I. Game Background
1.1 World Setting
Guardians (Denjin Makai II) continues the cyberpunk world established in its predecessor. Following the "Ghost Chaser" operation in 2079, the Ghost Chaser unit successfully dismantled the Ghost terrorist organization that threatened the city. However, the peace was short-lived.
A new, more formidable threat emerged from the shadows. The "Guardians" from another dimension discovered that the fall of the Ghost organization had disrupted the delicate balance of dimensions. Ancient evils, sealed for centuries, began to awaken, attempting to use the highly advanced urban information network of 2079 as an incubator for their rebirth. The remaining members of the Ghost Chaser unit were forced to unite with warriors from other dimensions—including former enemies—to form a new team capable of fighting across time and space to decide the fate of two worlds.
Compared to the gritty cyberpunk style of the original, the world of Guardians is grander and more diverse. The concept of dimensional rifts allowed the development team to naturally incorporate characters far beyond the scope of "sci-fi police"—from werewolf warriors to mechanical ninjas, and energy lifeforms to interdimensional swordsmen.
1.2 Development History
Guardians was developed by Japan's Winkysoft and published by Banpresto, released in 1995 for arcade hardware. As the direct sequel to the 1994 game Denjin Makai, this title underwent a "super evolution" while retaining the core framework of the original—so much so that many players and critics consider it the "true, complete form" of Denjin Makai.
If the first Denjin Makai was Winkysoft's "testing the waters" in the side-scrolling beat-'em-up genre, Guardians was their "all-out strike," reclaiming and refining all the experience from the previous game. The system depth reached one of the peaks for mid-90s beat-'em-ups: the playable roster expanded from 6 to 8 characters, each with multiple independent special moves, super moves, and combo routes. It introduced high-level fighting mechanics like Guard Cancel, air combos, and 100+ hit combos, while significantly improving visual quality with larger character sprites, more animation frames, and flashier explosion effects.
In 2023, the British gaming media outlet Time Extension included Guardians in its list of the "25 Best Beat-'em-ups of All Time"—a belated but well-deserved recognition for a title that had almost no presence in Western markets and was primarily played in Japanese and Asian arcades.
II. Character Introduction
Guardians features 8 playable characters, each with a completely unique combat style and special move system. In contrast, while the 6 characters in the original had their own traits, the differentiation was not as pronounced as it is here.
2.1 Zeldia — The Returning Alien Hunter
| Attribute | Rating |
|---|---|
| Power | ★★★★ |
| Speed | ★★★ |
| Skill | ★★★★★ |
| Difficulty | ★★★★ |
- Traits: A returning fan-favorite from the original. An alien armored warrior equipped with new close-range tearing claws and long-range tornado projectiles.
- Core Skills: Hold A + ↑ → Claw combo; Hold A + ↓ → Anti-air suppression; Close-range special (← → + AB) → Dual claw assault.
- Super Move: ← → + Hold A + ↑ → Tornado Projectile — Fires a massive rotating energy ball forward, covering extreme distance and preventing enemy jumps.
- Pros: The long-range suppression of the Tornado Projectile is unique in the game; claw combos are fluid and natural.
- Cons: Some moves have long startup animations, requiring prediction against fast enemies.
- Verdict: Upgraded from an "alien hidden character" in the first game to a definitive protagonist in the sequel. Zeldia's Tornado Projectile is the most visually striking ranged move in the game.
2.2 Jinrei — The Lightning Sword Saint
| Attribute | Rating |
|---|---|
| Power | ★★★★★ |
| Speed | ★★★ |
| Skill | ★★★★ |
| Difficulty | ★★★ |
- Traits: A sword master wielding a blade of lightning, a new character in this title.
- Core Skills: Dual Blade Slash (← → + AB) → Can link into a super move; Hold A + ↑ → Lightning Rising Slash; Jump Knee (Air + A) → Can follow up with a slide upon landing.
- Super Move: ← → + Hold A + ↓ → → Hundred-Crack Fist — A high-speed dash followed by a flurry of punches and kicks, paying homage to classic fighting anime.
- Pros: Incredible melee burst damage—the Dual Blade Slash into super move combo is among the best in the game; the Hold A + ↑ anti-air is extremely reliable.
- Cons: Lacks ranged attacks; requires precise timing against flying enemies.
- Verdict: Jinrei is the epitome of "high risk, high reward." If you master the full loop of Dual Blade Slash → Super Move → Follow-up, you can almost take out any non-boss enemy in one go.
2.3 P. BELVA — The Evolved Sky Dancer
| Attribute | Rating |
|---|---|
| Power | ★★★ |
| Speed | ★★★★★ |
| Skill | ★★★★ |
| Difficulty | ★★★★ |
- Traits: The only character from the original with a double jump, now receiving a comprehensive combo upgrade.
