Socks the Cat Rocks the House

Socks the Cat Rocks the House
System(s): Sega Mega Drive
Publisher: Kaneko USA
Licensor: Presidential Socks Partnership
Planned release date(s): 1993-11, 1994-03, 1994-04
Genre: Action
Number of players: 1-2

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Socks the Cat Rocks the House, also known by its Super Nintendo name Socks the Cat Rocks the Hill, is an unreleased Sega Mega Drive action platform game developed by an unknown studio and scheduled to be published by Kaneko USA. Starring the titular Socks Clinton (pet cat of 42nd President of the United States Bill Clinton) in an attitude-colored mascot platformer role, it was first advertised for a November 1993 release date, only to be eventually pushed back to March 1994, with the final possibility of a launch the following month being missed entirely.

Story

Socks Clinton was known for his adventurous personality.

“	Socks, the White House cat, discovers the missing portable nuclear missile launch unit in his favorite napping spot, the basement of a foreign embassy. To avoid mass destruction he must return it to the White House and alert the first family. But, a foreign spy ring has their own political agenda. They want to see Socks run, and not for political office! The chase begins. Socks must overcome the likes of foreign spies, Enemy Animal Agents, politicians, secret service agents and the ever-present media corp. To keep the party alive, Socks pounces, tumbles and negotiates his way out of the intricate secret passages and puzzles of Washington. This cat is in a ring of trouble, but not over the hill yet!	„
— Print advertisement

Gameplay

Socks the Cat Rocks the House features straightforward action platform gameplay with light puzzle platforming elements. Socks has the ability to claw at enemies in a basic melee attack, and can later acquire a power up which grants him a simple projectile attack. Overall, more emphasis is placed on the game's political satire than its actual mechanics, under the likely assumption that its star feline and the title's unique premise would be enough to carry its sales.

While the Mega Drive version remains undumped, and was developed by an entirely different company, the two were working off the same shared design document and overall premise, and if released would have resulted in two very similarly-playing games.

History

Main article: Socks the Cat Rocks the House/History.

As one of the Western world's more high-profile unreleased games, Socks the Cat Rocks the House saw a significant amount of investment from Kaneko USA, and is assumed to have neared completion before the publisher's closure caused its late cancellation. Since then, the mascot platformer's unique history has provided the gaming community with a particular amount of intrigue over its content and current whereabouts.

Physical scans

Mega Drive, US (prototype)
Cover

Magazine articles

Main article: Socks the Cat Rocks the House/Magazine articles.

Promotional material

Print advert in GamePro (US) #51: "October 1993" (1993-xx-xx)
also published in:

• GamePro (US) #54: "January 1994" (199x-xx-xx)

Socks, along with other Kaneko USA mascots, appear on the cover of Playthings magazine, June 1992.

Kaneko USA's invitation for their Summer CES 1993 announcements and cocktail party.

External links

• Socks the Cat Rocks the House article by Evan G. at Snes Central

References

Socks the Cat Rocks the House
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