This is a Retro Rebellion Special Report
John Witherspoon, famed actor and comedian, has died on October 29th, 2019. He was 77 years old. Although he appeared in such movies as Boomerang with Eddie Murphy and co-starred with Ice Cube in the Friday movie series, one of his most famous roles was on television from doing voice work on The Boondocks, to being John "Pops" Williams on the WB sitcom, The Wayans Bros. which he co-starred with Shawn and Marlon Wayans. As a comedian, Witherspoon was known for many things, his funny wit, his impression of Mick Jagger, dressing tacky like it was exploded in a wallpaper factory, his singing and dancing and not to mention choice of words, including his most favorite, "Coordinate". For instance, "You see, brother, you gotta COORDINATE!" No word on the cause of his death. But one thing is for sure, John Witherspoon definitely left an impression, especially with so much rewatches of The Wayans Bros. He would've made a great Sebastian if they was any Little Mermaid related media out there for him. But that is not to be now.
Godspeed, Pops! The most tackiest yet entertaining man of all time. Be at peace. Bang, Bang, Bang, my friend.
(TAPS plays)
John Witherspoon
January 27th, 1942 - October 29th 2019
This has been a Retro Rebellion Special Report
Wednesday, October 30, 2019
Monday, October 28, 2019
Toon Ninja Reviews Halloween Special - Mummies Alive!
Hey there, Toonsters!
This is Rekka Dragon Jay with another edition of Toon Ninja Reviews. Halloween is just around the corner and I got a review for this occasion. Mummies, just like other popular monsters, have been in pop culture for many years (other than having an interest in archaeology because of King Tut, Queen Nefertiri and so forth). It is not just movies, but also in cartoons. I know what you are thinking, but I am not doing a review of The Mummy: The Animated Series. This review I am doing is about mummies, but of a different sort. So, strap on some wrapping paper, walk like an Egyptian and prepare to kick some serious Tut, it is Mummies Alive!.
Mummies Alive! is a 1997 Canadian-American cartoon (with some hints of Japanese anime) made by DIC Entertainment and Northern Lights Entertainment. Lasted only a season with 42 episodes, this Egyptian style action cartoon involves 4 mummy guardians, using the power of the Egyptian sun god, Ra, to protect the reincarnation of the Pharaoh's son from an evil sorcerer who wants his soul for immortality, along with other gods and creatures based on Egyptian mythology. Some say it's a Gargoyles rip-off, others say it's a western animation/anime hybrid (like most cartoons in the late 90s), but I say Mummies Alive would've been great if the ratings (and toy sales) weren't that low. Anyway, let's get started on this review, starting with the story.
Story: A long time ago, in ancient Egypt, the son of the Pharaoh, Prince Rapses, was killed by the sorcerer, Scarab, who seeks immortality and was imprisoned and entombed alive for his crimes. Later, in modern times, Scarab was freed from his imprisonment and seeks out Rapses' soul, who is now in the body of his reincarnation, Presley Carnovan. However, young Presley is protected by the Pharaoh's royal guard, who are now mummified. With the power of their animal totems, fused by the essence of Ra, Ja-Kal, Armon, Rath and Nefer-Tina protect the young prince's incarnation from Scarab and every, other entity that comes out of the Western Gate that threatens the entire modern world. Not much on story, but that's the jif of it. With that said, lets talk about the characters. I will focus on the main characters, villains and some recurring characters, not all. Shall we begin? Let's start with the main heroes, the Mummies and Presley himself.
Long ago, the Mummies were the Pharaoh's royal guard, assigned to protect and tutor his son, Prince Rapses. Now in modern times, the Mummies protect Rapses' reincarnation, Presley, while at the same time, try to adjust to modern ways, especially learning to watch TV, which they call a "Magic Box." But, when they have to throw down against Scarab or any other evil force, by shouting the phrase, "With the Strength of Ra!", the Mummies tap into the power of their respective animal totems, which they wear around their necks. But, when their powers get used alot or drained, they will revert back to normal. Only by recooperating in their sarcophagi, their powers get replenished. Here is the lowdown on the 4 mummies themselves.
Ja-Kal: The leader of the Mummies. Although he is Presley's guardian, Ja-Kal tends to be a father figure to him, because in his former life, he was a hunter, who had a wife named Tia and a son named Padjet, who he carried his son's handprint as a reminder. Selfless and benevolent, Ja-Kal helps those in need before his own self. And because of his prowress as a hunter, he is an excellent tracker and good marksman. His animal totem is that of a Falcon, which enables him to fly. His weapon is a bow and arrow, which has flaming tips. And for melee combat, he uses his talons. Ja-Kal was voiced by Dale Wilson.
Armon: The muscle of the team, and the not so bright one, too. Armon's strength is only equal to his hunger, especially Beefy Burgers being his favorite food (AND HE ATE THE BOXES THAT COME WITH THEM, TOO!). His animal totem is the Ram. When he transforms, he gets a gold prosthetic arm, which replaces his right arm that he lost during battle back in olden times. When not fighting, he teaches Presley to defend himself, one arm and all. Armon was voiced by Graeme Kingston.
Rath: The brains of the team and a full fledge alchemist, inventor, sorceror and master swordsman. Although brilliant and very intelligent, Rath can be a bit hotheaded and arrogant at times. He serves as Presley's tutor in alchemy, science and other educational stuff that is too long to list. He is also reponsible for the creations of the vehicles the Mummies ride on, such as the Hot-Ra (a chariot like roadster), the Nile-Later (a high powered boat similar to the Batboat) and the Sky-Cophagus (a Jet Plane of sorts). He also has an on/off relationship with his former student turned enemy, the sorceress, Chontra. His animal totem is the Snake. In his armored form, for his mastery of the sword, he carries a nodachi (even in Ancient Egypt, Japanese swords exist in this world). Rath was voiced by veteran voice actor, Scott McNeil, who has a long resume on voices he has done in both western animation and in Japanese anime, which I will list up another time, but here are a few samples like Jimmy Lee from Double Dragon, Piccolo from the Ocean dubbed Dragon Ball Z and Rattrap, Dinobot and Silverbolt from Beast Wars.
Nefer-Tina: The female mummy of the crew. In olden times, she pretends to be a man, just to ride the chariots, against her father's wishes. When reborn in modern times, she sheds away her facade and embraces her femininity and her free spirit, too. Unlike her fellow mummies, Nefer-Tina, like to know more about the customs of modern times. She serves as Presley's mother figure/big sister, when things get tough and dire. She mostly rides the Hot-Ra or her own motorbike. Her animal totem is the Cat. She is not only dangerous with her claws, but also with her whip. "Whip them good", indeed. Her name was based on Egyptian queen, Nefertiri. Nefer-Tina was voiced by Cree Summer, daughter of the late Don Francks. Cree was not only Freddie from the Cosby spinoff, A Different World, but as long as I am a fan of voice acting, she has a long line of characters she had voiced,She-Hulk from the 2nd season of the 90s Incredible Hulk cartoon, the Green M&M, Blackarachnia from Transformers Animated, Chloe from Sabrina the Animated Series, Susie Carmichael from Rugrats and All Grown Up, Kitana from Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm, Dulcey the Dragon from Sonic SatAm, Hagar from Voltron: Legendary Defender, Maxine Gibson from Batman Beyond, Numbah 5 from Codename: Kids Next Door, Princess Kida from Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Elmyra Duff from Tiny Toon Adventures and my most favorite of them all, Penny from Inspector Gadget (which was the first character she had voice. She was 8 years old when she voiced her at the time).
Kahti: A mummifed cat that was Rapses' pet a long time ago, now serves as Presley's pet and companion, who watches him at all times. Although a normal, mummified cat, she can transform into a Lynx when need in battle.
Presley Carnovan: A young boy living in modern San Francisco. He is the reincarnation of the Pharaoh's son, Rapses. Although he reluctantly didn't want this responsibility, but he slows embraces his role as the Mummies watch over him. He not only wears Rapses' amulet, but his weapon of choice is a 4-bladed boomerang (which doubles as Ja-Kal's secondary weapon sometimes). He lives with his mother, Amanda, who works at the City Museum and his father is always away (though he did appear in the episode, My Dad the Hero). Presley was voiced by Bill Switzer, who also voiced Harvey Kinkle on Sabrina the Animated Series, Sai Argyle from Gundam SEED and played as Mitchell Taylor in Eerie, Indiana: The Other Dimension.
