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FIRE PROWRESTLING Z CHARACTER GUIDE: YOSHIHIRO TAKAYAMA
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for Sony PlayStation 2 (Japan)
Version 1.2
by Bill Wood ([email protected])
Last modified: 8/5/03

Fire ProWrestling Z (c) 2003 Spike

NOTE: This guide views and prints best with a monospace typeface.

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==VERSION HISTORY==
===================

1.2 - Minor corrections.

1.1 - Minor corrections.

1.0 - Initial release of the guide.

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==TABLE OF CONTENTS==
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SECTION 1: HISTORY OF YOSHIHIRO TAKAYAMA
SECTION 2: SKILL AND PARAMETER STATS
SECTION 3: MOVELIST
SECTION 4: STRATEGY
SECTION 5: CLOSING

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==SECTION 1: HISTORY OF YOSHIHIRO TAKAYAMA==
============================================

If one were asked who Japan's "2003 Wrestler of the Moment" is, that
answer may very well be Yoshihiro Takayama (well, either him or Bob
Sapp). Takayama has paid his dues and is currently sitting high atop
the Japanese wrestling scene.

The massive Takayama first rose to prominence as one half of the
legendary Team No Fear in All Japan Pro Wrestling, and later Pro
Wrestling NOAH. He and partner Takao Omori became one of Japan's
premier tag teams during the 1990's and early 2000's.

But where Takayama really began to stand out on his own was when he
ventured into the world of PRIDE, a mixed martial arts organization
known for their brutal, and all-too-real battles. In PRIDE, Takayama
put up a losing streak like no other, but also managed to put on some
entertaining matches with the likes of Kazuyuki Fujita and Don Frye.
In fact, his match with Frye is widely considered one of the best MMA
bouts in the short history of PRIDE.

As Takayama kept losing, he endeared himself to Japanese fans with his
strong fighting spirit and "never say quit" attitude, and it wasn't
long until that equated into success on the pro wrestling circuit.
First he won NOAH's GHC Heavyweight Title (albeit briefly), then went
on to win the NWF Heavyweight Title, and finally he defeated New
Japan's Yuji Nagata for the coveted New Japan IWGP Heavyweight Title.

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==SECTION 2: SKILL AND PARAMETER STATS==
========================================

SKILL
-----
Real Name.............Yoshihiro Takayama
FPZ Name...............Yoshihiro Kouyama
Promotion......................Freelance*
FPZ Promotion..................Freelance
Size...............................Large
Class..............................Heavy
Height............................195 cm
Weight............................125 kg
Country............................Japan
Birthdate......................9/19/1966
Stance..........................Shooting
Offensive Skill.................Orthodox
Return Skill.......................Power
Critical Type...................Finisher
Special Skill...........One-Hit Finisher
Recovery..........................Medium
Recovery (when bleeding)..........Medium
Respiratory.......................Medium
Respiratory (when bleeding)........Above
Awareness.........................Medium
Awareness (when bleeding)..........Below
Neck Strength.....................Medium
Arm Strength......................Medium
Waist Strength....................Medium
Foot Strength.....................Medium
Movement Speed....................Medium
Ascend Speed........................Slow
Ascend Skill..................Can Ascend

* = Takayama has been rumored to be signing a contract with one of the
major Japanese promotions (such as New Japan) in the near future, but
nothing has materialized as of this writing.

PARAMETER - OFFENSE     PARAMETER - DEFENSE
-------------------     -------------------
Punch.............5     Punch.............7
Kick..............8     Kick..............6
Suplex............6     Suplex............3
Submission........6     Submission........6
Stretch...........7     Stretch...........7
Power.............8     Flying............5
Instant-P.........4     Crush.............5
Arm Power.........5     Vs Lariat.........5
Technical.........4     Technical.........4
Rough.............5     Rough.............6
Ground............4     Ground............5

TOTAL SKILL POINTS (on a scale from 0-300): 151

SKILL CHANGES FROM FIRE PRO D TO FIRE PRO Z:

* Switched from NOAH promotion to Freelance.
* Special skill changed from "none" to "One Hit Finisher".
* Neck strength changed from "Low" to "Medium".
* Waist strength changed from "Low" to "Medium".

=======================
==SECTION 3: MOVELIST==
=======================

NOTE: This movelist is my direct translation of the Japanese Fire Pro
Z Player's Guide, there may be some minor errors. If I was unable to
translate, I looked up the move in Edit Mode.

Specialty moves are marked with [S]. Finisher is marked with [F].

KEY:

([]) = Square button
(X)  = X button
(O)  = Circle button

STRIKES
-------
Standing ([]).............................Slap to face
Standing (X)...............................Middle Kick
Standing (O) + d-pad.........................Elbow Pat
Standing (O)...........................Front High Kick
Standing ([]) + (X)..........................High Kick
Running ([])...........................Front High Kick
Running (X)...............................KITCHEN SINK [S]
Running Counter ([])...................Front High Kick
Running Counter (X).......................Kitchen Sink
Running to corner.....................Jumping Knee Pat

GRAPPLES
--------
Grapple ([])............................Body Knee Lift
Grapple ([]) + Up.................High Angle Body Slam
Grapple ([]) + Left/Right..................Flying Mare
Grapple ([]) + Down.........................Hammerblow
Grapple (X)..............MACHINE GUN STOMACH KNEE LIFT [S]
Grapple (X) + Up.................Belly-to-Belly Suplex
Grapple (X) + Left/Right.............Double Arm Suplex
Grapple (X) + Down.........................Middle Kick
Grapple (O)............................Front Neck Lock
Grapple (O) + Up...................Front Neck Chancery
Grapple (O) + Left/Right.............Russian Leg Sweep
Grapple (O) + Down..............Double Arm Suplex Hold
Grapple ([]) + (X)..................DYNAMITE KNEE LIFT [S]
Back Grapple ([]).........................Sledgehammer
Back Grapple (X).....................Leg Lift Backdrop
Back Grapple (O)..................Doujimi Sleeper Hold
Back Grapple (O) + Up/Down..........German Suplex Whip
Back Grapple (O) + Left/Right..HI BRIDGE GERMAN SUPLEX [F]
Back Grapple ([]) + (X)...................Tiger Suplex
Back Grapple Counter ([])....................Elbow Pat
Back Grapple Counter (X).......Rev. Crucifix Knee Hold