- Core Skills: Double Kick (B + B) → Continuous aerial kicks; 3-hit dash (← → + AB, press A to extend to 3 hits); Hold A + ↑ → Rising Uppercut.
- Grapple Enhancement: Press B after grabbing to add up to 5 continuous strikes—if you stand still, you trade health with the enemy.
- Super Move: ← → + Hold A (fully charged) + ↑ → Billion-Ton Punch — A one-hit-kill level super heavy punch after charging.
- Pros: Highest mobility in the game; double jump + aerial direction changes make it nearly impossible for enemies to predict her attack path.
- Cons: Low single-hit damage; the super move requires a long, safe window to charge.
- Verdict: Belva's double jump already made her unique in the first game, but the added air combos and the Billion-Ton Punch have evolved her from a "mobility character" to a "mobility + burst character."
2.4 SKULLBYULE — Death Rock
| Attribute | Rating |
|---|---|
| Power | ★★★★ |
| Speed | ★★★★ |
| Skill | ★★★★★ |
| Difficulty | ★★★★ |
- Traits: A rock-and-roll skeleton warrior, the most visually distinct new character.
- Core Skills: Extended Punch (→ + A, press A to continue, can bounce up to 14 times); Hold A + ↑ → Rising Uppercut; Hold A + ↓ → Ground Pound (launches enemies into the air); Hold A + ← → 3-hit pursuit.
- Electric Fist: AB triggers Electric Fist—a small screen-wide attack; ↓→ + AB triggers a variant.
- Super Move: ← → + Hold A + ↓ → → Drill Attack — Fires a super-long-range drill projectile with an incredibly generous hitbox.
- Pros: Ground combo extension is extremely strong—the → + A extended punch combined with bounces can achieve the longest ground combo in the game; the drill super move can safely chip away at bosses from a distance.
- Cons: Some moves consume health (Jump + AC)—high risk, high reward.
- Verdict: SKULLBYULE is the perfect embodiment of the sequel's "crazier, deeper" design philosophy—a rock-and-roll skeleton attacking alien monsters with a drill in a 2079 cyberpunk city. What could be more arcade than that?
2.5 Tulks — The Evolved Heavy Destroyer
| Attribute | Rating |
|---|---|
| Power | ★★★★★ |
| Speed | ★★ |
| Skill | ★★★★ |
| Difficulty | ★★ |
- Traits: The original power character returns, now with massive grapple enhancements.
- Core Skills: Air Throw (Air + A) → Slams enemies from the air to the ground; Grapple Link (Hold A + ↑ → Grab head → Slam from air); Grapple Follow-up (Hold A + → → B to throw forward, or hold A to continue strikes).
- Super Move (Grapple): ← → + Grab enemy + A + B → Exploding Hands — Finishes the grab with an explosive palm strike; extremely high damage.
- Super Move (Energy): ← → + Hold A + ↓ → → Dance of the Sword — A flashy, continuous blade dance.
- Pros: Highest grapple damage in the game; diverse ways to initiate grapples (ground, air, charge)—enemies can hardly approach safely.
- Cons: Still the slowest movement speed; output outside of grapples is significantly weaker.
- Verdict: Tulks has evolved from a "big brute" to a "wrestler"—the sheer variety of his grapple starters and follow-ups makes him an impenetrable wall in close combat.
2.6 Girulian — Claws in the Shadows
| Attribute | Rating |
|---|---|
| Power | ★★★★ |
| Speed | ★★★★ |
| Skill | ★★★★ |
| Difficulty | ★★★ |
- Traits: A werewolf warrior—a new non-human character representing the team's ambition to "break out of the sci-fi framework."
- Core Skills: Phantom Dash (Hold B + → + ← + →) → 2-stage dash attack; Air AB → Enemy falls upon hit (also a grapple escape); Charge Dash (Hold A + →→) → Forward lunge with attack hitbox.
- Hold A + ↑ → 3-hit claw combo.
- Hold A + ↓ → Low sweep (launches enemies).
- Super Move: ← → + Hold A + →→ → Purgatory Assault — A powerful dash move; enemies that don't fall take full damage.
- Pros: Rich dash skills—the ability to weave through the battlefield is the best in the game; the "full damage if not knocked down" mechanic is highly effective against large bosses.
- Cons: Combos are relatively linear—the dash → claw → dash → claw loop can feel monotonous after long use.
- Verdict: Girulian's sense of speed and wild combat style provide a brand-new experience not found in the original. His existence proves that Winkysoft no longer limited themselves to "sci-fi police" settings in the sequel.
2.7 Rou — Soul of Martial Arts
| Attribute | Rating |
|---|---|
| Power | ★★★ |
| Speed | ★★★★ |
| Skill | ★★★★ |
| Difficulty | ★★★★ |
- Traits: A martial artist characterized by diverse charge moves and energy management.
