Clock Tower | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Developer(s) | Human Entertainment [a] |
Publisher(s) | Human Entertainment [b] |
Director(s) | Hifumi Kono |
Producer(s) | Hiroyasu Ichizaki |
Programmer(s) |
|
Artist(s) | Akiyoshi Iijima |
Composer(s) | Kōji Niikura |
Series | Clock Tower |
Platform(s) |
|
Release | |
Genre(s) | Survival horror, point-and-click adventure |
Mode(s) | Single-player |
Clock Tower [c] is a point-and-click survival horror video game developed and published by Human Entertainment for the Super Famicom in 1995. It is the first installment in the Clock Tower series. The story follows orphan Jennifer Simpson soon after she is adopted by the Barrows family along with other orphaned girls. Shortly after arriving at the Barrows family manor, one of the other children is killed by a stalker called Scissorman. Jennifer must then explore the Barrows Mansion to find a way to escape while evading Scissorman, leading to one of the game's multiple endings. Clock Tower utilizes a point and click interface with the player controlling a cursor to direct Jennifer's actions.
Much of Clock Tower's plot and artistic style are inspired by the works of Italian horror film director Dario Argento, most notably Phenomena (1985). Director Hifumi Kono loved horror films like this and wanted the game to feel like one. Many of the game's character graphics were digitized from photos of real people. Jennifer's movements were constructed from a woman in Human's planning division acting out the scenes. Her design was inspired by Jennifer Connelly's character in Phenomena.
The game sold well upon release. In retrospective reviews, Clock Tower has been praised for its haunting atmosphere, but the puzzles and exploration have drawn criticism for being tedious. It is considered an influence on horror games and a pioneer of the survival horror genre.
An updated version, titled Clock Tower: The First Fear, was ported to the PlayStation, WonderSwan, and Windows in 1997. In the early 2010s, it was re-released again on the PlayStation Network, as well as the Wii and Wii U Virtual Console. An enhanced port of the game, Clock Tower: Rewind, was released on October 29, 2024 for eighth and ninth-generation consoles, as well as PC. The game had previously never been officially released outside Japan, although fan translations existed.
Clock Tower is a survival horror point-and-click adventure game with 2D graphics. The player controls a cursor to direct the main character, Jennifer Simpson, and give commands such as investigating objects or opening doors. [2] Jennifer can walk and run, although running will reduce her stamina. She may recover her stamina by sitting on the floor. Jennifer's character portrait in the corner of the screen will change depending on her stamina level. In addition to interacting with objects in the game, Jennifer can also store them in the inventory for later use. [3] The layout of items changes with each playthrough. [4]
Jennifer is under the constant threat of a stalker named Scissorman. When Scissorman is confronted, the game will enter "panic mode". Depending on Jennifer's health status, she may begin to trip, slow down and eventually be killed. [2] Jennifer cannot use weapons against Scissorman. Instead, the player must find hiding spots throughout the mansion, or use traps placed in the environment. [5] [4] If caught, the player can rapidly press a button which allows them an attempt to escape. [2] If Jennifer dies, then it is game over, returning the player to the title screen with an option to continue the game. [5] [6] The game features nine possible endings. [7]
The story follows Jennifer Simpson, an orphan from the fictional Granite Orphanage in Romsdalen, Norway. [8] [9] She and other orphaned children named Laura, Anne, and Lotte are adopted in September 1995 by a wealthy recluse named Simon Barrows, who lives in a mansion known as the "Clock Tower", named after its predominant feature. [8] [9] [10] After arriving at the mansion, Mary, the woman who brought the children to the mansion, leaves to find Mr. Barrows. [11] [12] When she takes an unusually long time, Jennifer offers to investigate. [12] Upon leaving the room, she hears a scream coming from the main foyer. Jennifer returns to find the lights off and the girls missing. After finding either Laura or Anne killed, she finds herself being stalked by a murderous little boy with deformed features, wielding a huge pair of scissors, named Bobby Barrows, also known as the Scissorman in the game. [10]
