Body Harvest
Encyclopedia
Body Harvest is a video game for the Nintendo 64
video game console, developed by DMA Design
(later renamed Rockstar North). It was originally intended to be an Nintendo 64 launch title
, but was delayed due to its original publisher, Nintendo's issues with the game's violent themes, and eventual dropping of the title, leaving DMA to find a new publisher. It was eventually published by Gremlin Graphics
in October 1998. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas contains a mission entitled Body Harvest.
device, Drake must return to the past and do battle in five areas over a 100-year period that covers World War I
-era Greece
, Java
in the 1940s, the United States
in the 1960s, Siberia
in the 1990s, and the near future (2016). The game is non-linear, as players can go anywhere and do anything within the limits of the game's boundaries. This sandbox style
eventually set the ground for DMA's later Grand Theft Auto series
.
was the first targeted area in 1916, southern Spain
was second, eastern Canada
was third, and the south island of Japan
was fourth. In 1941 the first targeted area was Java
. In 1966 it was the U.S (presumably somewhere in the southwest in between Nevada
and Arizona
) and finally in 1991 it was Siberia
. The player only has to stop the aliens in the first area that they target in order to save every future targeted area of that time period.
The opening cutscene shows Station Omega, an orbital space station containing Earth's last survivors. The year is 2016 and the aliens have returned to destroy the last remnant of the human race. The aliens attack and board Station Omega, chasing Adam Drake, the game's only playable character, through the corridors. Even though Adam defeats the initial invaders he is wounded in the process. He is ready to board Alpha I, the time traveling vehicle developed at Station Omega, when more aliens appear and try to force their way into the boarding chamber. The monitors show his colleague, Daisy Hernandez, telling Adam to get into the Alpha I without letting the aliens gain access to it. As the aliens force the door open, Adam dives through the air lock and fires a single shot into the control panel; this closes the door and prevents the aliens from pursuing him further. As they escape the station in the Alpha I, they are pursued by Alien fighter craft, but open up a time portal and escape. Meanwhile, back on Station Omega, an Alien is shown holding a drop of Adam's blood and eyes it strangely. This is a subtle hint as to where Adam's arch nemesis, Tomegatherion, is cloned from.
Each level in Body Harvest requires the player to stop the aliens from slaughtering everyone in the shield area. The player will navigate the map, often coming across towns where aliens will teleport in to attack the town and harvest civilians. Aliens will also warp in frequently to attack the player and can appear from the land, air or sea. Generally, gameplay consists of completing a series of missions. Many of these are very basic, e.g. reach a certain area, but others can be more complicated and require careful thought and skill. Once the player completes a mission they are prompted to check the map to find out what the next mission is.
There is a meter at the bottom of the screen that represents civilian casualties. If too many civilians die for any reason (including friendly-fire), the aliens will destroy the area and the mission will have failed. Generally, only Harvester aliens deliberately kill civilians, but the player must be careful not to shoot or run down any civilians in the process of rescuing them. The player must react to Harvester Waves quickly, as if the aliens manage to harvest 8 humans in a single wave they will create an extremely dangerous 'Mutant' creature, which immediately attacks the player regardless of location. There are also several optional missions that require saving people from the aliens, and although one can fail these missions and still progress through the game, doing so will result in significant human casualties.
The use of vehicles is a key aspect of this game. Vehicles provide significant protection from alien attacks and allow the player to travel at a far greater speed than on foot. Adam can still fire most weapons from within a vehicle, although many vehicles are equipped with powerful weapons of their own. Vehicles take damage independently of Adam and can be repaired with health pickups spawned by defeating larger aliens. Specific vehicles are often required to advance - for example, boats allow travel over bodies of water, while planes and helicopters allow travel through the air. Each vehicle has a unique combination of top speed, armor and fuel capacity, inviting players to consider their options carefully. Vehicles range from mundane civilian forms of transport to powerful military hardware - the player will pilot tanks, armored cars and aircraft as frequently as cars, trucks and motorcycles. In addition, the Alpha I (the ship the player uses to travel through time) becomes a powerful armored hovercraft during boss battles and for the entirety of the Comet level.
There are many buildings in each stage which can be entered on foot, many of which are essential to talk to plot characters and acquire necessary items. Buildings also contain health pickups, new weapons, various ammunition pickups and fuel cans (of which one will refuel a vehicle once). With thorough exploration, rarer items can be found including alien artifacts and 'weapon crystals', three of which combine to form a technologically advanced weapon unique to that level.
The eventual goal of each level is to destroy the Shield Generator to remove the shield that surrounds the region. To do this, the player must first destroy a number of Alien Processors, which act as sub-bosses. Defeating an Alien Processor opens a gateway to the next area and allows the player to save their progress. Once the Shield Generator itself has been destroyed, the player immediately faces that level's boss. Once the boss is defeated, the player travels forward in time and to the next level.
Nintendo 64
The , often referred to as N64, was Nintendo′s third home video game console for the international market. Named for its 64-bit CPU, it was released in June 1996 in Japan, September 1996 in North America, March 1997 in Europe and Australia, September 1997 in France and December 1997 in Brazil...
video game console, developed by DMA Design
Rockstar North
Rockstar North is a British video game developer based in Edinburgh, Scotland, best known for creating the Grand Theft Auto and Lemmings franchises in its earlier guise as DMA....
(later renamed Rockstar North). It was originally intended to be an Nintendo 64 launch title
Launch title
A launch game, or launch title, is a video game released to consumers synchronously with the release of its respective video game console, meaning they are the only available games at the time of the console's launch. Several of these games are also packaged with the console...