- Core Skills: Extended Arm (Hold A + ↑) → Arm extends to attack (hold A to extend, press directions to trigger different attacks—↑ launches enemies); Air Slash (Hold A + ↓) → Space control move.
- Energy Management: When POW gauge ≥ 5, hold A + ↑ to accelerate charge speed—the only "energy acceleration" mechanic in the game.
- Super Move: ← → + Hold A (fully charged) + ↑ → Ghost Chase Slash — Releases energy clones to pursue enemies, dealing multi-hit damage.
- Pros: The Extended Arm has extreme range—can safely deal damage outside most enemies' attack hitboxes; the energy acceleration allows experts to enter burst state faster than average players.
- Cons: Low base damage; energy management is not beginner-friendly.
- Verdict: Rou is one of the characters with the highest skill ceiling in Guardians. The combination of range control and resource management makes him the safest damage dealer in the hands of an expert.
2.8 Kurokishi — The Returning Steel Guardian
| Attribute | Rating |
|---|---|
| Power | ★★★★ |
| Speed | ★★★ |
| Skill | ★★★★ |
| Difficulty | ★★★ |
- Traits: A returning character from the original, but with a completely new move set—no longer just a "simple, durable tank."
- Core Skills: Dash Slash (← → + AB, press A to follow up up to 11 hits); Hold A + ↑ → Rising Thrust; Hold A + ↓ → Downward Slash; Hold A + ← → Backstep dodge.
- Aerial Pursuit: Can follow up with A after hitting with A in mid-air.
- Super Move: ← → + Hold A (fully charged) + ↓ → Aria of the Deep Sea — Invincible during activation, but vulnerable during the startup phase; also exists in an aerial close-range version.
- Pros: The 11-hit Dash Slash is one of the longest combos in the game; the invincibility frames of "Aria of the Deep Sea" are perfect for emergency dodges and counterattacks.
- Cons: Vulnerable during the super move's startup; base speed is on the slower side.
- Verdict: Kurokishi was a "reliable tank" in the first game, but has become a "deep warrior" in the sequel. His 11-hit Dash Slash is one of the most visually satisfying combos, especially when linking into a teammate's follow-up in co-op.
III. Controls
3.1 Basic Controls
Guardians uses an 8-way joystick + 2-button layout (A = Attack, B = Jump), but its combat system depth reaches the peak of the side-scrolling beat-'em-up genre:
| Action | Input | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Normal Combo | A × N | Continuous attacks, up to multi-hit combos |
| Jump Attack | B → A | Aerial attack |
| Run | →→ | Fast dash (can follow with dash attack →+A) |
| Charge Attack | Hold A | Hold and release—each character has unique skills |
| Guard | ← / → (Hold) | Standing guard, reduces damage |
| Back Attack | ← + A | Attack enemies behind you |
| Grapple | Auto on proximity | A = Strike, Direction+A/B = Throw |
| Grapple Escape | A+B when grabbed | Counter the throw |
| Special Move | A+C (Consumes HP) | Universal screen-clearing rescue move |
| Wake-up Attack | Auto on knockdown | Automatic area attack when getting up |
| Combo Finisher | Hold opposite direction at end of combo | Turns the final hit into a throw—the key difference between pros and beginners |
3.2 Core Combat System
Guard Cancel: Input specific commands while guarding to cancel guard stun and launch a counterattack. This is one of the biggest system differences from the original—guarding is no longer a passive "wait for the beating to end," but a tactical tool that can be actively converted into a counter.
Air Combo System: This title greatly expands the possibilities of aerial combat. Multiple characters (Belva, Girulian, SKULLBYULE) have complete loops of air-starter → air-combo → air-finisher. Enemies launched into the air are no longer just "waiting to land"—they are "continuously pursued in the air."
100+ Hit Combos: Unlike most beat-'em-ups where enemies fall down after a few hits, Guardians has an extremely open combo system. With proper character pairing and positioning, hit counts can exceed 100—a rarity for 1995.
Teammate Throw Tactics: In 2-player co-op, one player can throw the other as a "human cannonball" into enemy crowds. The thrown player can immediately attack in mid-air—this is the safest and most efficient team offensive method. Both players can trigger a dual-team move by pressing the special button simultaneously.
Charge System: Holding the A button is a core tactical element for every character. Combining charging with different direction keys (↑↓←→) releases completely different skills—rising, downward, dash, or backstep attacks. This gives each character multiple skill sets.