And now, we will talk about the villains, starting with the big bad himself.
Scarab: A powerful sorcerer and the mummies' sworn enemy. Back in ancient times, Scarab was once the advisor to the Pharaoh until he killed Prince Rapses to claim his soul and immortality. For his crimes, he was sealed away by the Pharaoh himself. Centuries later, he was set freed when an archaeologist uncovered his tomb. Now freed to roam the modern world, Scarab continues to search for the soul of Rapses, now resides within Presley. As a sorcerer, Scarab can disguise himself into anyone, from a little kid to his main disguise as Harris Stone (the aforementioned archaeologist who freed him, who was later killed), who runs the museum where Amanda Carnovan works, created his army of clay soldiers called the Shabti, who blends in with the other humans despite having pupil-less eyes, and can summon other entities from the Western Gate, a portal underneath the Golden Gate Bridge, only those of Egyptian descent can see. But, when he has to gets his hands dirty, just like the Mummies, he has an armor form, becoming a literal armored scarab beetle. Scarab was voiced by character actor Gerald Plunkett.
Heka: A talking golden snake, who doubles as Scarab's staff (if he doesn't have his actual staff sometimes) and can spit fire. She is voiced by Pauline Newstone, who also voices Airazor from Beast Wars and as Frieza from the Ocean Dub Dragon Ball Z.
Chontra: Back in Ancient Egypt, she was once a student to Rath. In time of her student/teacher relationship, she fallen in love him. All that changed when Rath was assigned to be Rapses' tutor. That, in turn, enraged Chontra, to the point of vowing vengeance against Rath for abandoning her. Her sorcery rivals that of Scarab. Chondra was voiced by Kathleen Barr, who did most voice work in other cartoons, anime and videogames, but these days, she is best known for voicing Trixie Lulamoon (the so-called Great and Power Trixie!) and Queen Chrysalis from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.
Arakh: Ja-Kal's evil brother. Like the mummies and Scarab, he has his armor form, that of a scorpion. He is jealous of and resents Ja-Kal so much, that he alingned himself with Scarab and uses Kimas, his own son, against him.
Kimas: The son of Arakh and nephew of Ja-Kal. Like his father, he can transform into his armored scorpion form. Though not a true villain, Kimas was used by Arakh and Scarab to get rid of Ja-Kal until he realized that he was being used as a weapon to kill his uncle. After that revelation, he turned on his father and sided with his uncle until he gave his life to save his uncle when he forced himself and his father back into the Western Gate.
The other characters in the show, some villains, others neutral, although bearing the same names in Egypt mythology, their physical appearances are nothing like how they were in the aforemetioned mythology. Here are a few examples:
Set and Anubis: Two anthropormophic dog like creatures, who serve Scarab from time to time. They serve as the comic relief. Although Anubis is based on the same god in myth, Set, on the other hand, nothing like his Egyptian counterpart. Set, in mythology, has the head of a composite of an aardvark, donkey, jackel and fennec fox, and doesn't have a head of a dog. Set and Anubis were voiced by Scott McNeil and Blu Mankuma respectively.
Ammut: Scarab's pet dog like creature, who has the head of a crocodile.
Apep: A humanoid like cobra like creature, who was banished by Rapses' grandfather back in ancient times. When summoned by Scarab, he seeks vengeance against Rapses for what his grandfather has done. But, he rebelled against Scarab after falling for Nefer-Tina, who he knew 3,500 years ago after admiring her driving prowess. In his human form, he and his followers assume the identity of a biker gang. Apep was voiced by Jason Gray-Stanford, who not only appeared in the TV crime drama, Monk, but was also the voice of both Joe Higashi from the 3 Fatal Fury anime movies and Kento of Hardrock from Ronin Warriors.
Sekhmet: Goddess of Sickness and Health. In Egyptian myth, she was portrayed as a benevolent sun goddess, almost like the daughter of Ra herself and has a lioness has her animal totem. But in the cartoon, she has a vulture for a totem instead of a lioness and just a villain of the day of sorts.
Nuhn: A powerful water spirit, based on Nu, a primordial watery abyss in the Hermopolitan Ogdoad cosmogony of ancient Egyptian religion.
Talos: A man of bronze, based on the very same bronze automaton from Greek mythology.
Geb: A huge rock like giant, who is nothing like his Egyptian counterpart, who is the God of the Earth and member of the Ennead of Heliopolis.
Net: The cloud-like Spirit of the Sky, completely different from her Egyptian counterpart, Nut, who is the goddess of the sky, stars, cosmos, mothers, astronomy and the universe.
Production
For a DIC cartoon, we have our familiar producers like Andy Heyward and Robby London, while having others such as Micahel Maliani, Janice Sonski, Joe Medjuck, Daniel Goldberg and most importantly, Ivan Reitman (more on him later). Writers/producers, Eric and Julia Lewald, who were the head writers for the third season of Gargoyles aka The Goliath Chronicles, did the writing of this show, as well. Some fans critizied the show for being a clone of Gargoyles, but I beg to differ. Unlike Gargoyles, you don't see the mummies team with Scarab, just as the Gargoyles have a uneasy relationship with David Xanatos. But that's another story. Rounding up the production team are editors Mike DePatie and Gail McIntyre.
As far as the animation goes, it is mostly Western Animation, but with hints of Japanese anime, which has since became extremely popular around that time, thanks to Toonami. Most of the anime like sequences were mostly from the stock footage transformation scenes from both the mummies and Scarab. Of course, stock footage, especially with the transformation sequences, was the norm for most animation shows at the time.
Music
The music from the show, which has hints of both modern and Egyptian tones, was done by John Campbell and legendary composer Ron Wasserman (who was credited as RAW). Wasserman, as we know, did music for our childhood in the 90s, from doing music the Ocean dub of Dragon Ball Z to doing music for some of shows from Saban, such as Space Strikers, Teknoman (the English version of Tekkaman Blade), Sweet Valley High, VR Troopers, X-Men, and most of all, did the music and theme song for the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. He did music for other Power Rangers, such as Zeo, Turbo, In Space and SPD, we would never gotten Go, Go, Power Rangers, if it wasn't for the man known as The Mighty Raw. Here's to you, Mr. Wasserman and thanks for making our childhood even more "Morphinominal."
Trivia
One of the producers for Mummies Alive! was none other than famed movie producer/director, Ivan Reitman. Reitman, as we all know, has helped produced and directed many of the movies we are all familiar with, mostly with comedies. This list includes, Meatballs, Stripes, Twins, Kindergarten Cop, Animal House, Space Jam, Beethoven and my most favorite of them all, Ghostbusters. Which is ironic, that before Mummies Alive was around, there was another cartoon did by DIC, which was based on the aforementioned movie I was talking about, The Real Ghostbusters. Man, oh, man, this would've been a great crossover, which makes perfect sense, with the Ghostbusters teaming up with the mummies against a force even more powerful than Scarab and Gozer combined. And it will take a lot more than "Crossing the Streams" to stop this evil, that's for sure.
Experiences and What Ifs
I didn't have much experience with this show at the time, since I was into other shows like Sailor Moon, Double Dragon, Street Sharks, Extreme Dinosaurs and so forth. But thanks to the internet (and a great big imagination), Mummies Alive! is now a part of that very universe that is in my head. I haven't seen the show in quite a long time, but I will give you some experiences from the a few episodes I can think of.
Ra, Ra, Ra! (The First Episode): This is the very episode where we were introduced to Presley, his mummy guardians and the sorceror, Scarab. And this is where Nefer-Tina, revealed to her fellow mummies that she is a girl. You see, in the tranformation sequence, when Nefer-Tina transforms, she has her Egyptian-style crown on. But afterwards and here on out, when she transforms, she doesn't have the crown on her no more. She is all woman, but mummified.
Desert Chic: This episode involves Nefer-Tina with Apep, who known each other 3,500 years ago.
