Description: Sewer Shark (SS) is sort of a combination of Total Eclipse, Mad Dog McCree and Dragon's Lair. (Sounds promising, huh? Especially the Mad Dog McCree part). In it, you race through sewer tunnels in a ship, shooting various kinds of vermin and suffering through various FMV segments. It's kind of like TE in that you fly a ship through tunnels (although the tunnels looked much better in TE). It's similar to Mad Dog McCree in that you move a gunsight around and shoot things. And it's kind of like DL in that if you don't make the exactly right move at exactly the right time, you're toast.
Introduction: Can we say grainy FMV, boys and girls? I knew we could. Seriously, I've seen a demo of _Tomcat Alley_ or something like that for the Sega CD that had full-screen video that didn't look too awful, so why can't the 3DO do good full screen video? The video in SS is not good, and it's not even full screen. The intro is letterboxed, and rather annoying at the same time. Your co-pilot "Ghost" gets right in your face and tells you that there is no possible way you can hack it, and that until he decides otherwise, your codename is "Dogmeat". Made me look forward to flying with him :-) We also get to sit through that wonderful Digital Pictures intro from Night Trap agin. Fortunately, SS is only one disk, so we probably won't have to sit through it more than once per gaming session, unless they put it in the middle for no apparent reason. C- or D.
Graphics: I've already commented on the quality of the video. It's a little better than Mad Dog McCree, but in general, not by much. I don't know how it compares to the original Sega CD version, and would be very interested in hearing from someone who has played both versions, as I haven't. The vermin you are supposed to be killing are done in rather garish hues (the ratigators are orange, the scorpions are green) which does, admittedly, help to differentiate them from the sewer walls. The only thing I really liked about the graphics is that I did get the feeling of motion from them. It's kind of fun flying through the sewers even though there's nothing terribly spectacular to look at, so I guess that feeling of motion is why I'm giving SS a C+ on graphics instead of a lower score.
Sound: Remember the comotose voices on Super Wing Commander? Well SS does
_not_ suffer from this problem. That doesn't mean I liked the voice
actors, but they're not sleepwalking through their parts. Your co-pilot,
"Ghost" seems to be on a caffeine high some of the time: " Control: This game really controls fairly well for a 3DO game. You
basically control two things on the ship: 1.) the flight and 2.) the gun.
In flying the ship, you recieve coordiantes from your scout module which
flys ahead of you. These coordinates consist of a series of three numbers,
which are 3, 6, 9, or 12. These correspond to clock directions, so 12 is
straight up (12 o'clock), and 3 is right (3 o'clock). With these
coordinates in mind, you then fly the ship through the tunnels. For
example, if you recieved the series "3, 9, 6", then you would turn right at
your first opportunity, then left, and then enter a downward tunnel.
Navigation is pretty simple, but a single mistake is deadly. You know when
to turn by means of a small gauge on your console. You turn by holding
down B and pressing one of the direction keys. The gun is controlled much
like Mad Dog McCree, but it is much less annoying in SS. You move your
crosshair around the screen with the direction pad and fire with the A
button. The gun is rapid fire, and uses your ship's energy rather than
ammo, so you can use continuous fire if you wish. I really kind of like
these controls. B+.
Packaging: Yes, it's another one of those annoying cardboard and plastic
boxes! And yes, they once again do not include a jewelbox to put the CD in
when you tear up the cardboard box. I really wish all 3DO developers would
go with the same kind of packaging SWC has. Failing that, I wish they'd go
with jewelboxes. The cardboard and plastic boxes are about my third
choice. As a special bonus for those who buy this game, Digital Pictures
has included another one of those "temporary tatoos" like in _Night Trap_
(the same tatoo, in fact). Oooh. Ok, now everybody who actually did
anything with the _Night Trap_ tatoo besides toss it in the circular file
raise your hands. Thought so. C.
Documentation: As reading material, these were vaguely entertaining. As
game docs, they weren't terribly effective. The docs are set up as a
training manual for the "Department of Sanitation Sub-Terrestrial
Extermination Division". I didn't feel the docs were particularly well
organized as far as being able to find info you needed, but maybe I was
supposed to read them from cover to cover first (who ever does that?). The
entertainment comes from reading Ghost's handwritten notes in the margins.
They are usually more succinct and certainly more interesting than the docs
themselves. Not even near the standard set (IMHO) by the SWC docs. B-.
Gripes: Main gripe: I want Ghost _shot_. Whoever designated pilot/co-
pilot responsabilities on the ship was a lunatic. Let's see the pilot
(you) listens to and remebers navigation data, flys the ship using that
data, and operates the ship's guns at the same time. The co-pilot sits on
his ass and makes snide remarks. Gee, yeah, that sounds like a fair
division of labor. Maybe he gets better as the game progresses, I haven't
gotten that far into it.
What I'd like to see in a sequel: Ghost's head on a pike. Seriously, take
the tunnel graphics from TE, keep the same sense of motion, and improve the
graphics of the enemies and you'd have a pretty good game, IMHO.
Replayability: I haven't a clue. As previously stated, I haven't gotten
that far into the game, so I don't know how long it is. I do know that the
navigational data is random, so you don't do the exact same thing over and
over again, like you do in _Dragon's Lair_ or _Night Trap_. I imagine you
could play it through a few times before you got really bored with it, but
I'm just guessing. C+.
Savegame Management: SS does not allow you to save games. On the upside,
this means that it (probably) won't delete your other save games. But it
also means that if the game is very long, you'll have to play all the way
through from the beginning, just like TE. Still, it passes unless the game
is _very_ long.
Overall: Do I like this game? Surprisingly, yes. I certainly like it as
much as SWC or TE, or even Twisted, but SS is kind of fun. The graphics
bite, the sound isn't that wonderful, but the game iteself is kind of
entertaining. Am I recommending it? This is certainly not a "must-buy"
title, and I'd recommend you buy it somewhere with a good return policy in
case you don't care for it. I'll give it a C+ and leave it at that.