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List of cultural references in No More Heroes

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This is a list of all cultural references found in the 2007 video game No More Heroes.

Anime[]

  • Jeane references the manga Miyuki while fast-forwarding her side of her story.
  • The Lovikov Balls are a reference to the Dragon Balls from the anime and manga series of the same name. The manual refers to them as being part of a wish-granting dragon - another reference to the Dragon Ball series.
  • The Schpeltiger resembles the protagonist Kaneda's motorcycle from "Akira."

Corporations[]

  • An assassination gig in the game directs Travis Touchdown to kill the CEO of a fast food restaurant chain looking to open in Santa Destroy called "Pizza Butt," a reference to Pizza Hut.
  • Death Metal's saber, the Orange II, is manufactured by the fictitious Orange Computers, whose name and logo is a parody of Apple Inc.
  • The Grasshopper Manufacture logo can be found in several parts of Santa Destroy, namely on the sides of newspaper dispensers and on the WGHM 86.6 FM billboard (a radio station which itself references Grasshopper's three-letter abbreviation, GHM).

Films[]

  • Art and writing on the unlock-able Fudo t-shirt references the cult martial arts documentary BUDO: The Art of Killing.
  • Dr. Peace's weapon, a golden revolver, is a possible homage to Emir Parkreiner of killer7's golden gun. Goichi Suda specifically featured the golden gun in killer7 as a reference to the weapon of the same name in the 1974 James Bond film The Man with the Golden Gun, and its novel source.
  • Dr. Peace bears a strong resemblance to American actor Charles Bronson, famous for his movie roles which include a police detective, gunfighter and hitman, all three of which are occupations of Dr. Peace.
  • Jeane's history of sexual abuse and seeking prostitution as a means of paying for her training in the ways of an assassin are homages to the 1974 cult film Thriller: A Cruel Picture.
  • Santa Destroy's baseball team, the Santa Destroy Warriors, is named after the film The Warriors. Said film features a number of fictional gangs, one of which, the Baseball Furies, dresses identically to the Santa Destroy Warriors plus corpse paint.
  • The entrance to the Townsend Residence where Travis confronts Death Metal bears a strong resemblance to Tony Montana's mansion in the 1983 film Scarface.
  • The game makes copious references to Star Wars. Examples include:
    • Beam katana are an overt adaptation of Lightsabres, and beam katana combat heavily resembles the swordplay of Jedi
    • Travis witnesses his mentor Thunder Ryu die before his eyes, much as protatoginst Luke Skywalker witnesses the death of Obi Wan Kenobia
    • A character "reveals" himself to be the protagonist's father (Dark Star) in a call back to Darth Vader's more genuine reveal
    • Masked beam katana wielding troopers who wear black helmets and uniforms resemble Empire Tie Fight pilots and riding motorbikes resembling Tie Fighters
    • The credits of the game's first and untrue ending parodying those of Star Wars (featuring a song entitled "Staff Wars EPISODE I")
    • Silvia Christel calls Travis' cell phone before ranking matches, telling him to "trust [his] Force," a reference to the mystic power of the same name used in Star Wars by the Jedi and Sith
    • Travis' special attacks are performed in "Dark Side Mode", a reference to Star Wars' "dark side of the Force."
    • Travis' bike happens to resemble an X-wing fighter, used by Star Wars protagonists
    • There is a poster in Travis' room and at Beef Head that resembles the poster for Star Wars Episode III: The Revenge of the Sith.
  • The title for one of the mature videos Travis is prompted to return to Beef Head, Coffee and MILF, may be based on the pornographic film series Honey and MILF.
  • The "To Be Continued" logo at the end of the game's credits is a reference to the Back to the Future film series.
  • When Travis' closet is opened at the Motel "NO MORE HEROES", a white button-up shirt with what appears to be red ink on the breast pocket can be briefly seen. This may be a reference to a recurring joke in the 2004 film Shaun of the Dead.

Geography[]

  • Area 51 is a reference to the nickname for a military base located in the southern portion of Nevada in the western United States, famously rumoured to be connected to alien encounters.
  • Despite taking place in a fictionalised version of California, all of vehicles in the game feature New Jersey license plates.
  • The game makes frequent wrestling references to the Canadian city of Calgary, Alberta. Calgary was formerly the home of one of the toughest wrestling training facilities, the Hart House.
  • Destroy Stadium bears some resemblance to Yankee Stadium. Yankee Stadium's famous "facade" is seen on the outfield walls.
  • The trains and subway stations in No More Heroes look very simlar to the ones found in New York City's MTA Subway division. The trains resemble R32 subway cars but they also have there own mix on it as the electronic signs on the trains resemble the ones found on R142 models.

