Cosmic Carnage

Cosmic Carnage[lower-alpha 2] is a 1994 fighting video game developed by Almanic Corporation, in conjunction with ALU, and published by Sega exclusively for the 32X add-on. Set in a uncharted star system, the game follows eight fighters from two factions in a struggle for survival. Its gameplay consists of one-on-one fights, with a main six-button configuration, featuring special moves and finisher techniques, as well as two playable modes. The title garnered mostly negative reception from critics since its release.

Cosmic Carnage
North American cover art
Developer(s)Almanic Corporation[lower-alpha 1]
Publisher(s)
Programmer(s)Takashi Shichijo
Composer(s)Hikoshi Hashimoto
Platform(s)32X
Release
  • NA: 21 November 1994
  • JP: 27 January 1995
  • EU: February 1995
  • BRA: 1995
Genre(s)Fighting
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Gameplay
Gameplay screenshot.

Cosmic Carnage is a fighting game similar to Mortal Kombat.[1][2] The player fights against other opponents in one-on-one matches and the fighter who manages to deplete the health bar of the opponent wins the first bout. The first to win two bouts becomes the winner of the match. Each round is timed, which can be adjusted or deactivated in the game options; if both fighters still have health remaining when time expires, the fighter with more health wins the round. The game features five levels of difficulty. Hidden characters can be played via cheat code.

In single-player mode, players can choose from eight playable characters and fight against computer-controlled fighters. Achieving a ‘good ending’ for a fighter is time based; depending on how fast the player kills opponents, the more time there is left to escape to the life pod and get as far away as possible. Like Mortal Kombat, special and death moves are performed by entering button commands while pressing the d-pad.[2] A notable feature is the ability to customize a character prior to matches; Four of the selectable characters use armor to assist them in battle and players may choose between one of two options (‘light’ or ‘heavy’) for each of the three armors (body, leg and arm ), each providing characters with their own special move. Similar to the Samurai Shodown franchise, the camera zooms in or out to maximize or minimize the level of graphical detail depending on character movement.

Synopsis

Plot

In an uncharted star system, a group of prisoners en route to a celestial space mine overpower the ship's guards and take control of the ship, but during their breakout, most of the ship's controls are damaged.[1] After days of drifting, the criminals realize that their only hope is to hijack another ship and use their distress signal to bring a military ship to their aid. They then trick the ship by ramming their own vehicle into it. The impact, however, badly damages both and destroys all but one of the escape pods, as well as killing all but four from each ship (eight in total). The few survivors fight for the final escape pod and a chance of survival.

Soldiers

All soldiers use Light Armor and can be equipped with Heavy Armor before fights.

  • Cylic – An anthropomorphic red ant. In the Japanese version, he is a brown-haired human soldier named Jake.[lower-alpha 3]
  • Zena-Lan – A female soldier whose head is constantly on fire. In the Japanese version, she is a blond-haired human soldier named Ray.[lower-alpha 4]
  • Naruto[lower-alpha 5] – A shadow being. In the Japanese version, he is a brown-haired human.
  • Tyr[lower-alpha 6] – A man with metallic skin wearing samurai like armor.

Fugitives

None of the fugitives use armor.

  • Talmac[lower-alpha 7] – A tall, dark, sinister figure with a skull-like face, spiked red hair and sharp claws. No one is sure if he wears a mask or not, because no one has gotten close enough to find out.
  • Yug[lower-alpha 8] – A gorilla-like humanoid who is possibly a robot. He relies almost entirely on his powerful arms for his attacks.
  • Naja[lower-alpha 9] – A female snake-shaped siren, with a cobra's head and, instead of legs, a long tail that she uses as a battering ram. Her design and American name are derived from the serpentine nāga of Hinduism and Buddhism, which in sculptures and drawn art were often depicted as having humanoid torsos.
  • Deamon[lower-alpha 10] – A vicious alien with large talon-like claws and a scorpion-like stinger attached to the back of his head.