IV. Stage Walkthrough & Boss Strategy
| Stage | Scene | Theme | Boss Strategy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | City Streets | Ghost remnants destroying infrastructure. Runaway cars and faulty robots everywhere | Giant Mechanical Guard—Use dash to flank and attack during its recovery frames |
| 2 | Underground Lab | Abandoned bio-lab with modified creatures in tanks | Bio-Mutant—Ranged acid spit + close-range tentacle attacks. Keep mid-range and chip away with charge moves |
| 3 | Urban Rail | Fighting on top of speeding trains—the train itself is a deadly trap | Rail Mech—Use the train as cover (and a weapon—push the boss onto the tracks to be hit) |
| 4 | Dimensional Rift | Dimensional barriers collapsing—distorted scenes of two worlds merging | Dimensional Guardian—Multi-stage boss. First stage is energy form (physical attacks ineffective, use special moves) |
| 5 | Ancient Temple | Awakening place of ancient evil—covered in old pillars and spells | Ancient Evil—Final boss. Has screen-wide energy waves and minion summoning. Save team moves and super moves for the second phase (triggered at <50% HP) |
V. Tips & Advanced Strategy
5.1 Basic Survival
- Charge moves are your core tool: Every character has at least 4 charge derivatives (Up/Down/Left/Right). Spend time in training mode to learn the hitboxes and recovery of each—this is the first threshold for improvement.
- Guard Cancel makes defense active: The original's guard only "reduced damage." The Guard Cancel allows you to counter while guarding—mastering this means you'll never be fully suppressed.
- Combo-to-throw is a pro skill: Push the joystick in the opposite direction at the end of a combo—the final hit becomes a throw, dealing splash damage to other enemies.
- Dash-charging is safer than standing-charging: Start charging while running—by the time you reach the enemy, it's fully charged—release immediately. Much safer than standing still and getting surrounded.
- Special moves (A+C) are a last resort, not main damage: They consume HP—use only when surrounded and with no other escape route.
5.2 2-Player Co-op
- Throwing teammates is the most efficient starter: One throws the other → thrown player attacks in mid-air → lands and continues with ground combo → first player follows up. This loop is the core tactic for co-op.
- Character Pairing: Tulks (frontline grappler) + Zeldia (ranged cover); Belva (high mobility harassment) + Jinrei (heavy firepower finisher). The most comprehensive combo is Tulks + SKULLBYULE—the former grabs enemies, the latter cleans up with the drill super move.
- Save team moves for low-HP boss phases: Team moves have high damage but high cost. Use them when the boss is below 30% HP to finish quickly—avoid dragging out the fight.
5.3 Advanced Knowledge
- POW Gauge Management: Rou is the only character with an energy acceleration mechanism—charge speed increases when POW ≥ 5. For others, the POW gauge is mainly for super moves—don't waste them on minions.
- Weapon Durability: Weapons taken from enemies have limited uses. Getting knocked down too much drops the weapon. Weapons also disappear when entering new areas—use them, don't hoard them.
- Instant-kill Traps: Stage 3 train tracks—pushing the boss onto the tracks for the train to hit deals massive damage. This is the "speed-kill" trick for this stage.
VI. Trivia & Arcade Legends
6.1 From "Testing" to "Complete Form"
In Winkysoft's history, Denjin Makai (1994) was the "testing ground"—validating concepts and accumulating experience. Guardians (1995) was the "all-out strike"—turning a year of lessons into a game far superior in depth and variety. The speed and quality of this "one-year evolution" were extremely rare in 1990s arcade development.
6.2 Time Extension's Belated Recognition
In 2023, Time Extension listed Guardians as one of the "25 Best Beat-'em-ups of All Time." For a game that was virtually unknown in the West—no English version, no console port, only playable in Japanese arcades—this recognition is late but carries significant weight. It stands alongside classics like Final Fight, Streets of Rage 2, and Dungeons & Dragons: Shadow over Mystara.
6.3 The Missed Console Era
Unlike the first game, which had an SFC port (Ghost Chaser Densei), Guardians was never ported to any home console. It is a true "arcade exclusive." The reason is said to be that by 1995, Winkysoft's resources were fully shifted to the Super Robot Wars series—their flagship product required all hands on deck—leaving no budget or manpower for a port. This decision made it one of the most "hard-to-play" hidden classics of that era.
6.4 Girulian — Winkysoft's Declaration of "Breaking the Mold"
Girulian's inclusion was the most unexpected choice. In a universe set as "2079 cyberpunk police hunting hackers," a werewolf from another dimension appears—this wasn't just about variety. It was Winkysoft declaring: The sequel's world will no longer be limited by any framework.
6.5 100+ Hit Combos — A 1995 Technical Miracle
In 1995, most beat-'em-ups capped combos at 5-8 hits. Guardians broke this convention—through precise positioning, charge cancels, and multi-hit pursuits, combos could exceed 100 hits. This "uncapped combo" design is standard in modern action games (like Devil May Cry or Bayonetta), but in 1995, it was an incredibly advanced design philosophy.
