Kid Chameleon

n/a

NTSC-U/PAL (Red Stealth) NTSC-J (Red Stealth) NTSC-U/PAL (Maniaxe) NTSC-J (Maniaxe) NTSC-U/PAL (Juggernaut) NTSC-J (Juggernaut)
Kid Chameleon
System(s): Sega Mega Drive, Mega-Tech System, Virtual Console, Steam, RealOne Arcade, iOS, Android, Nintendo Switch Online
Publisher: Sega Enterprises, Ltd. (JP, EU) Sega of America (US) Sega Corporation Sega Corporation
Developer: Sega Technical Institute M2
Supporting companies: Nu Romantic Productions (audio)
Distributor: Ecofilmes (PT) Tec Toy (BR) Samsung (KR)
Sound driver: GEMS
Genre: Action
Number of players: 1-2
Release Date RRP Code JP 1992-05-29 ¥6,8006,800 G-4070 US 1992-03 $59.9559.95 1010 US ▼ (Sega Channel) 1994-06-01 SUBsub EU 1992-05 1010 PT 199x MDJ1010 UK 1992-05 £39.9939.99 1010 SE (Rental) 199x AU 199x CA 199x BR 1992-06 KR 199x GM8036JG AS 199x UK 199x £? ? JP ▼ 2007-05-22 600pts600 US ▼ 2007-05-28 800pts800 EU ▼ 2007-06-01 800pts800 AU ▼ 2007-06 500pts500 US ▼ 2003-09-18 US ▼ 2010-09-13 $2.992.99 34311 EU ▼ 2010-09-13 €2.492.49 34311 UK ▼ 2010-09-13 £1.991.99 34311 AU ▼ 2010-09-13 $3.493.49 34311 US ▼ 2019-02-01 $0.990.99 34311 EU ▼ 2019-02-01 €0.990.99 34311 UK ▼ 2019-02-01 £0.790.79 34311 AU ▼ 2019-02-01 $1.351.35 34311 US ▼ 2019-02-01 $0.990.99 34311 EU ▼ 2019-02-01 €0.990.99 34311 UK ▼ 2019-02-01 £0.790.79 34311 AU ▼ 2019-02-01 $1.351.35 34311 US ▼ (Sega Forever) 2017-06-21 FREEfree EU ▼ (Sega Forever) 2017-06-21 FREEfree DE ▼ (Sega Forever) 2017-06-21 FREEfree AU ▼ (Sega Forever) 2017-06-21 FREEfree US ▼ (Sega Forever) 2017-06-21 FREEfree 9+ EU ▼ (Sega Forever) 2017-06-21 FREEfree 9+ JP ▼ 2023-04-19 SUBsub US ▼ 2023-04-18 SUBsub EU ▼ 2023-04-19 SUBsub UK ▼ 2023-04-19 SUBsub AU ▼ 2023-04-19 SUBsub
ESRA

Kid Chameleon, called Chameleon Kid (カメレオンキッド) in Japan, is a platform game released for the Sega Mega Drive in 1992. The premise of the game is that the main character, "Kid Chameleon," can use masks to change into different characters to use different abilities.

Story

Wildside

A new virtual reality arcade game arrived in town and every kid played it. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary until kids began to disappear. The game's boss, Heady Metal, had freed himself from his scripted AI and was using his new freedom to kidnap every kid who could not beat the game, which was all of them...until now! Kid Chameleon enters the game and must defeat every level, every boss, and Heady Metal himself if he wants to save the others.

Gameplay

The game is a platform game played as Kid Chameleon, who progresses through a series of levels in a "virtual reality" world to rescue kids captured by a rogue artificial intelligence. Most levels contain a flag, which is the primary goal of each level, from which the player progresses to the next level. However, a number of telepads throughout the game can warp the player not only to different places in the same level, but also to different levels, and sometimes to an entirely different path through the game. At the end of the game, Kid fights and defeats the final boss, Heady Metal.

Kid Chameleon contains 103 levels, of which only about half are on the "main path" (traversing levels only by flags). Thirty-two of these 103 levels are smaller, unnamed levels simply called "Elsewhere." Despite the game's considerable length, there is no password system or other method of saving the game (though re-releases, such as the Sega Mega Drive Collection, Virtual Console service, and the Mega Drive Mini, allow players to use save states to save their progress mid-game).

