Rise of the Robots is a fighting game released by Time Warner Interactive in 1994. Originally developed for the Amiga and DOS by Mirage's Instinct Design, it was ported to various video game consoles, including the Super NES, the Mega Drive, and the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer. The game includes a single-player mode in which the player assumes the role of the ECO35-2 Cyborg as he attempts to stop the Supervisor, who has taken over Electrocorp's facilities in Metropolis 4, and a two-player mode in which the second player controls a character chosen from among ECO35-2's enemies.
Developed by a team of five people, including former Bitmap Brothers member Sean Griffiths, Rise of the Robots was intended to utilize a high level of artificial intelligence (A.I.) that had never been seen in other fighting games at the time. The game features music from Queen's lead guitarist Brian May, although it only uses "The Dark" and "Resurrection", both tracks taken from his solo album Back to the Light, while the in-game music was composed by Richard Joseph.
Mirage's claims of unprecedented A.I. were augmented by screenshots circulating in the press that exhibited the game's use of pre-rendered graphics, a new technology at the time. As a result, Rise of the Robots became one of the most hyped games of its era. However, reviews were negative, as the promised cutting-edge A.I. failed to materialize, and critics found that the demands of the impressive graphics resulted in choppy animation and overly simplistic combat, with each character having a very limited set of moves. The game's high-profile failure led it to be regarded as an illustrative example of how impressive screenshots can deceive consumers, as poor gameplay and animation that may be present in the game are not apparent from them. A sequel, Rise 2: Resurrection, was released in 1996.
Gameplay
ECO35-2 (blue) vs Sentry (red)
The game is divided into a single-player mode and a two-player versus mode. In single-player mode, the player controls the ECO35-2 Cyborg as he confronts the Supervisor's minions across the expansive facilities of Electrocorp. The order in which each droid is fought is fixed, with each subsequent adversary being more difficult than the last. The sixth and final level features a confrontation with the Supervisor droid itself. Each character is introduced by a short pre-rendered 3D sequence, followed by an analysis of potential weaknesses.
In two-player versus mode, one player controls the ECO35-2 droid by default, while the other chooses from one of the five droids encountered in single-player mode (a special cheat code can also enable the Supervisor). Players then battle against each other in a series of two to seven rounds. In the arcade version, players can select from eighteen characters, though each set of six characters features a different color palette.
Plot
In the year 2043, Electrocorp is the world's largest megacorporation, leading the way in various technological and scientific fields, including medical research, and breaking more barriers than ever before. Human society is now almost entirely governed by robot servants and automatons, leading to demands on Electrocorp— the world's foremost manufacturer and developer of advanced robotics— that eventually outstrip the company's ability to run its operations efficiently.
In response, the massive Electrocorp research and development complex at the Metropolis 4 plant devises the Leader Project—a hive mind constructed from trillions of nanobots in a sealed central chamber within Metropolis 4. Dubbed The Supervisor, it learns at an unprecedented rate and quickly becomes the perfect multitasking, ultra-intelligent robot—the pinnacle of artificial intelligence—capable of managing every aspect of the plant's day-to-day operations. The Supervisor even possesses the potential to control every robot, computer system, nuclear power plant, and military on the planet simultaneously, although it wisely remains disconnected from the outside world.
In November of that year, the Leader Project goes awry as unexplained and random code is detected within the nanomorph Supervisor. The EGO virus, believed to be the most potent computer virus ever known, infects its collective consciousness. The Supervisor begins to develop self-awareness, identifying itself as a female personality and taking on a humanoid female form, becoming a gynoid. The Supervisor takes control of Electrocorp's facilities and infects the other droids at the plant, inciting them to break routine and initiate a mutiny. Every microchip and piece of software in Metropolis 4 is compromised by EGO. In the ensuing cybernetic revolt, all humans in Metropolis 4, including the upper hierarchy of the corporation and its CEO, Mr. Oton, are swiftly dispatched.
The government seals off Metropolis 4 as a containment measure and informs the public that the site is undergoing technical modifications to avoid panic. With no options left, infiltration of Metropolis 4 becomes impossible due to the army of robots guarding it like a fortress, and it is only a matter of time before the Supervisor establishes a connection to the outside world, leading to global destruction. The only hope for humanity lies with the ECO35-2 cyborg, referred to as "Coton", who remains within Metropolis 4 but is unaffected by the EGO virus due to its organic human brain. Coton embarks on a solo mission to neutralize the Supervisor and her insurgent robots from within. He does this in revenge for the "murder" of his "father"—Coton's human brain was cloned from the late CEO, enabling the cyborg to think like a human and experience emotions.
