounts of projectiles the player is required to dodge. Introduced in 1993 with '' Batsugun'' and initially limited to vertically scrolling shooters, bullet ...
games, she has access to homing projectiles. *Marisa Kirisame (霧雨 魔理沙): An ordinary human magician, and playable character in each main ''Touhou'' game since ''Phantasmagoria of Dim. Dream''. She acts as the secretary in charge of the feasts, though she is unsure of their cause. *Sakuya Izayoi (十六夜 咲夜): The
maid A maid, housemaid, or maidservant is a female domestic worker. In the Victorian era, domestic service was the second-largest category of employment in England and Wales, after agricultural work. In developed Western nations, full-time maids a ...
of the Scarlet Devil Mansion introduced in ''
The Embodiment of Scarlet Devil is a 2002 bullet hell vertically scrolling shooter developed by Team Shanghai Alice. It is the sixth game in the ''Touhou Project'' series, and the first installment to be released for Microsoft Windows. The story follows either the ''miko'' Rei ...
''. Sensing a mysterious qi in the feasts, she sets out to investigate. Her main ability consists of being able to throw large amounts of knives. *Alice Margatroid (アリス・マーガトロイド): A human magician, who lives in the Forest of Magic, alongside Marisa. Alice attempts to
exorcise Exorcism () is the religious or spiritual practice of evicting demons, jinns, or other malevolent spiritual entities from a person, or an area, that is believed to be possessed. Depending on the spiritual beliefs of the exorcist, this may be do ...
the aura, believing it to be a ghost. She attacks using
puppets A puppet is an object, often resembling a human, animal or mythical figure, that is animated or manipulated by a person called a puppeteer. Puppetry is an ancient form of theatre which dates back to the 5th century BC in ancient Greece. There ...
that she creates. *Patchouli Knowledge (パチュリー・ノーレッジ): A
witch Witchcraft is the use of magic by a person called a witch. Traditionally, "witchcraft" means the use of magic to inflict supernatural harm or misfortune on others, and this remains the most common and widespread meaning. According to ''Enc ...
from the Scarlet Devil Mansion who does not usually go out of her library. This time, however, she took responsibility in investigating the mist that has been blanketing Gensokyo. Patchouli is
asthmatic Asthma is a common long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wheez ...
, and has poor mobility, but compensates with magical barrages that cover a large area. *Youmu Konpaku (魂魄 妖夢): A half-human half-
ghost In folklore, a ghost is the soul or Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit of a dead Human, person or non-human animal that is believed by some people to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely, from a ...
, and Yuyuko's gardener and servant. Youmu starts fights with various innocents, assuming them to be the culprits. Her attacks are centred around the usage of her two swords. *Remilia Scarlet (レミリア・スカーレット): A
vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead humanoid creatures that often visited loved ones and c ...
, and mistress of the Scarlet Devil Mansion, who is thought to be one of the prime suspects in creating the strange mist, because she did it once before in ''
The Embodiment of Scarlet Devil is a 2002 bullet hell vertically scrolling shooter developed by Team Shanghai Alice. It is the sixth game in the ''Touhou Project'' series, and the first installment to be released for Microsoft Windows. The story follows either the ''miko'' Rei ...
''. Because of her childlike physique, she is able to move quickly, and release ''danmaku'' that cover a wide area. *Yuyuko Saigyouji (西行寺 幽々子): The ghost princess of the netherworld. She is also believed to be a suspect, as she orchestrated the incident in ''
Perfect Cherry Blossom is a 2003 vertically scrolling shooter bullet hell video game developed by Team Shanghai Alice. It is the seventh game in the ''Touhou Project'' series. Playable characters include returning protagonists Reimu Hakurei and Marisa Kirisame, with S ...
''. Reflecting her lazy personality, Yuyuko lacks mobility, but her Spell Cards have an unmatched range. *Yukari Yakumo (八雲 紫): A wandering
yōkai are a class of supernatural entities and Spirit (supernatural entity) , spirits in Japanese folklore. The kanji representation of the word comprises two characters that both mean "suspicious, doubtful", and while the Japanese name is simply ...
, who controls the Hakurei Border. *Suika Ibuki (伊吹 萃香): Introduced in ''Immaterial and Missing Power'', she is an ''
oni An ( ) is a kind of ''yōkai'', demon, orc, ogre, or troll in Japanese folklore. They are believed to live in caves or deep in the mountains or in hell. Oni are known for their superhuman strength and have been associated with powers like th ...
'' who loves drinks, feasts, and competition, like the rest of her race. Despite her small size, she is strong in strength, speed, and mystic powers; she is also several hundred years old. Using her ability to control density, she can gather people to form a banquet, or she can scatter herself to become mist. In ''Immaterial and Missing Power'', she made the residents of Gensokyo have continuous feasts, intending to draw the joyous ''oni'' from hiding. *Hong Meiling (紅 美鈴): A Chinese-like yōkai and martial artist that was included in a later patch of the game. She has no story mode.