Good Bye, Mr. Cheops: Presley's teacher, Mr. Huxley, was swiched places, by means of a obelisk-powered shortwave radio, with the magic temptress, Chontra. And in this episode, we get some backstory between Rath and Chontra, as the go from having a student/teacher relationship to romance to the bitterest of enemies.
Body Slam: Armon enters a competition to prove that he is still a great fighter (even though he got weak when Scarab placed an amulet that saps his strength to begin with).
Loss of Face: You are wondering how Nefer-Tina looked over 3,000 years ago (without disguising herself as a boy)? When in this episode, thanks to a potion Scarab created (which was meant for him), Nefer-Tina has become absolutely beautiful. 3,000 years beautiful to be precise. She defintely give Kitana a run for her money.
A Dark and Shrieky Night: This is where the mummies, after fighting off Scarab's Shabti, had to blend in the public to get back to the Sphinx to recharge their powers, even if it means walking through San Francisco at night. Hi-jinks happened here, even when the mummies get to play music in front of a hostile crowd.
(Audience boos)
Rath: "You dare taunt us?!"
True Believer: During their time, as the mummies look for more clothes for their disguises, Nefer-Tina meets a nerdy sales clerk named Bix Bingsley, who became infatuated with her, which ends up being a target by Scarab.
My Dad the Hero: This is where we meet Presley's father, who is not what he seems. And to make matters worse, the Crown of Ramses the Great (yes, THAT Ramses), which he stole, ends up in the hands of Scarab. And in this episode, we get a little backstory in why Nefer-Tina disguised herself to ride chariots in the first place, as she talked to Presley about her experiences with her father. We will never know the full story about that, but I will mention one suggestion before this review is over.
Family Feud (and NO, I am not talking about the game show): This 3 parter is where Ja-Kal meets his evil brother, Arakh. Along with Kimas, who later rebelled against his own father to aid his uncle Ja-Kal.
Show Me the Mummy (The Final Episode, which doubles as a clip show): This is where Joe Pendleton, a police officer who was a recurring character, along with his partner, Bob, talks about his expirences with the mummies in a style of a radio show. And this is how the show ends, with a clip show, of all things.
Unlike my last review, I don't know a typical end game on how Mummies Alive! would end. I know, in my heart that the mummies do defeat Scarab and Presely can live the rest of his days as a normal kid once more. But, I would keep this adventure going a little bit long with some ideas of my own.
Crossover Ideas
The Real Ghostbusters: As I stated before, one of the executive producers of Mummies Alive! was Ivan Reitman, who directed Ghostbusters, which makes sense with this crossover. In this one, as the mummies were fighting against Scarab as usual, a strange disturbance has disrupted the Western Gate, causing all of the aboritions to spread all over the world, even in doorsteps of New York City. And that's where the Ghostbusters come in, as they take the next flight to San Francisco to investigate and stop the disturbance before the world falls into darkness. It will have a lot of action and drama, but like the movie, it will have lots and lots of comedy, especially with the chemistry between Armon and our favorite green, onion-headed ghost, Slimer, whose appetite is as big as Armon's. Speaking of Armon...
Super Duper Sumos: Another DIC cartoon, which tells the exploits of a trio of sumo wrestlers who fight evil, as they learn the ways of the "Phat" (Their words, not mine!). In this crossover, Armon, feeling that his strength alone couldn't earn the respect of his fellow mummies, especially Rath, who teases him thinking that brains are better than brawn, decided to leave San Francisco and go traveling places to find the answers he seeks to better himself in battle. Which ultimately leads him to Generic City, where he meets the Super Duper Sumos, Kimo (The Sumo of Honor), Booma (The Sumo of Peace) and Mamu (The Sumo of Truth). As Armon helps the sumos fight against evil, especially against Ms. Mister's Bad Inc., Armon learns the ways of the sumo, being one with mind, body and spirit (not to mention a big butt to boot). This one will have a lot of action and some funny one liners. For instance;
Ms. Mister: "The end is near for you, Stupid Dupid Sumos!"
Armon: "That's SUPER DUPER SUMOS, to you, lady!"
And on the subject of one liners, instead of Armon saying "Let's kick TUT!", he would say this;
Armon: "Let's get PHAT!!"
Ronin Warriors: Since I have mentioned anime in my review thus far, I thought I put this underrated gem in this one shot story idea. Although we get to see the Ronin Warriors and the mummies together (as enemies first due to a misunderstanding, and then after some explanations, became friends and allies), the subplot of the story revolves around Nefer-Tina and Ryo of the Wildfire, who reminds her of someone she knew a long time ago. This crossover was inspired by not only the Dolune/Lorre backstory from Lupin the 3rd: The Secret of Twilight Gemini, but also from a drawing I saw from Deviantart, where Ryo was a warrior from Egyptian times by aoi-ryu.
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| Ryo's Egyptian descendant, Kyoseph, by aoi-ryu |
In short, despite being cancelled (due to low toy sales, why I am not surprised), Mummies Alive! was an awesome cartoon to watch, especially wanting to know about mummies, ancient Egypt and so forth. If you stumble across it on YouTube, give it a watch. You won't regret it. Until next time. Stay frosty, keep on rollin' and Happy Halloween, folks. Go with Ra!
Saraba da (Farewell)...for now.
Friday, October 18, 2019
Retro Gamer Special - Altered Beast Review
Hey there retro gamers!
Summer may have ended, but not the reviews here at Retro Rebellion. This time around, it is a video game review, and this one started at the arcades, but later in home consoles, including the Sega Genesis. Before I get started, I want to address something that needed to be cleared out. I am now aware that the Genesis was released on October 29th, 1988 in Japan, when it was called the Mega Drive, the name that was used later for the PAL regions and outside North America. But all I was doing was celebrating the Genesis' North American release, which was August 14th, 1989, that I remember. There wasn't an Internet back then when I was growing up. So, just like with Sailor Moon (with both the original version from 1992 and the original English dub from 1995 respectively), there is nothing wrong with celebrating the same anniversary twice within two years, especially a gaming system as iconic as the Sega Genesis. That being said, without further ado, in honor of the Genesis, especially with the Genesis Mini (which blows those cheaply made AtGames consoles out of the water and render them OBSOLETE!), I will review the very game which was the pack-in title of the Genesis before Sonic came to our lives. And that game in question is none other than...
(In a loud, God-like voice) ALTERED BEAST!!
Altered Beast, known in Japan as 獣王記 /Jūōki (Beast King's Chronicles), is a side-scrolling action beat-em up game developed by Sega. Created by Hirokazu Yasuhara (who was involved with the Sonic the Hedgehog games for the Genesis) and Makoto Uchida (who did other Sega games like Dynamite Deka, Alien Storm and, of course, Golden Axe), it was released in Arcades in August of 1988 before being released in home consoles, including the aforementioned Sega Genesis itself. In this game, you played a no-named Centurion, resurrected by Zeus, to rescue his daughter, Athena, from the Demon God, Neff, by using to power to change into any creature of your design, depending on the situation. Just like with other games like Phelios and God of War, Altered Beast takes place in Ancient Greece, where myth and legend were law. But, this game took liberties of twisting in it, mostly in this game's developement. Let's start with the story itself, but I will categorize it like Stefan did when reviewing some games, the first story parts are from the both the back of the casing of the game and in the instruction manual and the other, is where I write in a way that makes more perfect sense. Let us begin, shall we?
Story Version 1 (From the back of the game case)
Enter a time when men were warriors and Gods ruled the world. A time of good against evil, a place of danger. Summoned by Zeus to rescue Athena, you will infiltrate the Underworld with the power to transform into mythical creatures with supernatural strength. Become a savage Werewolf and use teeth and nails to shred your enemies to pieces. Capture three of the elusive Spirit Balls and you'll be transformed into a ferocious, fireball throwing Werewolf. Take flight as the Weredragon and use its fiery force to fry the followers of Neff. Creep across the slippery crevasses inside a deep cavern as the crafty Werebear. Stalk the gates of the Underworld fortress as a man-eating Weretiger, a predator with no pity. Inside the inner-sanctum, call on the Golden Werewolf's might to demolish Neff, the demon - forever.