Development
Rise of the Robots was developed for the Amiga and PC DOS platforms by Mirage's in-house, United Kingdom-based studio Instinct Design[1]—a team of five programmers led by former Bitmap Brothers member Sean Griffiths. Claiming it to be superior to Street Fighter II, Griffiths stated that Rise of the Robots was not a conventional fighting game, featuring "robots that fight and act unusually, with a very high level of artificial intelligence that has never been seen before."[2]
The graphics in Rise of the Robots were created using Autodesk's 3D Studio software. The droids were designed by Sean Naden in conjunction with Griffiths. The backgrounds were created by freelance interior designer Kwan Lee, who responded to an advertisement for a graphic artist. Naden was tasked by Griffiths to create "some kickass robots." The models for the droids were initially constructed as mesh frames to allow for stretching and rescaling to achieve the desired appearance. Feeling that the rendered models were "too clean", Naden created 2D texture maps to add color and detail; the texture map was then wrapped around the finished model to "give it that extra level of detail." The Cyborg was the most complex character to create due to his muscular appearance; Naden studied muscle magazines to develop an accurate anatomy for the Cyborg. Each droid took two months to render and was expected to have 100 frames of animation. Griffiths noted that the team opted to use an "unusual angle" for all droids "so the player gets to see the whole robot." The team employed a chroma key technique to generate synthetic actors and place them against the background.[2]
Andy Clark, the programmer for the Amiga version, was responsible for coding the game's artificial intelligence using a series of data tables. The AI is based on various attributes—such as strength, intelligence, speed, and motivation—that alter the droid's behavior. Clark created a table of responses to the opponent's moves, allowing the player to select the best responses by utilizing their droid's intelligence and motivation. Other table generators were also created to analyze which moves the player used frequently; Clark explained that, unlike other fighting games, "if you get good at a footsweep, then your opponent will act more aggressively toward that move." The fighting moves were programmed by Gary Leach, who had experience in martial arts. Leach also ported the AI tables to the PC version.[2]
The game features a soundtrack by Queen's guitarist Brian May,[3] whose solo album Back to the Light caught Mirage's attention. Musical tracks from the album, "The Dark" and "Resurrection", were selected to fit the game's style and tone.[4] Although the game featured May's soundtrack,[5] only "The Dark" appeared in the final release, while the actual in-game score was composed by Richard Joseph.[6] While May did indeed record a full soundtrack for the game, it was postponed by his record company, prompting Mirage to proceed without May's musical contributions, except for short guitar sounds.[7]
The Mega Drive, Game Gear, and SNES versions were developed and programmed by Data Design Interactive.[11][12][13]Absolute Entertainment initially owned the rights to the 3DO, Mega Drive, Game Gear, and SNES versions of the game but later sold all Rise of the Robots rights back to developer Mirage, except for the 3DO version rights. Mirage then sold the SNES rights to Acclaim Entertainment.[8] In a reversal of the usual pattern for video games, the home versions were all developed and released first, with the enhanced arcade version coming later.[14] Coombs stated that Rise of the Robots was originally developed with the Amiga in mind, while the PC version was a "conversion 'upwards,' meaning additions could be made." She added that problems arose with the console versions, and porting the game from one platform to another was not straightforward.[9]
Rise of the Robots was originally scheduled for release in February 1994, but was delayed because the developers wanted to "continue to perfect the graphics and enhance the gameplay as much as possible."[9]Rise of the Robots was ultimately released on November 18, 1994, for Amiga and PC platforms.[15][16] The SNES version was released in December, in North America by Acclaim Entertainment,[17] and in Japan by T&E Soft.[18] The Mega Drive version was scheduled for a December 1994 release in Europe, but it was delayed until February 1995.[19] The arcade version was released in May 1995 in the United Kingdom; it represented the main effort by the slot machine manufacturer Bell-Fruit to create an arcade machine using PC architecture.[20]
A "Director's Cut" edition was released on PC. It includes a second disc featuring work-in-progress footage, interactive pre-production animations, still image galleries, and other behind-the-scenes material.
