Happy American Birthday Sega CD!

[LiquidPolicenaut]

Today marks the Sega CD's release date back in 1992..17 years ago! I remember the actual release date caught me by surprise (From reading all the mags, they never said a specific day it would be out) and called a local Kay Bee toys store and, lo and behold, they had one system left in stock. I raced on over and got the last one. When I came home, I enjoyed it through the night. I did like the novelty of seeing FMV in a game and enjoyed it for awhile afterwards...

I always feel the Sega CD is underrated. It actual has a good amount of good games and certain ones truly showed what the system was capable of. Sure, the FMV may have been grainy but it was also that it only took up a 1/4 of the screen in the beginning. Later on, games like Adventures of Batman & Robin and Dracula Unleashed showed how nice FMV could look on the system despite its color limitations. I actually tried to see if I could come up with a "Top 20" list for myself with the Sega CD...and I did! lol

Some of my favs in different categories:

*RPG*: Lunar:TSS, Lunar:EB, Shining Force CD, 3x3 Eyes, Illusion City

*ADV./POINT-N-CLICK*: Snatcher, Rise of the Dragon, Urusei Yatsura, Yumimi Mix, Detonator Orgun, Willy Beamish...

*ACTION*: Keio Flying Squadron, Popful Mail, Earthworm Jim, Final Fight CD, Sonic CD, the Terminator..

*FMV*: Night Trap, Dracula Unleashed, Road Avenger,

*SHOOTERS*: Silpheed, Lords of Thunder, AH-3 Thunderstrike

*JUST FOR THE FMV*: Adventures of Batman & Robin, Cadillacs & Dinosaurs

Of course, there are still a few I may have forgotten to list but are still great games...

I just had to wish my Sega CD a happy birthday and give it a big hug :)

[Sonicwolf]

Poor Sega CD. So much FMV.

Although I thoroughly enjoy SonicCD and Night Trap. Yes. I said Night Trap.

Its entertaining.

Happy Birthday SegaCD. I dont even remember you ever coming out. I didnt even know what a video game was yet. LOL

[Baloo]

Don't forget Eternal Champions Challenge from the Dark Side.

[old_skoolin_jim]

I'll do it... I'm adding two "Make your own Music Video" games into the FMV category, because they're deliciously cheesy:
Marky Mark & the Funky Bunch (want a good look at "attitude" in the early 90's? here it is!)
C&C Music Factory (it's just cheesy... so cheesy)
...and Kids On Site, because yes, it actually makes me laugh when you mis-use the equipment and when the dim-witted guy stands there slapping a fish.
Aside from those, I do actually enjoy all the SCD's awesome games like Lunar 1&2, Popful Mail, Snatcher and Sonic CD. So many good times... *sniffle*

[T2KFreeker]

Sega CD is awesome, plain and simple.

[tomaitheous]

Hey! You can't list MegaCD only games for a top 20 list, for celebrating the *US* SegaCD's birthday. That's totally cheating :smash:

[Baloo]

Hey! You can't list MegaCD only games for a top 20 list, for celebrating the *US* SegaCD's birthday. That's totally cheating :smash:

Yeah, just noticed like half of those titles weren't released here in America, lol.

[LiquidPolicenaut]

Ok, technically i shouldnt have added the Mega CD games but, everytime I talk about what good games the Sega CD has, I always also add the good imports. Force of habit I guess :)

And, btw, it's only 5 Mega CD games in there...nowhere near half :P LOL

[Steve W]

It just seemed like there was a lot of FMV (there was, just not the volume that the gaming public back then thought there was) and a bunch of games that were shovelware, basically cartridge titles dumped onto disc with redbook audio thrown in. Sega didn't try to promote all the games that used the really good scaling/rotation hardware inside, or the RPGs. There's a whole lot more of those than people think. But ask anyone about the Sega CD, they'll come up with full motion video and Kriss Kross videos. Ugh.

You know, looking over the Video Game Trader iPhone/iPod Touch app, I have quite a few Sega CD games. I'd say a good half of its library, at a guess. Some of the game prices are weird, though. Vay is worth $10 complete, but Novastorm is worth $24? Is that accurate?

[A Black Falcon]

Yeah, the Sega CD definitely is awesome. About the only major negatives are that Sega was too split up between too many platforms so Sega CD didn't get enough games, that there are too many FMV games for post-1995 tastes, and the memory cards (CD Backup RAM Carts), which are essential for almost any Sega CD owner who wants more than a handful of games, are sadly expensive and rare.

