Decap Attack

n/a

Decap Attack
System(s): Sega Mega Drive, Steam, Android, iOS
Publisher: Sega
Developer: VIC Tokai, Graphic Research (sound)
Genre: Action, Arcade
Number of players: 1
Release Date RRP Code US 1991-09 $49.9549.95 1027 EU 1991-11 1027 UK 1991-11 £34.9934.99 1027 AU 199x CA 199x BR 199x KR 199x GM4043JG US ▼ 2010-10-26 $2.992.99 34318 EU ▼ 2010-10-26 €2.492.49 34318 UK ▼ 2010-10-26 £1.991.99 34318 AU ▼ 2010-10-26 $3.493.49 34318 US ▼ 2019-02-01 $0.990.99 34318 EU ▼ 2019-02-01 €0.990.99 34318 UK ▼ 2019-02-01 £0.790.79 34318 AU ▼ 2019-02-01 $1.351.35 34318 US ▼ 2019-02-01 $0.990.99 34318 EU ▼ 2019-02-01 €0.990.99 34318 UK ▼ 2019-02-01 £0.790.79 34318 AU ▼ 2019-02-01 $1.351.35 34318 US ▼ (Sega Forever) 2017-10-26 FREEfree EU ▼ (Sega Forever) 2017-10-26 FREEfree DE ▼ (Sega Forever) 2017-10-26 FREEfree AU ▼ (Sega Forever) 2017-10-26 FREEfree US ▼ (Sega Forever) 2017-10-26 FREEfree 12+ EU ▼ (Sega Forever) 2017-10-26 FREEfree 12+

Decap Attack, stylized as DEcapAttack, is a Sega Mega Drive action platform game developed by VIC Tokai and published by Sega. A reskinned port of the developer's previous 1990 game Magical Hat no Buttobi Turbo! Daibouken with a tongue-in-cheek horror theme, redesigned levels, and new soundtrack, it was first released in the United States in September 1991, and is generally considered superior to the original version.

The game is the last in a line of similar platformers by VIC Tokai, including Psycho Fox for the Sega Master System in 1989.

Story

Islands

Chuck D. Head, a headless mummy created by mad scientist Dr. Frank N. Stein and his assistant Igor, is sent to defeat Max D. Cap. Max is a demon who has returned from the Underworld with an army of monsters to conquer the surface world, splitting the skeleton-shaped cluster of islands into pieces in the process.

After reforming the scattered islands and defeating Max, Chuck sluggishly returns home, where Dr. Stein rewards him by transforming him into a real human.

Gameplay

The Lab

The game is a platformer in which the player controls a living mummy, Chuck D. Head, through various side-scrolling levels. Levels consist of three rounds, which contain many enemies and hazards that can harm or kill Chuck as well as items to collect. In the last round of each level, Chuck must defeat a boss and find a special item for Frank N. Stein. Chuck is moved with and and ducks with . He jumps with . Chuck has no head and has a face implanted in his torso. He attacks enemies by extending a face out to hit them with . He can also jump on most enemies to defeat them; enemies must be jumped on multiple times to defeat them and can recover if left alone. While jumping, the player can press to slow down Chuck's descent. When underwater, he swims with .

Chuck can collect a skull power-up, which sits on his shoulders like a head and can be thrown at enemies with . Chuck can collect it again by walking over it after it lands or wait for it to automatically return like a boomerang. If Chuck gets hit by an enemy or hazard, he loses the skull.

During the game, Chuck can also collect a variety of potions that have a variety of useful effects such as granting temporary invincibility or eliminating all enemies on screen. These potions are kept in an inventory rather than used immediately when collected. The player can access the Lab with to view the item inventory and use an item or read a short description about what it does.

Chuck has a small number of health units, depicted as hearts. By default, he has a maximum of two, though this can be changed to one or three in the options. Each heart can withstand two hits from an enemy. The heart appears with an outline when it has sustained one hit; the heart disappears but the outline remains after two hits. Chuck can find hearts that replenish his health. If he loses all of his health, he loses a life. Chuck also loses a life if he touches lava, no matter how many hearts he has remaining. If he loses all of his lives, the game ends. There are no continues.

Items

Items are contained in shrunken head statues, which Chuck can punch with his chest head to break open. Sometimes statues contain no item or a ghost enemy. Potions are placed in the player's inventory rather than used immediately. The player can open the Lab with to check the item inventory or use an item.

	Shrunken Head Statue
	Punch to break open.
	Heart
	Restores one of Chuck's health hearts.
	Xenon Potion
	Causes an earthquake that destroys all enemies on screen. Cannot be used during boss fights.
	Swill Potion
	Makes Chuck temporarily invulnerable. Cannot be used during boss fights.
	Trioxy Potion
	Creates a ball of light that can be used as a weapon.
	Freeiz Potion
	Freezes all enemies on screen, rendering them immobile but still able to be attacked. Cannot be used during boss fights.
	Claxy Potion
	Makes Chuck temporarily run faster and jump higher.
	OozeO2 Potion
	Makes Chuck temporarily reach farther and punch harder with his chest head.
	Coin
	Used as credits for the bonus game.
	Extra Life
	Gives the player an extra life. Runs from the statue after being released.
	Head
	Gives Chuck his head, which is used as a projectile attack and protects Chuck from one enemy hit.
	Treasure
	One of these items is hidden in the third round of each level. It must be found before Chuck can exit the round.

