Ristar

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Ristar
Single-player

Ristar

fifth generation video game consoles
.

While never receiving any sequels, Sega has re-released Ristar several times

level design
and gameplay mechanics.

Gameplay

Gameplay screenshot

Ristar is a

level to its end, while avoiding damage from obstacles and enemies.[4] Ristar's extendable arms are used as the main means of attacking enemies; through extending his arms, grabbing the enemy, and pulling himself towards them into a "headbutt" motion to defeat them.[5] The same motion also allows for opening treasure chests containing various items, or striking different parts of the environment, such as knocking trees over.[5] Additionally, his elastic arms can merely be used for grabbing and/or throwing objects as well.[6]

Beyond attacking, Ristar's arms are also used as a method of projecting him through levels.

360 degrees circle. Letting go launches him off in a given direction, dependent on the time of release.[8] If enough momentum is gained, sparkles appear behind Ristar and he performs a move called the "Meteor Strike", which makes him invincible and able to defeat any enemy upon touching them. When enough momentum is lost, usually a few seconds, flight ceases, and he drops to the ground back into his normal state, though this can be extended by bouncing off walls and ceilings during flight.[9]

Every level ends with a special "Star Handle", which is used to launch Ristar through the end of the level. Bonus points are awarded based on Ristar's altitude when flying offscreen, similar to

life
. Locating and grabbing a Ristar figure grants Ristar an extra life, while finding traditional star figures replenish his health; a yellow star replenishes one star, while a blue star restores all four.

Plot

Much like other games from the same timeframe, the game's story varied between the Japanese language release and its English language counterpart. In all versions of the game, the events take place in a far off galaxy, where an evil space pirate, Kaiser Greedy, has used mind control to make the planets' leaders obey him.[5] In the Japanese version, the inhabitants of Planet Neer (Flora in the international version) pray for a hero before Greedy's mind control minion, Riho, snatches the planet elder. The desperate prayers reach the mother of shooting stars, Oruto. She awakens one of her children, Ristar, with the sole purpose of granting the wishes of the innocent people. He must stop Greedy and the brainwashed leaders of each world to restore peace to the Valdi System.

In the international version, Oruto is omitted altogether. Instead, Ristar has a father, the legendary hero, who is a shooting star that protects the constellation of Valjee.[10] Rather than Oruto awakening Ristar, the legendary hero was kidnapped by Greedy, and it is up to Ristar to rescue his father as well.[11] The Japanese version of the game ends with Greedy and two of his underlings, Inonis and Uranim, stranded on a deserted planet, with a picture of Ristar appearing in the space, while Greedy simply stares at it. The ending scene in the international version shows Ristar being reunited with his father once again.

Development

In the early 1990s, Sega asked its development teams to create a mascot to rival Nintendo's Mario.[12] One proposed character had long rabbit-like ears which could extend and pick up objects, but this was discarded as too complex[5] The team moved on to animals that could roll into a ball, and settled on Sonic the Hedgehog.[12][13] Some years later, Sega developed another prototype, Feel,[14][15] with a character that used its arms to pick things up instead of ears,[16] which became Ristar.[17]

In a 1994 Electronic Gaming Monthly interview, Sega marketing staff Lisa Best and Terry Tang claimed Ristar was not designed by the same Sonic programming team,[18] although much of the game's staff would later go on to create Nights into Dreams for the Saturn, the next game to be officially credited to Sonic Team. This, along with Ristar's inclusion in a number of Sonic themed compilations and re-releases in subsequent years, would lead game journalists to retroactively label the game as being developed by Sonic Team.[19][20][5]

Localization

A number of small changes were made in localizing the version released for English-speaking countries. The story was altered slightly; in the Japanese version, a star mother, Oruto, summons Ristar's help, where in the international version, Oruto is omitted completely, and Ristar's father, a "legendary hero", is referenced instead.[19]