Other than that though, it's awesome. Some of my favorite games...

RPG - Lunar 2: Eternal Blue
Action-RPG: Popful Mail
Strategy: Dark Wizard
Platformer/action-platform: Ecco CD, Ecco 2 CD, Mickey Mania, Sonic CD, The Terminator
shmup: Keio Flying Squadron, Silpheed, Robo Aleste (the others are good too though!)
other 2d action: Devastator (import only)
FPS-ish: Battlecorps
rail shooter/freeroam shooter: SoulStar, The Adventures of Batman & Robin, Star Wars: Rebel Assault, Night Striker (import only)
FMV: Loadstar, Time Gal (by far the worst games on this list, but I feel that I've got to list something because of how many there are on the system...)

And others I'm not thinking of at the moment. The Sega CD actually does have a decent lineup of quality titles, more so than just what I listed there. Really, it definitely is an under-appreciated system, I completely agree. I definitely like it.

[CelticJobber]

Snatcher is still pretty much my favorite game of all time. I also enjoyed Sonic CD, and even some of the FMV games like Double Switch and Time Gal.

[RCM]

I wasn't able to afford a Sega CD until late '94, and didn't really appreciate it until a couple years ago. It's a great little system which was too expensive and didn't provide a big enough leap over Genesis and SNES to justify a purchase for most. Plus, the library wasn't nearly as varied.

I don't remember where I read this, but whatever I read indicated Sega didn't intend on releasing Sega CD in the states at all. Mega CD was created in attempt to compete with NEC's offering in Japan. One thing is for sure, the console landscape would likely be a lot different had Sega not release Sega CD and 32X.

Happy bday SCD!

[swlovinist]

Huge Sega CD fan(have complete US set). I am going to play some Keio Flying Squadron today. I had one back in the day, and still have it. Great system that does have some amazing games.

[Wraith Storm]

Sega CD is awesome, plain and simple.

QFT!!!

The Sega CD rocks! It has a very competent game library with an excellent selection of games in every genera. Aren't those two of the most important factors for a system? Hell, it even has a few obscure titles that I still can't believe were released here.

I have so many good memories of the system and have fired it up on a monthly basis since 1994!

[Balloon Fight]

The Sega CD really is underrated. Really great system with a solid lineup of titles. Happy b-day!

[DDCecil]

I remember getting one used in about 1994 with Sewer Shark, then discovering Lunar and Time Gal. Good times.

I almost completed the whole U.S. collection twice (once in 2000 - only needed 5 semi-common games!), and after selling a bunch, I tried again in 2003, but that didn't turn out too well, either. Now I am back down to 60-something.

Edit: Found the pic which was taken early 2000:
http://img202.imageshack.us/img202/477/picture429f.jpg

[PC-ENGINE HELL]

I always thought the Sega cd was good, just not pushed right. Its hardware simply wasn't tapped into enough. Sega's USA side should have fought hard to secure rights to or get more of the Mega Cd stuff released. The non-fmv only stuff actually sold pretty well on Sega Cd. I have my two X-eye decks here and they wont be going anywhere anytime soon.

[Baloo]

Yeah, they should've released some more of those RPGs and SHMUPs whatnot on the Sega CD.

[Jorpho]

Where was that trippy, early Sega CD ad that started off with the crazy stop-motion animation?

[Steve W]

I always thought the Sega cd was good, just not pushed right. Its hardware simply wasn't tapped into enough. Sega's USA side should have fought hard to secure rights to or get more of the Mega Cd stuff released. The non-fmv only stuff actually sold pretty well on Sega Cd. I have my two X-eye decks here and they wont be going anywhere anytime soon.
It seems like if they push the hardware right away, it sets the bar for the developers. If Core Design had only released Soul Star as a launch title, who knows how amazing games using the hardware's scrolling and scaling capabilities would have gotten by the end. And it would have put the SNES's giant blocky scaling to shame.

[Ed Oscuro]

Happy "Go to Star!!" and "get off my lawn," Sega CD...I'm a fan of the format, but not this particular hardware or its games. EDIT: I'll give it up for this game, though (http://hg101.classicgaming.gamespy.com/panic/panic.htm). :)


*SHOOTERS*: Silpheed, Lords of Thunder, AH-3 Thunderstrike
lol

Lords was done better on the PC-Engine.