Development and release

Cosmic Carnage was developed by Almanic Corporation in conjunction with ALU.[3][4] Takashi Shichijo and Hikoshi Hashimoto served as the project's programmer and composer respectively, although neither are credited as such in the credits of the game.[3] ALU stated on their official website that development kits arrived three months prior to release date during development.[4] The game was first released for the 32X by Sega in North America as a launch title on 21 November 1994.[5] Former Sega of America executive producer Michael Latham stated that the company was rushed to release games on time for the 32X's launch, and said that "[w]hen Cosmic Carnage showed up, we didn't even want to ship it. It took a lot of convincing, you know, to ship that title."[6] The title was then released in Japan on 27 January 1995 under the name Cyber Brawl and later in Europe on February of the same year.[7][8] It was also published in Brazil by Tectoy.

Reception

Cosmic Carnage received mostly negative reviews.[27] Even Sega of America president Tom Kalinske declined to defend the game; when an interviewer brought up the negative response Cosmic Carnage was getting, Kalinske said only, "Well, you know, every now and then there are games with which we're not so happy. It's all part of the learning process."[28]

Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu gave it a score of 25 out of 40.[11] The four reviewers of Electronic Gaming Monthly unanimously commented that even taking into account the fact that it is a launch title, Cosmic Carnage is a disappointing game which fails to push significantly beyond the capabilities of the standalone Sega Genesis in either graphics or audio. They did remark that the armor mechanic is an impressive innovation, but nonetheless felt that the overall gameplay was mediocre at best.[10] In their review, GamePro praised the armor mechanic and sci-fi styled graphics, but criticized the slow action and limited originality, and concluded that "there are more exciting Genesis fighters around".[13] German magazine MAN!AC gave it a score of 38 out of 100.[19] Next Generation reviewed the game, rating it one star out of five, and stated that it was "A sad, shambling mockery of a fighting game."[16]

In a retrospective review, Levi Buchanan of IGN applauded the character sprites, noting that they are "large, colorful, and decently detailed", but felt that the sprite detail were "ruined" by zooming effects. Buchanan also criticized the audio, which consists of "[h]orrid, crunchy music and weak sound effects."[15]

See also

Notes
  1. Additional work by ALU
  2. Also known as Cyber Brawl (Japanese: サイバーブロール, Hepburn: Saibā Burōru) in Japan.
  3. Jeiku (ジェイク)
  4. Rei (レイ)
  5. (鳴門)
  6. Known in Japan as Carl (カール, Kāru)
  7. Known in Japan as Bolt (ボルト, Boruto)
  8. Known in Japan as Wishbone (ウィッシュボーン, U~isshubōn)
  9. Known in Japan as Steer (ステア, Sutea)
  10. Known in Japan as Finisher (フィニッシャー, Finisshā)

