|
|
ToeJam & Earl takes place from a top-down perspective in a 2D game world. Its gameplay mechanics were inspired by Rogue, which has led to its description as a Roguelike or dungeon-crawl game.[9][10] The game contains both single-player and two-player cooperative modes. The latter displays a single screen when both characters are near each other, but splits it apart when they are not.[1] Playing the game with two players reveals dialogue and jokes between the characters not heard in the single player game.[1][4]
The game is set on Earth, which is represented by randomly generated islands that float in space,[9] each one a layer above the last. They are connected by elevators. Some islands contain pieces of spacecraft wreckage, of which the player must collect 10 to win the game.[1] The player character drops to the island below if he falls from an island's edge, which necessitates that the player again locate an elevator.[4] Each island is populated by antagonistic "Earthlings", such as phantom ice-cream trucks, aggressive packs of "nerds", giant hamsters, Bogeymen, man-eating mailboxes, and police chickens.[1][11][4] Certain Earthlings aid the player.[1] The game has been described as "largely non-violent",[12] as the protagonists can only attack enemies with thrown tomatoes—one of many temporary, randomly generated power-ups.[1]
Power-ups are contained in wrapped presents,[9] which are categorized by appearance. The contents of a present are invisible to the player until it is opened; afterwards, all presents of that appearance are identified. Identification of presents' contents is a central gameplay mechanic.[9][10] Each power-up has a unique effect: while one might increase the player characters' running speed, another distracts enemies.[4][9] Certain presents contain harmful power-ups, such the loss of a "life", or the "randomizer", which hides the identity of all presents. In the game's cooperative mode, if one player character opens a present in the vicinity of the other, its contents affect both characters.[10] As players open more presents, the chances of accidentally opening the randomizer are increased, which prevents the game from becoming easier as more presents are identified.[10]. ToeJam & Earl creator Greg Johnson became a fan of Rogue as a university student. After he left university, he worked on games for Electronic Arts, including Starflight (1986).[13] After the completion of Starflight 2, Johnson conceived ToeJam & Earl—first the characters, then the plot—while on a beach in Hawaii.[14] The idea was a combination of Rogue's gameplay concepts and a lighter version of Starflight's science-fiction themes.[1][13] Johnson met programmer Mark Voorsanger through a mutual friend, while walking on Mount Tam in 1989. He related the concept of ToeJam & Earl to Voorsanger, and the two resolved to make the game together. They formed Johnson Voorsanger Productions, and serious work on the game began soon after.[13] Their status as commercial game designers allowed them to meet with Sega of America, and they used cards covered in landscape drawings to demonstrate their idea of randomly generated levels.[13] Sega marketing manager Hugh Bowen was immediately interested in the concept; Sega wanted innovative games and new mascots to compete with Nintendo.[13][1] "sale".
The game's small development team was composed of Johnson's previous colleagues,[1] and its music was composed by John Baker. The team's goal was to make a humorous game that was "original, easy to understand and offered an immediate response to the player's actions". The designers wanted to include a two-player mode so that they could play together, and considered ToeJam & Earl "a two player game with a one player option."[14] While Sega believed that hardware issues would prevent the feature from working, Voorsanger successfully implemented it.[13] In a 1992 interview with Sega Visions, Johnson stated that the characters ToeJam and Earl evolved as reflections of his and Voorsanger's personalities. Voorsanger disagreed, and called the characters "two different aspects of Greg's personality".[14] Steve Purcell has stated that he contributed character designs to the game.[15]
ToeJam & Earl received positive reviews,[13] which Bill Paris of UGO described as "almost unanimous critical acclaim".[16] However, Sega deemed it a commercial failure due to low initial sales. The game built a cult following through word of mouth,[13] and it was further aided by the Mega Drive's Christmas 1991 sales spike, caused by the release of Sonic the Hedgehog.[1] ToeJam & Earl was later considered a "cult" success.[13]
Mean Machines found the game addictive and original, but found fault with its slow-paced combat.[4] One of the reviewers said, "Not everyone will like it—it's not normal enough for mass appeal—but I think it's destined to become a massive cult clasg
|
It is ok to contact this poster with commercial interests.
Tags: ❶ ALL AROUND MOVERZ ❶ FULLY LICENSED AND INSURED (CALL FOR A QUOTE@818-919-9484)
|
|
