Geograph Seal
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is a first-person
mecha In science fiction, or mechs are giant robots or machines, typically depicted as piloted, humanoid walking vehicles. The term was first used in Japanese (language), Japanese after shortening the English loanword or , but the meaning in Japan ...
platform- shooter
video game A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual fe ...
developed and published by Exact exclusively for the
Sharp X68000 The is a home computer created by Sharp Corporation. It was first released in 1987 and sold only in Japan. The initial model has a 10 MHz Motorola 68000 CPU, 1 MB of RAM, and lacks a hard drive. The final model was released in 1993 wi ...
in Japan on March 12, 1994. The fourth and last title to be created and released by Exact for the X68000 platform late into its commercial life span, after being discontinued in 1993 by
Sharp Corporation is a Japanese electronics company. It is headquartered in Sakai, Osaka, and was founded by Tokuji Hayakawa in 1912 in Honjo, Tokyo, and established as the Hayakawa Metal Works Institute in Abeno-ku, Osaka, in 1924. Since 2016, it is majority o ...
with the last model launched, it is widely considered a spiritual predecessor to the '' Jumping Flash!'' franchise by
Sony Computer Entertainment Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC (SIE) is an American video game and digital entertainment company that is a major subsidiary of Japanese conglomerate Sony, Sony Group Corporation. It primarily operates the PlayStation brand of video game co ...
. Taking place in a futuristic
sci-fi Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
setting Setting or Settings may refer to: * A location (geography) where something is set * Set construction in theatrical scenery * Setting (narrative), the place and time in a work of narrative, especially fiction * Setting up to fail a manipulative tec ...
on the fictional planet WS090, players assume the role of a pilot controlling a bi-pedal
animal Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the Biology, biological Kingdom (biology), kingdom Animalia (). With few exceptions, animals heterotroph, consume organic material, Cellular respiration#Aerobic respiration, breathe oxygen, ...
-like mech on an attempt to execute the titular project by fighting against the oppressive enemy robots from the surface of the planet and obliterating the
planetary core A planetary core consists of the innermost layers of a planet. Cores may be entirely liquid, or a mixture of solid and liquid layers as is the case in the Earth. In the Solar System, core sizes range from about 20% (the Moon) to 85% of a plan ...
in order to destroy the infested planet entirely. ''Geograph Seal'' garnered mostly positive reception from critics who praised multiple aspects such as the presentation, graphics, sound design, controls and gameplay, becoming yet another popular title among the X68000 userbase from Exact and eventually being named "
Game of the Year Game of the Year (GotY) is an award given to a video game by various award events and media publications that they feel represented the pinnacle of gaming that year. Events and ceremonies British Academy Games Awards (BAFTA Games Awards) ...
" by Japanese
magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...
''Oh!X''. Shortly after its late release on the computer, Exact would go on to develop a
three-dimensional In geometry, a three-dimensional space (3D space, 3-space or, rarely, tri-dimensional space) is a mathematical space in which three values (''coordinates'') are required to determine the position (geometry), position of a point (geometry), poi ...
platform
tech demo A technology demonstration (or tech demo), also known as demonstrator model, is a prototype, rough example or otherwise incomplete version of a conceivable product or future system, put together as proof of concept with the primary purpose of sho ...
for the
PlayStation is a video gaming brand owned and produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE), a division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. Its flagship products consists of a series of home video game consoles produced under the brand; it also consists ...
that would later become into the first ''Jumping Flash!'' entry.


Gameplay

''Geograph Seal'' is a 3D first-person mecha platform-shooter game similar to ''Jumping Flash!'' and '' Quake'', where the players assume the role of a pilot controlling a bi-pedal animal-like mecha in an effort to execute the titular project by fighting against oppressive enemy robots that have infested the planetary surface of WS090 and destroy the planetary core in order to obliterate the planet entirely as the main objective through six stages, with each one featuring a distinctive thematic and gameplay style.''Geograph Seal'' (ジオグラフシール) ユーザーマニュアル (X68000, JP) The player's mech can jump up to three times in mid-air, which allows him to reach extreme heights and the camera tilts downwards when a double-jump or triple-jump is executed to allow the player to see their shadow and easily plan a landing spot on the ground or against enemies. The player can also shoot projectiles to dispatch enemies as well and collect multiple types of weapons such as heat-seeking
rocket A rocket (from , and so named for its shape) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using any surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely ...
s and
laser A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. The word ''laser'' originated as an acronym for light amplification by stimulated emission of radi ...
. Across each stage, the player must complete a determined objective on the current area to face against a
boss Boss may refer to: Occupations * Supervisor, often referred to as boss * Air boss, more formally, air officer, the person in charge of aircraft operations on an aircraft carrier * Crime boss, the head of a criminal organization * Fire boss, ...
at the end to progress further through the game. If the
shield A shield is a piece of personal armour held in the hand, which may or may not be strapped to the wrist or forearm. Shields are used to intercept specific attacks, whether from close-ranged weaponry like spears or long ranged projectiles suc ...
s of the mech reaches a critical level, it will be destroyed and the players have a limited number of continues to keep playing before the game is over, however items scattered on the area can be collected to regenerate the shields or increase the firepower of weapons. Although the mech cannot
strafe Strafing is the military practice of attacking ground targets from low-flying aircraft using aircraft-mounted automatic weapons. Less commonly, the term is used by extension to describe high-speed firing runs by any land or naval craft such a ...
on the ground, players can perform
strafe-jumping Strafing in video games is a maneuver which involves moving a controlled character or entity sideways relative to the direction it is facing. This may be done for a variety of reasons, depending on the type of game; for example, in a first-pers ...
left and right with their first jump. In addition to the regular single-player campaign, there is a
LAN Lan or LAN may refer to: Science and technology * Local asymptotic normality, a fundamental property of regular models in statistics * Longitude of the ascending node, one of the orbital elements used to specify the orbit of an object in space * ...
deathmatch mode, where two players battle against each other to emerge as victor of the match by connecting two X68000 computers with a
serial cable A serial cable or RS-232 cable is a electrical cable, cable used to transfer information between two devices using a serial communication protocol. The form of connectors depends on the particular serial port used. A cable wired for connecting two ...
.