Story Version 2 (From the Instruction Manual)
It is a time of gods and myths and legends. When men were warriors and courageously fought unnatural enemies in the endless battle of good against evil. It is the time of the Altered Beast. Summoned by Zeus, God of Thunder, you have been awakened from the dead to challenge the wicked Neff, God of the Underworld, for the fate of Athena. And Athena is no ordinary girl. She is the daughter of Zeus and must take her rightful place among the gods if only you can free her from her place of imprisonment. Although you were once a brave and awesome Roman Centurion, the rigors of this journey demand a supernatural display of strength. And so you are bestowed with the powers of the Altered Beast. The power to transform your being into a part animal, part human creature of formidable force. But to achieve this rare form of vitality you must earn it. By conquering foes and capturing spirit balls, you'll muster the energy to transmute from one beast to another. And each time you do, you'll advance one round closer to the realm of the Underworld where Neff awaits the final confrontation. With five complete rounds to clear, the number of underlings you must defeat is staggering. But Neff promises to be the most loathsome enemy yet, so prepare yourself for the worst. And remember, Zeus didn't bring you back from the grave to fail!
The first two story synopses are okay. However, I see some errors with those two. For instance, even though I corrected them, some of the sentences weren't proof-read. And in the second story synopsis, they call the main hero a Roman Centurion, but he is not Roman. Since the game takes place in Ancient Greece, that would make him a Grecian Centurion, a Spartan, if you will. Anyway, I will tell you more later, when compare the game to Greek Mythology. And now, this is how the story of Altered Beast should be. A bit well-written and bit more epic.
Story Version 3 (How it suppose to be done)
Long ago, in a time where myth and legend were the law of the land. In a world where man and the Gods lived in perfect harmony. However, everything changed when Neff, rebellious apprentice of Hades, God of the Underworld, decided to rage war against both man and the Gods. To make matters worse, he captures Athena, Goddess of Wisdom, to force her father, Zeus, to reliquish his title as King of the Gods and rule the mortal world. To combat Neff and his legion of followers, Zeus resurrects a Grecian Spartan to rescue Athena and defeat the demon god. But in order to do so, Zeus embodes the Spartan with the powers and strength of the spirit animals, the only thing that could stop Neff and his evil forces. The fate of the mortal world and the Gods is in the hands of this brave resurrected warrior. This is the Chronicles of the Beast King! The Legend of the Altered Beast has begun!
Gameplay
The objective in Altered Beast is to guide the unnamed Grecian Centurion through 5 Rounds (5 Levels to be precise), to rescue the goddess Athena and defeat the demon god Neff. Your centurion starts of normal, dispatching monsters and zombies with nothing but your punches and kicks. However, halfway through the round, you will encounter a white (or whittish blue in the Genesis version), two headed Cerberus. When you kill it, it will release a Spirit Ball. When you grab the first one, your centurion will grow in size and power, especially when your punches and kicks leaves a blue trail behind when you strike. When you grab the second one, the centurion will become even more bigger and more powerful, not just in size, but in muscle mass, making him look like a Grecian bodybuilder.
Sidenote: If you take that sprite of the centurion's buffed form and use art programs like MSPaint to change his skin color to green and his underwear purple, he would be a dead shoe-in of being The Incredible Hulk. Gladiator Hulk, much?
And finally, hence the name, Altered Beast, when you grab the third and final Spirit Ball, the centurion will transform into a humanoid beast. Each beast has its own abilities, depending on the situation. For example, when the centurion is in his Werewolf form, instead of punching and kicking, he can now shoot fireballs and do a flame streak to obliviate your enemies with ease. And when you become a beast, you will face the end boss of the round. Completing a round depends on how you become a beast either earlier (if you are good with the game) or later (if you are new at it and couldn't get the Cerberus sooner). So make every Spirit Ball count. Athena is depending on you!It is also 2-Player and your buddy can join in. Player 1 would be clad in red while Player 2 is clad in blue. And when the blue clad centurion becomes a beast, his color scheme is different from the first player (e.g. Golden Werewolf's color scheme is silver for the second player) And now, speaking of rounds, let's talk about them, your chosen beast and the end boss. Or Zeus puts it...
RISE FROM YOUR GRAVE!!
Round 1: The Acropolis
This is where your adventure begins. Your travel across the grave site of fallen warriors, fighting against Neff's minions.
Chosen Beast: Werewolf
In this form, you can chuck some fireballs at your foes and perfom a flame streak in great speed and accuracy.
End Boss: Aggar
A giant corpse-like monster who throws unlimited heads at you.
Round 2: The Swamps of the Underworld
Deep in the dark swamps of the Underworld, you traverse through its muck, grime and all the assorted monsters you face from leechy blobs to dragons that sneak up on you.
Chosen Beast: Weredragon
Unlike most dragons, this dragon can fire bolts of electricity and can create an electric barrier to protect yourself. And unlike the other beasts, you can fly in multiple directions, making it easier to dispatch your enemies without jumping.
End Boss: Octeyes
A tree-like monster that fires poisonous spores in the shape of eyeballs.
Round 3: The Dark Cavern
Inside a deep, dark cavern, your journey has become much more harder. Not only from monsters, but also from all the pitfalls you must avoid.
Chosen Beast: Werebear
This giant bear can not only petrify you with its breath, but can do a spin attack, which pre-dates Sonic the Hedgehog a couple of years later.
End Boss: Moldy Snail
Part Snail, Part Salamander. Need I say more?
Round 4: Neff's Palace
Outside the gates of Neff's Palace, you are this close of reaching your goal of saving Athena. But, Neff's sentries will hinder your progress.
Chosen Beast: Weretiger
This ferocious tiger can chuck wavy fireballs at you and can do upward flame streak, mostly against airborne enemies.
End Boss: Crocodile Worm
This creature moves up and down while shooting a stream of flame from its red jewel and summons little dragons at the same time.
Final Round: The City of Dis
The main hub of the Underworld itself, where Neff resides. Your final journey to save Athena, but it ain't an easy task, especially you face some of Neff's powerful warriors, like Armored Boars and humanoid Swift Kick unicorns.
Chosen Beast: Golden Werewolf
It is the same as the regular werewolf, but colored gold (More on that later).
End Boss: Neff
Although a powerful demon sorcerer, Neff had one more ace up his sleave, revealing his ultimate form, a humanoid armored rhinocerous that dashes with great speed and attacks with strong punches and kicks.
Graphics
For an late 80s arcade game, the graphics are beautiful at best. Fitting the Grecian setting rather well. From the Acropolis being so colorful to the later rounds, where everything goes from dark to eerie. Reminds me of Jason and the Argonauts and Clash of the Titans.
Controls
You move the Centurion left and right with the joystick (or D-pad on your Genesis controller). Moving down can make him crouch. Your action buttons enables your centurion to punch, kick and jump. You can attack while crouching, especially doing a upward kick on airbourne enemies. However, you can hold Up on your joystick and the Centurion goes real high when jumping, rendering the upward crouching kick obsolete. However, when you become a beast, your punches and kicks are replaces with their corresponing attacks and your movements change in certain situations.. For instance, when you become a weredragon, you can't jump. However, you can fly in multiple directions with the joystick as you attack your enemies with ease. What can I say? The controls as a whole are tight and simple.
Music and Sound
Like most arcade games, the sound and voice samples of Altered Beast are memorable, especially from Zeus' aforementioned opening line when you start the game (Rise from your grave!) to Neff's taunting quote before the boss battle (Welcome to your doom!) But what makes this game even more memorable? The music. The music here can go from epic to wild to dark and back again. Although the soundtrack was pretty short, my favorite tunes are as followed:
Rise From Your Grave (Round 1 Theme)
I'll Be Back (Round 3 Theme; which doubles as the title theme for the Genesis version)
Altered Beast (The theme you hear when you become a beast. Now THAT is wild!)
Gaum-Hemmer (Boss Theme, talk about epic in this battle between good and evil)
Sidenote: The music from the arcade version sounds slightly different from the Genesis version and vice versa. If you have audio making programs like Audacity, you can change the pitch of the arcade music to make them sound like how they were heard in the Genesis version and vice versa with the Genesis version to make them sound like the arcade music. But that's up to you. Thought I give you some pointers in the field of audio making.