The boss of the ice themed level, Itamor, was changed from a large cat robot to an ice monster type robot. In the game, Ristar must grab hot dishes of food, and throw it in Itamor's mouth. In Japan, it was considered clever to use "hot food" to defeat a cat, due to a Japanese cultural reference regarding a "cat-tongue" not liking hot food. In English-speaking regions, that reference is non-existent, so it was changed to a "cold ice monster" being defeated by being melted by "hot food".[21]

The rest of the changes were very minor edits in effort to appeal to western audiences, such as minor graphical changes to make Ristar and other character's faces look more serious, renaming levels to names more descriptive of their looks, and adding a few non-interactive scenes to show more continuity in the game, such as a skiing sequence before the snow themed level, or putting on anti-gravity shoes to explain why Ristar is floating in a particular level.[19]

Reception

In 1994, Sega was originally pitching Ristar to be the successor of Sonic the Hedgehog.[39][40][18] However, the game never received massive exposure or sales, mainly due to being released just three months prior to the Sega Saturn, Sega's successor to the Genesis, overshadowing it.[29][19]

Reviews for the game were generally favorable.

Sonic the Hedgehog series, stating "if you judged games purely by their visual looks, then you'd be forgiven for thinking that this WAS Sonic the Hedgehog. But when you actually sit back and start playing it, you'll discover that this is a much slower, strategic game. There is a big puzzle element here, which should make it stand out from the hundreds of other platformers in the market".[41] Sega Power made a number of similar points, comparing the gameplay to a mix "between Sonic and Dynamite Headdy", but criticized its short length and lack of originality, and only gave it a 74 rating: "...if you like Sonic games, you will like this" but that "...it's not as good as Sonic either".[35] GamePro likewise remarked that Ristar feels "sluggish" in comparison to Sonic, and criticized that Ristar has few animations compared to other platformer stars and that the game's low difficulty makes it suitable only for beginning gamers. Despite this, they gave the game an overall recommendation based on the colorful visuals and cleverly designed gameplay.[28] Electronic Gaming Monthly's team of five reviewers gave it a 7.6 out of 10, with Mike Weigand summarizing: "An excellent new character, Ristar requires more technique than the typical run-and-jump action titles".[b][24] A reviewer for Next Generation, while noting that Ristar borrowed heavily from Dynamite Headdy, contended that the player character has more than enough originality and versatility to go beyond being a mere clone. Citing the excellent stage design, "slick transparencies, original bosses, and great music", he deemed it "one of the best platform games to date". Despite this, he gave it only three out of five stars.[33] Famitsu scored the game a 29 out of 40.[25]

Ristar received considerably more positive reviews over a decade later upon being re-released

AllGame echoed the sentiment, referring to it as "being as good if not better than any of the included Sonic games in Sonic Mega Collection[43] and as "an overlooked gem" as part of Sega Genesis Collection".[44] Entertainment Weekly was less positive in their review, giving it a B− review score due to the perceived redundancy and recycling of ideas from the Sonic series.[45]

In a retrospective piece by Levi Buchanan of IGN, he praised the graphics and gameplay as being great for the aging Sega Genesis, but also asserted that the platform hurt the game's ability to succeed with sales and visibility: "Ristar never stood a chance. The game was released in early 1995, just as the videogame world was moving on

to the next generation of hardware. Sega was concentrating on the impending release of the Saturn and Sonic was still a monster success. And so Ristar was put to pasture".[5] In 2017, Gamesradar ranked Ristar 41st on their "Best Sega Genesis/Mega Drive games of all time."[46]

Legacy

In a 2006 interview, Ristar designer Akira Nishino said:

Will Ristar come back? Probably not. Of course, as a game developer, I would love to see it happen. At the time of the original, I was thinking of a sequel. It got as far as a character design for that sequel, but it didn't happen for various reasons. But since fans have a say in such matters, your input is greatly appreciated.[47]