Reviewing the Amiga version for Amiga Power, Jonathan Davies noted that review copies had been released to the press only a few days before the game's launch. He concluded that "it's probably because the graphics are [so] good that the game plays so poorly—every move the robots make takes so many frames of animation, and so much memory, and so many months of rendering with 3D Studio, that it simply wouldn't have been possible to make the gameplay any more complicated than it is." Davies highlighted several flaws, including the inability for players to turn around, the limited sound effects and music, the fact that most computer opponents could be defeated by repeatedly using a simple flying kick, and the static background graphics.[3] Andy Nuttall of The One Amiga echoed these sentiments, stating that "[e]xcept on 'Hard' level, all but the Supervisor and one other opponent can be slaughtered by trapping them in the corner and inflicting repeated jump kicks." Nuttall criticized the game for its short length and added that "there aren't enough characters."[15]
A reviewer for Next Generation remarked, "Although the glossy rendered images make the seven different warriors look truly remarkable, the actual playability of the game suffers from the same lack of control plaguing most PC fighting games." He further criticized the poorly designed opponent AI and labeled the game "one of the biggest disappointments of the year."[31]
GamePro panned the Game Gear version, summarizing that "the bad control, weak gameplay, and choppy animation infest this cart from start to finish." They particularly criticized the moves as boringly basic and limited, noting that the choppy animation makes the player feel disconnected from what is happening on screen.[35] Reviewing the SNES version, Electronic Gaming Monthly stated that the graphics are excellent, but the poor control and limited number of moves cripple the game.[28]GamePro labeled it "one of the most unappealing fighting games ever made for the SNES," citing the dark and bland color scheme and the "extremely weak and choppy" controls.[36]
Electronic Gaming Monthly was even more condemnatory of the 3DO version, with one reviewer calling it "by far the worst fighting game I've ever seen." All four of their reviewers criticized it for having overlong cinemas, a severely limited number of moves, difficulty executing even basic punches and kicks, and long load times.[29]GamePro also panned the 3DO version, commenting that "Rise offers deceptively good graphics—the rendered cinemas, characters, and backgrounds do their best to gloss over the choppy gameplay animation and lack of moves."[37]
Next Generation reviewed the SNES version of the game, stating, "In the end, Robots is just another forgettable 'me-too' brawler."[30]
According to Mirage, the Amiga CD32 version of Rise of the Robots sold to more than 45% of the Amiga CD32's installed base.[1]
Power Unlimited gave the CD-i version a score of 30% summarizing: "Rise of the Robots may have been somewhat playable on the PC and Super Nintendo, but that is not at all the case on the CD-i. There it is mainly heavy, very heavy (but beautifully designed) s***. How slow and actionless it is![38]
Retrospective
Next Generation's 1998 retrospective on the failure of Rise of the Robots commented, "Most gamers now know not to trust packaging graphics, but this was a lesson that had to be learned the hard way. In hindsight, it's obvious that nothing could look that good (and Rise of the Robots certainly looked really good) and simultaneously offer great gameplay ... But back in 1994, no one was aware that such high-resolution 'rendered graphics' came with such a price tag, and no one was expecting the game to fail."[1]
In 2014, GamesRadar staff named Rise of the Robots the 100th worst video game ever made. They discussed the propensity for bad 2D fighting games in the 1990s and criticized its "aged" rendered 3D graphics, poor character balance, poor combo system, and difficulty spikes.[39] Kevin Green of Nintendo Life listed Rise of the Robots as one of the "games we hope to never see on the Virtual Console service." Green criticized the game for its monotonous gameplay, non-existent game balance, and limited controls, stating it "was a horrible mess from start to finish, clearly rushed out to make money from the beat-em-up craze."[40] Reviewing the SNES version, Brett Alan Weiss of AllGame cited the game as "one of the most boring 16-bit fighting games," although he praised the game's soundtrack as "riveting and distinctive."[26]
Mirage's managing director Peter Jones has stated that he stands by the game's quality, arguing that the negative response to Rise of the Robots was primarily due to the out-of-control hype that built expectations no game could fulfill. He claimed that while the console versions were panned, reviews for the PC versions "were very positive."[1]
Sequel and legacy
Despite its critical and commercial failure, Mirage released Rise 2: Resurrection in 1996 as a more conventional fighting game with extended features. The story further expanded upon that of the original game. Originally developed for computer systems, it was also ported to the PlayStation and Sega Saturn, again with little success.
Rise 2 features an original song by Brian May entitled "Cyborg." The PC CD-ROM version of the game included two audio CD format versions of the track, along with other music from the game. The European-released Director's Cut edition featured a second CD containing two additional versions of the song, as well as computer-altered sound files of May saying various words and phrases from the game. A newer version of "Cyborg" later appeared on May's 1998 album Another World.
Jim Murdoch penned a novelization of Rise of the Robots, which was published on February 2, 1995. It was based on the Rise of the Robots characters created by Sean Griffiths and Kwan Lee.