History:
Altered Beast was released in arcades on August 1988. And the game was released on multiple gaming consoles around late 1988 to around 1989. For instance, in the Sega Master System version, it was single player and reduced to 4 Rounds, removing the cavern stage and the Werebear form in the process. In the Famicom version, you have more beast forms, such as a lion and a shark. But, the Genesis version was the most well-known version when it was released in Japan in 1988 for the Mega Drive, then was released the following year. It was the pack-in game for the Genesis before being replaced by Sonic the Hedgehog in 1991. The Genesis version was arcade accurate, but with a few animation frames missing from the arcade version and the music sounds different from the arcade, audio pitch-wise. But, it was more memorable in the Genesis version than the arcade. A sequel, Altered Beast: Guardians of the Realms, was created by 3d6 Games and published by THQ and released on November 23rd, 2002. Just like the Famicom version, in this game, you got more than 5 beast forms at your disposal. Another version, which was titled, Project Altered Beast was released in 2005, but it was released in Japan and in Europe, no North American release for this game due to bad ratings. Unlike the first game, this retelling takes place in modern times and tells the story of a Genome-Cyborg named Luke Custer, who can transform into multiple beasts at will while trying to regain his lost memory and know the truth about the other Genome-Cyborgs. I prefer Ancient Greece over genetics anyday. Trust me, it's better this way.
Bad Aspects:
WELCOME TO YOUR DOOM!!
For such a classic piece of nostalgia, Altered Beast isn't perfect, especially with a few pet peeves to address. For starters, judging from its 5 rounds, it is a short game. The sound clips are cheezy at best, but a bit more cheezy in the Genesis version, especially making Zeus sound like Elmer Fudd when saying the opening line when you start the game. But, at least they are small potatoes. But, they pale in comparison to the other issues. One, the game isn't that difficult, even on the hardest setting, the bosses are too easy, almost wanting to to be destroyed. Second of all, the third round, the caverns, is a little hard to move because of the foreground that covers the top and bottom of the screen, especially the bottom, knowing that you fall into those pits if not careful. There is no health powerups or 1-Ups. Once your health meter and lives goes, it's game over (unless you play the Genesis version). And finally, and the most disappointing of them all, the Golden Werewolf. What a letdown! They say the Golden Werewolf was suppose to be all-powerful, instead it is the same as the regular werewolf, but with a different skin tone. As much as I like Altered Beast (and I still do), the game is a bit outdated for Genesis/Arcade standards. Just sayin'.
Differences Between the Game and its Source Material
As I stated before, Altered Beast takes place in Ancient Greece. However, there are some inconsistencies that differ from anything Greek related, including its mythology. For starters, in the manual, the character you play as was a Roman Centurion. Contrary to that notion, the Centurion is not Roman, he is Greek. So in a sense, Grecian Centurions are also known as Spartans. If the game would've taken place in Ancient Rome, that would've make a lot more sense. So much so, the Gods would've been called by their Roman names like Jupiter and Minerva. Anyway, now that the issue with player's nationality is addressed, let's talk about Greek Mythology itself. Let's start with the main villain, Neff. In the aforementioned manual, Neff was addressed as the God of the Underworld. Even though he is the antagonist, but he isn't really the true god of the Underworld. I think of Neff as a demon sorcerer, who wants to ascend to Godhood by ridding the world of the Gods of Olympus. The real God of the Underworld is Hades, who controls the world of the afterlife. Sure, in some media, he is portrayed as a villain, including that of the Disney version (voiced by James Woods), but in mythology, Hades is nether good or evil, he is neutral and maintains balance between life and death. And on the subject of the Underworld, this world of the undead is guarded by Hades' guardian beast, Cerberus. In the games, the Cerberus was two headed and sports two colors, brown for the normal ones and white (or blue in the Genesis version) that sports the Spirit Balls that turns the Centurion in a humanoid beast. In mythology, the Cerberus was a large beast, has three heads instead of two and guards the Underworld from any intruders passes the River Styx. The Cerberus was later used in other games, such as the Castlevania series and in other media, such as the aforementioned Disney version of Hercules, where it was portrayed as Hades' pet attack dog. Although he risen you from the grave, Zeus isn't exactly a paragon of virtue compared to how he was portrayed in the game. Even though he is the King of the Gods, Zeus isn't very loyal to his wife, Hera, the Queen of the Gods, for he impregnated every mortal woman on Earth. From his infidelity, gave us some of the heroes of Greek Mythology, such as Perseus and the super strong demi-god, Hercules (or Heracles as he was originally called but the name of his Roman counterpart was more popular in both Greek and Roman Myth). And finally, there's Athena. In the game, she was portrayed as a damsel in distress, turned into a bird by Neff as a bargaining chip for his insidious plot to overthrow Zeus. But Athena, according the mythology, is anything but a damsel. Athena is the Goddess of Wisdom. She was not only a great warrior and tactician but she was wise beyond her years. Nothing distressful about her reputation, that's for sure.
Tips, Cheats and Strategies
There is not much tips and strategies for this game that I could think of. However, there are hidden cheats for Genesis version that will make your quest a bit more easier and fun.
1. For starters, at the title screen, press and hold B and then start on your Genesis controller and you get a menu that tells you the Difficultly, Lives, Health Gauge and Level Select. You can change the difficulty, increase or decrease your lives and health gauge and select any round you like whether for a speed run or wanting to prove yourself as a great warrior.
2. Even if you lose, you can restart at the current round you were on by pressing and holding the A button and pressing start at the title screen.
3. When you simultaneously press and hold A, B, C, Down/Left and then press start, you get a beast select menu. You can change your beast on any round you want. Think about it, image you can beat the whole game with ease as a Weredragon. Neff doesn't stand a chance against you.
4. And for the heck of it and wanting to hear your favorite tracks (or hear the voice samples), simultaneously press and hold A, C, Up/Right and then press start and you get a sound test.
Trivia
For such a short, yet classic game, there was some Easter Eggs that was spread in all other media other than gaming.
- For starters, The Chicken Stinger aka Chicken Leg from Rounds 2 and 4, later appeared as a support beast you can ride on in another Sega classic, Golden Axe.
- Neff, in his armored rhinoceros form, made a cameo in the Disney movie, Wreck-It Ralph, where he was in the Bad Anon group session along with other gaming villains, such as Bowser from Super Mario Bros., M. Bison from Street Fighter, Kano from Mortal Kombat (despite being called "Cyborg" in the end credits) and Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik from Sonic the Hedgehog.
- One of posters for Thor: Ragnarok, with features Thor, Hela and the Hulk, was inspired by one of the marquee posters on the sides of the arcade cabinet. Who ever did that must be a big fan of this game? Who knows?
Ideas For a Remake
As much as I like this game, it was very short and not that challenging. However, I have some suggestions to make this classic game even more better. For starters, improving on the storyline in the beginning, like, for instance, talking about living in a time where man and the Gods co-exist peacefully and maintaining balance in the mortal world, which ends with Neff rebelling against Hades and rage war against both the mortals and the Gods, in order to dethrone Zeus as King of the Gods. And in the ensuing battle against Neff's followers, Athena, Goddess of Wisdom, held her own against Neff's army of monsters until Neff himself, in his armored rhinocerous form, easily defeats her, thus capturing her in the process, prompting Zeus to resurrect a fallen Grecian Centurion and betowed him the powers of the Altered Beast to combat Neff and save Athena. As for the Centurion, he should have a name. I think he should be called Gerrick, based on that custom made movie poster by the user, genius-spirit from Deviantart. And if the remake was made, the description would be like this:
"Long time ago, in a world where mortals and Gods co-exist, Neff, the demon sorceror, rebels against his master, Hades, God of the Underworld, and rages war against both the mortals and the Gods. To make matters worse, Neff captures Athena, the Goddess of Wisdom, and use her to force her father, Zeus, King of the Gods, to reliquish his title and make Neff the new King of the Gods and to rule the mortal world into darkness. To combat this evil and save his daughter, Zeus resurrects a Grecian Centurion, Gerrick and bestow upon him the powers of the spirit animals. The fate of Athena and the mortal world is on Gerrick's shoulders, for the Legend of the Altered Beast has begun!"
