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CY GIRLS (also known as CY Girls or Cy Girls, and as COOL GIRL in Japan) is an action figure series by Takara Tomy and Blue Box Toys under the brand bbi collectible (an official bootleg), featuring an elite unit of female crimefighters,[1] combining the elements of both a doll and an action figure. A Cy Girls video game adaptation (known as Cool Girl in Japan) was developed and published by Konami for the PlayStation 2 in 2004.
The original variation of these action figures (ver. 1.5) features 16 points of articulation (joints) that allows the arms and legs to move out to the sides into a spread position, with movable shoulders, elbows, thighs, knees, ankles, wrists and a neck, featuring interchangeable hands, a detailed nude torso, and pivoting ankles. These figures are featured in Action Girls: 12" Female Action Figure Guide Book ISBN 4-89425-368-2.
In Cy Girls' fictional futuristic universe, the Cardinal-Garrison paramilitary group is an elite all-woman team comprises experts in various fields chosen from around the world. It is a secret global fighting organization established to combat criminal conspiracy and activity, rumoured to have come into existence during World War II. Their vehicles and other equipment witnessed at the scene of the incidents in which they went into action bore the Cardinal-Garrison 'CG' logo, and since the existence of Cardinal-Garrison was unknown, the group became known as the "Cy Girls".
The CG characters series includes the following characters:
- CG-01 Sky[2] a.k.a. Ice[3] (also in the versions CG-EX1 Special Branch a.k.a. Ice Black Unit, CG-1 PS2 Ice, PS2 SE Box Ice and Cardinal Garrison Ver.)
- CG-02 Jet[4] a.k.a. Raven (also in the version CG-EX2 Law Enforcement (a.k.a. Raven Police coat))
- CG-03 Kat[5] a.k.a. Ash (also in the versions CG-EX3 Martial Arts (a.k.a. Ash Wild Wamp) and Alternative Ash)
- CG-04 Blaze[6] a.k.a. Flame
- CG-05 A.J.McLeod[7] a.k.a. Lightning
- CG-06 Shadow[8] a.k.a. Aska (sometimes referred to as "Asuka"[9])[10] (also in the versions CG-06 PS2 Aska and Aska Non Adopted Design Ver.)
- CG-07 Nikki[11] a.k.a. Harley (also in the version Alternative Harley)
- CG-08 Ebony[12] a.k.a. Coffy
- CG-09 Aurora[13] a.k.a. Artemis
- CG-10 Destiny[14] a.k.a. P.A.S.
- CG-11 Revenger a.k.a. Ray
- CG-12 Electra a.k.a. Ruby (also in the version Alternative Ruby)
- CG-0 Silver
- X-Borg X01 Colossus
- X-Borg X02 Spectre
- X-Borg X03 Fireblade
- XX-01 Bloody Rose a.k.a. Xixox (also in the version ComicCon Xixox)
In addition to the Cool/Cy Girls line, Takara and BBI released figures available under the Cool Girl brand name with the same trademark logo. This line includes the following licensed ("tribute") characters:
- Akiko Fuji and Annu Yuri from Ultraman
- Anna Ishikawa from SHI
- Asuka Langley, Misato Katsuragi and Ritsuko Akagi from Neon Genesis Evangelion
- Batman and Catwoman (also Comic Ver.) from Batman Returns / DC Comics
- Beka Valentine from Andromeda
- Casshern, Casshern Sin Project and Kamiko Aso "Luna" from C A S S H E R N
- Deunan Knute from Appleseed
- Doronjo from Yatterman
- Honey Kisaragi (CG-SP1 Cutei Honey, Ex and Alternative versions) from Cutie Honey
- Joanna Dark (Black Suit and Armor Suit versions) from Perfect Dark
- Jun (CG-SP2 G3 Jun Gatchaman Princess, Jun G3 Alternative and Dark Jun G3 versions) from Science Ninja Team Gatchaman
- Kai Tetsuro, Kouchi Todome, Midori Washio and Souchiro Toribe from Kerberos Panzer Cop
- Mai Shiranui from The King of Fighters
- Motoko Kusanagi (Ninja Suit Ver. and Op.ver.) from Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
The second type of Cy Girls figures is known as the Perfect Body Female. These dolls molds were not based on the ones produced by Takara Tomy and instead they were manufactured and produced independently by Blue Box Toys, featuring 26 points of articulation based on the basic design of the Ultimate Soldier. This double-jointed feature on the knees and elbows enables them to be posed in the lotus position and any other conceivable position the human body is capable of. There are two interchangeable busts of medium and large sizes with nipples molded on them (the large bust was discontinued and replaced with a much smaller one that was almost flat chested), pivoting ankles and interchangeable hands, designed to hold any weapons or accessory. The products are packaged in a transparent box with a silver painted plastic strip covering the extra bust and the doll is dressed in a grey work-out sports bra with matching shorts.