Development

Unabara Iruka (海原海豚) of the Twilight Frontier team had wanted to make a fighting game with aerial battles similar to '' Cyberbots: Full Metal Madness'' (1995) and ''
Astra Superstars is a 1998 arcade game, arcade fighting game developed by Sunsoft and published by Tecmo. It was released only in Japan. It is Sunsoft's fourth fighting game after the 1994 Super Famicom Hebereke (series), ''Hebereke'' franchise spin-off ''Sugoi ...
'' (1998), but felt that creating a whole set of characters and the setting just for the game would be overwhelming. Unabara felt that such a game would not feel out of place in the setting of ''Touhou'', and so he sought out
ZUN The ''zun'' or ''yi'', used until the Song dynasty#Northern Song, 960–1127, Northern Song (960–1126) is a type of Chinese ritual bronzes, Chinese ritual bronze or ceramic wine vessel with a round or square vase-like form, sometimes in t ...
, the founder of the series, to collaborate on a ''Touhou'' fighting game. Unlike the main ''Touhou'' games, which were written developed entirely by ZUN, the dialogue, character sprites, and ending artwork in ''Immaterial and Missing Power'' are drawn by alphes'','' an artist at
Twilight Frontier , known as Tasofro for short, is a Japanese dojin game, ''dojin'' game video game developer, developer. They are best known for their collaborations with Team Shanghai Alice (ZUN (video game developer), ZUN), which include seven official games in ...
. ZUN was responsible for character design, the plot, stage design, system graphics, Spell Card naming, and a portion of the soundtrack while Twilight Frontier took care of the rest. On April 2 2004, Twilight Frontier announced the production of ''Immaterial and Missing Power,'' with Team Shanghai Alice. On December 21, a demo, which had the first three stages of Reimu's story mode, and the characters Reimu, Marisa, Alice and Youmu available in the versus mode, was released digitally. The finished game was sold at the 67th
Comiket , more commonly known as or , is a semiannual Doujinshi convention, ''doujinshi'' convention in Tokyo, Japan. A grassroots market focused on the sale of ''doujin'' (self-published) works, Comiket is a not-for-profit fan convention administered ...
on December 30 2004. The soundtrack of the game was compiled into an album named ''Gensōkyoku Bassui'' (幻想曲抜萃) which was sold on August 14, 2005. A significant portion of the soundtrack were
remix A remix, also sometimes called reorchestration or rework, is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, poem, or photograph ca ...
es of existing Touhou songs.


Reception

On
GameSpot ''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady, and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
, the game had an average user score of 8.6/10.


See also

*
Scarlet Weather Rhapsody is the second versus fighting game in the ''Touhou Project'', and is the spiritual successor to ''Immaterial and Missing Power'' by Twilight Frontier and Team Shanghai Alice. In the ''Touhou Project'' overall, it is labelled as the 10.5th Touhou ...
- the next ''Touhou'' fighting game, also produced by ZUN and Twilight Frontier *
List of fighting games Fighting games are characterized by close combat between two fighters or groups of fighters of comparable strength, often broken into rounds or stocks. If multiple players are involved, players generally fight against each other. Note: Games are ...


References

;Notes ;Sources *ZUN. ''Shanghai Alice Signpost''. vol.5 2004/12/30 (''Immaterial and Missing Power''
readme In software distribution and software development, a README file (computing), file contains information about the other files in a directory (file systems), directory or archive (computing), archive of computer software. A form of Software doc ...
file)


External links


Immaterial and Missing Power: Official Site


* ttp://en.touhouwiki.net/wiki/Immaterial_and_Missing_Power Immaterial and Missing Power on Touhou Wikibr>IaMPWiki
{{DEFAULTSORT:Immaterial And Missing Power 2004 video games Doujin video games Fighting games Multiplayer and single-player video games Touhou Project games Twilight Frontier games Video games developed in Japan Windows games Windows-only games