Down to a Fine Art

Samurai Shodown differentiated itself from other fighting games in the 1990s by highlighting weapons-based battles rather than hand-to-hand combat. Earlier games in the series focused mostly on swordsmen, but the franchise had gone completely off the rails by the time Samurai Shodown 64: Warriors Rage was released. Taizan Morozumi is a demon hunter who wields a giant brush and possesses the ability to seal evil. The brush is primarily used as a lance, but Taizan can also decimate his opponents with huge calligraphy strokes. The words he writes will be brought into action, so writing “wind” can envelope his foes in a whirlwind attack. Taizan is more of a scribe than an artist, but calligraphy is an art form in its own right. Taizan longs for a peaceful existence, but the murder of his family forced him into a quest for vengeance.

Brauner is a vampire who uses souls of those who died in World War II to revive Dracula’s castle. He has no allegiance to Dracula, however, and wants the castle’s power for himself. He renounced his humanity after his daughters were killed during the first World War, and he seeks to lead an undead army to ensure the destruction of mankind. It has been said that great art comes from great pain, and this certainly rings true in Brauner’s case. In battle, Brauner uses demonic paint to damage his opponents and summons numerous monsters from paintings. Brauner can also teleport into the paintings and fly around without a care in the world. Brauner was likely based on a Romanian artist named Victor Brauner who was known for his use of surreal imagery. The real-world Brauner probably didn’t kill anyone with paint or use picture frames as vehicles.

Swords, spears, axes, arrows, boomerangs, claws, maces, and whips – there are no shortage of deadly weapons in Dynasty Warriors. Ma Dai’s stands out like a sore thumb with his oversized paintbrush, but he’s right at home on this list. Ma Dai uses his cheerful persona to gain trust and earn favor, but his magical paintbrush personifies his unexpected dark side. His brush looks comical on the battlefield, but it gives Ma Dai exclusive attacks that no other warrior can perform. Ma Dai can send large rings of ink flying toward his enemies and can target large groups with orbs of ink. By spinning his brush above his head, Ma Dai is somehow able to detonate any remaining ink orbs on the field. His brush is used more as a tool of destruction than as an instrument of creation, but that doesn’t mean his actions have no artistic value.

Bowser Jr. is an apple that didn’t fall far from the tree, but he’s a lot more artistic than his father ever was. In fact, he was depicted as an artist in his first appearance in Super Mario Sunshine. Acting under the guise of “Shadow Mario,” Bowser Jr. somehow obtained a magical paintbrush and covered a tropical resort with graffiti in an attempt to frame Mario. After running amok on a tropical island, Bowser Jr. put his paintbrush skills on display in other venues. The brush is used as a racket in Mario Power Tennis and as a bat in the Mario Baseball series. Bowser Jr. is not above using paint in order to blind batters or knock out the opposing team’s members. In Mario Hoops 3-on-3, he uses the brush to cover the ball in graffiti before hitting it toward the basket. This isn’t the most practical use of graffiti, but I’ll give him points for style regardless.

Adeleine is a gifted young artist who can make her paintings come to life. She intends to aid Kirby by painting food and providing hints, but her abilities can be quite dangerous. After being possessed by dark forces, Adeleine paints various enemies from Kirby’s past and essentially forces him into battle. Adeleine is eventually invited to join Kirby on his adventure, however, and always seems to be in good spirits. Adeleine has a strong resemblance to another Kirby character named Ado. The characters dress alike, they share the same abilities, and their names are similar. (Adeleine is known as Adorenu in Japan, so Ado may simply be a shortened version of the name.) Whether or not Adeleine and Ado are the same character is a topic that’s as fiercely debated as abortion or gun control, so I’ll leave the issue open-ended.

The most unique feature in The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds is Link’s ability to take the form of a painting. This allows him to merge into walls or slip into tight areas that would otherwise be inaccessible. Link gained this uncanny ability after a battle with Yuga. Using his brush-like scepter, Yuga fired magic bolts at Link an transformed him into a painting. This was not an isolated incident. Prior to his battle with Link, Yuga had already used his magic to turn a powerful sage into a painting. A magic bracelet protected Link from the full effects of Yuga’s spell, however, and allowed him to move around freely as a painting rather than being stuck as a static portrait. Yuga also has the power to turn himself into a painting, and he can freely travel across walls in the same way that Link does.

Smeargle would be a lock for the number one spot if I was recognizing “Top 10 Pokémon with the grossest names,” but he’ll have to settle for a lower position on this particular list. Known as the Painter Pokémon, Smeargle uses the colored fluids that ooze from its brush-like tail to mark its territory and express itself. A brilliant copy artist, Smeargle is able to use nearly any move in the series due to its trademark “Sketch” ability that allows it to duplicate his opponents moves. This effectively allows players to create custom movesets. In that regard, Smeargle could be likened to a blank canvas. Few Pokémon encourage creativity like Smeargle does, and isn’t that the true essence of art? The flexibility and potential that Smeargle offers almost makes up for the fact that it has some of the lowest stats in the entire franchise.

The premise of Jet Set Radio revolves around a rebellious gang fighting to gain control of a future Tokyo. As a member of this gang, Beat’s primary objective is to spray over other gangs’ graffiti with his own. While contending with rival gang members, Beat also has to be mindful of police who are tasked with ending the turf war. Some critics look down on graffiti, but it’s an elaborate form of self-expression with roots dating back to ancient times. This spirit of self-expression was apparent in the U.S. release of Jet Set Radio (re-titled Jet Grind Radio) which allowed players to download user-created graffiti tags or upload tags of their own. Jet Set Radio has been off the air for many years, but Beat kept himself in the limelight with appearances in Sega Superstars: Tennis and Sonic & Sega’s All-Stars Racing.

Relm Arrowny is the youngest and smallest party member in Final Fantasy VI, but what she lacks in stature she makes up for with sass. She was abandoned as a child and given a front row seat to the end of the world, but she never feels sorry for herself and refuses to put up with anyone’s nonsense. She has an endless supply of biting remarks at the ready and never misses an opportunity to put someone in their place. Although Relm is physically weak, she is a powerful mage with the highest magic stats in the game. She is talented enough to paint perfect facsimiles of nearly any enemy she comes in contact with, and her magic gives her the uncanny ability to make her sketches come to life. It’s gotta be embarrassing to get beat up by a duplicate version of yourself that was painted by a mouthy 10-year-old girl.

Amaterasu is a goddess of the sun who takes on the form of a white wolf. Her canine body makes her an unlikely artist, but opposable digits are not required when you paint with a Celestial Brush!^TM One of the primary gameplay mechanics in Ōkami allows players to pause the action in order to pull up a canvas on the screen. By performing specific gestures, players can pull off all kinds of amazing feats. Enemies can be defeated if lines are painted through them, strong winds can be created by painting loops, and dilapidated bridges can be repaired by painting over them. There are thirteen different Celestial Brush techniques for Amaterasu to master, which makes her one of the most versatile artists on this list. Whether she’s slashing enemies or rejuvenating wilted plants, her paintings capture both sides of the great circle of life.