This Was Almost: Power Rangers

So... most people likely to read this are probably quarantined by now (I mean, not Australia- we're all practicing unenforced social distancing which weirdly means not closing schools for some reason?) and I figure if I even try to talk about... y'know... that... people are going to feel more than a little irked.

How about something cool about Power Rangers? You know, the show that's essentially a re-skin of the Japanese Super Sentai franchise, using all the action scenes, but somehow getting a more ethnically diverse cast right from the beginning with zero whining from alt-right whatever-gaters?

So a few weeks ago the Rangers fandom was rocked when Hasbro announced that the next Super Sentai series announced for adaptation was Kishiryu Sentai Ryusoulger.

Pretty cool, right?

Well, the fandom lost their collective mind because this was going to be the FOURTH dinosaur-themed Power Rangers when Power Rangers: Dino Charge (which is exactly what the name suggests) was still fresh in memory.

Now, obviously, the nostalgia factor is there. You want to hit the fanbase right in the childhood? Make them think of Mighty Morphin'. But why is that season the big deal? Why is Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers the big, first season, especially when it's popularity in Japan was only so-so at best?

Well, it wasn't always going to be like that. Today, I want to take you into what could could have been Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. We'll see what the show was about, speculate about how a Sentai adaptation would have played out, and why it didn't turn out that way.

Before going too much further, I just want to make clear that this is all based on rumour. I've research this to some degree, but can't find anything concrete that this definitely is what was going to happen, but the rumour was that when first trying to start Power Rangers, show creator Hiam Saban was interested in adapting not Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger, the show that we now know as the original Power Rangers, but it's predecessor, a show by the name of Chojin Sentai Jetman, or Superman Squadron Jetman.

If you look closely at their helmet designs, it's pretty clear that they aren't Dinosaur themed. Nope, the main motiff for these rangers was birds: Red Hawk, White Swan, Yellow Owl, Blue Swallow and Black Condor. 

Do I need to spell out why this show wasn't adapted?

I do?

Okay, well, imagine you're making this show set for a 1993 release date. Do you go with birds? Or do you go with Dinosaurs in the same year that Spielberg releases Jurassic Park? Look, Jetman was a good show- unlike Zyuranger, it was regarded as some of the best Super Sentai had to offer, but you tell me which one's more instantly marketable.

Another advantage Zyuranger had over Jetman is that
Zyuranger had the sixth ranger, and without the presence of Tommy Oliver, I don't know if the show would have been anywhere near as popular.

But let's speculate: what would it look like if Mighty Morphin Power Rangers used Jetman as a base?

Honestly, it wouldn't be that different.

See, when the original American writers for Power Rangers saw the Sentai footage, they saw it with absolutely zero subtitles. They had to piece together what was going on from visuals and music with no knowledge as to the what the characters were saying.

Because of that, for the most part you could have had almost the same first season. The suits and zords would have been different, but Jason? Totally could be the red ranger again. Zack? Definitely Black. Kimberly? Tell me White Swan couldn't as easily be called the Pink Ranger. The only characters who would change costumes would be Billy and Trini and that's just because the blue and yellow rangers look like this:

And yeah, I know the yellow ranger in Mighty Morphin' was originally played by a male actor, but convincing kids that the two above aren't their original genders is something a stretch.

There would also, with no sixth ranger, be no Tommy, and no Rita. Rita would be replace by this guy:

But aside from that, the story would be basically the same. Bad guys come to Earth with intentions to destroy it because... bad guys... Zordon recruits five teenagers with attitude. Said five teenagers beat up a monster of the week until the next season, where they use the next sentai's Zords and maybe even the suits to keep the toyline healthy and the cheaply-made show continuing.

So that's what Power Rangers almost was. You can find Jetman  in some places online and on DVD if you're interested in seeing the show. Other than that? This was fun. Might do another one of these some time. Beast Wars Transformers, after all, had a very different original plan as well...

The Pitch: MMPR

So, previously I pitched a game based on Daredevil. Now, I've got another idea, so here we go.

As always, I work with RPG Maker 2003. I have been working with this program for a while, so most of my ideas begin with "How would this work on RPG Maker?" I'm hoping I can make an interesting game with solid core concepts regardless of the limitations of engine I'm using.

History of Power Rangers in video games.

Someone greenlighted this.