, but was delayed due to its original publisher, Nintendo's issues with the game's violent themes, and eventual dropping of the title, leaving DMA to find a new publisher. It was eventually published by Gremlin Graphics
Gremlin Interactive
Gremlin Interactive was a British software house based in Sheffield and working mostly in the home computer market.- History :...
in October 1998. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas contains a mission entitled Body Harvest.
Characteristics
In Body Harvest, players assume the role of a genetically engineered soldier, Adam Drake, who must investigate and eliminate an alien attack force that has returned once every 25 years to "harvest" the human population of earth for their organic material. Being in possession of a time travelTime travel
Time travel is the concept of moving between different points in time in a manner analogous to moving between different points in space. Time travel could hypothetically involve moving backward in time to a moment earlier than the starting point, or forward to the future of that point without the...
device, Drake must return to the past and do battle in five areas over a 100-year period that covers World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
-era Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, Java
Java
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
in the 1940s, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in the 1960s, Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
in the 1990s, and the near future (2016). The game is non-linear, as players can go anywhere and do anything within the limits of the game's boundaries. This sandbox style
Open world
An open world is a type of video game level design where a player can roam freely through a virtual world and is given considerable freedom in choosing how to approach objectives...
eventually set the ground for DMA's later Grand Theft Auto series
Grand Theft Auto (series)
Grand Theft Auto is a multi-award-winning British video game series created in the United Kingdom by Dave Jones, then later by brothers Dan Houser and Sam Houser, and game designer Zachary Clarke. It is primarily developed by Edinburgh based Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games...
.
Plot
The opening text tells of how an alien force has harvested the population of Earth over a 100 year time period. Every 25 years they would land and imprison whole areas in shields that prevented anyone from leaving and any outside help getting in. The aliens would harvest the population of the area within a time limit of one day before moving on to another area. After repeating this several times they would teleport back to their homeworld, an artificially created comet, before returning exactly 25 years later as it has completed its orbit around the nearby star systems back to earth. GreeceGreece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
was the first targeted area in 1916, southern Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
was second, eastern Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
was third, and the south island of Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
was fourth. In 1941 the first targeted area was Java
Java
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
. In 1966 it was the U.S (presumably somewhere in the southwest in between Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
and Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
) and finally in 1991 it was Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
. The player only has to stop the aliens in the first area that they target in order to save every future targeted area of that time period.
The opening cutscene shows Station Omega, an orbital space station containing Earth's last survivors. The year is 2016 and the aliens have returned to destroy the last remnant of the human race. The aliens attack and board Station Omega, chasing Adam Drake, the game's only playable character, through the corridors. Even though Adam defeats the initial invaders he is wounded in the process. He is ready to board Alpha I, the time traveling vehicle developed at Station Omega, when more aliens appear and try to force their way into the boarding chamber. The monitors show his colleague, Daisy Hernandez, telling Adam to get into the Alpha I without letting the aliens gain access to it. As the aliens force the door open, Adam dives through the air lock and fires a single shot into the control panel; this closes the door and prevents the aliens from pursuing him further. As they escape the station in the Alpha I, they are pursued by Alien fighter craft, but open up a time portal and escape. Meanwhile, back on Station Omega, an Alien is shown holding a drop of Adam's blood and eyes it strangely. This is a subtle hint as to where Adam's arch nemesis, Tomegatherion, is cloned from.
Gameplay
There is a meter at the bottom of the screen that represents civilian casualties. If too many civilians die for any reason (including friendly-fire), the aliens will destroy the area and the mission will have failed. Generally, only Harvester aliens deliberately kill civilians, but the player must be careful not to shoot or run down any civilians in the process of rescuing them. The player must react to Harvester Waves quickly, as if the aliens manage to harvest 8 humans in a single wave they will create an extremely dangerous 'Mutant' creature, which immediately attacks the player regardless of location. There are also several optional missions that require saving people from the aliens, and although one can fail these missions and still progress through the game, doing so will result in significant human casualties.
The use of vehicles is a key aspect of this game. Vehicles provide significant protection from alien attacks and allow the player to travel at a far greater speed than on foot. Adam can still fire most weapons from within a vehicle, although many vehicles are equipped with powerful weapons of their own. Vehicles take damage independently of Adam and can be repaired with health pickups spawned by defeating larger aliens. Specific vehicles are often required to advance - for example, boats allow travel over bodies of water, while planes and helicopters allow travel through the air. Each vehicle has a unique combination of top speed, armor and fuel capacity, inviting players to consider their options carefully. Vehicles range from mundane civilian forms of transport to powerful military hardware - the player will pilot tanks, armored cars and aircraft as frequently as cars, trucks and motorcycles. In addition, the Alpha I (the ship the player uses to travel through time) becomes a powerful armored hovercraft during boss battles and for the entirety of the Comet level.
There are many buildings in each stage which can be entered on foot, many of which are essential to talk to plot characters and acquire necessary items. Buildings also contain health pickups, new weapons, various ammunition pickups and fuel cans (of which one will refuel a vehicle once). With thorough exploration, rarer items can be found including alien artifacts and 'weapon crystals', three of which combine to form a technologically advanced weapon unique to that level.
The eventual goal of each level is to destroy the Shield Generator to remove the shield that surrounds the region. To do this, the player must first destroy a number of Alien Processors, which act as sub-bosses. Defeating an Alien Processor opens a gateway to the next area and allows the player to save their progress. Once the Shield Generator itself has been destroyed, the player immediately faces that level's boss. Once the boss is defeated, the player travels forward in time and to the next level.