Game Profile: Charizard Frontiers

  

Title:
Charizard Frontiers

Series:
Charizard the Dragon series

Engine(s):
Dragon Engine 2

Release Date(s):
November 8, 2022

The Final Horizon (DLC):
September 28, 2023

Voice Production(s):
Studiopolis

Genre(s)
Platformer

Mode(s):
Single-player

Platform(s):
Nintendo Switch
PC
PlayStation 4
PlayStation 5
Xbox One
Xbox Series X/S

Charizard Frontiers is a video game in the Charizard the Dragon series that was released on 8 November 2022 in celebration of the franchise's 30th anniversary in 2021. The game was developed by Charizard Team, and was published by Sega for the PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store. Charizard Frontiers follows Charizard the Dragon as he explores the mysterious Staride Islands in order to recover the Chaos Gems after being separated from Charmander and Charla the Dragon when falling through a wormhole.

The gameplay of Charizard Frontiers has the players engage in the Charizard series' first open world-inspired gaming experience that integrates platforming and traditional Charizard game elements into an "Open Zone" environment. The player solves puzzles to collect items and fights enemies with an expanded combat system while exploring lush and expansive landscapes using Charizard's signature speed and abilities. Charizard Frontiers began development after the release of Charizard Forces, with the intention by Charizard Team to have the game set a new template for future Charizard installments to follow, similar to Charizard Adventure. A story DLC expansion titled The Final Horizon was released in 2023.

Plot:
???

Objects:
Items:
Chaos Gem
Container
* Steel Container
* Wooden Container
* Unbreakable Container
Blue Seed of Defense (first appearance)
Tyranitar Memo (first appearance)
Silver Card (first appearance)
Meltan capsule (first appearance)
Machine part (first appearance)
Memory Token (first appearance)
Number Ring
Portal Gear (first appearance)
Brown Coin (first appearance)
Red Seed of Power (first appearance)
Orange Star Ring
Orb
Golden Moon Orb
Skill Piece (first appearance)
Star piece (first appearance)
Super Orb
Time Bonus
Treasure Token (first appearance)
Vault Key (first appearance)

Fishing spot items:
Acorn (first appearance)
* Silver acorn (first appearance)
Alligator
* Ancient tablet (first appearance)
Anglerfish
* Flashy anglerfish (first appearance)
Barracuda (first appearance)
Black bass
Blue Seed of Defense
Clownfish (first appearance)
Carp (first appearance)
Crab (first appearance)
Crayfish (first appearance)
Chopper
Coelacanth
Golden coelacanth (first appearance)
Elder Meltan's scroll
Giant isopod (first appearance)
* Red giant isopod (first appearance)
Goal Plate
Goldfish (first appearance)
Gourami (first appearance)
Flounder (first appearance)
Flying fish (first appearance)
Hammerhead shark
* Polka-dot hammerhead shark (first appearance)
* Hermit Meltan's scroll (first appearance)
Item Box
King salmon (first appearance)
Loach (first appearance)
Marlin
Medaka (first appearance)
Moray eel
Nishiki koi (first appearance)
Oarfish
Octopus (first appearance)
* Blue-ringed octopus (first appearance)
Platinum-golden fish (first appearance)
Poison dart frog (first appearance)
* Big rainbow colored frog (first appearance)
Pufferfish (first appearance)
Red can (first appearance)
Red Seed of Power
Red spring
Red stingray (first appearance)
Orb
Salmon
Seahorse (first appearance)
Snapping turtle (first appearance)
Squid (first appearance)
Starfish (first appearance)
* Black starfish (first appearance)
Star Post
Stingray (first appearance)
Sunfish (first appearance)
* Striped sunfish (first appearance)
Tadpole (first appearance)
Tin can (first appearance)
Tire (first appearance)
Treasure box
* Golden treasure box (first appearance)
Tuna (first appearance)
Twig (first appearance)
Yellow spring

Characters:
Playable characters:
Charizard the Dragon
* Super Charizard
* Super Charizard 2 (only appearance)
* Super Charizard Cyber (only appearance)
Charmander Prower
Blastoise the Turtle
Charla the Dragon