Development and release

''Geograph Seal'' was both the fourth and last title to be developed and published by Exact for the Sharp X68000 in Japan on March 12, 1994, late into the commercial life span of the computer and a year after being discontinued in 1993 by Sharp Corporation with the last model launched, retailing for
JP¥ The is the official currency of Japan. It is the third-most traded currency in the foreign exchange market, after the United States dollar and the euro. It is also widely used as a third reserve currency after the US dollar and the euro. T ...
9,800. The game is compatible with multiple X68000 machines, including the X68030 and features support with multiple
Roland Roland (; ; or ''Rotholandus''; or ''Rolando''; died 15 August 778) was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the Matter of France. The historical Roland was mil ...
MIDI Musical Instrument Digital Interface (; MIDI) is an American-Japanese technical standard that describes a communication protocol, digital interface, and electrical connectors that connect a wide variety of electronic musical instruments, ...
sound module A sound module is an electronic musical instrument without a human-playable interface such as a piano-style musical keyboard. Sound modules have to be operated using an externally connected device, which is often a MIDI controller, of which th ...
s such as the SC-55mkII and the CM-300.


Reception

''Geograph Seal'' received mostly positive reception from critics since its release. Sudo Yoshima of Japanese magazine ''Oh!X'' praised the controls and music. Nishikawa Zenji, also from ''Oh!X'' magazine, praised the graphics, sound design, gameplay and technical performance. Yaegaki Nachi of ''Oh!X'' magazine as well praised the presentation, 3D visuals and sound design but he felt mixed in regards to the gameplay. Despite its late release on the platform, the game proved to be quite popular among the X68000 userbase in Japan, which would eventually led the title in garnering a "Game of the Year" award from ''Oh!X'' magazine. ''Geograph Seal'' has been also received positively in retrospective reviews. Travis Fahs of gaming
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''The Next Level'' praised the game too for its polygon visuals, sound, and gameplay and for pushing the technical boundaries of the machine, but also stated that the game might not hold the attention from modern audiences due to its "crude graphics and early 90s flavor". Despite this assessment, he ultimately gave the title a nearly perfect score of 4 and a half stars out of 5. Stephen Moyles of ''Hardcore Gaming 101'' commended the title for its
cyberpunk Cyberpunk is a subgenre of science fiction in a dystopian futuristic setting said to focus on a combination of "low-life and high tech". It features futuristic technological and scientific achievements, such as artificial intelligence and cyberwa ...
aesthetic, soundtrack, gameplay and lack of
language barrier A language barrier is a figurative phrase used primarily to refer to linguistic barriers to communication, i.e. the difficulties in communication experienced by people or groups originally speaking different languages (or different dialects in ...
, but criticized the dodgy hit detection and stated that the game's 3D engine "just isn't well-suited for a fast paced action game". Likewise, ''
Medium Medium may refer to: Aircraft *Medium bomber, a class of warplane * Tecma Medium, a French hang glider design Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''The Medium'' (1921 film), a German silent film * ''The Medium'' (1951 film), a film vers ...
''s Kat Koller praised it for pushing the technical capabilities of the X68000 and similarities with its
spiritual successor A spiritual successor (sometimes called a spiritual sequel) is a product or fictional work that is similar to, or directly inspired by, another previous product or work, but (unlike a traditional prequel or sequel) does not explicitly continue th ...
.


Legacy

Shortly after the release of ''Geograph Seal'', Exact created a
pre-rendered Pre-rendering is the process in which video footage is not rendered in real-time by the hardware that is outputting or playing back the video. Instead, the video is a recording of footage that was previously rendered on different equipment (typ ...
3D platform tech demo titled ''Spring Man'' for the PlayStation that served to showcase how such a project could work on the system before eventually becoming '' Jumping Flash!'', which was co-developed with Ultra and shares the same
game engine A game engine is a software framework primarily designed for the development of video games which generally includes relevant libraries and support programs such as a level editor. The "engine" terminology is akin to the term " software engine" u ...
as with the former title. It was released worldwide in 1995 to positive critical response from reviewers.


Notes


References


External links


''Geograph Seal''
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''Geograph Seal''
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Geograph Seal 1994 video games 3D platformers Exact games First-person shooters First-person video games Japan-exclusive video games Multiplayer and single-player video games Science fiction video games Video games about mecha Video games developed in Japan Video games scored by Hiroyuki Saegusa Video games set in the future Video games set on fictional planets X68000 games X68000-only games