While Ristar has never received any sequels, it has received further attention in later years through re-releases in several Sonic and Sega-themed compilations, including

Sega Genesis Mini 2, released on October 27, 2022.[52]

Ristar, as a character, has only made a few minor cameo appearances outside of his two original games in 1995. In Sega's two

Gachapons' (capsule toys) from a machine; one of the possibilities in both games is a Ristar figurine.[53][54] He also briefly appeared in the introductory video of the 2001 Japan-only Dreamcast game Segagaga.[55] Ristar did not make any more appearances until 2010, where he makes a cameo appearance in a downloadable track for Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing due to the high demand for him to be in the game.[56] He also made an appearance as a flagman in the sequel, Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, in 2012.[57] In 2012, Ristar was cited by GameSpot as one of the examples of lost video games from the 1990s that deserved to return.[58]

Notes

  1. ^ Released in Japan as Ristar the Shooting Star (リスター・ザ・シューティングスター, Risutā za Shūtingu Sutā).
  2. ^ The review lists the game's platform as the Game Gear, but this is an error. Electronic Gaming Monthly published a review for the Game Gear version of Ristar in their following issue.

References

  1. ^ "Mega Drive Review: Ristar". No. 13. Sega Magazine. January 1995. p. 88. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  2. ^ "Mega Drive: Ristar". No. 64. Sega Power. March 1995. p. 51. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  3. ^ Pilkington, Mark (Christmas 1994). "Ristar Exclusive!". No. 39. Sega Pro. p. 21. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  4. ^ a b c d "Ristar (Wii Virtual Console / Mega Drive) Review". Nintendo Life. December 5, 2006. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Levi Buchanan (October 7, 2008). "Fond Memories: Ristar". IGN. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  6. ^ "'Ristar' Review – This Shooting Star Has Come Quite Far – TouchArcade". August 16, 2017.
  7. ^ Ristar Game Manual, NA release, pgs 6–7
  8. ^ Ristar Game Manual, NA release, pg 10
  9. ^ Ristar Game Manual, NA Release, pgs 8–11
  10. ^ "The evil King of Despair holds the constellation of Valjee under a reign of terror, spreading misery and darkness." - Ristar back of the box, EU release, 1995
  11. ^ Ristar Game Manual, NA release, pg 2, 1995
  12. ^
    1Up.com. Archived from the original
    on August 22, 2004.
  13. ISBN 978-0-06-227669-8
    .
  14. ^ Sega Magazine, January 1995, pg 88.
  15. ^ Sega Magazine, 1994
  16. ^ "Quote:"He looks more like his rabbit roots rather than a star, and the game name also is called Feel"". Hardcoregaming101.net. Archived from the original on January 15, 2011. Retrieved April 2, 2013.
  17. ^ "Ristar – Hardcore Gaming 101".
  18. ^ a b Electronic Gaming Monthly 65.
  19. ^ a b c d "Ristar". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on January 15, 2011. Retrieved March 22, 2012.
  20. ^ a b c Provo, Frank (February 16, 1995). "Ristar Review". GameSpot.com. Retrieved March 22, 2012.
  21. ^ "Quote: "The cat robot is also changed in the foreign versions so that it is some kind of ogre snowman blob thing. In Japan, a "cat tongue" is someone who dislikes hot or spicy foods, and so for the boss, it implies that you need to use something hot to beat him. This reference is naturally lost to everyone outside of Japan.". Hardcoregaming101.net. Archived from the original on January 15, 2011. Retrieved April 2, 2013.
  22. ^
    CBS Interactive
    . Retrieved October 5, 2017.
  23. ^ "Ristar". Computer and Video Games. No. 159. February 1995. pp. 66–67.