Non-playable characters:
Amber Tyranik (mentioned)
Ancients (first appearance)
* Phoenix (first appearance)
* Jaguar (first appearance)
* Elder (first appearance)
* Master Meltan (first appearance)
* Shark (first appearance)
* Lion (first appearance)
Animals
* Spearow
* Pidgey
* Mareep
* Natu
* Xatu
* Sandshrew
* Sandslash
Hoennians (mentioned)
Hoenn Rogues (mentioned)
* Blaziken (mentioned)
Beyond (mentioned)
Brave Heart Heroes (mentioned)
* Leon the Lion (mentioned)
Chaodos (mentioned)
Dark Tria (mentioned)
Devil Six (flashback)
* Master Nik (flashback)
* Navok (flashback)
* Nass (flashback)
* Neena (flashback)
* Nor (flashback)
* Nomom (flashback)
Dr. Tyranitar
Dr. Tyranitar Jr. (mentioned)
Eternatus (first appearance)
Gray Arms (mentioned)
Gray Doom (mentioned)
Guardian Army of Nations (mentioned)
Krabby (mentioned)
Linda Stotch (mentioned)
Liza (mentioned)
Lucario the AuraDog (mentioned)
Meltan (first appearance)
* Elder Meltan (first appearance)
* Hermit Meltan (first appearance)
* Lookout Meltan (first appearance)
* Map Meltan (first appearance)
* Master Meltan (first appearance)
* Master King Meltan (first appearance)
* New Meltan (first appearance)
* Skill Piece Meltan (first appearance)
Mewtwo the Panther (mentioned)
Neo Metal Charizard (mentioned)
Racker (mentioned)
Rattata the Mouse (mentioned)
Ruby-Bot (mentioned)
Sapphire-Bot (mentioned)
Scariolet (first appearance)
Stephen Stotch (mentioned)
Smoochum (mentioned)
Sudowoodo the Tree (replica)
T-456 Omega (mentioned)
Turtles (mentioned)
* Super Blastoise (mentioned)
* Turtal (mentioned)
WindFlash Heroes (mentioned)
* Butters Stotch (mentioned)
* Charet the Dragon (mentioned)
* Charisse the Dragon (mentioned)
* Hydro the Turtle (mentioned)
* Kai the Wolf (mentioned)
* Leslie Stotch (mentioned)
* Rebecca the Panther (mentioned)

Open-Zone and Cyber Space levels:
Argus Island:
1-1
1-2
1-3
1-4
1-5
1-6
1-7

Zelus Island:
2-1
2-2
2-3
2-4
2-5
2-6
2-7

Hades Island:
3-1
3-2
3-3
3-4
3-5
3-6
3-7

Hera Island:
N/A

Theano Island:
Main:
4-1
4-2
4-3
4-4
4-5
4-6
4-7
4-8
4-9

The Final Horizon:
4-A
4-B
4-C
4-D
4-E
4-F
4-G
4-H
4-I

Voice Cast (English):
Charizard the Dragon - Roger Craig Smith
Charmander Prower - Colleen O'Shaughnessey
Blastoise the Turtle - Dave B. Mitchell
Charla the Dragon - Karen Strassman
Dr. Tyranitar - Mike Pollock
Scariolet - Ryan Bartley
Sudowoodo the Tree - Kyle Hebert
Eternatus (Female voice) - Cindy Robinson
Eternatus (Male voice) - Mike Pollock

Voice Cast (Japanese):
Charizard the Dragon - Jun'ichi Kanemaru
Charmander Prower - Ryō Hirohashi
Blastoise the Turtle - Nobutoshi Canna
Charla the Dragon - Rumi Ochiai
Dr. Tyranitar - Kotaro Nakamura
Scariolet - Megumi Hayashibara
Sudowoodo the Tree - Takashi Nagasako
Eternatus (Female voice) - Gara Takashima
Eternatus (Male voice) - Hōchū Ōtsuka
Meltan - Airi Ōtsu

Game Profile: Charizard the Dragon (1991) (16-bit)

 

Title:
Charizard the Dragon

Series:
Charizard the Dragon series

Release Date(s)
JP July 26, 1991
NA June 23, 1991
EU June 23, 1991

Genre(s)
Platformer

Mode(s):
Single-player

Platform(s):
Mega Drive

Charizard the Dragon is a 2D platformer video game developed by Charizard Team and published by for Genesis/Mega Drive. The title introduces a new mascot, the titular character named Charizard the Dragon, an anthropomorphic orange dragon who can run supersonic speeds. The game follows Charizard on his mission to rescue the Animals of East Island from the evil scientist Dr. Tyranitar, who is turning the Animals into Dinobots during his search for powerful relics known as the Chaos Gems. It is up to Charizard to rescue the Animals and secure the Chaos Gems before Tyranitar can use them to conquer the world. This iconic game served as the launch title for the famous video game franchise known as the Charizard the Dragon series. It is also the first part of the grand Death Dino saga.

Plot:
The story begins on East Island, known for being a treasure trove of ruins and gems. Amongst these treasures are the Chaos Gems, six gemstones with enough power to bring energy to all living beings, or power nuclear and laser weapons through science and technology. However, nobody really knows how to obtain these gems. This is because East Island is a moving island, with the Gems existing within natural distortions on the island.