While exploring the mansion, Jennifer searches for Mary's true intentions. Depending on choices made by the player, Jennifer will either discover Simon Barrows trapped in a jail cell inside the courtyard, or her father's corpse in a hidden room. If the former happens, Jennifer will need to give him a piece of ham as food. If the latter happens, Jennifer will find his death letter that tells of his account concerning Mary Barrows and her twins, Bobby and Dan. [13] It says that he was trapped there for three days, until his death on November 10, 1986. [13] Jennifer then visits a small, occult-looking church. If the player has collected all the necessary items and clues, then she gains access to the catacombs of the mansion - using either the Devil Idol or the Sceptor, but the former is canonical as it appears in the sequel. Jennifer sees a cloaked figure walking ahead of her; this is Mary. She follows it, wearing a disguise to fool the guard dog using Mary's perfume, and a black cloak found in the mansion. If Lotte did not need to rescue Jennifer from the jail cell, she can be found dying at an altar, and tells Jennifer about the switches in the clock tower. [14] Otherwise, she rescues Jennifer from the jail cell, but is shot by a threatening Mary. [15]
Jennifer enters a room where she discovers Dan Barrows, a giant, gluttonous purple creature. Dan awakens from his slumber and chases Jennifer to a steep cliff. She successfully climbs over, knocking down a can of kerosene which splashes onto a nearby candle. This triggers an explosion that immolates Dan, [16] while Jennifer rides an elevator out of the catacombs. She ends up defeating Bobby in the clock tower, and Mary as well in (or around, depending on prior actions) the clock tower. If Anne (or Laura) has not died yet, then this survivor reunites with Jennifer at the clock tower but is soon thrown down the tower by Mary. These actions would lead to one of Endings A, B, or C – any of these could be canonical according to the events of the next game. Because of the game's open-ended nature, the player can also discover other endings.
Clock Tower was directed by Hifumi Kono, who wished to use the game to pay homage to one of his favorite film directors, Dario Argento. [18] Most notably, the game borrows many ideas and is inspired by his film Phenomena (1985). [7] [18] Clock Tower has strong relations to its plot and shares other similarities with Argento's 1980s films, such as occult themes, distressed young women, and bright colors atop a foggy setting. [2] Kono had a passion for old horror films, and wanted Clock Tower to feel like one. [19]
Kono described Clock Tower as an experimental project with a small budget and staff. His peers believed that a game where the protagonist runs away from the enemy would not work, but he continued on despite these concerns. Due to lack of staffing resources, developer Human Entertainment could not include mouse support and also needed to shrink the map down significantly. [18] Although the graphics are two-dimensional, the mansion is designed within a 3D space. [2] The character graphics in Clock Tower were created by digitizing photographs of real people, a popular technique at the time. The actress for Jennifer was a woman in Human's planning division. Many of the motions in the game came from her acting, such as hanging from a roof and stumbling in the hallway. [18]
Clock Tower was first released on the Super Famicom on September 14, 1995. [20] According to Kono, the game sold "fairly well". [18] It was later re-released under the title Clock Tower: The First Fear on PlayStation on July 17, 1997. [7] [21] Upon release, the PlayStation version made it the 8th on the sales charts, selling 54,293 copies. [22] This release featured a new dagger weapon, a new room, minor scenario additions, full motion video scenes, and minor graphical improvements. It was also released for Windows 95. [17] [23] A monochrome version with no pause option and some HUD changes was later released for WonderSwan. [17] [24]
Clock Tower was digitally re-released for the Wii and Wii U Virtual Console in Japan in 2010 and 2013 respectively. [25] [26] [20] It has also reached multiple PlayStation devices via a release on the PlayStation Network in 2011, also exclusively in Japan. [27] [21] Clock Tower has never been officially released outside Japan; however, fan translations exist. [2] In 2015, the soundtrack was released, titled CLOCK TOWER 20th Anniversary Sound Collection. This includes audio from the original, PlayStation, and Windows versions of the game, as well as music from the games Clock Tower 2 , and Clock Tower: Ghost Head . [28] [29] In 2020, a fan made patch for the Super Famicom version was released that added features from the PlayStation version like mouse support. [30]
In July 2023, WayForward and Limited Run Games announced an enhanced version of the original game, Clock Tower: Rewind. [31] It was released on October 29, 2024 [32] [33] on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Microsoft Windows and Xbox Series X/S, marking the game's first official international localization. [31]
Famitsu gave the Super Famicom version a score of 31 out of 40, [20] and the PlayStation version a 27 out of 40 score, [21] and the WonderSwan version a 22 out of 40. [24]