As for the Golden Werewolf, instead of having the same play style as the regular werewolf, since this werewolf was suppose to be all powerful, I think it should have all the attacks from the other beast forms into one, almost like a game breaker/wave motion gun kind of way. For instance, when Gerrick as the Golden Werewolf fires a projectile, it would be a combination of a fireball with the eletrical beam from the Weredragon and two bouncing flames from the Weretiger moving up and down. As for his crash attack, it would be the same as the regular Werewolf, but he will move in multiple directions, a combination of both the Weretiger's upward crash and the Werebear's spin attack, with an eletrical barrier of the Weredragon for extra power.
As for the music, the music would be same like the arcade and the Genesis version, but since the game takes place in Ancient Greece, it should have a strong, orchestral style remix of sorts.
Not to mention having a lot of unlockables, such as level select, more beast forms you can use whenever you like, including the lion and shark forms for the Famicom version, artwork from both the arcade version and the home consoles, especially the awesome cover art, including the one for the Genesis version by Michiaki Satoh, which is my most favorite, and, of course, unlocking both the arcade and Genesis version, for the sake of Nostalgia.
And now, the big question, what the remake is going to look like, here are two suggestions.
For starters, it should take the path of remade versions of games like Megaman Powered Up, Megaman: Maverick Hunter X and Ultimate Ghost 'N Goblins and go by the 2.5D side scrolling format. Arrange Mode would have you play as the afformentioned Grecian Spartan, Gerrick, as he travels through Ancient Greece fighting against Neff's evil forces. Unlike the original, it will have more levels than the original 5 rounds, more beast forms and dialog with voice acting. The original mode is the same as arrange mode, graphically speaking, and it will play like the original with the first 5 rounds in check and it would be two player, player one as Gerrick and player two as Luke (named after Luke Custer from Project: Altered Beast).
If you want to go all out, go with the God of War/Devil May Cry approach and make it a 3D action adventure platforming beat-em up. When Gerrick becomes a beast, he will do a lot of special moves that he couldn't do in the original game, but even better than Project: Altered Beast. And there will be cutscenes in this one to, to progress with the story as Gerrick fights against Neff while being guided by Zeus as travels across Greece to find Athena, including the intro where Neff rebels against Hades and declares war against both the mortal world and the Gods of Mt. Olympus.
Overall, despite its shortcomings, only 5 rounds, some cheezy voice samples and being too short, for those who are fans of the Genesis like myself, Altered Beast is the one game you should add to your collection, no matter what gaming console or format of gaming it is on.
Pros
Awesome Graphics
Tight Gameplay
Grecian Setting
Iconic Music
Cons
Game Too Short (Only 5 Rounds)
Some Cheezy Voice Samples (But Tolerable)
No Health Power Ups
So Many Unfair Deaths (Mostly from Round 3 due to the stalacmite foregrounds)
Golden Werewolf Letdown
Final Score: 7 out of 10
And there you have it. Hope you like my review, my thoughts and everything in between about Altered Beast. And maybe someday, it would be remade and it would even be as epic as Clash of the Titans, Jason and the Argonauts and the Lou Ferrigno Hercules movies combined and then some. Here's two another 30 years, twice, Sega Genesis. Thank you for all the gaming memories and all. Until next time. Stay frosty, retro gamers!
Saraba da! (Farewell!)
Summer may have ended, but not the reviews here at Retro Rebellion. This time around, it is a video game review, and this one started at the arcades, but later in home consoles, including the Sega Genesis. Before I get started, I want to address something that needed to be cleared out. I am now aware that the Genesis was released on October 29th, 1988 in Japan, when it was called the Mega Drive, the name that was used later for the PAL regions and outside North America. But all I was doing was celebrating the Genesis' North American release, which was August 14th, 1989, that I remember. There wasn't an Internet back then when I was growing up. So, just like with Sailor Moon (with both the original version from 1992 and the original English dub from 1995 respectively), there is nothing wrong with celebrating the same anniversary twice within two years, especially a gaming system as iconic as the Sega Genesis. That being said, without further ado, in honor of the Genesis, especially with the Genesis Mini (which blows those cheaply made AtGames consoles out of the water and render them OBSOLETE!), I will review the very game which was the pack-in title of the Genesis before Sonic came to our lives. And that game in question is none other than...
(In a loud, God-like voice) ALTERED BEAST!!
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| The Legendary Sega Genesis Cover Art for Altered Beast by Michiaki Satoh |
Altered Beast, known in Japan as
Story Version 1 (From the back of the game case)
Enter a time when men were warriors and Gods ruled the world. A time of good against evil, a place of danger. Summoned by Zeus to rescue Athena, you will infiltrate the Underworld with the power to transform into mythical creatures with supernatural strength. Become a savage Werewolf and use teeth and nails to shred your enemies to pieces. Capture three of the elusive Spirit Balls and you'll be transformed into a ferocious, fireball throwing Werewolf. Take flight as the Weredragon and use its fiery force to fry the followers of Neff. Creep across the slippery crevasses inside a deep cavern as the crafty Werebear. Stalk the gates of the Underworld fortress as a man-eating Weretiger, a predator with no pity. Inside the inner-sanctum, call on the Golden Werewolf's might to demolish Neff, the demon - forever.
Story Version 2 (From the Instruction Manual)
It is a time of gods and myths and legends. When men were warriors and courageously fought unnatural enemies in the endless battle of good against evil. It is the time of the Altered Beast. Summoned by Zeus, God of Thunder, you have been awakened from the dead to challenge the wicked Neff, God of the Underworld, for the fate of Athena. And Athena is no ordinary girl. She is the daughter of Zeus and must take her rightful place among the gods if only you can free her from her place of imprisonment. Although you were once a brave and awesome Roman Centurion, the rigors of this journey demand a supernatural display of strength. And so you are bestowed with the powers of the Altered Beast. The power to transform your being into a part animal, part human creature of formidable force. But to achieve this rare form of vitality you must earn it. By conquering foes and capturing spirit balls, you'll muster the energy to transmute from one beast to another. And each time you do, you'll advance one round closer to the realm of the Underworld where Neff awaits the final confrontation. With five complete rounds to clear, the number of underlings you must defeat is staggering. But Neff promises to be the most loathsome enemy yet, so prepare yourself for the worst. And remember, Zeus didn't bring you back from the grave to fail!
The first two story synopses are okay. However, I see some errors with those two. For instance, even though I corrected them, some of the sentences weren't proof-read. And in the second story synopsis, they call the main hero a Roman Centurion, but he is not Roman. Since the game takes place in Ancient Greece, that would make him a Grecian Centurion, a Spartan, if you will. Anyway, I will tell you more later, when compare the game to Greek Mythology. And now, this is how the story of Altered Beast should be. A bit well-written and bit more epic.
Story Version 3 (How it suppose to be done)
Long ago, in a time where myth and legend were the law of the land. In a world where man and the Gods lived in perfect harmony. However, everything changed when Neff, rebellious apprentice of Hades, God of the Underworld, decided to rage war against both man and the Gods. To make matters worse, he captures Athena, Goddess of Wisdom, to force her father, Zeus, to reliquish his title as King of the Gods and rule the mortal world. To combat Neff and his legion of followers, Zeus resurrects a Grecian Spartan to rescue Athena and defeat the demon god. But in order to do so, Zeus embodes the Spartan with the powers and strength of the spirit animals, the only thing that could stop Neff and his evil forces. The fate of the mortal world and the Gods is in the hands of this brave resurrected warrior. This is the Chronicles of the Beast King! The Legend of the Altered Beast has begun!
Gameplay
The objective in Altered Beast is to guide the unnamed Grecian Centurion through 5 Rounds (5 Levels to be precise), to rescue the goddess Athena and defeat the demon god Neff. Your centurion starts of normal, dispatching monsters and zombies with nothing but your punches and kicks. However, halfway through the round, you will encounter a white (or whittish blue in the Genesis version), two headed Cerberus. When you kill it, it will release a Spirit Ball. When you grab the first one, your centurion will grow in size and power, especially when your punches and kicks leaves a blue trail behind when you strike. When you grab the second one, the centurion will become even more bigger and more powerful, not just in size, but in muscle mass, making him look like a Grecian bodybuilder.
Sidenote: If you take that sprite of the centurion's buffed form and use art programs like MSPaint to change his skin color to green and his underwear purple, he would be a dead shoe-in of being The Incredible Hulk. Gladiator Hulk, much?
