Captain Quazar

Last updated
Captain Quazar
CaptQuazar.jpg
Developer(s) Cyclone Studios, 3DO
Publisher(s) 3DO
Producer(s) Rich Shane
Platform(s) 3DO Interactive Multiplayer, Microsoft Windows
Release3DO Interactive Multiplayer February 1996
PC 1997
Genre(s) Third-person shooter
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer

Captain Quazar is a science fiction third-person action game by developer Cyclone Studios, [1] first published in 1996 by 3DO. Though initially released as an exclusive for 3DO's Interactive Multiplayer console, after the system was discontinued, Captain Quazar was ported to the Windows 95 PC platform in 1997 (a route followed by many other 3DO console titles).

Contents

The game is a tongue-in-cheek science fiction adventure. The player controls the title character—a not-too-bright, futuristic, Rambo-style law enforcement officer—as he crosses the galaxy on missions for his irate police chief.

Gameplay

The player controls Captain Quazar from a third-person, isometric view. The player is able to utilize a variety of futuristic and fantastical guns, missiles, and bombs. Different weapons can be picked up or bought at the beginning, and at certain places within each level. Enemies can also occasionally be interrogated for information, which can open up secret levels and items. The game only allows the player to save at the beginning of each level.

This game will not run on modern operating systems, post Windows 95, unless compatibility mode is toggled for post Windows 95 operating systems.

Development

Captain Quazar was Cyclone Studios' first project. For six months, founders Helmut Kobler and Ron Little worked on a basic prototype for the game, Kobler creating the game design in his apartment in Palo Alto, California while Little coded the game in his apartment in East Oakland. [2] They then took the prototype, character designs, and scripts to 3DO, who decided to fund the game. [2]

Reception

Upon release of the 3DO version, the four reviewers of Electronic Gaming Monthly applauded the high level of action, cartoonish and humorous graphics, compelling cinemas, and the enormous levels. However, they complained of difficulty with the aiming. [4] A reviewer for Next Generation agreed that the aiming does not work well due to a combination of tricky controls and the unusual perspective, and found that the humor falls flat. He additionally criticized that while the level design is often ingenious, the difficulty is much too high, and concluded the game is "not offensive, or even in the groan category, just dull, like some cousin at the family reunion who's the only one laughing at all his jokes." [5] GamePro 's review came several months late, with the explanation that the magazine had never received a review copy of the game, but was much more enthusiastic than EGM and Next Generation. Reviewer Scary Larry called it "one of the best action games on the 3DO", commenting positively on the humor, graphics effects, music, sound effects, large amount of content, and fun gameplay, though like the other critics he acknowledged that the aiming is tough to get a handle on. [7] Power Unlimited gave a score of 85% summarizing: "Cheesy platform/shooting game with top graphics, top sound and a two-player option. The levels are very large and the action is especially fun with two players." [8]

Electronic Gaming Monthly editors named Captain Quazar their 3DO Game of the Year. While they noted that far fewer 3DO games had come out in 1996 than in previous years, they felt that with its fast-paced action and high replay value, Captain Quazar genuinely merited an award (whereas other systems which had been discontinued during the year, such as the Atari Jaguar, 32X, and CD-i, were not allotted their own category in EGM's "Best of '96" awards). [9]

Related Research Articles

<i>Olympic Summer Games</i> (video game) 1996 video game

Olympic Summer Games is an official video game of the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games. It is the successor to Olympic Gold and Winter Olympics. It was the last "Olympic" video game released for the fourth generation of consoles, as well as the Game Boy.

<i>War Gods</i> (video game) 1997 video game

War Gods is a fighting video game originally released to arcades by Midway Games in 1996. Ports for the Nintendo 64, PlayStation and Windows were released in 1997. In the game, players control one of ten fighters who have been given great power by a mysterious ore that crashed-landed on Earth from outer space. The object of the game is to defeat all the other fighters to become the most powerful warrior on the planet.