In a retrospective review, Hernando Vallejo of Hardcore Gaming 101 described Clock Tower as "one of the most thrilling experiences the [horror] genre can offer". He praised the game's graphics and sound for building a strong atmosphere. [19] Allistair Pinsof of Destructoid praised the graphics, story, and the Dario Argento-inspired style for creating a haunting mood and atmosphere. He also praised the multiple endings and unique gameplay design. However, he found Clock Tower failed to create an interesting adventure experience due to the difficulty of navigating the mansion layout, excessive item hunting, and simple puzzles. He criticized the game's attempt to place a 3D space within a 2D game, which created confusion when exploring. Despite these flaws, he still found Clock Tower worth playing, calling it "atmospheric horror at its most raw, for better or worse". [2] Both The A.V. Club and Pinsof believed that although Clock Tower aged poorly, it was still worth experiencing. [34] [2]
Clock Tower has been seen as influential on Japanese horror video games, and is considered instrumental in establishing the survival horror genre alongside the 1992 video game Alone in the Dark . [35] [36] [37] It also solidified Human Entertainment as a developer along with Twilight Syndrome and Laplace no Ma . [2] [19] The game was included in lists of best horror games. The 2016 mook Perfect Guide to Nostalgic Super Famicom ranked the game the second best horror game for the Super Famicom, [38] in 2018, The A.V. Club placed the game as number thirty on its list of top thirty-five horror games of all time. [34] In 2022, HobbyConsolas listed it on their top 20 horror games of all time. [35]
Final Fantasy IV, titled Final Fantasy II in its initial North American release, is a 1991 role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. The fourth main installment of the Final Fantasy series, the game's story follows Cecil, a dark knight, as he tries to prevent the sorcerer Golbez from seizing powerful crystals and destroying the world. He is joined on this quest by a frequently changing group of allies. Final Fantasy IV introduced innovations that became staples of the Final Fantasy series and role-playing games in general. Its "Active Time Battle" system was used in five subsequent Final Fantasy games, and unlike prior games in the series, IV gave each character their own unchangeable character class — although at a few points in the story, a dark knight will choose the path of a paladin, or a summoner will evolve to a new tier of spellcasting.
Star Ocean is a 1996 action role-playing game developed by tri-Ace and published by Enix for the Super Famicom. The first game in the Star Ocean series, it was released only in Japan in July 1996, and was the first game developed by tri-Ace, consisting of staff that had previously left Wolf Team due to being unhappy with the development process for Tales of Phantasia with Namco in 1995. The game used a special compression chip in its cartridge to compress and store all of the game's data due to possessing graphics that pushed the limits of the Super Famicom. Additionally, the game had voice acting for the game's intro and voice clips that played during the game's battle gameplay, a rarity for games on the system.
Famitsu, formerly Famicom Tsūshin, is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Kadokawa Game Linkage, a subsidiary of Kadokawa. Famitsu is published in both weekly and monthly formats as well as in the form of special topical issues devoted to only one console, video game company, or other theme. Shūkan Famitsū, the original Famitsu publication, is considered the most widely read and respected video game news magazine in Japan. From October 28, 2011, the company began releasing the digital version of the magazine exclusively on BookWalker weekly.
1995 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Dragon Quest VI, Mega Man 7, Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, and Tekken 2, along with new titles such as Mario's Picross, Battle Arena Toshinden, Chrono Trigger, Rayman, Twisted Metal, Star Wars: Dark Forces, Destruction Derby, Wipeout and Jumping Flash!
1991 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Street Fighter II, Final Fantasy IV, Super Castlevania IV, Mega Man 4, Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts, and The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, along with new titles such as Sonic the Hedgehog, Battletoads, Lemmings, Sunset Riders, Duke Nukem, Fatal Fury: King of Fighters, and Streets of Rage. The year's highest-grossing video game worldwide was Capcom's arcade fighting game Street Fighter II. The year's best-selling system was the Game Boy for the second year in a row, while the year's best-selling home video game was Sega's Sonic the Hedgehog, which was also the year's top video game rental in the United States.
