It’s Thursday, which means two things. First, you’ve made it through most of the week, and, second, you’re reading the exciting sixth installment of Throwback Thursday! Sit back and indulge a few moments before taking up the mantle of the next day.
On March 12th, 1992, a video game was released to the American public. The opening screen is dark and foreboding, and for good reason.
Dropped from an orbital station, you first fall through the atmosphere and must immediately fight for survival, and then fight your way through a ruined city, and on. Every corner of this world is being attacked. No place is safe. Firing your choice of weapons at enemies that fly, crawl and jump is dizzying, especially when you consider the pulsing, almost-tribal music. It is a merciless ordeal and there will be no quarter.
Just another 2-D side-scrolling shooter? Hardly. This is Bio Hazard Battle, one of the most brutal Sega Genesis games out there. Now let’s go down the nineteen year-old rabbit hole and score this bad boy.
Plot & Characters – 8/10
It is far into the future. The planet Avaron is plagued by an intense barrage of alien and viral warfare leftover from a battle which humanity all but lost. You must command a bioship to seek out a suitable place for a new human colony and, if possible, rid this planet of its invaders and would-be conquerors. Be forewarned; if you’re looking for another human-centric harrowing tale of fighting off disgusting-looking aliens, you will have to look elsewhere. Though none of these enemies are aesthetically pleasing, our familiar human form is never shown. The bioships (mechanical in nature yet biologically alive) are not only profound technological developments, they are the main characters of this game. There are four to choose from, each with individual specifications: Orestes, Electra, Hecuba, and Polyxena. Orestes and Hecuba are the faster ships, while Electra and Polyxena move more decisively. Though they move more slowly, their weapons will stay at a higher degree despite damage taken. The player must weigh these things to make the choice.
This is a world that has been torn apart by raging war and has been invaded by and infested with viral and bacterial organisms, the growth of which is preventing the first human colonization in centuries. We are waiting with bated breath while the – until recently – cryogenically frozen survivors of the orbital station Odysseus scout out the situation.
There are some who would say that there cannot be much story behind a 16-bit side-scroller, but they would have been sadly spoiled by the last few generations of advancing gaming technology. Once upon a time, players (unconsciously or consciously) used their analytical skills, taking in the painstakingly designed artwork, music, and other details in order to pull up a universe around them. They used their imagination. However, even with this considered, the lack of dialogue and directly imparted storytelling (some sort of preface) is felt most significantly.
Sound – 10/10
The sound effects and musical themes of this game were not only up to par for their time, but they could even be considered ahead of their time. The music pulses with the unrelenting pace of the action, quickening the heartbeat of the player and essentially fueling the atmosphere of desperation first imparted by short blurb on the back of the cartridge case. The sound effects are crisp, hold tight to the actions onscreen, and enhance the general experience.
The music is unique, to say the least. It is memorable – and that is what any good sci-fi action game requires. It should be futuristic and unpredictable, keeping the player’s emotions as on edge as his reflexes.
It sounded good then, and it sounds good now – even played on a newfangled high definition flat screen television.
Graphics – 10/10
The images speak for themselves. Between the background, foreground, and all of the creatures, the graphics create and support a visceral world unlike one the reader has ever seen. The locales are unique and tragically beautiful, and the graphics designs allow the appreciation of this.
A side-scrolling game isn’t just a repeating background. It’s a portrait; a window into the aforementioned world and story. Like so many old world artists, the designers of these backgrounds had to communicate emotions and storytelling through two dimensional imagery.
It looked good then, and it looks good now – even played on a newfangled high definition flat screen television.
Gameplay – 7/10
The controls are simple. The directional buttons are used to move the character in eight directions, and very smoothly. Any of the action buttons could be used to fire the bioships’ weapons. Holding down an action button will begin a buildup of energy around the bioship that, when released, will take out a greater area of enemies. Holding down one of the famed turbo buttons will cause the ship to fire repeatedly.
The player has a choice of weapons. Seeds switching and recharging the weapons are dropped from the orbital station like manna falling from heaven. There are blue, green, yellow, and orange seeds representing the different types of weapons. The blue seed will give Orestes and Polyxena the nova, which shoots in all directions simultaneously; while Electra and Hecuba get the bond, which releases blue pods that are attracted to enemies and explode in close proximity to them. Hecuba and Orestes get the seeker laser from the orange seed, which, as its name suggests, seeks the enemies like a magnet. The stream also absorbs some forms of enemy fire. Electra and Polyxena get the plasma ring from the orange seed. The plasma ring emits rings which bounce and ricochet – this comes in handy in enclosed spaces. The yellow seed gives Orestes and Electra the fire petal and Hecuba and Polyxena the spin laser. The green seed is the same for all characters, a basic pod. The weapons can be strategically chosen as the locale changes, depending on needs.
The side-scrolling nature of this game has the potential to become monotonous and redundant, but it hardly seems to come to that because of the height of challenge it has to offer.
Overall – 9/10
If a game of a certain genre and gameplay type can rise above its peers to stand the test of time, that speaks volumes. There are few games that can have such rich replay value for such a seemingly simply formula.
This 1992 Sega Genesis title is fun, challenging, and generally clever for its and all time. It might be a bio hazard not to try it.
Tags: 16-bit, Bio Hazard Battle, comicbooked, Elizabeth Hourigan, Sega Genesis, shooter, side-scrolling
About the Author
Written by Elizabeth Hourigan
Though eclectic in her interests and hobbies, Elizabeth is best known for her passionate interests in science fiction, music, and video games. She was raised on both Star Wars and Star Trek and she was holding an NES controller since before she could remember; one could imagine where things went from there. She has always experienced anything sci-fi or fantasy as both an emotional catharsis and a creative stimulant. She is a social creature and answers the call of the nightlife but also enjoys sitting in a cafe, quietly reading a book and secretly people-watching; always hoping for scintillating conversations with passersby.
Liz,
Allow me – first of all – to say: Very well done. The article was, aside from being well written, attention-grabbing and rather interesting. As someone who doesn’t know a whole lot about video games previous to the Nintendo 64, I am usually not very attracted to them either. But simply reading this article makes me want to play Bio-Hazard. Reading about it – the sounds, the gameplay – allows the reader to imagine clearly what playing the game might actually be like. The imagination pulses with attractive images of what lay waiting inside the game (as attractive as they can be for a 16-bit game).
When tribal music was mentioned, my mind automatically strayed to the Nintendo 64 version of Turok: Dinosaur Hunter, another wonderful, old game. Tribal music – perhaps because of its exoticness, or perhaps because of the generally fast-paced and heart-pounding beat to it, but more likely a combination of the two – seems to have a – well, a heart-pounding effect on the listener, especially when combined with a sci-fi thriller (game or otherwise).
As I said, and as you know, I’m not usually one who’ll go for an older game, but reading this article has definitely made me consider going out to buy a Sega Genesis and Bio-Hazard (if only I had the money). I hope to see more from you on here, miss.
- Chops