<i>Desert Speedtrap</i> 1993 video game

Desert Speedtrap Starring Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote is an action game developed by Probe Software, that was released in 1994 for the Master System console and Game Gear color handheld system.

<i>Corpse Killer</i> 1994 video game

Corpse Killer is a horror-themed rail shooter developed and published by Digital Pictures for the Sega CD, Sega CD 32X, 3DO, Sega Saturn, Windows 95 and Macintosh computers. An interactive variation on the zombie film genre, it utilizes live-action full motion video in a format similar to other games developed by Digital Pictures. Reviews for the game were mixed, generally criticizing the repetitive gameplay and low video quality, though many reviewers enjoyed the campy nature of the cutscenes. Corpse Killer was the first CD game released for the Sega 32X. It was later remastered for Steam, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch.

<i>POed</i> 1995 video game

PO'ed is a 1995 first-person shooter game developed and published by Any Channel Inc. for the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer. It follows a chef attempting to escape a hostile, alien world. A PlayStation port was published in May 1996 by Accolade. A remastered version of the game, titled PO'ed: Definitive Edition, was announced by Nightdive Studios on April 1, 2024. It is scheduled to release in 2024 for Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.

<i>The Need for Speed</i> 1994 video game

The Need for Speed is a 1994 racing game developed by EA Canada, originally known as Pioneer Productions, and published by Electronic Arts for 3DO in 1994. It allows driving eight licensed sports cars in three point-to-point tracks either with or without a computer opponent. Checkpoints, traffic vehicles, and police pursuits appear in the races.

<i>NHL Open Ice</i> Ice hockey arcade game by Midway Games from 1995

NHL Open Ice: 2 on 2 Challenge, or just NHL Open Ice, is an ice hockey arcade game released by Midway Games in 1995. It features comically exaggerated hockey play, causing it to often be described as an ice hockey equivalent to Midway's NBA Jam.

<i>NHL 97</i> 1996 video game

NHL 97 is an ice hockey video game by EA Sports. It was released in 1996 and was the successor to NHL 96. It is the sixth installment of the NHL series and the first to be released on both PlayStation and Saturn. A Panasonic M2 version was in development and slated to be one of the launch titles for it, but never happened due to the cancellation of the system.

<i>Madden NFL 97</i> 1996 American football video game

Madden NFL 97 is a football video game released in 1996. It was the first multiplatform Madden game released for the 32-bit consoles, being released on both the PlayStation and Sega Saturn. 16-bit versions were also made for the established Super NES and Genesis platforms, as well as a portable version for the Game Boy.

<i>PGA Tour 96</i> 1995 video game

PGA Tour 96 is a sports video game developed by Hitmen Productions for the PlayStation, MS-DOS, and Windows versions, Unexpected Development for the Game Boy version, NuFX for the Sega Genesis and 3DO versions, Ceris Software for the Game Gear version, and Polygames for the SNES version and published by EA Sports for PlayStation, MS-DOS, Windows, Game Boy, Sega Genesis, 3DO, Game Gear and SNES.

<i>Zero the Kamikaze Squirrel</i> 1994 video game

Zero the Kamikaze Squirrel is a video game developed by Iguana Entertainment, and published by Sunsoft in 1994. It is a spin-off/sequel of the Aero the Acro-Bat series. The game was released for the Sega Genesis in October 1994 and for the Super NES in November 1994, along with the release of Aero the Acro-Bat 2.

<i>Star Fighter</i> (video game) 1994 video game

Star Fighter or Star Fighter 3000 is a 3D flight-based shoot-em-up developed and published by UK company Fednet Software, and released in 1994 for the Acorn Archimedes. The gameplay is mission based and involves elements of strategy and planning. The player can order wingmen to fly in formation and attack specific targets.

<i>Off-World Interceptor</i> 1994 video game

Off-World Interceptor is a third-person vehicular car combat game, released for the 3DO. An alternate version of the game was later released for the Sega Saturn and PlayStation consoles, named Off-World Interceptor Extreme. The two versions of the game have identical core gameplay elements, though the Extreme version is tweaked to feel more like the arcade mode in the original Off-World Interceptor.

