Shadow Blasters
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| Shadow Blasters | |
|---|---|
 Shadow Blasters box art |
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| Developer(s) | Sigma Enterprises |
| Publisher(s) | Sage's Creation |
| Designer(s) | Kim Songdong (composer) |
| Release date(s) | Sega Mega Drive/Sega Genesis 1990 1990 |
| Genre(s) | Sidescroller, Platformer |
| Mode(s) | 1 to 2 Players Simultaneously |
| Rating(s) | none (pre-ESRB) |
| Platform(s) | Sega Mega Drive/Sega Genesis |
| Media | Cartridge |
| Input | Game Controller |
Shadow Blasters (ĺ夊ćç Shiten Myouou) Is a video game developed by Sigma Enterprises Inc. for the Sega Mega Drive/Sega Genesis video game console. It was released in 1990 in both North America and Japan.
Contents |
[edit] Gameplay
[edit] Overview
The evil god Ashura has unleashed hordes of monsters and demons onto Earth, hoping to take control of the planet as well as the hearts of men. The powerful god Hyprion has recruited four of Earth's most powerful warriors and assembled them into a team to fight the encroaching darkness. The player assumes control of this group of warriors in order to defeat the armies and their god, Ashura.
[edit] Mechanics
The game is a standard sidescrolling platform game. The player can control one character at a time and can choose from a pool of four characters. Each character is able to walk, jump, crouch, and fire a projectile weapon unique to that character. For the most part, the player is free to move forward and backward through a given level as desired. As the player progresses, characters become more powerful by picking up power-ups for the attributes of speed, jump, and power. Power-ups do not "roll over" into the character pool if the current character is at the maximum for the respective attribute - a character can only gain attribute points from a power-up if that character is in play when the power-up is collected.
[edit] Characters
There are four characters that player can choose from. Each character has 4 distinct stages to his or her weapon. The player can switch characters at any point during game play simply by going to the character select screen and choosing a different character. While this is a powerful asset, once a character dies, he or she cannot ever be revived. This effectively limits the total "lives" of the player to 4. Once the last character is dead, the game is over.
[edit] Levels
Note: the author of this article has divided the game into two parts based on the presence of the level selection feature. Also, though the game uses the term "round" to denote a single playable section of the game, the author substitutes the term "level" for clarity.
[edit] Part I
The first part of the game consists of six levels: Mountain, Street, Glenn, Harbor, Forest, and Future. One unique aspect of this game is that these six levels may be played in any order the player desires.
Mountain - This is relatively flat level. There sections of ground that sink into the surrounding waters, causing instant death if a character falls in. The boss of this level is a large flying creature.
Street - This level takes place in the streets of an unknown city. There are many instant death traps in the form of loose manhole covers. The boss of this level is a muscle street punk who throws daggers.
Glenn - This level takes place in a mountainous area, with many platforms of varying heights. The boss of this level is a large rock golem.
Harbor - This level takes place mostly inside of a building. The end of the level is an open area on the harbor where the boss battle occurs. The boss is a very tall creature that appears to be made of a viscous, pink liquid.
Forest - This is arguably the most platform-intensive of the levels. Progression through this level is accomplished by jumping to and from tree limbs of varying heights. Some of the tree limbs break away and fall, possibly leading to instant death in one of the many pits present on the ground. The boss of this level is a large purple bear-like animal.
Future - This level stands out from the rest of the levels that appear to take place in (or possibly before) the late 1900s. The level is constructed almost entirely of metallic structures with lights. In includes many platforms on timers that spin and drop the player characters at set intervals. The boss of this level is a giant alien brain that uses energy weapons.
[edit] Part II
The second part of the game consists of two levels and a final battle, arranged in a predetermined order.
Level 7 - This level is set in an underworld type evironment made of stone, lava, and giant horns. It is populated with enemies resembling grim reapers. The boss of this level is large flying bat-like creature.
Level 8 - This level is set in a shrine floating on a sea of rolling clouds. The enemy unique to this level is reminiscent of a banshee and launches its dismembered hands as a weapon. This boss of this level is a giant, armored, multifaced warrior.
Final Battle - In this level, the player assumes control of a powerful avatar in order to directly combat the avatar of Ashura. The battle takes place in outer space.
[edit] Character list
| Character | Sex | Weapon 1 | Weapon 2 | Weapon 3 | Weapon 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Horatio | Male | Shuriken | Fireball | Large Fireball | Fire Dragon |
| Marcus | Male | Electric Orb | Lightning Blast | Lightning Bolt | 3 Lightning Bolts |
| Leo | Male | Dagger | Boomerang | Dual Boomerang | Large Boomerand |
| Tiffany | Female | Bomb | Small Tornado | Dual Tornado | Large Homing Tornado |