Yep, nothing like cutscenes and cd music to "extend" a game (also distract the developers from what they're supposed to be doing in the first place).

[Peonpiate]

Its a shame most sega-cd titles didnt use HAM mode fpr 256 colors on screen, it was the only failing of it and the genny. :-P Eternal champions graphics wise on SCD was easily better than MK2 on Snes...largely due to 256 color mode, and the fmv would have seen the best benefit from it.

[Zebbe]

Sega CD doesn't have HAM, that's just a very stupid myth. EC is just dithered like crazy to look colourful.

[Jorpho]

Where was that trippy, early Sega CD ad that started off with the crazy stop-motion animation?Ahh, that's right, it was on Eidolon's Inn.
http://www.eidolons-inn.net/old/sega/segacd_res.html

Too bad the download is down at the moment. It's probably out there somewhere, though.
http://www.eidolons-inn.net/old/gfx/comm.jpg


Sega CD doesn't have HAM, that's just a very stupid myth. EC is just dithered like crazy to look colourful.
Are you sure you're not thinking about the Genesis version of Eternal Champions? Every article I've ever seen about Eternal Champions for the Sega CD mentions the 256 colors.

[SegaAges]

Don't forget Eternal Champions Challenge from the Dark Side.
Nice one. I love that game.

Dude, Wing Commander on Sega CD is fucking epic.

Somebody mentioned Sonic CD. Yeah, you guys know me too well.

Mortal Kombat CD was awesome.

Don't forget about Double Switch which had Corey Haim in it. That's right I said it.

How about a good classic that we have all played? Sewer Shark.

Final Fight CD is dope as shit as well

Man, the list goes on and on.

EDIT: Speaking of Sega CD, how hard is it to find Sega CD orphans? I am not trying to start up buying/selling in this thread since there is a place for it. I am just curious how hard it is to find orphans since I have a shit load of disc only games I bought from goodwill way back when

[tomaitheous]

Are you sure you're not thinking about the Genesis version of Eternal Champions? Every article I've ever seen about Eternal Champions for the Sega CD mentions the 256 colors.

Neither used "256 colors". They used plain old everyday dithering. They didn't even use shadow/highlight to get more colors onscreen. Just dithering.


Its a shame most sega-cd titles didnt use HAM mode fpr 256 colors on screen, it was the only failing of it and the genny. Eternal champions graphics wise on SCD was easily better than MK2 on Snes...largely due to 256 color mode, and the fmv would have seen the best benefit from it.
Jesus. This rumor WILL not die. Educate yourself. There's no HAM or 256 color mode on the SegaCD. The SegaCD doesn't add ANY color depth to the Genesis hardware ;)



*SHOOTERS*: Silpheed, Lords of Thunder, AH-3 Thunderstrike

What about Android Assault and even more importantly, Robo Aleste!?!? Robo Aleste is a badass game with awesome music :D

[Ed Oscuro]

I forgot about Robo Aleste - that's one that I hear good things about occasionally. So it's basically the one saving grace for the add-on. (I suppose one could mention Sol Deace or AX-101 or whatever as well, but I doubt I'd be interested.)

[timewarpgamer]

Today marks the Sega CD's release date back in 1992..17 years ago! I remember the actual release date caught me by surprise (From reading all the mags, they never said a specific day it would be out) and called a local Kay Bee toys store and, lo and behold, they had one system left in stock. I raced on over and got the last one. When I came home, I enjoyed it through the night. I did like the novelty of seeing FMV in a game and enjoyed it for awhile afterwards...

I always feel the Sega CD is underrated.

Thanks for bringing this anniversary to my attention. I totally missed it. Like you, I'm one of those people that fights against the overwhelming hoards who call the Sega CD a failure. I've had a hard time containing the list of top Sega CD games at my site to a reasonable number. My all-time favorites are Snatcher, Lunar 1+2, Final Fight CD, and Silpheed. I'd like to think that anyone who grew up with those games--as I did--would have a very atypical (i.e. positive) view of the Sega CD.

[Wraith Storm]

What about Android Assault and even more importantly, Robo Aleste!?!? Robo Aleste is a badass game with awesome music :D

Android Assault is one of the most overlooked shooters in the history of shooters. I find it easily one of the best shooters on the Genesis/Sega CD set-up and easily in the top list shooters of that generation.

From the 3 screen tall playfield, to the sheer variety of the level design, coupled with a fantastic redbook soundtrack and tons of powerups, its reason alone to warrant me having a Sega CD.