Okay, so like Daredevil, Power Rangers hasn't  exactly had a glowing history in the gaming medium. The most notable games in the franchise have been the Power Ranger games on the Super Nintendo/Sega Genises, and even those games were stock-standard beat-em-ups with no story and character models that were all recoloured versions of the red ranger- even the female ones!

In recent years, Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers: Mega Battle was released and it was absolutely panned for  uninspired gameplay, and a bad Megazord sections. Fans of the series exist, but they're yet to get a game that is even decent, never mind good.

The Challenge

Power Rangers as a TV show is a franchise unlike any other. Every season since 1999 has seen a new iteration of the concept, only to be dumped after two seasons at most. As such, it's gone in and out not just with fans, but with production companies as well. It's ping-ponged between Saban and Disney, and is now in the hands of Hasbro. This means that, even though Mighty Morphin' is considered the quintessential series, it's been difficult to really pin down what a true Power Rangers experience needs. In many ways, Power Rangers is whatever it's showrunners need it to be. Translating all of that into one game will be difficult to say the least.

You know how it is- you show up to a party and everyone's wearing the
same outfit.

Another problem for me is that because of the program I'm using, Zord combat is going to be challenging. Sprites in RPG Maker can only get so big, so communicating the sheer size of the Zords is not going to be easy at all. I've thought of some possible solutions, but so far, none come close to doing what I  need them to do.

Fortunately, I have an idea. One that should be able to fix most of my problems. It all begins with story.

Story

It occurs to me that the rangers look like they're just about to
form a dance troupe.

It's been hundreds of years since anyone even uttered the word Power Rangers. When the Rotlings came to earth, the planets last team of rangers were unprepared. They fell quickly, and the Morphin' Grid- the source of their power, was broken.

In a future where apocalypse is reality, humanity struggles to survive. Forced to hide from the Rotlings, our species works tirelessly to secure, food, water and energy wherever it can be found.

This isn't enough for Eustace, though. An artist in a world of warriors, Eustace reads stories of a time when humanity didn't just survive, they thrived. They progressed. They lived. Desperate for anything that remains of a better time, he ventures into the forbidden city of Angel Grove. While there, he stumbles upon a cave, awakening an ancient being calling himself Zordon. Zordon offers him a solution to mankind's predicament: restore the Morphin' Grid, become the White Ranger and gather other rangers to help him save humanity from the Rotlings forever.

Gameplay

I first got the idea for this game while, oddly enough, playing a Pokémon fangame and watching the original Japanese version of Power Rangers, Super Sentai. MMPR, as I'm calling this project is a mixture of gameplay styles from the original Resident Evil games and Dynasty Warriors.

When you're unmorphed, you're vulnerable and unable to inflict
major damage.

You assemble a team of three or four rangers and spend time playing in both civilian and ranger form. In human form, your goal is to avoid being killed by the monsters that plague your world. Your fighting skills are enough to keep monsters away from you, but you cannot deal damage. In this form, however, your power bar gradually increases. When full, you can morph into your ranger form. In this form, you use simple combo attacks to deal damage to and kill enemies. Your time in this form, however, is limited as your power bar will start to decrease. You will turn back to human form when your power is spent. This should turn the game into a careful strategy of morphing at just the right time.

Now would be just the right time.

Missions will be based around going to different cities throughout the Power Rangers franchise and restoring the Morphin Grid. As you do so, you will unlock new suits for the seven (yes, seven) rangers. Each one will be based on one of the teams in the show's history (with some changes to colours to fit the colours of the characters) and will bring new movesets and stats to the characters.

You have NO idea how long it took to make this screenshot.

Bosses will also be based on popular monsters from a range of seasons (the psycho rangers from In Space are totally making an appearance), and will be the basis of each area's structure.

Now, I will admit. Currently, I have no plans to use the Zords. My in-story excuse is that the rangers simply do not have the Morphin' Grid power to make the Zords work, but they may yet appear as special attacks that can clear a large area.

As with all pitches, I'm not certain this game will ever come to fruition, but I've had the idea in my head for too long, now. At the end of the day, never say never, but I'm glad to get this idea out there.

Now over to you- is this an idea worth pursuing or should I never touch this franchise again with a ten-foot pole? What suits do you think should make it into the game? Let me know, I'm interested in feedback.