Aero the Acro-Bat
From Sega Retro
- For the 2024 aftermarket re-release, see Aero the Acro-Bat (Limited Run Games).
| Aero the Acro-Bat | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| System(s): Sega Mega Drive | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Publisher: Sunsoft | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Developer: Iguana Entertainment | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Distributor: Ecofilmes (PT) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sound driver: GEMS | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Genre: Action | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number of players: 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Aero the Acro-Bat is a platform game developed by Iguana Entertainment and published by Sunsoft for the Sega Mega Drive and Super NES in 1993. A Japanese version was planned[7] but cancelled.
Contents
Story
A spoiled, rich kid named Edgar Ektor was a regular attendant at the World of Amusement Circus and Funpark, but he was banned after a failed prank almost killed a lion. Twenty years later, Edgar became a powerful and evil industrialist. Aided by Zero the Kamikaze Squirrel and his Psycho Circus gang, Edgar sabotages the funpark and kidnaps all the circus performers. Aero the Acro-Bat, the circus' greatest star, is the only hope for rescuing the performers (including his girlfriend Aeriel) and putting a stop to Edgar's evil schemes.
Gameplay
The game is a side-scrolling platformer played as the acrobatic bat Aero, who needs to stop the mad scientist Edgar Ektor, who is trying to rid the world of amusement and fun. The game features four worlds, each consisting of four or five acts. Most acts require Aero to accomplish certain goals before finding the exit, such as falling through a number of magic hoops or rescuing a captured circus performer, although a few only require Aero to find the exit before advancing to the next act.
Aero moves with 
and 
and ducks with 
. He jumps with 
and hovers with his wings with 
. Aero can also collect stars, which he can throw at enemies with 
. He can throw stars while jumping but not while walking or ducking. Aero climbs ladders with 
and and slides down them with . When standing on a tightrope, he can drop down and hang on the tightrope with .
Aero can perform a diagonal drill maneuver with again in midair. His drill move is his main method of attack, since jumping on enemies hurts Aero, and can also be used to extend his jump. He can drill once per jump normally, but he can find an item that allows him to drill twice. He drills upward before the apex of the jump and downward after the apex. It can be manually aimed with + to hit reach enemies and platforms above him or aimed down with + to attack enemies on the ground.
Aero has a health bar and starts each stage with three hit points (which can be extended up to five hit points by collecting items). He loses a hit point whenever he takes damage from an enemy and loses a life when he loses every hit point. Some hazards, such as spikes and lava, cost Aero a life regardless of his health meter. Aero can gain more health and more lives by finding items in the stages. Aero also gets an extra life for every 20,000 points earned. Stages are timed, but the time remaining is used for bonus points and there is otherwise no penalty for running out of time. Aero gets an extra life for completing a "perfect round" (by collecting every item in the stage and finding the exit before time runs out).
Objects
| Cannon | |
|---|---|
| Aero can push the cannon into position with or . While standing on it, he can load himself into it with and fire it by pressing when the height meter is at the desired position.
| |
| Bubble Machine | |
| Generates bubbles that Aero can use as platforms, but the bubbles pop once they reach a certain height. Like the cannon, Aero can push the bubble machine into position with or .
| |
| Star Platform | |
| Acts as a platform. Every time Aero jumps on it, the number of stars decreases; if the platform only has one star, the next jump causes it to disappear. | |
| Checkpoint | |
| Aero revives at the last checkpoint passed if he loses a life. | |
| Trampoline | |
| Bounces Aero in the air. He bounces a greater height every time he bounces off a trampoline. | |
| Diving Board | |
| Aero can jump off a diving board to dive into a water tank, collecting items or passing through hoops on the way down. Diving into a water tank is worth 250 points. | |
| Trapeze | |
| Aero can jump onto a trapeze to hang from it while it swings. | |
| Hoop | |
| Aero can jump through hoops for bonus points. A normal hoop is worth 100 points, a paper hoop is worth 150 points, and a flaming hoop is worth 100 points. | |
| Warp Hoop | |
| Jumping through a warp hoop transports Aero to another part of the stage, often to a hidden room that is otherwise inaccessible. There is also a warp hoop that appears at the end of every stage after Aero has completed the stage objectives. | |
| Balloon | |
| Aero can stand on balloons. Balloons rise upward when Aero is standing on them and drop back down after he jumps off. | |
| Unicycle | |
| Aero can ride a unicycle down a tightrope. He is invincible while he is on a unicycle and defeats enemies by riding into them. |
Items
| Sucker | |
|---|---|
| Worth 100 points. | |
| Cheese | |
| Worth 150 points. | |
| Soda | |
| Worth 200 points. | |
| Hot Dog | |
| Worth 250 points. | |
| Cupcake | |
| Worth 300 points. | |
| Bonus Icon | |
| Grants Aero access to the bonus act after completing the current stage. There is one of these hidden in each world. | |
| Parachute | |
| Equips Aero with a parachute, allowing him to safely maneuver while falling. It lasts until Aero hits the ground. | |
| Wings | |
| Lets Aero fly for a short time. | |
| Magical Stars | |
| Collect stars to throw at enemies with .