Sure, other than the redbook soundtrack and the anime cut scenes, this could have easily been done on the Genesis. However, the fact is that its not on the Genesis, it's on the Sega CD, it's a fantastic shooter, it's exclusive to the system, and I love it.

With that said... I'm off to play some Android Assault: The Revenge of Bari-Arm!

[j_factor]

Slowly acquiring only games that I actually want to play, I currently own 44 for the system and have another 13 on my want list. Not a staggering number of titles, but pretty damn good considering its three-year lifespan and that it was always second-fiddle in terms of priority. I don't know why people always trash the FMV games, as if they were important. A few of them are actually decent, but they don't at all represent the Sega CD. Complaining about them is like complaining about all the brain training games on DS -- it doesn't say much about the system as a whole.

[PC-ENGINE HELL]

Yea a few of the FMV titles were pretty good. I cant speak for everyone, but for me it wasn't really the FMV stuffs existence that bothered me so much as that it was just Sega focusing on that type of game mainly when promoting the add on. Heck, I think every time a pack in game was involved, there was even a FMV title of some sort included. Sewer Shark, Tomcat Alley, Sherlock Holmes, and Prize Fighter I do believe. And yea, like I said, I think there is a few that were really good, but honestly, a lot of them were not. At least the Mega Cd got a somewhat better selection then us, so there is always importing. And as it stands, the USA selection isn't bad by any means.

[Steve W]

And Sega and the other companies like Rocket Science spent millions making these FMV games, and they could have spent it making games with more depth and replay value. Even the 'good' actors they could afford to hire came across as incompetent for some reason. Maybe the scripts were bad, maybe the directors didn't know anything about movies, maybe the actors weren't motivated to put much into a digitized cinematic for a video game.

[vrikkgwj]

If it wasn't for my great CDX, I wouldn't have fallen in love with Lunar and Lunar 2. Besides those two games though... eh, there was a lot of failure on the system.

Snatcher is good though. Too bad it's mega rare.

[j_factor]

Snatcher's not really that rare, it just became uber expensive after people started worshipping Kojima. There are rarer Sega CD games.

[Sosage]

Oh boy. Not mentioning Robo Aleste in the shmup category is just wrong. ;) Great little disc.

Everyone bashes this system mainly because it is an easy target for the Internet hardy hars (it was the main system for the FMV-game hybrid fad, so I can't blame people that much for picking on it). When it was bad, it's really bad. When it was good though...damn, it was really good. It was the closest out of the other disc systems of the time to "mainstream" CD's as a console medium before the Playstation/Saturn generation (CD's at the time still felt so high-tech, even if CD drives were becoming more widely available for the PC).

Everyone's mentioned some great titles already, so I won't bog my post down with a huge list of title recommendations. I'm just going to mention that I still stand by my unpopular opinion that Double Switch is a good game. It was better than Night Trap and was the best attempt at trying to find the secret mixture for FMV+gameplay.

P.S. the system had the best home port of Final Fight btw (I don't remember what beat it recently...was it Final Fight One for GBA?).

P.S.S. Snatcher is only good for one play through, but it is a must play for any Kojima fan.

P.S.S.S. The Lunar series was awesome as well.

P.S.S.S.S. Shining Force btw.

P.S.S.S.S.S. Sonic CD also.

P.S.S.S.S.S.S. Best version of Earthworm Jim?!? Any EWJ experts around?

P.S.S.S.S.S.S.S. Third World War is a favorite, but it definitely isn't for everyone.

P.S.S.S.S.S.S.S.S. Ok. Sorry. I'll stop here.

[j_factor]

P.S. the system had the best home port of Final Fight btw (I don't remember what beat it recently...was it Final Fight One for GBA?).

Final Fight CD is better than Final Fight One. The only thing that might be better is the version on Capcom Classics Collection (ps2/xbox).

[Baloo]

Final Fight CD is better than Final Fight One. The only thing that might be better is the version on Capcom Classics Collection (ps2/xbox).

Doesn't Final Fight CD add speech and time attack and some other stuff in there that the arcade game didn't have? Is that included in the Capcom Classics collection as well?

The only thing that Final Fight CD suffers from is slightly off colors from the arcade due to a not as good color palette.

