Tempo (テンポ) is a 1995 action platforming game developed for the Sega 32X by Sega and Red Company. It was the first game in Red's Tempo series, and was followed by Tempo Jr. and Super Tempo.
In the game, you control a grasshopper named Tempo, who uses the power of music to rid the world of Rythmia from the minions of the music-hating King Dirge Sound on the television show The Major Minor Show. You defeat enemies by either jumping on them, falling on them, or kicking on them, and you can stun them by shooting music notes at them. When in midair, you can glide slowly downward, destroying any enemy that touches your feet. If you find a special DANCE panel, you can summon your butterfly friend Katy to assist in killing enemies and opening up secret paths.
The game plays like a straight platformer. causes Tempo to kick, causes Tempo to jump, and causes Tempo to shoot musical notes from his hands. While in midair, holding will cause Tempo to slowly float downward using his wings. Enemies are mainly killed by hitting them with your feet; kicking an enemy gives you +100 points each time, while jumping on them gives you +10. Shooting music notes will stun enemies (but won't affect the score you get when you destroy them). Two powerups available in the level will cause Tempo to shoot two notes at a time or eight notes in a circle each time; the powerups will fall from Tempo to nearby ground whenever he is hit.
Finding a panel that says "DANCE" on it will cause Katy to appear. Katy will automatically kill enemies if Tempo stuns them with a note. If you find a panel that says "KATY" while Katy is following you, Katy will destroy a nearby obstacle, opening up a secret path. The "DANCE" panel will also kill every enemy on screen at the time.
Health is measured by a health bar at the top left corner of the screen. You lose a certain amount of health with each hit, depending on the enemy or obstacle you hit. Once your health reaches a dangerously low point, Katy will flee. You can regain health by collection music notes scattered around the level. Green, red, and orange notes will refill a certain amount of health; the amount decreases with each respective color. A large yellow music note will refill your health once. Some platforms, such as the electric drums in Hi Fi Performance, will give you music notes of decreasing heath value each time they are jumped on.
In each level there is a set of diamonds blocking an alternate path that will electrocute you when touched. A nearby flower encased in ice will cause the diamonds to turn into music notes when touched.
In each level there is a series of trophy-like platforms similar to the one shown when Tempo starts the level; standing on these will warp you to a different part of the level. These platforms usually come in pairs, so standing on one will always take you to the other.
Levels
The game's stages are divided into three different (literal) levels; hitting up and down on the stage select screen allow you to choose the level to choose the stage to play from, though you must beat all the stages on one level to be able to go to the next.
First level
Second level
Third level
Sub-level for bonus games
First level
These stages can be played in any order.
Downtown Performance
An urban city filled with basketball-playing enemies, skyscrapers that rise and fall, and lots of city-related gimmicks leading to a fight with a giant shoe.
Hi Fi Performance
A digital maze of conveyor belts, electric drum pads, electroshock televisions, and dancing bug monsters that ends with a fight against a pair of headphones.
Indigestion Performance
Fight your way through the mouth and into the belly of a large monster to fight a boxing glove in a boxing ring.
Second level
Circus Performance and Jungle Performance can be played in either order. Winter Performance is played after they are both completed.
Circus Performance
Jungle Performance
Winter Performance
Third level
Final Performance
The Final Performance consists of three hallways with a number of rooms for finding Katy, augmenting Tempo's strength bar with Headphones, and replenishing his health before the final boss fight.
Landmarks
Treble Clef
Bounce off these to send Tempo cartwheeling across the screen. He is invulnerable while spinning.
Minor Teleporter
Jump on top to teleport to another area.
Crystal
Hurts Tempo if he touches it. Used to block paths. Find a Flower to melt it.
Flower
Touch the ice block to defrost it into a flower, which melts any crystals that might be blocking the way, leaving Power Notes in their place.
End
Marks the end of a level.
Items
Power Notes
Partially replenishes Tempo's strength gauge. The more groups of notes, the more the item heals.
Giant Note
Fully replenishes Tempo's strength gauge and awards bonus points.
Headphones
Permanently extends Tempo's strength gauge by one segment.
Gold Coin
Collect to use as credits in the bonus games.
Casette Tape
Awards double points for each enemy defeated during its duration of effect.
CD
Temporarily grants Tempo invulnerability.
LP
Empowers Tempo with the ability to fly with and shoot LPs with . The effect is broken if Tempo takes damage or when its duration ends.
Hand Snaps
Enables Tempo to use more hands when using his snap attack with . He uses one hand normally but can use two, three, or four hands depending on the number on the item collected. Tempo drops this item when he takes damage and goes back to using one hand, but it can be collected again.
DANCE
Tempo performs a dance that defeats every enemy on screen and recruits his friend Katy to accompany him for the rest of the stage. If Katy is already with Tempo, they dance together, which defeats every enemy and turns them into Gold Coins for use in the bonus games.
KATY
If Katy is with Tempo, she performs a super spin that opens up special passageways.