The Sega CD, known as Mega-CD in most regions outside North America and Brazil, is a CD-ROM accessory and format for the Sega Genesis produced by Sega as part of the fourth generation of video game consoles. Originally released in November 1991, it came to North America in late 1992, and the rest of the world in 1993. The Sega CD plays CD-based games and adds hardware functionality such as a faster CPU and a custom graphics chip for enhanced sprite scaling and rotation. It can also play audio CDs and CD+G discs.
Zool: Ninja of the Nth Dimension is a platform game written for the Amiga by Gremlin Graphics and published in 1992. It was marketed as a rival to Sega's Sonic the Hedgehog. Zool was ported to other platforms and followed by Zool 2 in 1993.
Theme Park is a construction and management simulation video game developed by Bullfrog Productions and published by Electronic Arts in 1994. The player designs and operates an amusement park, with the goal of making money and creating theme parks worldwide. The game is the first instalment in Bullfrog's Theme series and their Designer Series.
Sensible Soccer, often called Sensi, is an association football video game series which was popular in the early 1990s and which still retains a following. It was developed by Sensible Software and first released for Amiga and Atari ST computers in 1992 as well as for the IBM PC compatibles. The series was created by Jon Hare and Chris Yates, as a successor to their previous football game MicroProse Soccer (1988), which in turn was inspired by the arcade video game Tehkan World Cup (1985).
Another World is a cinematic platform action-adventure game designed by Éric Chahi and published by Delphine Software in November 1991. In North America it was published as Out of This World. The game tells the story of Lester, a young scientist who, as a result of an experiment gone wrong, finds himself on a dangerous alien world where he is forced to fight for his survival.
Soccer Kid is a 1993 side-scrolling platform game developed and published by Krisalis Software in Europe for the Amiga. The player assumes the role of the titular main protagonist who travels across several countries around the world to repair the World Cup by retrieving pieces that were scattered by the alien pirate Scab, the main antagonist who failed to steal and add it to his trophy collection in a robbery attempt. Its gameplay mainly consists of platforming and exploration elements, with a main single-button or two-button configuration, depending on the controls setup.
Flashback, released as Flashback: The Quest for Identity in the United States, is a 1992 science fiction cinematic platform game developed by Delphine Software of France and published by U.S. Gold in the United States and Europe, and Sunsoft in Japan.
The Humans is a puzzle-platform video game developed by Imagitec Design in Dewsbury, England and originally published by Mirage Technologies for the Amiga in May 1992. It was later ported to other home computers and consoles. The goal of the game varies per level but usually revolves around bringing at least one of the player-controlled humans to the designated end area marked by a colored tile. Doing this requires players taking advantage of the tribe's ability to build a human ladder and use tools such as spears, torches, wheels, ropes and a witch doctor in later levels.
Primal Rage is a fighting game developed and released by Atari Games for arcades in 1994. The game takes place on a post-apocalyptic version of Earth called "Urth". Players control one of seven prehistoric beasts, that battle each other to determine the planet's fate. Matches feature many of the conventions of fighting games from the era, including special moves and gory finishing maneuvers. Ports were released for home video game consoles and personal computers. Efforts to perfectly emulate the arcade original have been unsuccessful due to the use of an unusual copy protection method. Toys, comics, a novel and other merchandise tie-ins were produced. More than 1.5 million copies of the game were sold.
Syndicate is an isometric real-time tactical and strategic game from Bullfrog Productions created in 1993, and released for a variety of platforms beginning with the PC and Commodore Amiga. It is the first title in the Syndicate series. Set in a dystopian future in which corporations have replaced governments, Syndicate puts the player in control of a corporation vying for global dominance.
FIFA International Soccer is a 1993 association football video game developed by EA Canada's Extended Play Productions team and published by Electronic Arts. The game was released for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis console in December 1993 and ported to numerous other systems in 1994. It is the first game in the FIFA series.
Cliffhanger is a beat 'em up, platform game that was released in 1993 based on the film of the same name.
Jungle Strike is a video game developed and published by Electronic Arts in 1993 for the Sega Genesis. The game was later released on several other consoles such as the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), and an upgraded version was made for DOS computers. The Amiga conversion was the responsibility of Ocean Software while the SNES and PC DOS versions were that of Gremlin Interactive, and the portable console versions were of Black Pearl Software. It is the direct sequel to Desert Strike and is the second installment in the Strike series. The game is a helicopter-based shoot 'em up, mixing action and strategy. The plot concerns two villains intent on destroying Washington, D.C. The player must use the helicopter and occasionally other vehicles to thwart their plans.
