Before making endless Dragon Ball games, Japanese studio Dimps made a traditional fighting game series called The Rumble Fish, which is now coming west via publisher 3goo.

Both games The Rumble Fish and The Rumble Fish 2 are coming west sometime this winter, however release platforms weren’t announced. While the original was released in arcades back in 2004 and later for PS2, its sequel was only released in arcades – both games never left Japan, until now.

“The Rumble Fish is a very memorable game for us at Dimps. We developed it as a 2D fighting game compatible with the Atomiswave arcade system board developed by Sammy Corporation,” said Dimps President Takashi Nishiyama. “It may have a classic feel compared to current fighting games, but it was an ambitious project that employed a variety of visual expressions within the limitations of a system board that is now almost 20 years old. I’m proud of what we accomplished. And now, 3goo is once again shining the spotlight on The Rumble Fish series and I’m excited for the renewed potential for the series to grow.”

3goo President Nicolas Di Costanzo added, “I, personally, have been a long-time fan of Dimps and I am overjoyed to be able to introduce this hidden gem to the world. We’re deeply honored Dimps allowed us this wonderful opportunity. This series lit arcades on fire with its mix of mechanics inspired by a variety of fighting games, and now we’re bringing it to consoles so everyone will have easy access to it. We hope you’re as excited to get it as we are to release it.”

Here’s a new trailer:

English version

Japanese version

Here’s a rundown on the game:

About The Rumble Fish series

The Rumble Fish is a 2D fighting game. The arcade version was developed in 2004. The arcade version of The Rumble Fish 2 came out in 2005, introducing new game mechanics and characters. It gained popularity with its sleek 2D visuals powered by S.M.A (Smooth Model Animation), fascinating characters and strategic gameplay using 2 types of gauges. The game series has a cult following and is still played in tournaments. Worth noting the series has never been released outside of Japan. This will also be the first time The Rumble Fish 2 makes the move to consoles.

The Rumble Fish Story

At the close of the 20th century… A large-scale natural disaster struck the eastern area of a certain country. The disaster wiped out the financial sector and toppled high-rise buildings over a wide area, even as far as the main functions of the capital. This resulted in the loss of a staggering 158,000 lives.

At the dawn of the 21st century… Conglomerate PROBE-NEXUS, commonly known as Probe, begins reconstruction efforts in the eastern area of said country. Probe relocates its own base of operations to the ruined sector and builds a massive city run by the corporation. Lavished with colossal capital and cutting-edge technology, the modern-day Babylon is made up of skyscrapers that put the old high-rises to shame, the biggest shopping mall in the world, and recreational facilities one might mistake for a theme park. This was the dazzling birth of a symbol for the new century. It became the most essential place on the planet and was christened Zone Prime.

And now, in an undeveloped sector of its western block, there was an area known as the slums…