  24. ^ a b "Review Crew: Ristar". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 67. Ziff Davis. February 1995. p. 36.
  25. ^ a b New Games Cross Review – リスター・ザ・シューティングスター. Weekly Famitsu. No.323. Pg.39. February 24, 1995.
  26. ^ "Legacy Review Archives". Game Informer. Retrieved October 3, 2021.
  27. ^ "Viewpoint: Ristar". GameFan. Vol. 3, no. 2. February 1995.
  28. ^ a b "ProReview: Ristar". GamePro. No. 67. IDG. February 1995. p. 36.
  29. ^ a b c Lucas M. Thomas. "Ristar Virtual Console Review – Wii Review at IGN". Wii.ign.com. Archived from the original on December 8, 2006. Retrieved March 22, 2012.
  30. ^ "MEGADRIVE REVIEW: Ristar". Consoles + (in French). No. 39. January 1995. pp. 92–93.
  31. ^ "Ristar". Games World. No. 9. March 1995. p. 12.
  32. Mean Machines Sega. No. 28. February 1995. pp. 60–62. Archived from the original
    on May 19, 2019. Retrieved October 6, 2017.
  33. ^
    Imagine Media
    : 101. March 1995.
  34. ^ a b Sega Magazine January 1995, pg 89.
  35. ^ a b Sega Power March 1995 issue
  36. ^ Sega Pro, issue 41, February 1995, pages 40-41
  37. VideoGames, issue 74, March 1995, page 67
  38. ^ Musgrave, Shaun (August 16, 2017). "'Ristar' Review – This Shooting Star Has Come Quite Far". TouchArcade. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
  39. ^ Sega Pro, Christmas 1994 issue, pg. 16
  40. ^ "Sega's Newest Hero Takes on Solar System Scum!". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 65. Ziff Davis. December 1994. pp. 192–193.
  41. ^ Sega Pro, Christmas 1994 issue
  42. ^ Parish, Jeremy (November 29, 2004). "Sonic Mega Collection Plus Review for PS2". 1UP.com. Archived from the original on December 12, 2013. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
  43. ^ Alan, Scott (October 3, 2010). "Sonic Mega Collection – Review". allgame. Archived from the original on November 15, 2014. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
  44. ^ Alan, Scott (October 3, 2010). "Sega Genesis Collection – Review". allgame. Archived from the original on November 15, 2014. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
  45. ^ "Ristar | EW.com". Entertainment Weekly.
  46. ^ GamesRadar Staff (June 21, 2017). "Best Sega Genesis/Mega Drive games of all time". gamesradar. Retrieved February 20, 2022.
  47. ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3I2oww0Fvk – 2006 Interview with Akira Nishino, for Sega Mega Collection.
  48. ^ "Ristar doesn't have Sonic's legacy, but it does have Sega Forever's blessing". August 10, 2017.
  49. ^ "GAMES :: Ristar™". SEGA. Archived from the original on February 1, 2012. Retrieved March 22, 2012.
  50. ^ "Ristar™ on Steam". Store.steampowered.com. September 13, 2010. Retrieved March 22, 2012.
  51. ^ Stedman, Alex (September 30, 2021). "Nintendo Switch Online Expanding With N64 and Sega Genesis Games in New Membership". IGN. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
  52. ^ "SEGA Genesis / Mega Drive Mini 2 - final Japanese titles and full North American games list announced". August 19, 2022.
  53. ^ Shenmue, Sega, 2000
  54. ^ Shenmue II, Sega, 2001
  55. ^ Segagaga, Sega, 2001
  56. ^ "PS3 ASR DLC: Metal Sonic, Death Egg Zone and Ryo-F [Update 7: DLC Removed". The Sonic Stadium. April 1, 2010. Archived from the original on August 10, 2010. Retrieved March 22, 2012.
  57. ^ Oliver, Tristan. "Ristar Confirmed in ASR Transformed…as Flag Man". TSSZ News. Archived from the original on October 13, 2012. Retrieved April 2, 2013.
  58. ^ "Revisiting Gaming's Lost Heroes". GameSpot.com. October 1, 1994. Retrieved April 2, 2013.
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