[Jorpho]

Best version of Earthworm Jim?!? Any EWJ experts around?http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/earthwormjim/earthwormjim.htm

[WCP]

I think the October 15 release date is actually incorrect. I'm not 100 percent sure, but I'm 99 percent sure. Does anybody know how to check the usenet posts from October and November 1992 to confirm this? I remember somebody figuring out the correct release window for the SNES this way, as the SNES release date in the US on Wiki is incorrect as well. It's pretty common for there to be an error in the correct release date, and then every single website keeps posting the incorrect date. This happened with the SNES. Even Nintendo's own internal date was incorrect. It was proved via old usenet posts, so I'm guessing we can know for sure the release date of the Sega CD by checking old usenet posts as well, but I don't know how to actually look that up.

I had my Sega CD pre-ordered from Software Etc. I had it paid in full. I was calling Software Etc every single day to check on it's arrival. Unless I'm really off my rocker it either came out very late in October or early November. I wish I could find my old Software Etc receipt, I'd just scan it in. I picked it up the day it was available, and I'm pretty sure it was early November. I will admit that it could have possibly been late October, but I really can't fathom it being that early in October (the 15th). I've got a pretty good memory when it comes to this stuff, and because I had the thing paid-in-full, and was calling every day to check on it's arrival, I just can't imagine it coming out that early in October. I could have sworn it was early November.

[Juganawt]

It's like the child molestation issues around Michael Jackson... Can't we all collectively forget about the FMV debacles the Sega CD had and agree never to mention those travesties again, and just focus on all the great software that the machine gave us now that so many years have passed? It hurts my heart when everyone systematically thinks "Ahh Sega CD, wasn't that the machine that had those crappy Night Trap and Sewer Shark games? Yeah that machine sucked".

Anyhow, Sega CD / Mega CD was one of my favourite systems of all time. While it's library of software wasn't huge, it was diverse and interesting. Personally I think Sega CD was ahead of it's time...but then again Sega's had a history of that.

Some of my personal favourites:

Thunderhawk / AH3 Thunderstrike - Still to this day one of my favourite games. I absolutely loved this back in the day.

Wing Commander - The best version of the original game on any system.

Terminator - Quite possibly the only decent Terminator game on consoles.

Soulstar - A brilliant evolution of Thunderhawk's engine, and a wonderful game.

Sonic CD - Best Sonic game of all time.

Wolfchild - It's debatable as to whether it's technically better than the original Amiga version, the music was wonderful back in the day.

Shadowrun - The closest iteration of the books. Beautiful graphics and story, but as there's no translation you need to sit with your japanese translation web pages open.

Shadow of the Beast 2 - Best version of the game, with so many improvements over the amiga version I've lost count, but most notably was the fact that lives were added, and the musical score was sublime.

Shining Force CD - Well, talk about a perfect upgrade!

Road Rash CD - Released after the PS1 / 3DO version that got the most fanfare, but I prefer the Mega CD version... for some reason the slower framerate and chunkier graphics give the game more impact for me.

Rise of the Dragon - if Snatcher didn't exist, this would be the best Cyberpunk game.

RDF Global Conflict

FHB Funky Horror Band - one of my favourite RPGS, and I'm not a big fan of the genre.

Keio Flying Squadron

Jaguar XJ220 - Brilliant old school racing game, excellent music soundtrack, and the level editor was amazing back in the day.

Lords of Thunder

Lunar 1 & 2

Dungeon Master 2 Skullkeep - the best dungeon crawler on console - if only because the Snes conversion of DM1 was a disaster, and the PC engine version wasn't that great either.

Heart of the Alien - Another world and it's sequel in one package...amazing value for money.

Syndicate - even though it was COMPLETELY different to the original Amiga / PC / Atari Jaguar versions, it was the best of the "anime editions" (Snes, Megadrive, Mega CD) with added content over the other editions.

I could go on and on about all the fantastic gaming experiences I've had on Mega CD, and with the Good Deal Games titles coming at quite a steady pace over the last couple of years, I'm looking forward to having a couple more soon.

Happy belated birthday Sega CD / Mega CD...you never got the love you deserved.

[Arkhan]

The Sega CD sucked up alot of my childhood. Lunar 2 and Shining Force CD were two games I played so much that one summer, I actually forgot how to write in cursive and came back to school feeling like a retard.

[YoshiM]

I remember getting my Model 1 around 1993 I think. I had just gotten my Federal Tax check and used that cash to buy it from a local game store. My mom was not too thrilled ("you should save your money!") but after a bout with Sewer Shark, she was hooked and I was off of one. I've had an off-again-on-again relationship with that bugger since. Currently I don't have one but I'm on the prowl for a Model 1.

