Griffin

From Sega Retro

n/a

Griffin title.png

Griffin
System(s): Sega Game Gear
Publisher: Renovation Game
Developer:
Genre: Shooting[1][2]

















Number of players: 1
Release Date RRP Code
Sega Game Gear
JP
¥3,800 (3,914)3,800e[3] T-49017

Griffin (グリフォン) is a Sega Game Gear vertical shoot-'em-up game developed by Telenet Japan and published by Renovation Game. It was released exclusively in Japan in July 1991.

Gameplay

Griffin, Pause Menu.png

Pause menu

The game is a shooter in which players pilot a futuristic tank. The tank is moved in eight directions with the D-pad. The screen does not scroll automatically but follows the tank if it moves up. The screen does not scroll back down, so the player cannot backtrack. Rough terrain affects the movement of the tank by slowing it down. The tank fires its weapon with 1, which can be held for continuous fire. It is equipped with three different weapons, which can be switched by pausing the game with  START . Weapons can be upgraded by collecting power-up items. The player can also call a bomber strike that does large area damage with 2, but these strikes are limited. Bomber strikes destroy enemy projectiles as well. The pause menu shows the number of lives and bomber strikes remaining.

The tank has an energy gauge on the right side of the screen that decreases as it takes damage from enemies, but it can be replenished by collecting items. Both the tank and enemies are damaged by collisions. The tank is destroyed if the energy gauge is depleted and the player loses a life. The player's weapon strength is reset to its baseline after losing a life. If the player runs out of lives, the game ends. The tank's health and weapon strength are carried over to the next stage.

The player is rewarded with a picture of the protagonist after completing each of the first three stages. After all four stages are completed, the player can replay higher difficulty versions of the three tank stages to view a final ending picture.

Weapons

Main
The main weapon. Fires an energy bullet that travels to the end of the screen or until it hits a target. The weapon is fired in whichever direction the tank is facing. It is the longest-ranged weapon and the only one that can be fired in any direction, but it is also the weakest weapon. Up to four bullets can be fired in succession before a cooldown delay.
Sub
Launches a missile a medium distance that damages anything at the end of its trajectory. The missile is capable of passing over targets harmlessly if they are too close. However, it can also fire over barriers such as walls or trees while the tank is behind cover. The tank's turret rotates so that missiles are always launched forwards, which makes it useful for strafing.
Sp. Wp
Shoots an energy bolt a medium distance that explodes and does area damage when it hits. Unlike the missile, it intercepts and hits enemies and barriers that are closer than its full range. Like the missile, the weapon is always fired forwards. Only one shot can be out at a time.

Items

Griffin, Items.png
Item Carrier
Destroy to release an item.
Griffin, Items.png
Power
Upgrades the tank's weapons by one level.
Griffin, Items.png
Energy
Restores part of the tank's energy.
Griffin, Items.png
Bomber
Gives the player an extra bomber strike.
Griffin, Items.png
Credit
Gives the player an extra life.

Stages

Griffin, Stage 1.png

Griffin, Stage 1 Boss.png

Griffin, Stage 1 Picture.png

Stage 1

Griffin, Stage 2.png

Griffin, Stage 2 Boss.png

Griffin, Stage 2 Picture.png

Stage 2

Griffin, Stage 3.png

Griffin, Stage 3 Boss.png

Griffin, Stage 3 Picture.png

Stage 3
This stage is an autoscrolling flying mission where the player controls a jet fighter rather than a tank. The stage is skipped in the second playthrough. Only the main weapon and the secondary bombs are available.

Griffin, Stage 4.png

Griffin, Stage 4 Boss.png

Griffin, Stage 4 Picture.png

Stage 4
The picture for this stage is shown after completing it a second time.

Versions

Localised names

Also known as
Language Localised Name English Translation
Japanese グリフォン Griffin


Magazine articles

Main article: Griffin/Magazine articles.

Promotional material

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Print advert in Beep! MegaDrive (JP) #1991-05: "May 1991" (1991-04-08)
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Print advert in Beep! MegaDrive (JP) #1991-06: "June 1991" (1991-05-08)
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Print advert in Beep! MegaDrive (JP) #1991-07: "July 1991" (1991-06-08)
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Print advert in Beep! MegaDrive (JP) #1991-08: "August 1991" (1991-07-08)
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Physical scans

Sega Retro Average 
Publication Score Source
{{{{{icon}}}|L}} Division by zero.
Based on
0 review
Sega Retro Average 
Publication Version Score
Beep! MegaDrive (JP) NTSC-J
55
[4]
Consoles + (FR)
69
[5]
Console XS (UK) NTSC-J
86
[6]
Games-X (UK)
70
[7]
Game Zone (UK) NTSC-J
47
[8]
Hippon Super (JP) NTSC-J
30
[9]
Joystick (FR)
63
[10]
Power Play (DE)
60
[11]
Sega Pro (UK)
86
[12]
Sega Pro (UK)
85
[13]
Sega Pro (UK) NTSC-J
86
[14]
Sega Saturn Magazine (JP) NTSC-J
67
[15]
Sega Game Gear
67
Based on
12 reviews

Griffin

Game Gear, JP
Griffin JP backcover.jpgNospine-small.pngGriffin JP cover.jpg
Cover
Griffin JP cart.jpg
Cart

Technical information

ROM dump status

System Hash Size Build Date Source Comments
Sega Game Gear
 ?
CRC32 a93e8b0f
MD5 00299a180a9edef575a228a1cef65318
SHA-1 b479d977533398cef21ef9ff7cd8fc81bdbfa488
128kB Cartridge (JP)

External links

References


Griffin

Griffin title.png

Main page | Maps | Hidden content | Magazine articles | Reception


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