Dracula Unleashed
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| Dracula Unleashed | |
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| Developer(s) | Icom |
| Publisher(s) | Viacom |
| Release date(s) | 1993 |
| Genre(s) | FMV adventure |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Rating(s) | VRC: MA-13 |
| Platform(s) | Sega CD, Windows |
Dracula Unleashed was a full motion video and computer game with a similar format to Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective. The game was released for the Sega CD and Windows 95 in 1993. Both versions of the game are identical, except the quality of the full motion video was better on the computer version of the game.
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[edit] Story
In the game, the player assumes the role of young Texas businessman Alexander Morris. Living in London during the winter of 1899, he has been accepted into the exclusive Hades Club and is about to be married to the lovely Annisette Bowen. However, it soon becomes clear that Morris' late brother was part of the team that destroyed Dracula, and that now the prince of darkness has risen again to seek revenge. Players must venture to various locations in London and watch the full motion video scenes (totaling about 90 minutes) to pick up items, gather clues about Dracula, and gain access to new locations. Visiting the correct locations at the correct times with the right items in hand is crucial to achieving victory.
[edit] Criticism
Dracula Unleashed was a part of the new wave of video-based video games released in the early 1990s, when the videogame industry was moving toward interactive movies. This trend eventually ended because these interactive movies often lacked movie-quality acting and poor production quality. Due to technological restrictions, interactivity was also very limited during gameplay and video quality was worse than television or movies. The Sega CD videogame system helped in the decline of these games' popularity as the severe hardware limitations of the system (only 64 on-screen colors at once from a total selection of 512) meant that the quality of the full motion video was never the same as watching a television show or film.
[edit] DVD
In 2002, Infinite Ventures, Inc. released the game in DVD format, making it accessible to a new home market. The game is identical in play, but the advantages of the new format allow for full-screen, DVD-quality video. Furthermore, the game is playable in any DVD-compatible player, to include game consoles like the PlayStation 2 and Xbox.
[edit] Parental advisory
When it was released for the Sega CD, it was given an MA-13 label by the Videogame Rating Council. This would be similar to a PG-13 rating by the Motion Picture Association of America. The game has a spooky atmosphere and musical score, along with some images of blood however, it is not up to the level of typical R-rated horror films.
[edit] Trivia
- One of the characters met on the journey is the co-owner of a local book shop named Alfred Horner. Horner is effeminate man with a "solicitous air" about him and is described as a rather odd fellow. Because of his characteristics it has been felt that Horner is perhaps the first (and thus far only) gay character in a full motion video game.[citation needed]
