Chiller (video game)

Not to be confused with the 1985 Mastertronic video game "Chiller" (published for C64, Spectrum, Amstrad CPC and MSX).
Chiller

Developer(s) Exidy
Publisher(s) Exidy, American Game Cartridges (NES - US), HES (NES - Australia)
Platform(s) Arcade, Nintendo Entertainment System,
Release date(s) 1986, 1990 (NES port),
Genre(s) Light-gun games
Mode(s) Up to 2 players, alternating turns
Cabinet Upright
Arcade system Exidy 440
CPU:
Display Raster 320x240 resolution, Horizontal 256 colors
Title screen

Chiller is an Exidy light gun arcade game released in 1986. An unlicensed port was released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1990 by American Game Cartridges in the US, and in Australia by HES (Home Entertainment Suppliers), with the option of using either the standard controller or the NES Zapper. The player takes on the role of an unseen torturer who must maim, mutilate, and murder helpless victims in a variety of dungeon settings. Few of the enemies in the game are capable of fighting back, with the challenge element lying in how quickly the player can cause each of the victims to die.

The game sold poorly in the United States because arcade owners refused to purchase it; Exidy did, however, find success in marketing it to third world countries.[1] Modern gamers often criticize the game for its senseless violence and encouraging the torture and murder of apparently innocent people, as opposed to the gamer fighting enemies capable of defending themselves.[2][3][4]

Overview

The game consists of a series of screens representing various dungeon and horror movie settings. Most screens feature helpless victims bound or restrained by a variety of medieval torture devices. The player must figure out how to kill every victim in as short amount a time as possible; although it is possible to simply shoot the victims to death, this process takes a considerable amount of time, as even headshots simply result in chunks of flesh and bone being blown away, leaving the victims alive. Rather, the challenge lies in finding ways to activate the various torture devices, resulting in quicker, bloodier deaths.

For each screen, shooting all available targets gives the player a bonus shooting round. The game features a Ghost counter on-screen scoring system named the "Ectoplasmic Tabulator". It has very similar gameplay to "Crossbow" and other related Exidy 440 board system games.

Levels

Arcade and NES game differences

Additionally, the NES version contained some minor censorship from the arcade version. This included removing the nudity on the female victim in the graveyard; removing the ability to shoot the flesh off of the rack victims; removing many of the body parts scattered around the torture room; and changing the monk pushing a cart of body parts to a nun pushing a baby carriage (although the nun can still be shot).

References

External links