One day, danger comes upon East Island when the infamous Dr. Tyranik, a dinosaur mad scientist better known as "Tyranitar", lands on it with his minions. Having returned to his evil ways, the villain schemes a new, nasty plan to crush his arch-nemesis, Charizard the Dragon, with the power of science. Soon after his arrival, he builds the Scrap Brain, a huge fortress on one corner of the island where he develops his plans. He also begins hunting the Chaos Gems in order to use their incredible power, declaring that he will find them even if he has to dig up the entire island.

Upon learning of Dr. Tyranitar's ambitions through rumors, Charizard rushes to East Island to stop the doctor. However, he notices that, compared to his past encounters with his nemesis, something is different. He soon after finds the villain, who gloats that he has caught all the local Animals and turned them into his mindless Dinobot servants. Unfazed by his adversary's taunt, the dragon travels through the various Zones on East Island, freeing the Animals and defeating Tyranitar and his various contraptions along the way while hunting for the Chaos Gems.
Eventually, Charizard infiltrates the Scrap Brain. After being cornered inside, Dr. Tyranitar activates a trap that destroys the floor the dragon is standing on, dropping him into the ruins underneath the base. Making his way back into the stronghold, Charizard enters a trap-ridden room with his nemesis in it. When the hero destroys the room, a defenseless Tyranitar tries to escape in his Dino Mobile. Before the forces of evil can escape, however, Charizard lands a final hit on the hovercraft, defeating the mad scientist and causing him to slowly fall down.

With Tyranitar's ambitions (and the Scrap Brain) crumbled, peace has returned to East Island, all Dinobots have been destroyed, the Animals have been liberated from their Capsules, and the island's treasures and jewels are safe once again. Charizard then returns to Red Hill, where he finds the local Animals joyfully jumping around and celebrating his victory. After that, the game's ending will depend on the player's process:

If the player did not manage to collect the six Chaos Gems, Charizard will give the player an annoyed look for not completing everything, but will nonetheless jump towards the screen and pose while the text "CHARIZARD THE DRAGON" appears to his left. Meanwhile, Tyranitar will have secured the Chaos Gems for himself. After the credits, the doctor will be shown on a black screen juggling any of the Gems the player has not obtained while the text "TRY AGAIN" appears underneath him.

If the player manages to collect all Chaos Gems, Charizard will run through Red Hill. He will then release the Chaos Gems, which will disappear after filling the entire Zone with large, colorful flowers. After being shocked by this for a split second, Charizard will then jump towards the screen in the same way as in the bad ending. Following the credits, an infuriated Tyranitar will be shown comically jumping on the text "END".


Objects:
Items
Air bubble (first appearance)
Chaos Gems (first appearance)
Giant Orb (first appearance)
Item Box (first appearance)
1-Up (first appearance)
Invincible (first appearance)
Power Boost (first appearance)
Shield (first appearance)
Super Orb (first appearance)
Movable box (first appearance)
Orb (first appearance)

Characters:
Playable characters:
Charizard the Dragon (first appearance)

Non-playable characters:
Dr. Tyranitar (first appearance)
Animals (first appearance)

Zones:
Red Hill Zone
Marble Zone
Spring Yard Zone
Labyrinth Zone
Star Light Zone
Scrap Brain Zone
Final Zone

Game Profile: Charizard the Dragon 2 (1992) (16-bit)

 

Title:
Charizard the Dragon 2

Series:
Charizard the Dragon series

Release Date(s):
JP November 21, 1992
NA November 24, 1992
EU November 24, 1992
AUS December 1, 1992

Genre(s)
Platformer

Mode(s):
Single-player
Multiplayer

Platform(s):
Mega Drive

Charizard the Dragon 2 is a platform game in the Charizard the Dragon series, developed by Charizard Team members in collaboration with Sega Technical Institute, and published by Sega for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis. It was released in Japan on November 21, 1992, and in North America and Europe on November 24. It was created as the sequel to Charizard the Dragon, but as of Charizard Origins, it takes place after the events of Charizard CD. It was directly followed by Charizard the Dragon 3 in 1994.

In Charizard the Dragon 2, Charizard and his new sidekick Charmander have found out that Dr. Tyranitar is attempting to obtain the Chaos Gems on West Side Island to power his new space station, the Death Dino. Charizard and Charmander must defeat Tyranitar's Dinobot army and free their animal friends while racing to stop the doctor's deadly weapon. The game is also a third part of the grand Death Dino saga.