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| If the Centurion turned into the Hulk, Neff wouldn't stand a chance. "Rhino Man strong, BUT HULK STRONGEST ONE THERE IS!!" |
And finally, hence the name, Altered Beast, when you grab the third and final Spirit Ball, the centurion will transform into a humanoid beast. Each beast has its own abilities, depending on the situation. For example, when the centurion is in his Werewolf form, instead of punching and kicking, he can now shoot fireballs and do a flame streak to obliviate your enemies with ease. And when you become a beast, you will face the end boss of the round. Completing a round depends on how you become a beast either earlier (if you are good with the game) or later (if you are new at it and couldn't get the Cerberus sooner). So make every Spirit Ball count. Athena is depending on you!It is also 2-Player and your buddy can join in. Player 1 would be clad in red while Player 2 is clad in blue. And when the blue clad centurion becomes a beast, his color scheme is different from the first player (e.g. Golden Werewolf's color scheme is silver for the second player) And now, speaking of rounds, let's talk about them, your chosen beast and the end boss. Or Zeus puts it...
RISE FROM YOUR GRAVE!!
Round 1: The Acropolis
This is where your adventure begins. Your travel across the grave site of fallen warriors, fighting against Neff's minions.
Chosen Beast: Werewolf
In this form, you can chuck some fireballs at your foes and perfom a flame streak in great speed and accuracy.
End Boss: Aggar
A giant corpse-like monster who throws unlimited heads at you.
Round 2: The Swamps of the Underworld
Deep in the dark swamps of the Underworld, you traverse through its muck, grime and all the assorted monsters you face from leechy blobs to dragons that sneak up on you.
Chosen Beast: Weredragon
Unlike most dragons, this dragon can fire bolts of electricity and can create an electric barrier to protect yourself. And unlike the other beasts, you can fly in multiple directions, making it easier to dispatch your enemies without jumping.
End Boss: Octeyes
A tree-like monster that fires poisonous spores in the shape of eyeballs.
Round 3: The Dark Cavern
Inside a deep, dark cavern, your journey has become much more harder. Not only from monsters, but also from all the pitfalls you must avoid.
Chosen Beast: Werebear
This giant bear can not only petrify you with its breath, but can do a spin attack, which pre-dates Sonic the Hedgehog a couple of years later.
End Boss: Moldy Snail
Part Snail, Part Salamander. Need I say more?
Round 4: Neff's Palace
Outside the gates of Neff's Palace, you are this close of reaching your goal of saving Athena. But, Neff's sentries will hinder your progress.
Chosen Beast: Weretiger
This ferocious tiger can chuck wavy fireballs at you and can do upward flame streak, mostly against airborne enemies.
End Boss: Crocodile Worm
This creature moves up and down while shooting a stream of flame from its red jewel and summons little dragons at the same time.
Final Round: The City of Dis
The main hub of the Underworld itself, where Neff resides. Your final journey to save Athena, but it ain't an easy task, especially you face some of Neff's powerful warriors, like Armored Boars and humanoid Swift Kick unicorns.
Chosen Beast: Golden Werewolf
It is the same as the regular werewolf, but colored gold (More on that later).
End Boss: Neff
Although a powerful demon sorcerer, Neff had one more ace up his sleave, revealing his ultimate form, a humanoid armored rhinocerous that dashes with great speed and attacks with strong punches and kicks.
Graphics
For an late 80s arcade game, the graphics are beautiful at best. Fitting the Grecian setting rather well. From the Acropolis being so colorful to the later rounds, where everything goes from dark to eerie. Reminds me of Jason and the Argonauts and Clash of the Titans.
Controls
You move the Centurion left and right with the joystick (or D-pad on your Genesis controller). Moving down can make him crouch. Your action buttons enables your centurion to punch, kick and jump. You can attack while crouching, especially doing a upward kick on airbourne enemies. However, you can hold Up on your joystick and the Centurion goes real high when jumping, rendering the upward crouching kick obsolete. However, when you become a beast, your punches and kicks are replaces with their corresponing attacks and your movements change in certain situations.. For instance, when you become a weredragon, you can't jump. However, you can fly in multiple directions with the joystick as you attack your enemies with ease. What can I say? The controls as a whole are tight and simple.
Music and Sound
Like most arcade games, the sound and voice samples of Altered Beast are memorable, especially from Zeus' aforementioned opening line when you start the game (Rise from your grave!) to Neff's taunting quote before the boss battle (Welcome to your doom!) But what makes this game even more memorable? The music. The music here can go from epic to wild to dark and back again. Although the soundtrack was pretty short, my favorite tunes are as followed:
Rise From Your Grave (Round 1 Theme)
I'll Be Back (Round 3 Theme; which doubles as the title theme for the Genesis version)
Altered Beast (The theme you hear when you become a beast. Now THAT is wild!)
Gaum-Hemmer (Boss Theme, talk about epic in this battle between good and evil)
Sidenote: The music from the arcade version sounds slightly different from the Genesis version and vice versa. If you have audio making programs like Audacity, you can change the pitch of the arcade music to make them sound like how they were heard in the Genesis version and vice versa with the Genesis version to make them sound like the arcade music. But that's up to you. Thought I give you some pointers in the field of audio making.
History:
Altered Beast was released in arcades on August 1988. And the game was released on multiple gaming consoles around late 1988 to around 1989. For instance, in the Sega Master System version, it was single player and reduced to 4 Rounds, removing the cavern stage and the Werebear form in the process. In the Famicom version, you have more beast forms, such as a lion and a shark. But, the Genesis version was the most well-known version when it was released in Japan in 1988 for the Mega Drive, then was released the following year. It was the pack-in game for the Genesis before being replaced by Sonic the Hedgehog in 1991. The Genesis version was arcade accurate, but with a few animation frames missing from the arcade version and the music sounds different from the arcade, audio pitch-wise. But, it was more memorable in the Genesis version than the arcade. A sequel, Altered Beast: Guardians of the Realms, was created by 3d6 Games and published by THQ and released on November 23rd, 2002. Just like the Famicom version, in this game, you got more than 5 beast forms at your disposal. Another version, which was titled, Project Altered Beast was released in 2005, but it was released in Japan and in Europe, no North American release for this game due to bad ratings. Unlike the first game, this retelling takes place in modern times and tells the story of a Genome-Cyborg named Luke Custer, who can transform into multiple beasts at will while trying to regain his lost memory and know the truth about the other Genome-Cyborgs. I prefer Ancient Greece over genetics anyday. Trust me, it's better this way.
Bad Aspects:
WELCOME TO YOUR DOOM!!
For such a classic piece of nostalgia, Altered Beast isn't perfect, especially with a few pet peeves to address. For starters, judging from its 5 rounds, it is a short game. The sound clips are cheezy at best, but a bit more cheezy in the Genesis version, especially making Zeus sound like Elmer Fudd when saying the opening line when you start the game. But, at least they are small potatoes. But, they pale in comparison to the other issues. One, the game isn't that difficult, even on the hardest setting, the bosses are too easy, almost wanting to to be destroyed. Second of all, the third round, the caverns, is a little hard to move because of the foreground that covers the top and bottom of the screen, especially the bottom, knowing that you fall into those pits if not careful. There is no health powerups or 1-Ups. Once your health meter and lives goes, it's game over (unless you play the Genesis version). And finally, and the most disappointing of them all, the Golden Werewolf. What a letdown! They say the Golden Werewolf was suppose to be all-powerful, instead it is the same as the regular werewolf, but with a different skin tone. As much as I like Altered Beast (and I still do), the game is a bit outdated for Genesis/Arcade standards. Just sayin'.
