Fatal Rewind
From Sega Retro
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Fatal Rewind | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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System(s): Sega Mega Drive | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Publisher: Electronic Arts (US, EU), Electronic Arts Victor (JP) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Developer: Raising Hell Software | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Distributor: Tec Toy (BR) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Licensor: Psygnosis | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Original system(s): Commodore Amiga | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sound driver: Sound Images v1.0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Genre: Shooting[1], Action[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Number of players: 1-2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Fatal Rewind, known in Japan as The Killing Game Show (キリング・ゲームショー) is a Sega Mega Drive action platform game developed by Raising Hell Software. A port of the developer's 1990 Commodore Amiga title The Killing Game Show, the game was first published in the United States by Electronic Arts in October 1991, was brought to Europe by the same publisher the following month, and was eventually localized and published in Japan by Electronic Arts Victor in August 1993.
Contents
Story
In a dystopian future, Fatal Rewind (or The Killing Game Show) is a television show where incarcerated criminals participate in a deadly contest. Their skin is removed and they are placed inside a bipedal robot armed with a cannon. The prisoners must escape from pits filled with killing machines called Hostile Artificial Life Forms (HALFs) and a lethal ooze that rises over time called Deadly to Organic Life Liquid (DOLL). If successful, the prisoner is awarded with freedom; if the prisoner dies, the show moves on to the next contestant.
Gameplay
The game is an action platformer. The player controls a walking robot equipped with a cannon that must make its way through a dozen maze-like levels to the exit at the top. Flying enemies called HALFs are released into the levels and swarm the player in waves, like enemies in a shoot-'em-up. Every level has a time limit, which is enforced by a constantly rising liquid called DOLL that destroys the robot on contact. Levels often require the player to find keys or hit buttons to unlock barriers or drop climbable chains in order to progress.
The robot moves with and and ducks with . Levels loop around horizontally. It jumps with or . It automatically grabs walls that it touches and can climb them with and . It fires its weapon with , which can be used to attack enemies or to push buttons. Its main weapon only fires a short distance forward and has unlimited ammunition, but the player can find special weapons that do more damage or cover more area but have limited supply. Weapons can be fired while jumping or ducking. The player can find special items in the levels such as energy refills or water freezer that temporarily keeps the DOLL from rising. Only one of these items can be held in reserve at a time, and it can be used by holding .
The robot has limited energy, which is loses when an enemy or hazard touches it. It is destroyed when energy is exhausted. Touching the DOLL instantly destroys the robot. Every level starts with a countdown timer before the DOLL starts rising. After losing a life, the game replays the player's gameplay. The replay can be fast-forwarded by holding . Pressing any other button stops the replay and continues playing from that point on a new life.
There are three difficulty levels (Normal, Hard, and Hardest), and the player can set the starting number of lives (between 1 and 9) and credits (between 0 and 9). There is an alternating two-player mode where the players take turns.
Items
Items are found in destructible containers, then picked up by pressing when in front of them. The robot has a slot for a weapon and a slot for a tool item. Collecting another weapon or tool replaces the one already in the slot and drops the old one on the ground to collect again if desired.
Weapons
Special weapons are limited use.
Triple Lasers | |
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Shoots a conical spreadshot of bullets that are the same as the standard bullets. | |
Missiles | |
Launches a single missile that does more damage and travels the full width of the screen. | |
Sky Missiles | |
Launches two missiles, one straight ahead and one diagonally upward, that do more damage and travel the full width of the screen. | |
Laser | |
Fires a laser beam that pierces through multiple targets and travels the full width of the screen. | |
Side Shot | |
Augments the standard shot with two additional shots directly upward and downward. | |
Mine Sweeper | |
Fires a rectangular laser that pierces through multiple targets and travels the full width of the screen. | |
Laser Bolt | |
Fires two stacked lasers that pierce through multiple targets and travel the full width of the screen. | |
Rear Shot | |
Augments the standard shot with an additional shot in the opposite direction. | |
Triple Missiles | |
Launches three missiles in a conical spread that do more damage and travel the full width of the screen. |
Tools
Other
Flying Heart | |
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Recovers a small amount of energy. Appears after destroying a full wave of flying enemies. | |
Flying Skull | |
Costs a small amount of energy. Sometimes appears instead of a Flying Heart after destroying a full wave of flying enemies in the later levels. | |
Diamond | |
Collect for bonus points. |
Levels
Each level has two separate parts.
Versions
The Amiga original featured 8 worlds with two levels each. This has been cut down to 6 worlds with 2 levels each. As the cut worlds did not feature anything that would not have been possible on the Sega Mega Drive hardware, they were likely cut due to ROM size or cost restrictions. Liquids are reflective in the Amiga original. The effect was not reproduced for this port (possibly due to technical limitations). The Amiga version also has a map feature that is absent from this port.