Music[]

  • Helter-Skelter was named after the Beatles song of the same name, itself a reference to the book by Vincent Bugliosi.
  • Talbot and Weller's names are an homage to Mick Talbot and Paul Weller of the British pop band The Style Council.
  • The game features numerous references to the punk band The Sex Pistols, tying in with the punk theme present throughout the game
    • The building across the street from Beef Head has a large poster displaying "No me toques lo cojones-Grasshopper" - this title is a Spanish translation of Sex Pistols' debut album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. The design of the entire poster is also an imitation of the album cover
    • A cosmetics store in western Santa Destroy is called Never Mind the Botox, also a nod to the album
    • The Dark Side Mode attack Anarchy in the Galaxy is a reference to the Sex Pistols song "Anarchy in the U.K.".
  • The game shares its title with that of an album by The Stranglers. A poster stating "Whatever happened to the heroes?" appears around Santa Destroy, which is a lyric from the song No More Heroes.
  • The name for Shinobu's katana, the Three Girl Rhumba's Sword, is a reference to the Wire song "Three Girl Rhumba".
  • The "Miami Bass" shirt in Area 51 is a reference to Miami-based rap group, the 2 Live Crew.
  • The theme song in the Thunder Ryu gym bears strong resemblences to riffs from to "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor and "Master of Puppets" by Metallica, intermixed with the No More Heroes theme.

Other[]

  • Dr. Peace's name is a bit of a play on words, the homonym "piece" being a common slang term for a handgun. Additionally, Peace's revolver is rather similar to the Colt 1873 "Peacemaker" pistol.
  • It is hinted by his dialogue that Thunder Ryu has had sex with Travis on some occasions, referencing the ancient practice of pederasty in some Japanese samurai castes.
  • The design of Thunder Ryu's beam katana, the D.O.S., resembles a shirasaya, a plain Japanese blade mount.
  • Moai statues can be found throughout Santa Destroy. Inside the subway system, advertisements describing Moai Financial can be seen.
  • The game makes frequent references to tigers, including trading cards in the Mask of the Legendary Wrestler set, the tiger seen in the upper-right corner of the screen, and Silvia's tiger-related remarks such as, "Go get 'em tiger," and "Eye of the tiger." This is due to Travis' Japanese name (Torabisu) roughly translating to "tiger." "Go get 'em Tiger" may also be a references to a quote of Mary Jane Watson from the Spider-Man comics.
  • The game frequently breaks the fourth wall.
    • In the opening sequence, Travis references the average gamer's lack of patience, and then says, "for you, there, holding the Wii Remote like that? Just press the A button."
    • In one of the final scenes of the game, Jeane says, in reference to her dark back story, "it alone would jack up the age rating of this game even further," as well as, "What if the game gets delayed?" The reference to age rating is analogous to Suda's claims of making No More Heroes more violent than Manhunt 2, a game which was originally rated Adults Only by the ESRB.
    • In the game's "real" ending, Henry also expresses that he "would've thought [Travis] and the player would have figured it out by now," in reference to the truth that he is Travis' twin brother.
  • The name for the King Tut shop in Santa Destroy is a reference to Tutankhamun, an Egyptian Pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty, during the period of Egyptian history known as the New Kingdom.
  • The name for the Pirates & Ninjas shop in Santa Destroy is a reference to an internet meme that circulates in the form of an ongoing debate that asks the question "Who would win in a fight: pirates or ninjas?"
  • Travis can be seen in an early cutscene placing his hands on a Pure White Lover Bizarre Jelly poster, uttering the words "MOE~" (pronounced "mo-eyy"), a Japanese slang term for idolised affection or desire for fictional characters. The term is associated with otakus (obsessed fans) like Travis himself.

People[]

  • Destroyman's alter ego, John Harnet, strongly resembles American heavyweight mixed martial arts fighter Josh Barnett. This influence is addressed in a GameTrailers video interview with Suda51.
  • Harvey Moiseiwitsch Volodarskii bears a resemblance to real-life magician Criss Angel.
  • Silvia Christel's name is an allusion to European actress Sylvia Kristel.
  • The crotch grab Letz Shake performs is reminiscent to an iconic dance move performed by American musician and entertainer Michael Jackson.
  • The name for the Egbert theatre in Santa Destroy is a reference to American film critic and screenwriter Roger Ebert.
  • Travis resembles to former Jackass star, Johnny Knoxville. This influence is addressed in a GameTrailers video interview.

