Sunday, December 21, 2014

Sol-Deace for Genesis (1992)

Sol-Deace for Genesis advertisement
Ad published in the March 1992 issue of EGM (no. 32)


Historical Background



Sol-Deace (or Sol-Feace, for the Sega CD) is a solid shooter for the Sega Genesis that appeared in 1992.  The start of the 90's was the golden age for shmups (shoot em ups) and Renovation produced at least another notable one for the Genesis/MegaDrive, the brutal Gaiares. They were also known for their good action-adventure  and RPG entries like Valis, Ys III and El Viento. Sol-Deace was popular for its great music, later released through the web as a stand alone product (note: japanese-spoken site after the jump).

Graphical Analysis 

Practically all Renovation print ads showed you exactly what to expect from their games. This ad in particular features a beautiful, eye-catching, hand-made illustration that focuses on the actual ship you'l be flying through space. Unlike other shmups, here you see a cool three canon arrangement that actually serves a strategic purpose along your challenging quest.

On a secondary level you see some sort of spider-like creature destroying a large ship, all arranged diagonally so that your attention flows naturally from one item first (your ship) to the next (the imminent danger of your adventure).

On a third and fourth level you see other ships destroyed or battling on their own. In the lower part of the page you see various actual screens of the game and the box-art you would find in stores. Great effort! If you designed game ads in the 90s this would be a near perfect example of touching all your clear-communications bases. Save for the copy, which is a bit to ridiculous, the message arrived clearly to any reader casually turning the pages of the magazine.

The Genesis would establish itself as a great console for shooters thanks in part to its faster processing speed. Any sane persona in the 90's knew that shooters on the SNES suffered from horrible slow-down and flickering. Not so on the Genesis, where both vertical and horizontal shooters held a generation of gamers firmly in their seats. Sol-Deace, if not an undisputed classic, retains that generational charm.

Original Copy:

Every Game Player
Needs Their Space. 
In the third millennium, mankind has launched a new experiment: and ultra-advanced artificial intelligence circuit is transplanted into a machine. The result is GCS-WT, a super computer designed to act as a unifier of human society. But GCS-WT instead turns into a dictator, and begins to suppress mankind.  A scientist, Edwin Deace, sets out to counter the evils of GCS-WT. Deace designs a revolutionary twin-seat fighter spacecraft, Sol-Deace, which he will use to destroy GCS-WT and free the oppressed Earth. Deace is assassinated by a galaxy-wide manhunt sent out by GCS-WT, and two surviving young people set a course with Sol-Deace for Earth. In the great whirlpool of light and heat, the tragedy of blood and oil begins...

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