1986 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Super Mario Bros. 2, along with new titles such as Arkanoid, Bubble Bobble, Castlevania, Dragon Quest, Ikari Warriors, The Legend of Zelda, Metroid, Out Run and R.B.I. Baseball. The year's highest-grossing arcade video games were Hang-On in Japan, Hang-On and Gauntlet in the United States, and Nemesis (Gradius) in London. The year's best‑selling home system was the Nintendo Entertainment System (Famicom) for the third year in a row, while the year's best-selling home video games in Western markets were Super Mario Bros. in the United States and Yie Ar Kung-Fu in the United Kingdom.
Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride is a role-playing video game and the fifth installment in the Dragon Quest video game series, second of the Zenithian Trilogy. Originally developed by Chunsoft and published by Enix Corporation, Dragon Quest V was the first title in the series to be released for the Super Famicom video game console in Japan in September 1992. Dragon Quest V was the first game in the series to not be released in America due to programming issues at the time.
Sweet Home is a role-playing video game developed and published by Capcom for the Family Computer in 1989. It was developed alongside the horror film of the same name and tells the story of a team of five filmmakers exploring an old mansion in search of precious frescos hidden there. As they explore the mysterious mansion, they encounter hostile ghosts and other supernatural enemies. The player must navigate the intricately laid out mansion, battling with the enemies, and the five main characters with the limited weapons and health restorative items available. The narrative moves forward regardless of whether the characters stay alive, and leads to its five different endings.
Clock Tower is a point-and-click survival horror video game series created by Hifumi Kono. The series includes four games in total. The first entry, Clock Tower (1995), was developed by Human Entertainment and released on the Super Famicom in Japan. Human Entertainment developed two more entries, Clock Tower (1996) and Clock Tower II: The Struggle Within (1998), which were released on the PlayStation and localized outside Japan. The fourth and final title, Clock Tower 3 (2002), was co-produced by Capcom and Sunsoft for the PlayStation 2. Gameplay in the series generally involves the player hiding and escaping from enemy pursuers without any weapons to defeat them. Scissorman is a reoccurring antagonist and sometimes the sole enemy in the game.
Clock Tower II: The Struggle Within, known in Japan as Clock Tower: Ghost Head, is a horror-themed adventure game developed by Human Entertainment and released for the PlayStation in 1998. It is the third game in the Clock Tower series. The story follows 17-year-old Alyssa Hale who occasionally is possessed by an alter ego named Mr. Bates. The player must guide Alyssa through various environments, altering between her normal and twisted personality, to uncover the secrets of her and her family's past.
ClockWerx is a puzzle video game created by Callisto Corporation that was released in 1995. The game was originally released by Callisto under the name Spin Doctor. Later, with some gameplay enhancements, it was published by Spectrum HoloByte as Clockwerx, which was endorsed by Alexey Pajitnov according to the manual. A 3DO Interactive Multiplayer version was planned but never released.
Clock Tower 3 is a survival horror video game co-produced by Capcom and Sunsoft for the PlayStation 2. Released in 2002, it is the fourth installment in the Clock Tower series, and the first and only video game directed by Japanese film director Kinji Fukasaku. The plot and characters have very little relation to the previous Clock Tower games. The story follows 14-year-old Alyssa Hamilton who is part of a family lineage of female warriors who travel through time to defeat evil spirits. Alyssa travels from her time in 2003 London to the 1940s and 1960s in order to defeat these "Entities" and bring peace to troubled souls.
Hect (ヘクト) or Hector was a Japanese video game developer and publisher. It had a Virtual Boy game in development, entitled Virtual Battle Ball; however, it was eventually canceled.
Human Corporation was a Japanese video game developer and publisher founded in 1983. The company produced games for a number of platforms, including home consoles, portable consoles, and personal computers. Human declared bankruptcy in 2000 and disbanded. Its former members went on to form new companies including Nude Maker, Sandlot, Spike, and Grasshopper Manufacture.