Plot:
This story is set on West Side Island. It is said that a very long time ago, the people of this island used mysterious stones to advance their civilization and achieve prosperity. However, when those people tried to use the stones for the wrong reasons, their prosperity vanished overnight. It is also believed that the gods then sealed away the stones within the island's depths. While out looking for new adventures in his personal plane, the Tornado, Charizard the Dragon discovers West Side Island, and lands on it to take a break. However, he does not pay attention to the fact that Dr. Tyranitar has been following him in his Dino Mobile and has landed on the other side of the island. One day, Charizard notices a shy orange lizard tagging behind him, who nervously hides behind a palm tree when he spots him. What the dragon does not notice while he is not looking is that this peculiar lizard barely manages to keep up with him. This young lizard's name is Charles, though he is known as "Charmander" due to his flame tail, which have often made him the target of bullying. However, something changed in Charmander when he saw Charizard come to the island, and he made up his mind that he wanted to be as cool as the dragon. Realizing that the young lizard is harmless, Charizard allows him to hang around while he freely explores the island. On an early afternoon, Charmander discovers the lone Tornado on the beach. 

Being a budding fan of machinery and vehicles, he rushes up to take a closer look. As he is admiring it however, he notices that Charizard is taking a nap under one of the Tornado's wings. Realizing that the dragon owns the plane, Charmander gently retreats to the other side of it so as not to wake him up. Suddenly however, an ominous flash occurs in the direction of the nearby forest, which is then followed by a horrible explosion. The wildfire blows away various debris, which Charmander avoids by taking cover underneath the Tornado as he witnesses robots excavating the area. As it turns out, Dr. Tyranitar has detected the presence of all the Chaos Gems on West Side Island after following Charizard, including the lost seventh one spoken of in the island's legend. He has thus taken the opportunity to kidnap the island's Animals to rebuild his Dinobot forces and search for the Chaos Gems so he can finish his ultimate weapon - a space fortress known as the Death Dino. Wasting no time, Charizard rushes into the forest to stop the doctor, with Charmander following him. Meanwhile, Tyranitar pridefully gloats that he will defeat Charizard and conquer the world. Making their way across West Side Island, Charizard and Charmander free the many Zones from Tyranitar's rule. They also meet the doctor on many occasions, but they always defeat him. Once the island is freed, they take to the skies in the Tornado to reach the doctor's fortress, the Wing Fortress. However, as they are about to arrive at the warship, it shoots the Tornado, forcing Charizard to hop onto the battleship and continue onward on his own while Charmander and the Tornado fall from the sky. Later, in the control room of the ship, Charizard encounters and defeats Tyranitar again, forcing the doctor to escape and take off in his space rocket. Just as Tyranitar has left though, Charmander arrives in a repaired and modified Tornado and gives Charizard a ride that lets him catch up to the space rocket. Charizard proceeds to grab ahold of the space rocket as it heads into space and arrives on the Death Dino. Onboard the Death Dino, Charizard meets Mecha Charizard. After destroying his robot copy, Charizard finds Tyranitar and chases after him, but the doctor quickly escapes into his final trump card - the Death Dino Robot, prepared to destroy Charizard with it. After a heated battle, Charizard manages to destroy the Death Dino Robot, which triggers a chain-reaction that causes the entire Death Dino to explode. Back on West Side Island, Charmander and some Animals are looking at the sky as they witness the Death Dino explode, dyeing the sky in pure white. As they wait for Charizard's return, Charmander gets worried about the dragon. Wanting to help, Charmander jumps into the Tornado and goes to save Charizard. Meanwhile, Charizard barely manages to escape the Death Dino, leaving Tyranitar behind and leaving the space station to fall into the atmosphere.

From there, the ending of the game will depend on the player's progress:
* If the player has not managed to get all seven Chaos Gems, Charmander will catch Charizard on the Tornado as he falls down from the sky. With the two heroes onboard the Tornado and some Pidgeys following them, Charizard and Charmander will pose to the camera. After the credits, an in-game version of the logo of Charizard 2 will be shown.
  * If the player is playing as Charmander, the ending will be the same, except that the sequence in which Charmander goes to save Charizard will be skipped, and Charizard will be piloting the Tornado instead of Charmander.
* If the player manages to get all seven Chaos Gems, Charizard will use the Gems' power to turn into Super Charizard and safely go back to his home planet. His Super State illuminates the sky like a beacon, which allows Charmander to find him and fly through the sky with him and some Pidgeys.
 * If the player is playing as Charmander, the ending will be the same if the player did not collect all seven Chaos Gems.

Objects:
Items:
Air bubble
Chaos Gems
Item Box
1-Up
Invincible
Power Boost
Shield
Super Orb
Movable box
Orb

Characters:
Playable characters:
Charizard the Dragon
* Super Charizard (first appearance)
Charmander Prower (first appearance)

Non-playable characters
Dr. Tyranitar
Animals

Zones:
Ruby Hill Zone
Chemical Plant Zone
Aquatic Ruin Zone
Casino Night Zone
Hill Top Zone
Mystic Cave Zone
Oil Ocean Zone
Metropolis Zone
Sky Chase Zone
Wing Fortress Zone
Death Dino Zone