Sports[]

  • Each region, and several businesses and streets of Santa Destroy are named after a wrestling move, such as Body Slam Beach, Piledriver Realty, Rounding Body Press Station, Suplex Pizza, Tag Team Taco Twins and Avalanche Hold Street. More precisely, there are a number of references to lucha libre wrestling, such as the Luchaco gas station in Santa Destroy and the Mask of the Legendary Wrestler set of cards which each represent various masks of popular, "legendary" lucha libre wrestlers.

Video games[]

  • At various points throughout the game, usually following the death of Travis as the player experiences a game over, a "Zaka TV" screen is displayed. Zaka TV is a news station featured in two other Suda51 titles Michigan: Report from Hell and killer7.
  • Before telling her story, Jeane quips, "You don't want this to be No More Heroes Forever, do you?" This is a reference to Duke Nukem Forever, a game infamous for its protracted development schedule.
  • Behind Travis' armchair is a shelf containing many collectible items, among them a Nintendo 64. Also, the cartridge of the Pure White Giant Glastonbury game playable on Travis' television after defeating Harvey Moiseiwitsch Volodarskii resembles that of a Nintendo 64 cartridge.
  • Cat Jeane may be a reference to the stray cat Ryo Hazuki cares for in the Dreamcast game Shenmue.
  • Destroyman's "Destroy Cannon" move is based on the "Hadouken" move of Street Fighter.
  • The game makes several references to Suda51's previous production, killer7.
  • Travis Touchdown shares his first name with the recurring ghost remnant psyche Travis Bell
  • Bad Girl shares her name with one of the many slogans seen on Travis Bell's tank tops
  • Bad Girl's fridge in the Destroy Stadium basement containing a label reading Chiller7
  • Techniques taught to Travis by Randall Lovikov are named after the likenesses of the Smith syndicate
  • Ermen Palmer, an assassin who breaks into Travis' motel room, attempting to kill him while he is defenseless on the toilet in both of the game's endings, is an homage to the assassin Emir Parkreiner in both apperance and lethal technique
  • Lucha libre masks Travis encounters before each ranking match contain letters signed M.S., which may refer to Mask de Smith, an assassin and luche libre wrestler.
  • During the splash screens that load when the player reaches the location of a ranking match, a black silhouette is shown of the mission's target, which strongly recalls the level select menu of killer7.
  • The game's pause menu graphically resembles that of a second generation video game console. The Pure White Giant Glastonbury game playable on Travis' television assumes the appearance of a second generation shoot 'em up as well.
  • The visor Letz Shake dons during the set-up phase of Doctor Shake resembles that of Nintendo's Virtual Boy. His gloves also resemble Power Glove controllers, while Doctor Shake's interior contains parts that refer to the PlayStation 3's cell microprocessor and the Xbox 360's Trinity engine.
  • There are a number of references to Fire Pro Wrestling, a game series Suda was previously involved with directing. The Japanese version of the game's instruction manual comic references Super Fire Pro Wrestling Lucha Libres. Suda previously worked on two titles from the Fire Pro Wrestling series, though the Lucha Libres installment referenced is apparently fictional. Keita Sakai wears a GONGS t-shirt, which is yet another reference to Fire Pro Wrestling. GONGS was the name given to the in-game wrestling federation based on the real-life federation RINGS. The "Mask De Panther" mentioned in the descriptions of the first and third videos available at Beef Head references the name given to Tiger Mask, the main character of select installments of the Fire Pro Wrestling series, when published in the United States, so as to avoid legal trouble. In turn, the Tiger Mask character of Fire Pro Wrestling is a reference to the real life professional wrestling persona based on the 1968 manga Tiger Mask. Finally, Travis' mentor, Thunder Ryu, is a character from the Fire Pro Wrestling series, one that Suda has worked on in the past. Thunder Ryu's Fire Pro Wrestling incarnation was based on the real-life wrestler Genichiro Tenryu.
  • Three trading cards in the game are of professional wrestlers "The Flower," The Sun," and "The Rain." Also, a Japanese two-page print advertisement for the game features Silvia Christel sunbathing in without a bikini top, sporting the letters "F.S.R." These are obvious references to Flower, Sun, and Rain, one of Suda's previous productions.
  • The name for Thunder Ryu's beam katana, the D.O.S., is a reference to the family of operating systems for IBM compatible PCs marketed between 1981 and 1995.
  • In the Gym, you can do squats on a wrestling ring, possibly a reference to beating the ringleader at a squat competition in Final Fantasy VII, to gain a wig to disguise yourself to rescue Tifa from Don Corneo.
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