Tails' Skypatrol
Tails' Skypatrol | |
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Scrolling shooter |
Tails' Skypatrol
Skypatrol was developed by Japan System House with assistance from
Gameplay
Tails' Skypatrol is a horizontal-scrolling shooter set within the Sonic the Hedgehog universe. Its plot involves Sonic's sidekick, Miles "Tails" Prower, traveling to a tropical island to stop the villainous Witchcart, who has turned its inhabitants into crystals.[1] Tails flies by spinning his two tails,[2] is always flying, and can be maneuvered up and down to avoid obstacles and left and right to slow down or speed up. Collecting mint candies replenishes Tails' constantly-depleting flight meter. If Tails is hit by an enemy, he falls toward the ground and the player must recover. Touching a level's environment will cost the player a life.[1] Tails' uses a gold ring as a weapon that can be thrown to defeat enemies, bypass traps, and retrieve items.[3]
There are five scrolling levels to traverse, which vary in difficulty and take place in locations such as forests and castles.[1] Levels conclude with a boss fight against one of Witchcart's henchmen. The player has unlimited continues and will begin at the start of that particular stage after losing all of their lives.[1]
Development and release
Tails' Skypatrol was developed by Japan System House (JSH), a company known for its work on 8-bit conversions of Sega games throughout the early 1990s, with assistance from part-owned Sega subsidiary SIMS.[1] JSH initially developed the game not as part of the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise. The game was originally intended as a launch title for an unreleased handheld console, which used original characters and had a more educational focus. When the system was cancelled, the company chose to remake the game for the Game Gear, a handheld that posed similar hardware specifications and the same screen resolution. Upon completion, it was presented to Sega, which requested that the main character be replaced with Tails.[1] Along with Tails Adventure, it is one of two Sonic the Hedgehog games on the Game Gear to star Tails.[4]
Tails' Skypatrol was released in Japan on April 28, 1995.
Reception
Tails' Skypatrol received largely unfavorable reviews. Upon release, a reviewer for Sega Saturn Magazine found it to be among the weakest entries in the Sonic series, particularly for its poor controls and harsh difficulty. However, they commented that its drastically-different gameplay made it a unique and interesting game on its own.
Retrospectively, Tails' Skypatrol reception has been similar.
See also
- Sonic Triple Trouble
- Sonic Blast
Notes
References
- ^ a b c d e f g Chungus, Apollo (February 26, 2019). "Tails' Skypatrol". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on February 16, 2020. Retrieved September 20, 2020.
- ^ "Tails' Skypatrol". Sega.jp (in Japanese). Sega. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
- ^ "Pré-Estréia". SuperGamePower (in Portuguese). Vol. 2, no. 14. May 1995. p. 19.
- ^ Sleeper, Morgan (June 27, 2013). "Review: Tails Adventure (3DS eShop / GG)". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on May 27, 2016. Retrieved December 31, 2018.
- ^ "Sega Game Gear software". Sega.jp (in Japanese). Sega. Archived from the original on December 7, 2018.
- ^ Casamassina, Matt (June 20, 2003). "Sonic Adventure DX Director's Cut Review". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on August 5, 2017. Retrieved November 12, 2017.
- ^ USgamer. January 6, 2020. Archived from the originalon August 25, 2017. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
- ^ Castro, Juan (August 19, 2005). "Sonic Gems Collection". IGN. Archived from the original on April 18, 2016. Retrieved February 23, 2018.
- ^ Shea, Brian (2023-03-23). "Sonic Origins Plus Adds Amy As Playable Character, Game Gear Games, And More This June". Game Informer. Archived from the original on 2023-03-23. Retrieved 2023-07-09.
- ^ "テイルスのスカイパトロール (GG)". Famitsu (in Japanese). Kadokawa Corporation. Archived from the original on September 20, 2020. Retrieved September 20, 2020.
- ^ SoftBank Publishing. September 1995. p. 86.
- ^ Bedigian, Louis (May 4, 2012). "Sonic Gems Collection – GC – Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on December 26, 2015. Retrieved September 21, 2012.
- 1Up.com. Ziff Davis. Archived from the originalon January 28, 2016. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
- ^ Wild, Kim (2006). "Super Sonic". Retro Gamer. No. 26. p. 35.
External links
- Tails' Skypatrol at MobyGames
- Tails' Skypatrol can be played for free in the browser at the Internet Archive