OPPONENT DOWN MOVES
-------------------
Opponent Face Up at Head (X)..............Arrogant Pin
Opponent Face Up at Head (O)..........Soccer Ball Kick
Opponent Face Up at Feet (X)...............Regular Pin
Opponent Face Up at Feet (O)......Achilles Tendon Lock
Opponent Face Down at Head (X).......Crucifix Arm Lock
Opponent Face Down at Head (O)............Knee to head
Opponent Face Down at Feet (X).......Roll over and pin
Opponent Face Down at Feet (O).........Single Leg Crab
Running at Downed Opponent (O).........GUILLOTINE DROP [S]

MOUNT MOVES
-----------
Mount Position ([])...........Guard Pos. Knuckle Arrow
Mount Position (X)................Guard Position Punch
Mount Position (O)...................Crucifix Arm Lock
Mount Position Counter...............Crucifix Arm Lock
Front Facelock Attack ([]).........Side Body Knee Lift
Front Facelock Attack (X)..............Front Neck Lock
Front Facelock Attack (O)............Double Arm Suplex
Front Facelock Attack Counter..........Waterwheel Drop
Back Mount Position ([])..............Back Mount Punch
Back Mount Position (X)..........Doujimi Choke Sleeper
Back Mount Position (O)..............Crucifix Arm Lock
Back Mount Position Counter....Rev. Crucifix Knee Hold

POST AND APRON MOVES
--------------------
Post ([])............................Diving Foot Stomp
Post (X).............................Diving Foot Stomp
Post (O)..................................Sledgehammer
Post ([]) + (X)...........................Missile Kick
Run-Up Post vs Standing ([])......................none
Run-Up Post vs Downed (X).........................none
Corner Grapple (O) + Up...........2nd Rope Brainbuster
Corner Grapple (O) + Left/Right.......Corner Knee Lift
Corner Grapple (O) + Down...........Stomp w/Foot Choke
Front Avalanche Counter...................Slap to face
Back Avalanche Counter..................Backhand Elbow
Apron Grapple from inside..........In-Ring Brainbuster
Apron Grapple from outside.....Out-of-Ring Brainbuster
Running to out of bounds..........................none
Slingshot to outside......................Sledgehammer
Slingshot to inside...............................none

DOUBLE AND TRIPLE TEAM MOVES
----------------------------
Two Platon Front Grapple...............Sandwich Lariat
Two Platon Back Grapple.......B.Backdrop + Neckbreaker
Two Platon Corner..................Highjack Piledriver
Three Platon Front Grapple.............Triple Beatdown
Three Platon Back Grapple..............Triple Beatdown
Three Platon Corner....................Triple Beatdown

PERFORMANCE
-----------
Analog Stick Left............both arms extended upward
Analog Stick Right...crosses arms, swings arms outward
Analog Stick Up..........taunts opponent ("Bring It!")
Analog Stick Down.................stares down opponent

MOVELIST CHANGES FROM FIRE PRO D TO FIRE PRO Z: Way too many to list!
This is likely due to his increased involvement in shoot matches. One
interesting note is that his finisher has been switched from the
Dynamite Knee Lift to the High Bridge German Suplex.

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==SECTION 4: STRATEGY==
=======================

GENERAL STRATEGY
Despite his hulking frame and many career accomplishments, Takayama
is merely an average fighter in the world of Fire Pro. This is
probably due to the fact that a few of his accomplishments (such as
winning the IWGP title) came after FPZ was in development. But since
Takayama's something of an underdog in most of his matches (especially
when it comes to MMA), maybe this is for the best.

Takayama's moveset is also very average. Nothing particularly flashy,
but it's effective. He's more like your solid, no-nonsense type of
grappler, plain yet powerful. Stay grounded and chop away with his
big striking kicks, then go in for the kill with the big grapples.

If his overall stats and moveset don't impress you, at least you can
be comforted with the fact that Takayama is one of the very few pure
pro wrestlers who can handle himself in a shoot in FPZ. He has decent
Rough and Ground stats, which could prevent him from getting owned
in the Octagon (but not entirely!).

STRIKES
Takayama's kicks are where it's at. If you want to play the distance
game with him, go right ahead. He has several striking kicks to
choose from, and all of them are effective. With an 8 offensive rating
when it comes to kicking, it won't take him long to have your opponent
dropping to the mat from the impact.

GRAPPLES
Several of Takayama's grapples lead to his patented knee strikes,
which should make up the majority of his offense. When the opponent is
near death, it's all about the Dynamite Knee Lift. This was his
finisher in FPD, but you should still use it just as often in FPZ.

As the opponent wears down, pick him up every now and then and go for
a back grapple. Here Takayama has a variety of suplexes, and his one
potential for a "CRITICAL!" (High Bridge German Suplex).

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==SECTION 5: CLOSING==
======================

In closing, I would like to thank:

* www.puroresufan.com for historical reference.

* CJayC and GameFAQs for hosting this guide.

Fire ProWrestling Z Character Guide: Yoshihiro Takayama
(c)2003 Bill Wood

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