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 |
| Cy Girls | |
|---|---|
 North American cover art | |
| Developer(s) | Konami Computer Entertainment Japan |
| Publisher(s) | Konami |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation 2 |
| Release | |
| Genre(s) | Action-adventure Third-person shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Plot
CY Girls the game tells a spy-fi story where in 2058, "Damnation Monday" was the name of a disaster where power failure occurred worldwide.[18] This caused the collapse of various countries and companies.[18] The game's story takes place in 2084, 16 year after "Damnation Monday".[19]
The game has two CG agents as the main characters. CG-1 Ice,[20] the genius hacker and firearms expert on the mission to destroy an information file in the highly secure corporate building of a company known as Net Justice in Buenos Aires (where she is navigated by her partner Sancho),[21][18] and CG-6 Aska,[20] a master female ninja with astonishing athletic ability attempting to avenge the death of her father in a secret village in Japan (where she is navigated by her brother Kogetsu).[18]
While only Ice and Aska are made available as player characters, other CG members also appear in the game.[22]
Gameplay
In-game screenshots of Cy Girls. Screenshots shows the two CG agents Ice and Aska. Ice (left) fights enemies with firearms while Aska (right) uses a ninjato.
Gameplay for CY Girls combines puzzle-solving with two distinctly different combat styles: ninja-oriented melee combat and stealth for Aska, and firearms combat for Ice.[23] Essentially, the game was two different games depending on the character choice, as the game was released as a 2-disc package, containing Aska's data on one disc and Ice's data on the other.[24] After completing the main story on a disc, additional characters from the story were unlocked, as well as an 'Extra Mode', where players could choose any combination of weapons, any unlocked character, or any outfit.
Ice and Aska fight with different weapons and techniques. Ice fights with firearms, using cover mechanics that include taking cover behind walls/objects and shoot at enemies.[25] Ice can use gunfight moves such as somersaults and cartwheels when using auto-targeting.[26] For Aska, she fights with a ninjato and other ninja weaponry. Aska has a guard meter which depletes every time she's able to block a physical attack. In addition, Aska's able to run on walls.[26]
In addition, all unlocked characters had the ability to 'dive' into the world of cyberspace.[24] Known as Cyber Dimension or Cy-D, standard moves were disabled, forcing all characters to resort to using punches and kicks to defeat enemies within the domain while new moves and skills are only founds in cyberspace data points.[19] In addition, players would have a maximum of 10 minutes within Cy-D before reaching game over (explained in-game as being the amount of time the character could remain within Cy-D without suffering a complete mental breakdown.)
Development
On May 9, 2002, Konami announced that Cy Girls will be released for the Playstation 2.[27] It was announced at the 2002 Tokyo Toy Show (TTS) that the game would see a 2003 release worldwide.[28]
Konami said that the game would be shown on May 22, 2002 at the annual E3 convention.[28] During the convention, Konami confirmed plans to release the game in North America.[29] The game was also previewed at the 2003 E3 convention.[30]
Cy Girls is made up of two discs. Disc 1 is for Ice's scenario while Disc 2 is for Aska's scenario.[31] The game uses the same engine used for Metal Gear Solid 2.[25]
Reception
| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| Metacritic | 53/100[32] |
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| Computer Games Magazine | A−[33] |
| Electronic Gaming Monthly | 5.67/10[34][a] |
| Eurogamer | 2/10[35] |
| Famitsu | 26/40[36] |
| Game Informer | 4/10[37] |
| GameSpot | 5.1/10[21] |
| GameZone | 4.8/10[38] |
| IGN | 5.8/10[23] |
| Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine |    [39] |
| X-Play | [40] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B[41] |
| Playboy | 50%[42] |
Reception
The game received "mixed" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[32] In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of 26 out of 40.[36] Tokyo Drifter of GamePro said, "You would have to be an insanely devoted fan of the action-figure line from which the characters originate and a fan of repetitive level exploration to gain any type of enjoyment from Cy Girls. It all seems like such a waste as there are ideas present that could have made a good game great, but in a bad game like this, they only manage to bump the score by a point."[43][b]
Ice and Aska were featured in Play's girls of gaming special in 2003.[44] In 2009, GamesRadar+ counted Cy Girls among the games "with untapped franchise potential," commenting that the game "failed in many ways, with half-formed ideas and shoddy level design that had the player incessantly backtracking through levels."[45] It also included the game on its list of the top shower scenes in games in 2012.[46]
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- In Electronic Gaming Monthly's review of the game, one critic gave it 7/10, and the rest gave it each a score of 5/10.
- GamePro gave the game 3.5/5 for graphics, two 3/5 scores for sound and control, and 2/5 for fun factor.
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