References
  1. Cosmic Carnage instruction manual (Sega 32X, US)
  2. "Fact-Files - Sega 32X - Cosmic Carnage". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 66. Sendai Publishing. January 1995. pp. 228–229.
  3. Almanic Corporation (24 November 1994). Cosmic Carnage (32X). Sega. Level/area: Staff roll.
  4. "コンシューマーゲームソフト". ALU (in Japanese). D3 Publisher. 2003. Archived from the original on 19 June 2004. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
  5. McConville, James A. (January 2, 1995). "Sega 32X upgrade sees a sold-out Yule". Business Wire. Berkshire Hathaway. Archived from the original on November 17, 2015. Retrieved November 25, 2015. Sega 32X was launched nationally on Nov. 21 with four software titles. [...] Sega 32X titles launched to date include Doom, Star Wars Arcade, Virtual Racing Deluxe [sic] and Cosmic Carnage.
  6. Kent, Steven L. (2001). "The "Next" Generation (Part 1)". The Ultimate History of Video Games: The Story Behind the Craze that Touched our Lives and Changed the World. Prima Publishing. pp. 493–496. ISBN 0-7615-3643-4.
  7. Swan, Gus; Merrett, Steve (February 1995). "32X Review - Cosmic Carnage". Mean Machines Sega. No. 28. EMAP. pp. 74–75.
  8. "スーパー32X対応ソフトウェア". SEGA HARD Encyclopedia (in Japanese). Sega. 2020. Archived from the original on 29 November 2019. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
  9. Patterson, Mark (February 1995). "CVG Review - Cosmic Carnage". Computer and Video Games. No. 159. EMAP. p. 76.
  10. Semrad, Ed; Carpenter, Danyon; Manuel, Al; Williams, Ken (February 1995). "Review Crew - Cosmic Carnage". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 67. Sendai Publishing. p. 32. Archived from the original on 23 July 2020. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
  11. "NEW GAMES CROSS REVIEW: サイバーブロール". Famitsu (in Japanese). No. 318. ASCII Corporation. 20 January 1995. p. 40. Archived from the original on 16 August 2018. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  12. Halverson, Dave; Des Barres, Nicholas (December 1994). "Viewpoint - Cosmic Carnage". GameFan. Vol. 2 no. 12. DieHard Gamers Club. p. 28. Archived from the original on 2 March 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
  13. Mo, Slo (February 1995). "ProReview: Cosmic Carnage". GamePro. No. 67. IDG. p. 56.
  14. Groves, Will (February 1995). "Reviews - Cosmic Carnage". GamesMaster. No. 26. Future Publishing. p. 44.
  15. Buchanan, Levi (21 November 2008). "Cosmic Carnage Review - Alien-robo-snakes deserve better games than this". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 2 December 2015. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
  16. "Finals - Flotsam - Cosmic Carnage". Next Generation. No. 2. Imagine Media. February 1995. p. 93. Archived from the original on 18 January 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
  17. Salmon, Mike; Slate, Chris (February 1995). "Review - Cosmic Carnage". Game Players. No. 68. Signal Research. pp. 36–37.
  18. Perry, Dave; Walkland, Nick; Roberts, Nick; Price, Adrian (February 1995). "Reviews: Cosmic Carnage". Games World. No. 8. Paragon Publishing. p. 16.
  19. Bannert, Robert (February 1995). "Spiele-Tests - Cosmic Carnage". MAN!AC (in German). No. 16. Cybermedia. p. 45. Archived from the original on 4 January 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
  20. Lloyd, Rich (January 1995). "Mega Focus - Cosmic Carnage". Mega. No. 28. Future Publishing. pp. 12–15.
  21. Hellert, Stefan (February 1995). "Test Mega Drive 32X: Cosmic Carnage (Import Game)". Mega Fun (in German). No. 29. CT Computec Verlag GmbH & Co. KG. p. 101.
  22. "Punto De Mira: Qué Carnicería De Programación - Cosmic Carnage". Micromanía (in Spanish). Vol. 3 no. 2. HobbyPress. March 1995. p. 89.
  23. Pottier, Christophe (March 1995). "Vite Vu - Le Zoom De Vite Vu: Cosmic Carnage". Player One (in French). No. 51. Média Système Édition. p. 107.
  24. "Reviews - Cosmic Carnage". Sega Power. No. 64. Future plc. March 1995. pp. 46–47.
  25. "Mega Drive 32X - Feature: Whatever Happened to the 32X? - Cosmic Carnage". Sega Pro. No. 56. Paragon Publishing. April 1996. p. 25.
  26. Soria, Gabe (January 1995). "Cosmic Carnage: It could have been better". VideoGames - The Ultimate Gaming Magazine. No. 72. Larry Flynt Publications. p. 65. Archived from the original on 4 January 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
  27. Karels, Ralph (July 1995). "Sega 32X - Reviews: Man vs. Mutants - Cosmic Carnage". Video Games (in German). No. 44. Future-Verlag. p. 102.
  28. "Talking - Is Sega's Boss Scared Yet?". Next Generation. No. 3. Imagine Media. March 1995. pp. 6–11. Archived from the original on 4 January 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
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