Viewpoint

For the unreleased Sega Saturn version, see Viewpoint (Saturn).

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Viewpoint
System(s): Sega Mega Drive
Publisher: American Sammy
Developer: Nexus Interact
Original system(s): Neo Geo MVS, Neo Geo AES
Developer(s) of original games: Aicom
Sound driver: SMPS Z80 (banked)
Genre: Shoot-'em-up
Number of players: 1-2
Release Date RRP Code US 1994-11 T-24096
Non-Sega versions Arcade FM Towns Neo Geo Neo Geo CD PlayStation X68000

Viewpoint is a Sega Mega Drive shoot-'em-up game developed by Nexus Interact and published by Sammy. A port of the titular 1992 Aicom arcade game Viewpoint, it was released exclusively in the United States in November 1994.

The game uses an isometric perspective, similar to Zaxxon. It has an eclectic soundtrack influenced by funk, hip-hop, jazz, and dance music.

Gameplay

The game is an autoscrolling shoot-'em-up that takes place in a series of isometrically projected corridors filled with enemies. The player controls a plane called the Byupo and can move around the screen freely using the D-Pad. The direction of movement is relative to the perspective of the player rather than the ship, so, for example, pressing moves up on the screen rather than forward across the field. The play field is somewhat larger than the viewable area and pans over if the player tries to move past the left or right edge of the screen.

The Byupo has a standard weapon that shoots a single shot with . There is no rapid-fire; instead, holding charges the weapon for a stronger shot. The charged shot has three levels depending on how long it is charged and can penetrate multiple enemies in a line. If the player collects an Option item, the Byupo is accompanied by two satellite drones that augment its standard weapon with their own shots (though not the charged shot) and protect against some missile attacks. There are also special bombs that can be fired with or . There are three different types, and the Byupo can hold as many as three. Bombs are used from left to right, as displayed in the HUD. The player starts the game with a full complement of three bombs, one of each, and can collect more from item pick-ups throughout the stages. If the player already has three bombs and picks up another, the oldest of the existing bombs is replaced.

Like other shoot-'em-ups, stages are linear and involve fending off enemies as they stream in. However, there are relatively fewer enemies than other shooters and the game emphasizes slower-paced segments based around navigating through obstacles. There are hidden warp zones that allow the player to skip the rest of a stage.

The Byupo is destroyed if it is hit by an enemy or by enemy fire, though it is not harmed by touching walls. The player can continue from a predetermined checkpoint if there are extra lives remaining. Extra lives are granted when certain amounts of points are earned (50,000 points initially and then every 30,000 points after that) and can also be found as items. If the player loses a life with no more lives remaining, the game ends, but it can be continued from the start of the stage.

Before starting the game, the player can choose a difficulty level (Easy, Normal, and Hard) and how many lives to start with (3 or 5). The game also has a two-player mode where the players take turns (rather than playing simultaneously) with separate controllers.

Items

Items appear on the play field and can be collected by flying over them. They are sometimes contained in pods that must be destroyed to release them.

	Option
	Augments the Byupo with two drones that fire simultaneously with the ship's main weapon. Options are invulnerable and can also be used to ram enemies.
	Barrier
	Surrounds the Byupo in a barrier that protects it from several enemy hits before disappearing.
	Bonus
	Awards the player with bonus points.
	1-Up
	Awards the player with an extra life.
	Bomb
	Bombs contained in pods have a marble-like appearance.

Bombs

	Fire Bomb
	Creates walls of fire in front of the ship that roll up the screen, destroying enemies and projectiles.
	Homing Bomb
	Shoots several missiles that home in on targets. This is the only bomb that cannot destroy enemy projectiles.
	Shockwave Bomb
	Creates a circular, nova-like blast that destroys all enemies and projectiles caught in it.

Stages

	Stage 1
	Stage 2
	Stage 3
	Stage 4
	Stage 5
	The player faces the bosses of the previous stages in addition to a new boss, interspersed with sections of fire worms and turrets.
	Stage 6

History

Legacy

A sequel called Viewpoint 2064 was in development for the Nintendo 64 but never released.

An enemy ship resembling the Byupo and having a similar charged shot appears in the isometric shoot-'em-up Zaxxon's Motherbase 2000 for the Sega 32X. It can be taken over and controlled by the player.

The game was included in the Mega Drive Mini 2 in 2022. This is the first official release of the Mega Drive port of the game in Japan and Europe.

Production credits

Original Staff

• Game Design: Nenko, Morii, Terasaka, Mokichi, Akahoushi, Run
• Program: S.Kinjo, M.Tani
• Sound: Sizlla, Masaki Kase, Megumi M.
• Polygonizer: N.Yamaguchi
• Graphic: Ashin, H.Takeuchi, Yuri Tomura, Maxma, Miyaki, Ken Katoku, Chirico
• BG: H.T, K.Nishithuka
• Special Thanks: Ueno, Nao Yuki, Wakker, Takano, S.Sato, Asc

Genesis Staff

• Nexus Interact: Emuta, Chikako.K, M.Asakawa, Fukurou, Hyoh.A, Nashi, Kani
• Genesis Producer: Kiyoshi Fujii

Source:

In-game credits

Digital manuals

• 

  Mega Drive Mini 2 US manual

• 

  Mega Drive Mini 2 EU manual

• 

  Mega Drive Mini 2 JP manual

Magazine articles

Main article: Viewpoint/Magazine articles.

Promotional material

Mega Drive print advert in EGM² (US) #1: "July 1994" (1994-07-19)

Mega Drive print advert in GamePro (US) #64: "November 1994" (1994-xx-xx)
also published in:

• EGM² (US) #5: "November 1994" (1994-1x-xx)
• Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) #65: "December 1994" (1994-xx-xx)
• Sega Visions (US) #22: "December/January 1994/1995" (1994-xx-xx)
• GamePro (US) #66: "January 1995" (199x-xx-xx)

Saturn print advert in Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) #77: "December 1995" (1995-xx-xx)
also published in:

• Tips & Tricks (US) #11: "Volume III, Issue 1: January 1996" (199x-xx-xx)

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) 60 Consoles + (FR) NTSC-U 90 Computer + Video Giochi (IT) 85 Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) NTSC-U 70 GameFan (US) NTSC-U 84 GamePro (US) NTSC-U 60 Game Informer (US) NTSC-U 67 Joypad (FR) 85 MAN!AC (DE) NTSC-U 54 Mega Fun (DE) NTSC-U 60 Next Generation (US) NTSC-U 50 Sega Power (UK) NTSC-U 85 Tricks 16 bit (RU) 66 Video Games (DE) PAL 70

	70
Based on 14 reviews

Viewpoint

Mega Drive, US
Cover
Cart Manual

Technical information

ROM dump status

System	Hash	Size	Build Date	Source	Comments
✔	CRC32 59c71866 MD5 8cd197ae13fa8b4e93cc109502db957b SHA-1 f25f770464448da4e49eab3832100ba480c9844a	2MB	1994-07	Cartridge (US)
?	CRC32 d13fb892 MD5 8222823032b0e893768033e15ca319c7 SHA-1 ad6234d588bd3aa44a020633e6ec9020795bfa7e	4MB	1994-07-22	EPROM cartridge				Page