Master of Darkness

n/a

Master System JP US EU
Master of Darkness
System(s): Sega Master System, Sega Game Gear
Publisher: Sega (Europe) Sega (US, Europe) SIMS (Japan)
Developer: SIMS, Sega CS M2
Distributor: Tec Toy (BR) Zegetron (GR)
Genre: Action
Number of players: 1
Release Date RRP Code JP 1992-10-23 ¥4,5004,500 T-44047 US 1993-06 2437 EU 1993 2437 UK 1993-06 £29.9929.99 2437 GR 199x TR 199x BR 199x 075140 EU 1993-05 7107 EU (Classic) 1994-08-19 7107-50 PT 199x UK 1992-12 £44.9944.99 7107 AU 199x BR 199x 025110 JP ▼ 2012-06-27 ¥286 (300)286 (300) US ▼ 2013-07-04 $4.994.99 EU ▼ 2013-07-04 €4.994.99 DE ▼ 2013-07-04 €4.994.99 UK ▼ 2013-07-04 £4.494.49
OFLC

Master of Darkness, known in Japan as In the Wake of Vampire (イン ザ ウエイク オブ バンパイア) and in the United States as Vampire: Master of Darkness, is a Sega Game Gear action platform game developed by SIMS. Highly derivative of the 1986 Konami game Castlevania, it was first published in Japan by the developer themselves in October 1992 (a week before Halloween), and was brought to the United States, Europe, and Brazil the following year. Later in July 2012, developer M2 ported the Game Gear version to the Nintendo 3DS' Virtual Console service.

In 1993, the same developer ported Master of Darkness to the Sega Master System, where it retained its original name.

Story

In 19th century London, the young psychologist Dr. Ferdinand Social has been investigating paranormal activity and believes that the vampire Count Dracula is behind a series of killings that have been attributed to Jack the Ripper. However, Jack the Ripper is indeed responsible, for he is using the victim's bodies and fresh blood for sacrificial offerings, as part of a dark ritual being performed by Count Massen to resurrect Dracula. Also taking some part in the murders and the dark ritual is a mysterious Psychic Girl, who is possessed by an evil Skull Spirit. Dr. Social must traverse through Victorian England to locate and defeat the vampire, fighting many monsters along the way.

Gameplay

Cutscene

The game is an action platformer derivative of Konami's popular Castlevania series. The player controls a psychologist named Dr. Ferdinand Social as he investigates a series of killings in Victorian England. He battles supernatural monsters through five rounds, which are divided into three stages each. At the end of each round is a boss, a person with connection to the murders and a dark ritual, who must be defeated. The story is progressed through short cutscenes between each round. Dr. Social walks with or and kneels with . He can move while kneeling with or . He walks up staircases with or and down staircases with or .

Enemies the player must fight include zombies, bats, dogs, wolves, poltergeists, skeleton knights, magical sword-wielding wizards, owls, and ghost maidens. Enemies respawn frequently. Dr. Social's primary attack is a close-combat weapon such as a knife or a saber, which is used with . The primary attack can be done while kneeling or jumping. He can also use secondary weapons, which are long-range weapons such as pistols or bombs with limited ammunition, by pressing +. Secondary weapons can also be used while in midair. The player can only possess one type of primary and secondary weapon. Picking up a new weapon means it automatically replaces the previous weapon in the player's inventory. Picking up the same type of secondary weapon gives more ammunition; picking up a different weapon loses any ammunition for the previous weapon.

Dr. Social has eight health globes, which are diminished as he takes damage from enemies. If he loses all of his health, he loses a life and must start the stage over from the beginning. Each stage is timed, and Dr. Social loses a life if he runs out of time as well. The game ends if he loses all of his lives, but the player has unlimited continues. He can collect items that restore his health or give him extra lives. Some walls are destructible and reveal hidden items or pathways.

Weapons

Primary

	Dagger
	The starting weapon. Short reach and only does 1 point of damage.
	Saber
	Long reach and does 2 points of damage.
	Stake
	Long reach and does 3 points of damage.
	Axe
	Medium reach but does 4 points of damage.

Secondary

	Pistol
	Shoots silver bullets horizontally. Comes with 16 rounds.
	Bomb
	Bombs that are thrown parabolically. Comes with 8 bombs.
	Boomerang
	Boomerangs that attack enemies coming or going (but can only attack once per throw since it disappears after hitting an enemy). Comes with 15 boomerangs.
	Projectile
	Shoots a horizontal projectile that does 4 points of damage. Comes with 8 projectiles.

Items

	Mask
	Destroy to release an item or weapon.
	Bonus Globes
	Provide bonus points: pink gives 300 points, grey gives 500 points, red gives 1,000 points, and black gives 2,000 points.
	Emerald
	Destroys all enemies on the screen.
	Life Potion
	Restores four health points.
	Voodoo Doll
	Gives the player an extra life.

Rounds

	Thames River
	Maps: 1️⃣ | 2️⃣ | 3️⃣  Boss: Jack the Ripper
	The House of Wax Dolls
	Maps: 1️⃣ | 2️⃣ | 3️⃣  Boss: Psychic Girl
	Epitaph
	Maps: 1️⃣ | 2️⃣ | 3️⃣  Boss: Count Massen
	The stage is a cemetery that leads to the Castle of Count Massen.
	Laboratory
	Maps: 1️⃣ | 2️⃣ | 3️⃣  Boss: Count Massen
	The stage is a laboratory within Count Massen's Castle.
	In the Wake of Dracula
	Map: 1️⃣  Boss: Count Dracula
	The stage is a dungeon-like labyrinth within Castle Dracula, inside a forest of Transylvania.