As Kid Chameleon moves through the game's levels, he gains access to masks that transform him into different characters. Each character has different special abilities and varying amounts of hit points. Collecting a mask that Kid Chameleon is already wearing restores its health. In addition to the offensive abilities of each form, the Kid can also defeat enemies by jumping on them, although he may take damage from some enemies by doing so. There are several bonuses that can be earned at the end of certain levels (in which the flag is touched), including beating a time limit, not getting hit and not collecting any prizes.

Kid Chameleon moves with or . He runs by holding (though there is an option to run by default and walk slower by holding instead). He ducks with and crawls with or . Some transformations have weapons that are used with . Each form can also make use of Diamond Powers that require diamonds collected in the game to use. These abilities are used by pressing + START . Most forms have two Diamond Powers, one that is used when the player has between 20 and 49 diamonds and one that is used when the player has more than 50 diamonds.

Players lose a life if Kid Chameleon loses all of his hit points in human form, if he is crushed, falls into a bottomless pit or lava, touches the drill wall that appears in certain levels, or if time runs out. Losing all of his hit points while wearing a transformation mask morphs him back into his Kid Chameleon form. The game ends if the player runs out of lives, but there are a limited number of continues available. Extra lives and continues can be found in the game, with additional lives awarded for every 50,000 points.

The game has an alternating two-player mode where the players share a control pad or use separate control pads (depending on the option selected).

Characters

The Kid Chameleon form has 2 hit points. The Iron Knight has 5 hit points. All other transformations have 3 hit points.

	Kid Chameleon
	The normal form of Kid Chameleon. If Kid runs out of hit points while wearing any other mask, he reverts to this form. If Kid runs out of hit points in this form, he dies. In this form, he can grab onto ledges to pull himself up. His Diamond Powers are the Circle of Doom (costs 20 diamonds), which surrounds him in a circle of diamonds that kills any enemy it touches, and the Death Snake (costs 50 diamonds), which is a snake made out of diamonds that seeks out enemies to kill.
	Iron Knight
	The Iron Knight wears a knight's helm. He is the most durable character, able to take more hits than any other character. He has the ability to scale vertical walls by pressing . He is heavy enough to break through some floors. His Diamond Powers are the Circle of Doom (costs 20 diamonds), which surrounds him in a circle of diamonds that kills any enemy it touches, and the Extra Hit Point (costs 50 diamonds), which gives him another hit point that last until he loses a life.
	Red Stealth
	Red Stealth wears a kabuto. He is a samurai who can defeat enemies and break through some floors with his katana. He is very agile and able to move faster and jump higher and further than the other transformations. His Diamond Powers are the Samurai Haze (costs 20 diamonds), which slows down all enemies, and the Death Snake (costs 50 diamonds), which is a snake made out of diamonds that seeks out enemies to kill.
	Berzerker
	Berzerker wears a horned helmet. He can use his horns to charge through walls or foes while running. His Diamond Powers are Invulnerability (costs 20 diamonds), which renders him invulnerable to harm, and the Wall of Death (costs 50 diamonds), which is a wall of diamonds that sweeps across the screen and destroys any enemies it touches.
	Maniaxe
	Maniaxe wears a hockey mask, like Jason Voorhees. He throws an unlimited supply of axes. His Diamond Powers are the Circle of Death (costs 20 diamonds), which surrounds him in a circle of diamonds that kills any enemy it touches, and Extra Life (costs 50 diamonds), which gives the player an extra life.
	Juggernaut
	Juggernaut wears a skull mask and drives a wide tank. He can shoot skull bombs. His Diamond Power is the 5-Way Shot (costs 5 diamonds per shot), which shoots five diamonds out in different directions.
	MicroMax
	MicroMax has a fly head. He is half the size of the other transformations and able to fit in small places. He can also cling to walls. However, he is slower and jumps lower. His Diamond Powers are the Mini-Snake (costs 20 diamonds), which is a snake made out of diamonds that seeks out enemies to kill, and the Swift Mini-Snake (costs 50 diamonds), which is like the Mini-Snake but faster.
	EyeClops
	EyeClops wears a futuristic visor. He has a ray beam that can temporarily reveal hidden blocks. His Diamond Power is the Fatal Beam (costs 2 diamonds per shot), which is a beam that harms any enemies it shines on.
	Skycutter
	Skycutter wears a skating helmet. He rides on a hoverboard and can flip gravity upside down with + or flip it back around with . He has the quickest movement, but the player cannot stop moving in this form. His Diamond Powers are Invulnerability (costs 20 diamonds), which renders him invulnerable to harm, and the Death Snake (costs 50 diamonds), which is a snake made out of diamonds that seeks out enemies to kill.
	Cyclone
	Cyclone wears a winged helmet. He is a superhero who can fly by spinning like a tornado. His Diamond Powers are the Slashing Rain (costs 20 diamonds), which causes diamonds to rain from the top of the screen and destroy any enemies that they touch, and the Tracking Rain (costs 50 diamonds), which causes diamonds to rain from the top of the screen that seek out and destroy enemies.

