Queen's Blade

Queen's Blade is a Japanese fantasy franchise that began as a series of visual combat books published by Hobby Japan, inspired by licensed works from Firelight Game Company's Lost Worlds. The overall plot of the game revolves around a tournament, also called the Queen's Blade, which is held once every four years to determine a Queen. Over time the series grew into a wider media franchise, spanning four manga adaptations, three anime adaptations, three light novels and a video game adaptation. Figures of the characters made by various manufacturers, among them Kaiyodo with its Revoltech line, have also been produced along with several pieces of memorabilia. A sequel series, Queen's Blade Rebellion, was launched in 2009. The franchise is placed here by its first medium, the printed gamebook, even though its anime and figure lines are the best known today.