Under the Microscope: Battle Arena Toshinden Remix

I know what you’re thinking: “Bo, the cheat codes for Battle Arena Toshinden Remix have already been documented! We’re already aware of how to unlock the boss characters and enable Big Head mode. There’s nothing left to find.”

*The “Play as bosses” code description from SegaRetro*

That’s what I thought, too… until I checked the game data. In this edition, I uncover two previously unreported codes for Battle Area Toshinden Remix:

One enables “Easy special attacks” during gameplay.
The other activates a special scene test menu.

The reverse engineering

Let’s start with the “Play as bosses” code. As you enter it on the title screen the counter at 0605f53c increments, tracking your progress. The function at 06033ef0 compares your button presses to the array of patterns starting at 06033eb4:

*The code array, annotated. The button mapping is the usual one used by Saturn games.*

Put this code in at the title screen and a few things happen:

The Start button sends you from the title screen to the main menu.
The 16-bit integers at 060611d0 and 0605fd38 get set to 3. The first one unlocks Gaia, Sho, and Cupido. The second one updates your save.
The 16-bit integer at 0605429a increments, going from 0 to 1.

That second integer doesn’t just tell the game that you’ve cheated; it tells it that you’re ready to cheat more. The cheat detector function starts looking at a second array of code buttons after the increment:

*The second code: Left, X, Down, A, Up, Y, Right, B, Start.*

You need to be at the title screen again to enter this code. The easiest way to get back is to choose one of the modes from the menu and then do a soft reset by holding A+B+C and pressing Start.

After you enter this code, you can perform your character’s special attack by holding A and then press Z+L+R.