Versions

Localised names

Also known as

Language	Localised Name	English Translation
English	Master of Darkness	Master of Darkness
English (US)	Vampire: Master of Darkness	Vampire: Master of Darkness
Japanese	イン ザ ウエイク オブ バンパイア	In the Wake of Vampire

Production credits

• Concept Manager: Sats King
• Programmer: Yen
• Main Graphic: Super Punch
• Graphic Support: Matsutokujo, Ryuichi, Nagyawo, Mori
• Graphic Adviser: Yama, Enjyoh, Manma
• Sound: Fumi, Nasu Bi
• Program Adviser: Kou, T Asano, Danna, S Kawa
• Special Thanks to: All the People There
• Presented by: S E G A

Source:

In-game credits

Magazine articles

Main article: Master of Darkness/Magazine articles.

Promotional material

Print advert in Mega Force (ES) #11: "Marzo 1993" (1993-xx-xx)
also published in:

• Hobby Consolas (ES) #18: "Marzo 1993" (1993-xx-xx)

Physical scans

Master System version

Sega Retro Average
Publication Score Source

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Based on 0 review

Sega Retro Average

Publication Version Score Consoles + (FR) PAL 74 Mean Machines: The Essential Sega Guide (UK) 92 Game Mania (UK) PAL 92 HiScore (DK) PAL 41 Hobby Consolas (ES) 72 Joypad (FR) 84 Joypad (FR) PAL 82 Joystick (FR) PAL 86 Mega Force (FR) PAL 70 Micromanía (segunda época) (ES) PAL 50 Mean Machines Sega (UK) PAL 92 Player One (FR) PAL 45 ProGames (BR) 75 Sega News (CZ) PAL 51 Sega Power (UK) PAL 76 Sega Pro (UK) PAL 80 Sega Zone (UK) PAL 70 Sega Force (UK) PAL 79 Supersonic (FR) 86 Video Games (DE) 49

	72
Based on 20 reviews

Master of Darkness

Master System, EU
Cover
Cart Manual

Master System, EU (Classic Master System)
Cover
Cart

Master System, PT
Cover

Master System, AU
Cover
Cart Manual Reg Card

Master System, BR
Cover
Cart

Master System, BR (Alt)
Cover
Cart Manual

Game Gear version

Sega Retro Average
Publication Score Source

{{{{{icon}}}|L}}
Based on 0 review

Sega Retro Average

Publication Version Score Alaab Alcomputtar (SA) 85 Beep! MegaDrive (JP) NTSC-J 58 Consoles + (FR) 76 Game Power (IT) 90 Gamers (DE) 73 Hippon Super (JP) NTSC-J 40 Joypad (FR) 81 Mega Force (FR) 81 Mega Fun (DE) PAL 75 Player One (FR) PAL 65 Power Unlimited (NL) NTSC 80 Sega Power (UK) PAL 80 Sega Pro (UK) PAL 85 Sega Zone (UK) PAL 55 Sega Force (SE) 83 Sega Force (UK) PAL 81 Sega Saturn Magazine (JP) NTSC-J 66 Sonic the Comic (UK) PAL 75

	74
Based on 18 reviews

Master of Darkness

Game Gear, JP
Cover
Cart

Game Gear, US
Cover
Cart Manual

Game Gear, EU
Cover
Cart Manual

Game Gear, FR (Blister pack)
Cover

Game Gear, BR
Cover
Cart

Game Gear, GR
Cover

Game Gear, TR
Cover

Technical information

ROM dump status

System	Hash	Size	Build Date	Source	Comments
✔	CRC32 96fb4d4b MD5 8354932a7f20e84a808471b3724a56f8 SHA-1 ed3569be5d5a49ff5a09b2b04ec0101d4edfa81e	256kB		Cartridge (EU)
✔	CRC32 7ec64025 MD5 1e068538747f6d4d99888221a50b7e06 SHA-1 14e6b1e886355d902b34acdf503eced8df88afe4	256kB		Cartridge (US)
✔	CRC32 07d0eb42 MD5 78655dabd43e475c3b4d849c3f0c7046 SHA-1 f9eabdb7e925360f69b41f5357abcb36f893d72e	256kB		Cartridge (EU)
✔	CRC32 dab0f265 MD5 a999c2f72c71c22be50e343e54ff4d73 SHA-1 da5116b7ed890f35506c5b33c5c9716f528169b1	256kB		Cartridge (JP)
✔	CRC32 5856849c MD5 92106252249ce9975386f2aeae4a593b SHA-1 b1d808e0a444ab12145915fad920a43bd04cb669	256kB		3DS Virtual Console (US)
✔	CRC32 21402ffb MD5 508f9bb8c63bbde8da3ae4a548572f5d SHA-1 fb7f7cd933dd1d0d275faffb06c84645bfa42d5a	256kB		3DS Virtual Console (EU)
✔	CRC32 036e03f8 MD5 3dcb0e5020d6d9d650a7196fdfe8c5ac SHA-1 2ee1aac941829ae172c4913383d14faa8acd09d5	256kB		3DS Virtual Console (JP)

External links

• Sega of Japan 3DS VC catalogue pages: Game Gear
• Nintendo catalogue pages: JP, US, UK