| |
| Lightning | |
| Lets Aero perform his drill move twice in midair. Lasts until the end of the stage or until Aero loses a life. | |
| Free Aero | |
| Gives the player an extra life. | |
| Health Bar | |
| Increments Aero's health bar by a hit point, up to a maximum of 5. | |
| Clock | |
| Adds an extra minute to the timer. It has no effect if the timer has already run down to zero. | |
| Invincibility | |
| Makes Aero invincible for a duration. | |
| Key | |
| Allows Aero to open doors and cages in some stages. |
Worlds
All worlds except for the Woods have 5 acts and a boss act (as well as a hidden bonus act).
| Circus | |
|---|---|
| The bosses are the Stilt Brothers. | |
| Funpark | |
| The boss is a mechanical clown named Mr. Bubbles, operated by Zero. | |
| The Woods | |
| Museum of Horrors | |
Bonus act
Aero enters a bonus act after completing the current stage if he finds a Bonus Icon item. Every world has a bonus act except for the Woods. The bonus act is filled with food items for bonus points and contains no enemies.
History
Legacy
The game was reasonably successful, and Aero became the mascot of Sunsoft in the West.[8] The game received a spin-off, Zero the Kamikaze Squirrel, and a sequel, Aero the Acro-Bat 2.
Versions
A version of the game was planned for the Atari Jaguar but cancelled.[9][10]
The game was ported to the Game Boy Advance in 2002. Unlike the original versions, this version uses a battery backup for saving and saw release in Japan under the title Acrobat Kid (アクロバットキッズ).
Production credits
- Creator and Original Design: David Siller
- Design and Layout: Nigel Cook
- Additional Design: Team Aero
- Aero Team Leader: Carl Wade
- Aero Programmers: Richard Cowie, Carl Wade, Jeff Spangenberg, Darrin Stubbington, David Brevak, Dave Crummack
- Aero Artists: Johnathan Casco, Adrian Ludley, Matt Stubbington, Jools Watsham
- Character Design: David Siller, Justin Siller, Nigel Cook
- Music and SFX: Fox Productions
- Producers: Jeff Spangenberg, J. Moon
- Executive Producer: David Siller
- Director: Nigel Cook
- Art Director: Matt Stubbington
- Chairman: Masama Meada
- Vice Chairman: Tad Shimamoto
- Executive Vice President Coproducer: Rita Zimmerer
- Director Sunsoft Japan: Kiharu Yoshida
- Co-Producers: Justin Siller, Rene Boutin, Dan MacArthur
- Technical Manager: Al Artus
- Director of Marketing: Karen Shadley
- Game Manual: Alison Quirion
- Executive Assistant: Nanette Hyssong
- Game Testers: Sam Patel, David Luszcz, Darin Horgan, Matt Ross, Jake Harman, Geoff Gillis, Steve Gerkhe, Laura Luszcz, Ryan Siller, Team Iguna
- Thanks To: Kazuaki Goto, Masato Kawai, Akito Takeuchi
- Customer Service: Errin Berry, June Ekert, Kaz Harman, Jamie Jorgensen, Julie Williams
- Special Thanks: Kenji Toshioka, Bruce Reilly, Cathy Juby, Martha Hart, Karen Lillie, Mark Luszcz, Toko Okano, Connie Perez, Sherry Ross, Wunderman, Cato Johnson, Torme Co
- Very Special Thanks: Debra Siller, Beth Spangenberg, Bo
Magazine articles
- Main article: Aero the Acro-Bat/Magazine articles.
Promotional material
also published in:
- Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) #50: "September 1993" (1993-xx-xx)[12]
also published in:
- VideoGames (US) #58: "November 1993" (1993-1x-xx)[13]
- Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) #57: "April 1994" (1994-xx-xx)[14]
Physical scans
 |
77 |
|---|---|
| Based on 31 reviews | |
| Mega Drive, US |
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 Cover
|
 Cart  Manual |
| Mega Drive, EU |
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 Cover
|
 Cart  Manual .png){kind=small} Manual (back)  PCB |
| Mega Drive, PT |
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 Cover
|
Cart  Manual EU Manual |
Technical information
- Main article: Aero the Acro-Bat/Technical information.