Blocks

All blocks act as platforms and can be stood upon (with the exception of Drill Blocks when they have a drill extended).

	Prize Block
	Drops an item or a helmet when hit, leaving a Rock Block in its place.
	Rock Block
	Destructible. The most commonly found block.
	Iron Block
	Indestructible. Berzerker can push them.
	Rubber Block
	Indestructible and immovable. They function as "bouncers," the height of the ascent depending on the height from which Kid landed on them. They also repel movement from other directions.
	Ice Block
	Slippery and makes maneuverability hard. When broken, they shoot ice in the opposite direction from which they were broken (for example, Ice Blocks broken from beneath shoot icicles upward).
	Vanishing Block
	Disappear when they are touched.
	Cannon Block
	Same as a Vanishing Block but shoots one or more spikes in the directions marked on it. These spikes can destroy any destructible block. They are often used in conjunction with other Cannon Blocks to form a chain reaction, often clearing paths for the player.
	Shifting Block
	Moves upward when hit.
	Drill Block
	Same as an Iron Block but with harmful drills that come out of one or more sides when Kid is in close proximity.
	Mushroom Block
	Disappears when hit from beneath and spawns as many as three additional mushroom blocks above them.
	Ghost Block
	Phases in and out of existence.
	Elevator Block
	When hit, a countdown starts at 9. After reaching 0, the platform on the block shoots upwards.

Items

	Helmet
	Transforms Kid Chameleon into another form.
	Diamond
	These are collectables that increase Kid's Diamond Power. They differ in color depending on the stage in which they are found but function identically. Kid can use powers at a cost of 20 or 50 diamonds (with the exception of Juggernaut and EyeClops, which have attacks costing 5 and 2 diamonds respectively), and they are activated by holding + START .
	Clock
	Gives the player another 3 minutes of time (up to a maximum of 9:59).
	Life
	Gives the player an extra life.
	Coin
	Gives the player an extra continue.

Drill wall

Drill wall

There are three levels throughout the game (starting with Hills of the Warrior 1) that feature a giant, metal wall covered in drills and augers that sweeps across the screen at a steady pace. These levels require the player to navigate and exit the map as quickly as possible, as coming in contact with the wall instantly kills Kid. These levels have a unique music theme, which becomes useful in identifying the danger early on. The drill wall in Hills of the Warrior 1 moves slower than in other levels.

It is possible to avoid two of these levels entirely, depending on the "route" taken through the level progression; the first one being unavoidable unless the player uses what is known as 100k points trip to skip almost half of the game.

History

Development

During development the game was known as Dylan Charles: A.K.A. The Chameleon.

One of Kid Chameleon's most famous cheat codes is actually the result of miscommunication between programmers. During development, programmers Steve Woita and BichCau Le added a cheat code that would allow players to go straight to the credits screen. Designer Hoyt Ng was unaware of this cheat when he added another level, changing the level counter and making the code activate Plethora's stage instead of the end credits.

Release

Kid Chameleon was at one point set to be the first Sega game to be released in all major territories simultaneously.

Legacy

The game is also a part of Sega Mega Drive Collection for the PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable. It was released for the Wii's Virtual Console in Japan on 22 May 2007, North America on 28 May 2007 and Europe on 1 June 2007. It was also released in addition to a series of other Sega games, including Shining Force and Comix Zone, in Sega Smash Pack 2. It was also included in later compilations like Ultimate Mega Drive Collection for Xbox 360 and PS3, Sega Mega Drive Classics for Xbox One, PS4 and Nintendo Switch, and Nintendo Switch Online service's Mega Drive/Genesis games.

Level editing has been made possible with the release of K-E. K-E allows maps to be extracted from the Mega Drive ROM, modified, and imported back into the game for play. Up to 126 levels can be used in the game.