Levels

	Abdomainland
	El Beau Island
	Tibuland
	Armington
	Pumpington
	Last Leg Land
	Eyeland

Bonus Game

Bonus game

At the end of each level, there is a lottery minigame similar to amidakuji. The player places multiple Chucks on five pathways. The number of Chucks corresponds to the number of Coins found in the round. Multiple Chucks can be placed on the same pathway. Once they have all been placed, they walk up the path to the end, crossing whenever there is a juncture. Near the end is a moving maze, which the player can stop with . Then the Chucks continue to the end of the path, which contains item prizes or a hole that Chuck falls into for no prize.

History

Comic adaptation

Sonic the Comic included "Decap Attack" comics strips. The first story arc was an adaptation of the game's plot, while later stories took their own spin. Story arcs are: "Decap Attack starring Chuck D. Head" (issue #10 to #15) and "Who Killed Chuck!" (#34 to #39). Writers continued to make "Decap Attack" comic strips due to popularity, often creating single-part stories, with very few small 2-3 part story arcs. All of them still had a single continuation. Not counting the first two big story arcs, there were 29 more separate stories (issues #40, #66 to #68, #69, #70, #71, #89, #90, #91 to #93, #94, #97 to #99, #101, #102, #104, #105, #107 to #108, #109, #110, #111, #113, #114 to #115, #116, #119, #120, #123, #125, #126, #129, #130, #131 to #132). It was the last non-Sonic comics strips in Sonic the Comic, for long time being the only one in the latter half of the 1990s before being cancelled as well.

Versions

Version history

Main article: Decap Attack/Changelog.

System	Version	Size	Date	Comment	Ref	Icon
	0000040000010000010000000000004.1.1	56MB	202001092020-01-09				(info) (55.81 MB)
	0000020000000000000000000000002.0.0	44MB	201901312019-01-31				(info) (43.64 MB)
	0000010000010000020000000000001.1.2	43MB	201810312018-10-31				(info) (42.95 MB)
	0000010000010000010000000000001.1.1	41MB	201808062018-08-06				(info) (41.21 MB)
	0000010000000000000000000000001.0.0	39MB	201710252017-10-25				(info) (38.61 MB)
	0000040000010000010000000000004.1.1	140.6MB	202001092020-01-09
	0000020000000000020000000000002.0.2	147.9MB	201906032019-06-03
	0000020000000000000000000000002.0.0		201901312019-01-31
	0000010000010000020000000000001.1.2		201810312018-10-31
	0000010000010000010000000000001.1.1	130.5MB	201808062018-08-06
	0000010000000000000000000000001.0	118MB	201710252017-10-25

Downloadable content

Main article: Decap Attack/Downloadable content.

Production credits

• Director: Dark Side Toshi
• Programmers: Dr. Suzuki, Chem. Watanabe, Carrot Iwasawa
• Character Designer: Buffoon Yamaguchi
• Map Designers: Western Village, Kunoichi Hagawa
• Sound Composer: Tamachan
• Special Thanks to: Bert and STI Jester
• Supervisor: Bigfoot Shijoh
• Producer: Rich Man

Source:

In-game credits

Digital manuals

• 

  Steam manual

Magazine articles

Main article: Decap Attack/Magazine articles.

Promotional material

Print advert in GamePro (US) #28: "November 1991" (1991-xx-xx)

Artwork

• 
• 

  Sega Forever icon

Physical scans

Sega Retro Average
Publication Score Source

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Based on 0 review

Sega Retro Average

Publication Version Score 1700 igr dlya Sega (RU) 30 Consoles + (FR) 92 Console XS (UK) PAL 81 Cool Gamer (RU) 60 Entsiklopediya luchshikh igr Sega. Vypusk 1 (RU) 50 Mean Machines: The Essential Sega Guide (UK) 72 Game Mania (UK) 86 GamePro (US) NTSC-U 92 Gamers (DE) 73 Games-X (UK) 70 Game Informer (US) NTSC-U 80 Hobby Consolas (ES) 85 Joypad (FR) NTSC-U 85 Joystick (FR) 88 Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming (UK) PAL 78 Mega (UK) 79 Mega Action (UK) 76 Mega Force (FR) PAL 85 MegaTech (UK) 82 Mean Machines Sega (UK) 82 Player One (FR) 78 Sega Power (UK) PAL 93 Sega Pro (UK) PAL 81 Sega Pro (UK) PAL 81 Sega Force (UK) PAL 80 Tricks 16 bit (RU) 68 VideoGames & Computer Entertainment (US) NTSC-U 70 Video Games (DE) 70

	77
Based on 28 reviews

Decap Attack

Mega Drive, US
Cover
Cart Manual

Mega Drive, EU
Cover
Cart Manual PCB

Mega Drive, AU
Cover

Mega Drive, BR
Cover
Cart Manual

Mega Drive, CA
Cover

Mega Drive, KR
Cover
Cart

Technical information

ROM dump status

System	Hash	Size	Build Date	Source	Comments
✔	CRC32 73dc0dd8 MD5 283c180cede3352dabec75fff677052e SHA-1 9665f54a6149d71ea72db9c168755e62cb61649c	512kB	1991-06	Cartridge (US/EU)

External links

• Decap Attack on Steam
• Decap Attack on Google Play
• Decap Attack on iTunes: US, UK