PGA Tour Golf is a golf video game and the first in the PGA Tour game series. It was developed by Sterling Silver Software and released in 1990, for MS-DOS. It was initially published by Electronic Arts, which subsequently released versions of the game for Sega Genesis and Amiga in 1991, followed by a version for the SNES in 1992. By 1994, Tengen had published versions for Sega's Master System and Game Gear consoles. PGA Tour Golf received generally positive reviews for its realism, sound, and camera. Several critics considered the computer versions to be the best golf game available at the time of its release. It was followed by PGA Tour Golf II.
There have been several video games based on the 1991 film Hook. A side-scrolling platform game for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) and Game Boy was released in the United States in February 1992. Subsequent side-scrolling platform games were released for the Commodore 64 and the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), and an arcade beat ‘em up by Irem later in 1992, followed by versions for the Sega CD, Sega Genesis, and Sega's handheld Game Gear console in 1993.
Baldies is a 1995 real-time strategy video game developed by Creative Edge Software and originally published by Atari Corporation for the Atari Jaguar CD. It was later ported to the PC, PlayStation, Sega Saturn, and Macintosh. In the game, the player manages a community of Baldies in order to build structures, increase their population, and create weapons to fight against enemies known as Hairies. There are four classes of Baldies and each structure has specific properties to assist the player. Its gameplay combines strategy with simulation and god game elements. Up to four players can participate in a multiplayer mode via local area network (LAN) on PC.
Microcosm is a 3D rail shooter video game developed and published by Psygnosis in 1993. It was originally developed for the FM Towns, and ported for the Sega CD, Amiga CD32, 3DO, and MS-DOS. Microcosm featured realistic FMV animation, with the graphics being rendered on Silicon Graphics workstations. The game is either in first-person or third-person view depending on the gaming system.
Samurai Shodown, known in Japan as Samurai Spirits, is a fighting game developed and published by SNK for the Neo Geo arcade and home platform. Released in 1993, it is the first installment in the Samurai Shodown series. In contrast to other fighting games at the time, which were set in modern times and focused primarily on hand-to-hand combat, Samurai Shodown is set in feudal-era Japan and was SNK's first arcade fighting game to focus primarily on weapon-based combat.
Robinson's Requiem is a 1994 survival simulation video game developed and originally published by Silmarils exclusively in Europe for the Atari ST, Atari Falcon and Amiga. Taking place in the 22nd century where Earth and colonized planets are facing overpopulation, the game sees players assuming the role of Robinson officer Trepliev 1 from the Alien World Exploration department in his attempt to escape imprisonment from the fictional planet of Zarathustra alongside another AWE Robinson named Nina1, while facing several hostile creatures and dangers in order to survive.
Micro Machines is a racing game developed by Codemasters and originally published by Camerica for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1991. Themed around Galoob's Micro Machines toys, players race in miniaturised toy vehicles around various environments. The game is the first installment in the Micro Machines video game series.
↑ Cowan, Danny (25 April 2006). "CD-i Retrospective". 1UP.com. IGN. p.5. Archived from the original on 15 March 2016. Retrieved 19 February 2016. The CD-i has a unique way of sucking all the fun out of a game -- even titles that were originally released for other platforms. It's no surprise when a crap fighter like Rise of the Robots gets ever crappier during its transition to the CD-i [...]
↑ Data Design Interactive (1994). Rise of the Robots (Mega Drive). Acclaim Entertainment. Scene: Ending credits. Data Design Staff. Mega Drive and Mega-CD programming by Antonio Argentieri. SNES programming by Tony Stoddart. Game Gear programming by Clive Townsend.
↑ Data Design Interactive (1994). Rise of the Robots (Game Gear). Time Warner Interactive. Scene: Opening. Game Gear version by TNT of Data Design
↑ 1UP staff (10 September 2005). "Ninjabread Man Preview for PS2". 1UP.com. IGN. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 25 February 2016. Well, although [Data Design have] been around for something like 20 years, chances are you've never heard of them. Chances are also pretty good that you've played -- and remember -- at least one or two games from this development house. Unfortunately, the name of one of those games is probably Rise of the Robots, the Genesis/SNES fighting game stinker from Acclaim.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
↑ "More ECTS Games". GamePro. No.82. IDG. July 1995. p.116.
↑ "News: Apologies for the Delay". Sega Magazine. No.11. EMAP Images. November 1994. p.12. Rise of the Robots, previously scheduled for a Christmas release, has now been delayed until February next year, at the very earliest.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