Comic adaptation

In August 1993, Kid Chameleon gained his own comic strip in the new Fleetway publication Sonic the Comic. The first strip, simply named "Kid Chameleon", ran from issue #7 to issue #12 and featured Casey entering the Wildside to rescue his friend Suzy, with a disembodied presence known as The Voice giving him advice and encouragement. Through each issue he changed into one of the different personas (Red Stealth, EyeClops, Micromax, Berzerker, and finally Iron Knight) before his Chameleon powers ran out and he had to take down a powerful enemy as his normal self. While he & Suzy escaped Wildside, the story ended with Casey discovering local school bully Brad was also trapped in Wildside.

In issues #54-#59 in story arc "Back to Unreality!" he returned again to rescue Brad, this time turning into Skycutter, Berzerker, Maniaxe, and Cyclone. Here he discovered that The Voice had a more sinister agenda and was keeping children from all over the world prisoner in the Islecatraz gulag, using Brad as warden. Casey, as Cyclone, destroyed Islecatraz and freed everyone from Wildside, but when it became clear only one more person could escape, Brad sacrificed himself as penance for his sins so Casey could escape. The ending was ambiguous, with a showdown being threatened between Casey and The Voice, and fueled speculation that a third strip was imminent. Fleetway did not produce any more, however, and the story, like almost every non-Sonic strip, remains unresolved.

Versions

The game is known to have two different ROMS, one for US/EU and one for JP. The US/EU one works on all systems. The JP one appears to be region locked not to run on US system, showing only black screen. It appears to work fine on EU system however. The title screen had words swapped to form the new Chameleon Kid title. The color of purple stripes at title screen when Kid Chameleon transforms into Juggernaut was changed to pink color. Neither of the two versions was optimized for PAL format. Both gameplay speed and music play slower than intended.

Localised names

Also known as

Language	Localised Name	English Translation
English	Kid Chameleon	Kid Chameleon
English (US)	Kid Chameleon	Kid Chameleon
Japanese	カメレオンキッド	Chameleon Kid

Version history

Main article: Kid Chameleon/Changelog.

System	Version	Size	Date	Comment	Ref	Icon
	0000040000010000000000000000004.1.0	146.5MB	201912122019-12-12
	0000020000000000020000000000002.0.2		201906032019-06-03
	0000020000000000000000000000002.0.0		201902042019-02-04
	0000010000020000020000000000001.2.2	140.8MB	201810312018-10-31
	0000010000020000010000000000001.2.1	134.5MB	201808062018-08-06
	0000010000010000020000000000001.1.2	179MB	201710092017-10-09
	0000010000010000010000000000001.1.1	177MB	201709252017-09-25
	0000010000010000000000000000001.1.0	177MB	201709132017-09-13
	0000010000000000040000000000001.0.4	162MB	201707132017-07-13
	0000010000000000030000000000001.0.3	162MB	201706292017-06-29
	0000010000000000020000000000001.0.2	162MB	201706222017-06-22
	0000010000000000010000000000001.0.1	154.39MB	201706212017-06-21
	0000020000000000010000000000002.0.1	45MB	201906032019-06-03				(info) (45.26 MB)
	0000020000000000000000000000002.0.0	44MB	201902042019-02-04				(info) (44.44 MB)
	0000010000020000020000000000001.2.2	44MB	201810312018-10-31				(info) (43.75 MB)
	0000010000020000010000000000001.2.1	42MB	201709262017-09-26				(info) (41.73 MB)
	0000010000010000010000000000001.1.1	48MB	201709262017-09-26				(info) (48.15 MB)
	0000010000010000000000000000001.1.0	48MB	201709132017-09-13				(info) (48.18 MB)
	0000010000000000050000000000001.0.5	45MB	201707132017-07-13				(info) (45.3 MB)
	0000010000000000030000000000001.0.3	47MB	201706292017-06-29				(info) (47.09 MB)
	0000010000000000020000000000001.0.2	47MB	201706222017-06-22				(info) (47.09 MB)
	0000010000000000010000000000001.0.1	47MB	201706212017-06-21				(info) (47.1 MB)

Downloadable content

Main article: Kid Chameleon/Downloadable content.