References
- ↑ VideoGames, "October 1993" (US; 1993-xx-xx), page 34
- ↑ GamePro, "October 1993" (US; 1993-xx-xx), page 68
- ↑ Sega Channel schedule (US; 1994-06-01)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Sega Magazine, "July 1994" (UK; 1994-06-16), page 86
- ↑ Sega Pro, "November 1993" (UK; 1993-10-14), page 27
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Games World: The Magazine, "April 1995" (UK; 1995-0x-xx), page 12
- ↑ Sega '93 Winter Catalogue: TV Game World, page 25
- ↑ Electronic Gaming Monthly, "August 1993" (US; 1993-xx-xx), page 96
- ↑ http://www.stformat.com/stf56/pages_nx1500/stf56_048.jpg
- ↑ http://www.stformat.com/stf57/pages_nx1500/stf57_050.jpg
- ↑ File:Aero the Acro-Bat MD credits.pdf
- ↑ Electronic Gaming Monthly, "September 1993" (US; 1993-xx-xx), page 17
- ↑ VideoGames, "November 1993" (US; 1993-1x-xx), page 20
- ↑ Electronic Gaming Monthly, "April 1994" (US; 1994-xx-xx), page 210
- ↑ 1700 igr dlya Sega, "" (RU; 2001-xx-xx), page 12
- ↑ Alaab Alcomputtar, "" (SA; 1995-06-xx), page 80
- ↑ Aktueller Software Markt, "September 1994" (DE; 1994-08-08), page 125
- ↑ Consoles +, "Septembre 1994" (FR; 1994-0x-xx), page 111
- ↑ Electronic Gaming Monthly, "January 1994" (US; 199x-xx-xx), page 46
- ↑ Entsiklopediya luchshikh igr Sega. Vypusk 1, "" (RU; 1999-xx-xx), page 286
- ↑ Entsiklopediya luchshikh igr Sega. Vypusk 5, "" (RU; 200x-xx-xx), page 10
- ↑ GamePro, "October 1993" (US; 1993-xx-xx), page 66
- ↑ Game Informer, "September/October 1993" (US; 1993-0x-xx), page 30
- ↑ Joypad, "Septembre 1994" (FR; 1994-0x-xx), page 113
- ↑ MAN!AC, "04/94" (DE; 1994-03-09), page 45
- ↑ Mega, "January 1994" (UK; 1993-12-16), page 54
- ↑ Mega Action, "January 1994" (UK; 1993-12-30), page 14
- ↑ Mega Force, "Septembre 1994" (FR; 1994-0x-xx), page 98
- ↑ Mega Fun, "01/94" (DE; 1993-12-22), page 72
- ↑ Mega Machines, "January 1994" (UK; 1993-12-09), page 74
- ↑ MegaTech, "January 1994" (UK; 1993-12-21), page 52
- ↑ Mean Machines Sega, "January 1994" (UK; 1993-11-30), page 112
- ↑ Player One, "Septembre 1994" (FR; 1994-0x-xx), page 80
- ↑ Power Unlimited, "Jaargang 2, Nummer 1, Januari 1994" (NL; 1993-12-29), page 32
- ↑ Score, "Říjen 1994" (CZ; 1994-10-01), page 55
- ↑ Sega Power, "January 1994" (UK; 1993-12-02), page 94
- ↑ Sega Pro, "Xmas Special 1993" (UK; 1993-12-02), page 38
- ↑ Sega Zone, "January 1994" (UK; 1993-12-23), page 66
- ↑ Sega Force, "4/94" (SE; 1994-06-01), page 12
- ↑ Todo Sega, "Febrero 1995" (ES; 1995-0x-xx), page 42
- ↑ Tricks, "Vypusk 7" (RU; 1996-xx-xx), page 22
- ↑ Tricks 16 bit, "Tricks Sega Gold 800 igr" (RU; 1998-03-20), page 6
- ↑ Video Games, "1/94" (DE; 1993-12-19), page 92
| Aero the Acro-Bat | |
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![[10]](#cite_note-http:.2F.2Fwww.stformat.com.2Fstf57.2Fpages_nx1500.2Fstf57_050.jpg-10){kind=link}
| Aero the Acro-Bat games for Sega systems | |
|---|---|
| Aero the Acro-Bat (1993) | Zero the Kamikaze Squirrel (1994) | Aero the Acro-Bat 2 (1995) |
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