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Altered Beast




  developer Sega
  publisher Sega
  designer Toru Iwatani - Game Designer<br>Hideyuki Mokajima - Programmer<br>Toshio Kai - Sound & Music
  release 1988
  genre Fighting Game
  modes Up to 2 players simultaneously
  cabinet Standard upright
  arcade System Sega System 16
  monitor Raster resolution 320 x 224 (Horizontal) Palette Colors 6144
  input 8-way Joystick , 3 buttons
  ports DOS , Amstrad CPC , NES , Atari ST , Commodore Amiga , Sega Master System , Sega Mega Drive/Sega Genesis , Turbografx CD , Commodore 64 and Game Boy Advance


''Altered Beast'' (獣王記 ''Jūōki'', literally "Beast King's Chronicle", in Japan ) is a 1988 Arcade Game developed and manufactured by Sega . After its initial arcade release, it was ported to several home Video Game Console s and Home Computers .


GAME DESCRIPTION

''Altered Beast'' is a Platform / Fighting game that puts the player in control of a Hero who has been raised from the dead to rescue Zeus ' daughter, Athena . The player battles Undead and Demon ic hordes, controlling the shapeshifting hero. He must defeat several levels in order to save the kidnapped Goddess . The game takes place in a setting resembling Ancient Greece , complete with Gods , Temples and ruined Ionic Columns .

The player must battle armies of fictional and Undead creatures to his goal of defeating the evil Demon God Neff, who is holding Athena captive. Along the way, the player has to obtain "Spirit Balls" ( Power-up orbs which increase his strength and appearance) from defeating Two-headed white wolves. When three are collected, the hero transforms into a beast with exceptional abilities.

The game contains several levels which the player must battle through. At the end of each level is a "boss" creature, which is Neff himself in different forms. The enemies the player encounters differ depending on level as does the beast the hero transforms into. These beasts include Werewolf , Dragon , Tiger , Bear , and the more powerful golden werewolf (other beasts can be seen in the Japanese NES version and the Game Boy Advance version). Each beast has its own special abilities, such as the dragon's ability to fly. Between each level are small animations giving the player glimpses of Athena's peril.

The game was moderately successful, the player's ability to transform into different creatures being a big draw. The game actually does have an ending where the player rescues Athena. At the completion of the game (upon Neff's defeat in the city of Dis ), Zeus thanks the player for his help. The credit sequence is rather long and gives the impression that the entire game was actually a film; interspersed in the credits are images of "actors" in various stages of costume for the different characters or monsters in the game. One of the more memorable features of Altered Beast is the well-known quote, "Rise from your grave!" said by Zeus in a very grating, but haunting digitized voice at the start of the game.

''Altered Beast'' was produced as a standard upright only with custom artwork on the cabinet. In most versions, the game's controls consist of an eight-way directional and three buttons, one each for "punch", "kick" and "jump". The game has single player and cooperative two-player modes.


PORTS

''Altered Beast'' was and Europe . Certain differences are seen between the several versions of the game. Some of them, like the Master System one, have only four levels (and suffered from ongoing in-game slowdowns), while others have different beasts to mutate into, such as a humanoid Lion form seen in the NES version, or the bear form seen in the Mega Drive/Genesis version. The Turbografx CD version (released only in Japan) incorporated a new CD-quality soundtrack that greatly differentiates it from other versions.


  Image:NES Alteredbeastpng "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/encyclopedia/entry/Nintendo_Entertainment_System" class="copylinks">Nintendo Entertainment System
  Image:MD Altered Beastpng "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/encyclopedia/entry/Sega_Genesis" class="copylinks">Sega Genesis
  Image:SMS Alteredbeastpng "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/encyclopedia/entry/Sega_Master_System" class="copylinks">Sega Master System
  Image:Spectrum Altered Beastpng "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/encyclopedia/entry/ZX_Spectrum" class="copylinks">ZX Spectrum