Production credits

• Game Design: Hoyt Ng, Broderick Macaraeg, William G. Dunn, Graeme Bayless
• Programming & Software: B. C. Tchiu Le, Bill Willis, Steve Woita, Mark Cerny
• Art: Craig Stitt, Alan Ackerman, Judy Totoya, Brenda Ross, Paul Mica
• Sound: Nu Romantic Production
• Special Thanks: Scott Chandler, Hugh Bowen, Haven Dubrul, Test Group
• Created by: Sega Technical Institute
• Presented by: Sega & Sega of America

Source:

In-game credits

---

• Software: Mark Cerny, BichCay Le, Bill Willis, Steve Woita
• Game Design: Graeme Bayless, Bill Dunn, Rick Macaraeg, Hoyt Ng
• Art: Alan Ackerman, Paul Mica, Brenda Ross, Craig Stitt, Judy Totoya,
• Sound: NuRomantic Productions
• Special Thanks: Haven Carter, Scott Chandler, Hugh Bowen, The Test Group, Hanshaw Ink

Source:

US manual

---

• Japanese cover artist: Sega Consumer Design Development Dept. (Mari Koizumi)

Source:

Sega TV Game Genga Gallery

File:Sega TV Game Genga Gallery.pdf

Digital manuals

• 

  Steam manual

• 

  Mega Drive Mini US manual

• 

  Mega Drive Mini EU manual

Magazine articles

Main article: Kid Chameleon/Magazine articles.

Promotional material

File:Kid Chameleon MD US TVAdvert.mp4

US TV advert

File:Kid Chameleon MD US TVAdvert.mp4

IT print advert (1992)

Print advert in GamePro (US) #34: "May 1992" (1992-xx-xx)

Print advert in Mega Force (ES) #1: "Mayo 1992" (1992-xx-xx)
also published in:

• Mega Force (ES) #2: "Junio 1992" (1992-xx-xx)
• Mega Force (ES) #3: "Julio 1992" (1992-xx-xx)

Print advert in Beep! MegaDrive (JP) #1992-06: "June 1992" (1992-05-08)

Print advert in Sega Force (SE) #1992-02: "2/92" (1992-11-19)
also published in:

• Sega Force (SE) #1993-01: "1/93" (1993-01-14)

Artwork

• 

  Sega Forever icon

• 

Physical scans

Mega Drive version

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 Beep! MegaDrive (JP) NTSC-J 70 Consoles + (FR) 93 Console XS (UK) PAL 89 Computer & Video Games (UK) 80 Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) NTSC-U 75 Mean Machines: The Essential Sega Guide (UK) 78 Famitsu (JP) NTSC-J 63 Game Power (IT) 91 GamePro (US) NTSC-U 88 Games-X (UK) 90 Génération 4 (FR) 91 Game Informer (US) NTSC-U 90 Hippon Super (JP) NTSC-J 70 Hobby Consolas (ES) 94 Joypad (FR) PAL 96 Joystick (FR) NTSC-U 93 Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming (UK) 81 Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming (UK) PAL 81 Mega Drive Fan (JP) NTSC-J 70 Mega (UK) PAL 81 Mega Force (FR) 70 Mega Fun (DE) PAL 81 Mega Play (US) NTSC-U 75 MegaTech (UK) PAL 64 Mean Machines (UK) 78 Mean Machines Sega (UK) 78 Player One (FR) 92 Play Time (DE) 49 Power Up! (UK) 88 Power Play (DE) 66 Sega Power (UK) PAL 80 Sega Pro (UK) NTSC-U 89 Sega Pro (UK) PAL 82 Sega Force (SE) 80 Sega Force (UK) 82 Sega Mega Drive Review (RU) 72 Sega Saturn Magazine (JP) NTSC-J 61 Supergame (BR) 85 Supersonic (FR) 91 Tricks 16 bit (RU) 79 User (GR) PAL 89 VideoGames & Computer Entertainment (US) NTSC-U 70 Video Games (DE) 68

	79
Based on 44 reviews

Kid Chameleon

Mega Drive, JP
Cover
Cart Manual PCB

Mega Drive, US
Cover
Cart Manual

Mega Drive, EU
Cover
Cart Manual PCB

Mega Drive, UK
Cover
Cart Manual

Mega Drive, FR
Manual

Mega Drive, PT
Cover
Cart Manual EU Manual

Mega Drive, SE (Rental)

Mega Drive, AU

Mega Drive, BR
Cover
Manual

Mega Drive, KR
Cover
Cart

Mega Drive, AS†
Cart

Mega Drive, CA
Cover

Mega-Tech version

Mega-Tech,

Technical information

Main article: Kid Chameleon/Technical information.

External links

• Sega of Japan Virtual Console pages: Mega Drive
• Nintendo catalogue pages: US, UK, AU
• Kid Chameleon on Steam
• Kid Chameleon on Google Play
• Kid Chameleon on iTunes: US, UK