One of my fave games on that system is Sewer Shark. Cheesy, yes but it's a fun shooter that I keep going back to. The Lunar games are very awesome and I love Final Fight CD. Silpheed just plain rocks with the combo of SHMUP action and the 3D rendered backgrounds that really added to the experience.

Happy Belated B-Day Sega CD! You were so underutilized and misunderstood.

[WCP]

It's like the child molestation issues around Michael Jackson... Can't we all collectively forget about the FMV debacles the Sega CD had and agree never to mention those travesties again, and just focus on all the great software that the machine gave us now that so many years have passed? It hurts my heart when everyone systematically thinks "Ahh Sega CD, wasn't that the machine that had those crappy Night Trap and Sewer Shark games? Yeah that machine sucked".


Honestly, I think the FMV games get a bad rap. Some of them are absolutely horrible, no question, but there are a few shining examples. I think often times, the baby gets thrown out with the bathwater when it comes to the FMV games. The primary reason why everybody hates the FMV games, is because at the time, the publishers and developers of the games were basically saying that FMV was the future of gaming, and nobody wanted to believe that. To alot of gamers at the time, FMV was a threat to their way of gaming. They didn't want these so called "interactive" experiences. So basically, every FMV game was demonized as having no substance whatsoever. But I think some of the FMV games are actually pretty fun and entertaining, if you can accept them for what they are, and not what they aren't. Obviously, the "gameplay" is going to be very limited in these games, if not downright nonexistent. However, if you can accept their gameplay limitations, some of them can be quite engaging.

For example, I think Ground Zero Texas was one of the more enjoyable FMV games that came along. It's basically a shooting gallery type game, along the lines of Mad Dog McCree, but I think the semi-interactive storyline made it pretty unique. Night Trap gets criticized for basically boiling down to a memorization game, but there are many shmups that boil down to memorization as well, and they don't get anywhere near the level of criticism. Sewer Shark is a game that features a very simple gameplay concept, just remembering the jumpgate sequences, and then timing the button presses, and shooting the sewer rats, but I still think it can be quite enjoyable if you accept the game for what it is.

There isn't any question that there are alot of very horrible FMV games, that really have almost no redeeming qualities other than pure campiness factor, but I don't think all FMV games deserve the legacy they've been given. I think Ground Zero Texas, Sherlock Holmes, Sewer Shark and Night Trap are all pretty decent entertainment, if you accept their limitations.

[Sosage]

Honestly, I think the FMV games get a bad rap...was demonized as having no substance whatsoever.

Their limitation, which you also mention, is the problem. Good designers will create something great out of the limitations they are handed, but at the same time FMV's limitations were ridiculous. This is why I stand by Double Switch being one of the best FMV titles around. It wasn't a Dragon's Lair clone, it wasn't a cursor shooter and it wasn't an adventure title. It was a really great attempt at making a FMV title fast paced without falling back on the obvious solution (QTE-fest, cursor shooter or adventure...or really any genre game with FMV cut scenes).

...but what else is there to do with FMV? I guess my point is, FMV-intensive gameplay scraped the bottom of the barrel really, really, really quickly...practically matured out of the womb.

You know what else was being sold to us at the same time? "Digitized graphics"...!!! The future of video games was live actors in front of a blue screen. Well, they were partially correct (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motion_capture).

[WCP]

Their limitation, which you also mention, is the problem. Good designers will create something great out of the limitations they are handed, but at the same time FMV's limitations were ridiculous. This is why I stand by Double Switch being one of the best FMV titles around. It wasn't a Dragon's Lair clone, it wasn't a cursor shooter and it wasn't an adventure title. It was a really great attempt at making a FMV title fast paced without falling back on the obvious solution (QTE-fest, cursor shooter or adventure...or really any genre game with FMV cut scenes).

...but what else is there to do with FMV? I guess my point is, FMV-intensive gameplay scraped the bottom of the barrel really, really, really quickly...practically matured out of the womb.

You know what else was being sold to us at the same time? "Digitized graphics"...!!! The future of video games was live actors in front of a blue screen. Well, they were partially correct (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motion_capture).

Amazingly, I've never tried Double Switch. I'll have to try that. Even though Ground Zero Texas can be boiled down to a cursor shooter, I really liked it.