Differences Between the Game and its Source Material
As I stated before, Altered Beast takes place in Ancient Greece. However, there are some inconsistencies that differ from anything Greek related, including its mythology. For starters, in the manual, the character you play as was a Roman Centurion. Contrary to that notion, the Centurion is not Roman, he is Greek. So in a sense, Grecian Centurions are also known as Spartans. If the game would've taken place in Ancient Rome, that would've make a lot more sense. So much so, the Gods would've been called by their Roman names like Jupiter and Minerva. Anyway, now that the issue with player's nationality is addressed, let's talk about Greek Mythology itself. Let's start with the main villain, Neff. In the aforementioned manual, Neff was addressed as the God of the Underworld. Even though he is the antagonist, but he isn't really the true god of the Underworld. I think of Neff as a demon sorcerer, who wants to ascend to Godhood by ridding the world of the Gods of Olympus. The real God of the Underworld is Hades, who controls the world of the afterlife. Sure, in some media, he is portrayed as a villain, including that of the Disney version (voiced by James Woods), but in mythology, Hades is nether good or evil, he is neutral and maintains balance between life and death. And on the subject of the Underworld, this world of the undead is guarded by Hades' guardian beast, Cerberus. In the games, the Cerberus was two headed and sports two colors, brown for the normal ones and white (or blue in the Genesis version) that sports the Spirit Balls that turns the Centurion in a humanoid beast. In mythology, the Cerberus was a large beast, has three heads instead of two and guards the Underworld from any intruders passes the River Styx. The Cerberus was later used in other games, such as the Castlevania series and in other media, such as the aforementioned Disney version of Hercules, where it was portrayed as Hades' pet attack dog. Although he risen you from the grave, Zeus isn't exactly a paragon of virtue compared to how he was portrayed in the game. Even though he is the King of the Gods, Zeus isn't very loyal to his wife, Hera, the Queen of the Gods, for he impregnated every mortal woman on Earth. From his infidelity, gave us some of the heroes of Greek Mythology, such as Perseus and the super strong demi-god, Hercules (or Heracles as he was originally called but the name of his Roman counterpart was more popular in both Greek and Roman Myth). And finally, there's Athena. In the game, she was portrayed as a damsel in distress, turned into a bird by Neff as a bargaining chip for his insidious plot to overthrow Zeus. But Athena, according the mythology, is anything but a damsel. Athena is the Goddess of Wisdom. She was not only a great warrior and tactician but she was wise beyond her years. Nothing distressful about her reputation, that's for sure.
Tips, Cheats and Strategies
There is not much tips and strategies for this game that I could think of. However, there are hidden cheats for Genesis version that will make your quest a bit more easier and fun.
1. For starters, at the title screen, press and hold B and then start on your Genesis controller and you get a menu that tells you the Difficultly, Lives, Health Gauge and Level Select. You can change the difficulty, increase or decrease your lives and health gauge and select any round you like whether for a speed run or wanting to prove yourself as a great warrior.
2. Even if you lose, you can restart at the current round you were on by pressing and holding the A button and pressing start at the title screen.
3. When you simultaneously press and hold A, B, C, Down/Left and then press start, you get a beast select menu. You can change your beast on any round you want. Think about it, image you can beat the whole game with ease as a Weredragon. Neff doesn't stand a chance against you.
4. And for the heck of it and wanting to hear your favorite tracks (or hear the voice samples), simultaneously press and hold A, C, Up/Right and then press start and you get a sound test.
Trivia
For such a short, yet classic game, there was some Easter Eggs that was spread in all other media other than gaming.
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| From Left to Right: Chicken Leg in the Underworld Swamp and Gillius Thunderhead rides on one in Golden Axe. |
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| Neff, in how he appears in Wreck-it Ralph |
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| Whoever did this must be a big fan of Altered Beast to make such a poster. Coincidence? I think not. |
Ideas For a Remake
As much as I like this game, it was very short and not that challenging. However, I have some suggestions to make this classic game even more better. For starters, improving on the storyline in the beginning, like, for instance, talking about living in a time where man and the Gods co-exist peacefully and maintaining balance in the mortal world, which ends with Neff rebelling against Hades and rage war against both the mortals and the Gods, in order to dethrone Zeus as King of the Gods. And in the ensuing battle against Neff's followers, Athena, Goddess of Wisdom, held her own against Neff's army of monsters until Neff himself, in his armored rhinocerous form, easily defeats her, thus capturing her in the process, prompting Zeus to resurrect a fallen Grecian Centurion and betowed him the powers of the Altered Beast to combat Neff and save Athena. As for the Centurion, he should have a name. I think he should be called Gerrick, based on that custom made movie poster by the user, genius-spirit from Deviantart. And if the remake was made, the description would be like this:
"Long time ago, in a world where mortals and Gods co-exist, Neff, the demon sorceror, rebels against his master, Hades, God of the Underworld, and rages war against both the mortals and the Gods. To make matters worse, Neff captures Athena, the Goddess of Wisdom, and use her to force her father, Zeus, King of the Gods, to reliquish his title and make Neff the new King of the Gods and to rule the mortal world into darkness. To combat this evil and save his daughter, Zeus resurrects a Grecian Centurion, Gerrick and bestow upon him the powers of the spirit animals. The fate of Athena and the mortal world is on Gerrick's shoulders, for the Legend of the Altered Beast has begun!"
As for the Golden Werewolf, instead of having the same play style as the regular werewolf, since this werewolf was suppose to be all powerful, I think it should have all the attacks from the other beast forms into one, almost like a game breaker/wave motion gun kind of way. For instance, when Gerrick as the Golden Werewolf fires a projectile, it would be a combination of a fireball with the eletrical beam from the Weredragon and two bouncing flames from the Weretiger moving up and down. As for his crash attack, it would be the same as the regular Werewolf, but he will move in multiple directions, a combination of both the Weretiger's upward crash and the Werebear's spin attack, with an eletrical barrier of the Weredragon for extra power.
As for the music, the music would be same like the arcade and the Genesis version, but since the game takes place in Ancient Greece, it should have a strong, orchestral style remix of sorts.
Not to mention having a lot of unlockables, such as level select, more beast forms you can use whenever you like, including the lion and shark forms for the Famicom version, artwork from both the arcade version and the home consoles, especially the awesome cover art, including the one for the Genesis version by Michiaki Satoh, which is my most favorite, and, of course, unlocking both the arcade and Genesis version, for the sake of Nostalgia.
And now, the big question, what the remake is going to look like, here are two suggestions.
For starters, it should take the path of remade versions of games like Megaman Powered Up, Megaman: Maverick Hunter X and Ultimate Ghost 'N Goblins and go by the 2.5D side scrolling format. Arrange Mode would have you play as the afformentioned Grecian Spartan, Gerrick, as he travels through Ancient Greece fighting against Neff's evil forces. Unlike the original, it will have more levels than the original 5 rounds, more beast forms and dialog with voice acting. The original mode is the same as arrange mode, graphically speaking, and it will play like the original with the first 5 rounds in check and it would be two player, player one as Gerrick and player two as Luke (named after Luke Custer from Project: Altered Beast).
If you want to go all out, go with the God of War/Devil May Cry approach and make it a 3D action adventure platforming beat-em up. When Gerrick becomes a beast, he will do a lot of special moves that he couldn't do in the original game, but even better than Project: Altered Beast. And there will be cutscenes in this one to, to progress with the story as Gerrick fights against Neff while being guided by Zeus as travels across Greece to find Athena, including the intro where Neff rebels against Hades and declares war against both the mortal world and the Gods of Mt. Olympus.
Overall, despite its shortcomings, only 5 rounds, some cheezy voice samples and being too short, for those who are fans of the Genesis like myself, Altered Beast is the one game you should add to your collection, no matter what gaming console or format of gaming it is on.
Pros
Awesome Graphics
Tight Gameplay
Grecian Setting
Iconic Music
Cons
Game Too Short (Only 5 Rounds)
Some Cheezy Voice Samples (But Tolerable)
No Health Power Ups
So Many Unfair Deaths (Mostly from Round 3 due to the stalacmite foregrounds)
Golden Werewolf Letdown
Final Score: 7 out of 10
And there you have it. Hope you like my review, my thoughts and everything in between about Altered Beast. And maybe someday, it would be remade and it would even be as epic as Clash of the Titans, Jason and the Argonauts and the Lou Ferrigno Hercules movies combined and then some. Here's two another 30 years, twice, Sega Genesis. Thank you for all the gaming memories and all. Until next time. Stay frosty, retro gamers!
Saraba da! (Farewell!)
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| Taken from the ending of the Altered Beast arcade game (which, in hindsight, feels like making a movie) HERE'S TO ANOTHER 30 YEARS, TWICE!! |
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