<i>Shockwave Assault</i> 1994 video game

Shockwave Assault is a science fiction combat flight simulation video game developed by Advanced Technology Group and published by Electronic Arts for various home video game consoles and PCs. The player takes control of a futuristic fighter plane to defeat extraterrestrial ships and tripods.

<i>Star Trek: The Next Generation</i> (1993 video game) 1993 video game

Star Trek: The Next Generation is a large spaceship simulation video game based on the Star Trek follow-up series of the same name. It was released in 1993 to the North American and European markets for both the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) and Game Boy.

<i>The Lost Vikings 2</i> 1997 video game

Lost Vikings 2 is a 1997 puzzle-platform game developed by Beam Software and published by Interplay. All versions of the game, except the SNES release, were titled Lost Vikings 2: Norse by Norsewest. The sequel to The Lost Vikings, it features the original three characters plus two new playable characters: Fang the werewolf and Scorch the dragon. The gameplay remains largely the same, though the three Viking characters all have new or modified abilities.

Cyclone Studios was an American video game developer and publisher based in San Mateo, California. It developed several titles for the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer and later Microsoft Windows.

<i>BattleSport</i> 1996 video game

BattleSport is a 1996 futuristic sports video game developed by Cyclone Studios. It was originally published by Studio 3DO exclusively for their 3DO Interactive Multiplayer in 1996, but after the 3DO was discontinued BattleSport was published for other systems by Acclaim Entertainment. It was released for Windows and PlayStation, Sega Saturn, and Windows in North America in July 1997, and in Europe on August 1, 1997.

<i>Johnny Bazookatone</i> 1996 video game

Johnny Bazookatone is a platforming video game developed by Arc Developments and published by U.S. Gold for the 3DO, PlayStation, Sega Saturn, and MS-DOS computers in 1996. Some releases also came equipped with a music CD based on the game's musical score. The game follows the protagonist, Johnny Bazookatone, trapped in the year 2050 in Sin Sin Prison by El Diablo, lord of the underworld. His guitar, known as "Anita" is taken from him, and so Johnny must travel to reclaim it.

<i>Road Rash</i> (1994 video game) 1994 racing video game

Road Rash is a 1994 racing and vehicular combat video game originally published by Electronic Arts (EA) for the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer. A version for the Sega CD was developed simultaneously and released in 1995 to act as a "bridge" between the 3DO version and the Sega Genesis title Road Rash 3, and the game was subsequently ported to the PlayStation, Sega Saturn, and Microsoft Windows in 1996. The game is the third installment in the Road Rash series, and is centered around a series of motorcycle races throughout California that the player must win to advance to higher-difficulty races, while engaging in unarmed and armed combat to hinder the other racers.

References

  1. ↑ "Price Cut on Goldstar 3DO". GamePro . No. 90. IDG. March 1996. p. 17.
  2. 1 2 "NG Alphas: Cyclone Studios". Next Generation . No. 28. Imagine Media. April 1997. pp. 86–89.
  3. ↑ Sackenheim, Shawn. "Captain Quazar (3DO) Review". Allgame. Archived from the original on November 15, 2014. Retrieved July 19, 2022.
  4. 1 2 "Review Crew: Captain Quazar". Electronic Gaming Monthly . No. 78. Sendai Publishing. January 1996. p. 44.
  5. 1 2 "Captain Quazar". Next Generation . No. 14. Imagine Media. February 1996. p. 162.
  6. ↑ "Power Unlimited Game Database". powerweb.nl (in Dutch). Archived from the original on August 28, 2003. Retrieved September 11, 2022.
  7. ↑ "ProReview: Captain Quazar". GamePro . No. 93. IDG. June 1996. p. 68.
  8. ↑ "Power Unlimited Game Database". powerweb.nl (in Dutch). Archived from the original on August 28, 2003. Retrieved September 11, 2022.
  9. ↑ "The Best of '96". Electronic Gaming Monthly . No. 92. Ziff Davis. March 1997. p. 86.
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.