Localised names
Language | Localised Name | English Translation |
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English | Fatal Rewind | Fatal Rewind |
English (US) | Fatal Rewind | Fatal Rewind |
Japanese | キリング・ゲームショー | The Killing Game Show |
Production credits
- Programming and Design: Martyn R Chudley
- Artwork: Martyn R Chudley, Jim Bowers, Jeff Bramfitt and Pete Lyon
- Music and FX: Sound Images
- Special Thanks to: Ian Hetherington, John White, Steve Riding, Nick Burcombe, Chris Stanley, Chris Wylie, Mike Waterworth, Garvan Corbett, Paul Frewin, Dave Worral, Sharon, Lorraine, Chris, Rob, Wayne Smithson and Keith Francart
- Design and Programming: Martyn R. Chudley
- Art: Martyn R. Chudley, Jeff Bramfitt, Jim Bowers, Pete Lyon
- Producer: Keith Francart
- Technical Director: Dominique Philipine
- Sounds and Music: Sound Images
- Product Management: Chip Lange, Lesley Mansford
- Package Design: Lance Anderson
- Cover Illustration: Roger Dean (Yes, THAT Roger Dean)
- Documentation: Marti McKenna
- Documentation Layout: Chandler Briggs
- Manual Illustrations: Adrian Bourne
- Testing: Gerald McLane
- Quality Assurance: Tim LeTourneau, Kevin C. Hogan
Magazine articles
- Main article: Fatal Rewind/Magazine articles.
Promotional material
Physical scans
73 | |
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Based on 35 reviews |
Mega Drive, SE (Rental) |
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Technical information
- Main article: Fatal Rewind/Technical information.
ROM dump status
System | Hash | Size | Build Date | Source | Comments | |||||||||
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✔ |
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512kB | 1991-09 | Cartridge (US/EU) | ||||||||||
? |
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512kB | 1991-09 | Prototype? | ||||||||||
✔ |
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1MB | 1993 | Cartridge (JP) |
References
- ↑ File:FatalRewind MD JP Box.jpg
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 https://sega.jp/history/hard/megadrive/software_l.html (Wayback Machine: 2020-07-02 23:21)
- ↑ GamePro, "October 1991" (US; 1991-xx-xx), page 80
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 GamePro, "December 1991" (US; 1991-xx-xx), page 74
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 VideoGames & Computer Entertainment, "December 1991" (US; 1991-1x-xx), page 72
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Sega Power, "December 1991" (UK; 1991-10-30), page 11
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Game Zone, "December 1991" (UK; 1991-11-22), page 42
- ↑ Computer Trade Weekly, "" (UK; 1991-10-21), page 21
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 ACE, "December 1991" (UK; 1991-11-08), page 101
- ↑ File:Fatal Rewind MD credits.pdf
- ↑ File:Fatal Rewind MD US Manual.pdf, page 17
- ↑ 1700 igr dlya Sega, "" (RU; 2001-xx-xx), page 79
- ↑ 1700 igr dlya Sega, "" (RU; 2001-xx-xx), page 156
- ↑ Beep! MegaDrive, "September 1993" (JP; 1993-08-07), page 22
- ↑ Console XS, "June/July 1992" (UK; 1992-04-23), page 129
- ↑ Cool Gamer, "9" (RU; 2002-10-13), page 84
- ↑ Mean Machines: The Essential Sega Guide, "" (UK; 1993-11-18), page 45
- ↑ Famitsu, "1993-08-20,27" (JP; 1993-08-06), page 38
- ↑ Game Mania, "May 1993" (UK; 1993-xx-xx), page 80
- ↑ Game Power, "Marzo 1992" (IT; 1992-0x-xx), page 60
- ↑ Games-X, "24th-30th October 1991" (UK; 1991-10-24), page 34
- ↑ Hippon Super, "September 1993" (JP; 1993-08-03), page 49
- ↑ Hobby Consolas, "Abril 1992" (ES; 1992-0x-xx), page 156
- ↑ Joypad, "Décembre 1991" (FR; 1991-11-19), page 84
- ↑ Joystick, "Novembre 1991" (FR; 1991-1x-xx), page 180
- ↑ Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming, "January 1993" (UK; 199x-xx-xx), page 91
- ↑ Mega, "January 1994" (UK; 1993-12-16), page 87
- ↑ Mega Force, "Novembre 1991" (FR; 1991-11-19), page 76
- ↑ MegaTech, "Xmas 1991" (UK; 1991-12-06), page 77
- ↑ Micromanía (segunda época), "Febrero 1992" (ES; 1992-0x-xx), page 30
- ↑ Mean Machines, "November 1991" (UK; 1991-10-29), page 80
- ↑ Mean Machines Sega, "October 1992" (UK; 1992-09-xx), page 138
- ↑ Player One, "Novembre 1991" (FR; 1991-xx-xx), page 82
- ↑ Power Play, "1/92" (DE; 1991-12-11), page 183
- ↑ Sega Power, "January 1992" (UK; 1991-12-05), page 34
- ↑ Sega Pro, "December 1991" (UK; 1991-11-21), page 54
- ↑ Sega Pro, "April 1993" (UK; 1993-03-11), page 65
- ↑ Svet Kompjutera, "Jul-Avgust 1996" (YU; 1996-xx-xx), page 86
- ↑ Sega Saturn Magazine, "September 1995" (JP; 1995-08-08), page 87
- ↑ Supergame, "Agosto 1992" (BR; 1992-08-xx), page 34
- ↑ Tricks 16 bit, "Tricks Sega Gold 800 igr" (RU; 1998-03-20), page 71
- ↑ Video Games, "4/91" (DE; 1991-12-06), page 28
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