Twilight Syndrome is a horror-themed adventure game series released exclusively in Japan. It was created by Human Entertainment and continued by Spike after Human folded in the late 1990s. The games follow high school students investigating urban legends about ghosts and other paranormal happenings in their school and neighborhood.
Clock Tower, known in Japan as Clock Tower 2, is a point-and-click survival horror video game developed by Human Entertainment and released for the PlayStation in 1996. It is the second game in the Clock Tower series after the original Clock Tower, which was released exclusively in Japan for the Super Famicom one year prior. The story takes place in Norway and follows a variety of characters as they attempt to survive the return of Scissorman and uncover the mystery of his seemingly immortal state. The scenarios encountered and endings vary widely based upon the player's actions.
The Best is a Sony PlayStation budget range in Japan and parts of Asia. Similar budget ranges include Greatest Hits in North America, Essentials in PAL regions and BigHit Series in Korea.
Valkyrie no Bōken: Toki no Kagi Densetsu is a video game developed and published by Namco. It was released in Japan for the Family Computer on August 1, 1986. It was also released for the Virtual Console of multiple Nintendo consoles, for the Wii on March 20, 2007, for the Nintendo 3DS on September 4, 2013 and for the Wii U on February 4, 2015.
Otogirisō is a 1992 visual novel game produced and published by Chunsoft. The games plot involves a protagonist and their girlfriend Nami lost down a forest road. After having to make an emergency stop, they find themselves in a Western-styled country house and let themselves in. While looking for the occupants of the home, they stumble upon a room with a mummified person who quickly vanishes when the lights go out. As they further explore the mansion and find further unexplained phenomenon, Nami discovers she has a history with the house and its previous occupants. The game involves the player making various choices through menu options to direct the narrative of the story. Completing a narrative in Otogirisō allows the player to reach new menu branches and new narrative conclusions.
Makeruna! Makendō 2: Kimero Youkai Souri, also known as Kendo Rage 2, is a 1995 fighting game released exclusively in Japan for the Super Famicom by Datam Polystar. It was re-released for the PlayStation.
Raised in the Granite Orphanage, Jennifer and her friends were wanted as adopted daughters. It happened in September...
In the mountains of Romsdaaren[ sic ], Norway, stands the Barrows Mansion. This mansion had a large clock tower, by which the locals tended their flocks in the surrounding fields. The local people called the mansion the Clock Tower...
In 1995, a young girl [Jennifer] from the Granite Orphanage, whose parents died when she was quite small, was lured into the Barrows Mansion where she was attacked by a monster wielding a giant pair of scissors. That monster was the grown-up Bobby.
Laura: "What a huge place..." / Ann: "Yeah! The main hall's gigantic!" / Mary: "I gotta go get Mr. Barrows. Everyone wait here.
Lotte: "Mary...she's taking a long time. Should I go find Ms. Mary?" / Jennifer: "No, I'll go look for her.
11.10.1986 - This is the third day I, Dr. Walter Simpson, have been in here. I'll not last long. Before I die, I will record this...There are twin children who are a blemish on this world. When the lady was to give birth, I was called to this house. She gave birth to two chil...no, demons. When they were born, they ate my right hand. They were ill, their bodies deformed...they should have died. But they lived...I should have tried to...Breathing is painful. The air in this room is already gone...They are in a cradle under the star...
Jennifer: "Lotte. Lotte!" / Lotte: "Uhh..." / Jennifer: "Lotte, you're still alive!? / Lotte: "Mmm...Jennifer...The switches in...the clock tower........" / Jennifer: "Lotte? Don't...leave me alone...
Lotte: "Jennifer, you're okay!" / Jennifer: "Lotte!!" / Lotte: "Half a sec, I'll get you out. There we go! Now, get out of here before Mary comes!" / Jennifer: "Huh...?" / Lotte: "Quickly, Jennifer!" / Narration: "A voice is heard outside the shed..." / Mary: "Now isn't that a pity...Jennifer, don't move a muscle. I will punish you.
Mary: "Bobby! Bobby! Get this girl [Jennifer]! She's the one who killed Dan!