ChuChu Rocket!
Encyclopedia
is a puzzle video game for Dreamcast developed by Sonic Team
. The game was the first popular game with online mode
support for any major video game console. The game was later given away free with every Dreamcast as a demonstration of its online abilities, and also given away free to European console owners, who could order a copy by connecting to the Dreamarena
online service with the Dreamcast browser. In October 2010, the game was ported to iOS platforms, followed by an Android
version in November 2011.
("ChuChus") around a board into one or more goals while avoiding cats ("KapuKapus") roaming the board. The mice and cats all move in predictable paths by always turning right when hitting a wall head on
, by following corners or by turning around when in a dead end.
ChuChu Rocket!s multiplayer mode revolves around up to four players placing arrows on the level at once, trying to direct mice into their own rocket
s and cats into other players' rockets. Each player can only have three arrows on-screen at a time and cannot place them on other players' arrows or their own arrows. Arrows would disappear over time, or could be removed by a player placing his fourth arrow (which would eliminate the first arrow placed, thus leaving three). Although a simple concept, this quickly becomes frenetic with the relentless speed of the mice and four players fighting over them.
Periodically, special colored mice would appear. A gold mouse would add 50 mice to the player's rocket, while a pink mouse would trigger a random event. These events could benefit the player who collected it (for example, by routing all the mice on screen to their rocket, or dropping cats directly into all the opponents' rockets), benefit all players (such as removing all the cats for a short time and flooding the board with mice) or even change the dynamic of the game by swapping the rockets around to different players.
While billed primarily as a multiplayer game, the single-player puzzle mode of ChuChu Rocket! had a strong online
following. In this mode, players are presented with levels with mice and cats on it and are tasked with placing arrows in order to get all the mice into the rockets and keep all the cats out without further guidance after setting the level in motion
. A level editor allows players to create their own puzzle levels to share with others, and thousands of levels were uploaded to Sega
's online service during the game's lifetime.
A less-featured Stage Challenge mode challenges players to get mice into rockets, guide a cat to eat all the mice, put cats into a computer-guarded rocket, and other tasks, all within a specified time limit
. One or two players can work together to solve the 25 available levels
.
release of ChuChu Rocket! featured the same gameplay as the original Dreamcast release, complete with single-cartridge multiplayer gameplay across multiple GBAs. The original 100 puzzle levels were included, as well as 2,500 user-submitted levels from the online service. This version's level editor
is capable of creating levels for 4Player Battle, Team Battle, Stage Challenge and Puzzle mode. Numerous new features and effects were added to the GBA version as well, some taking advantage of each player having their own screen.
An unofficial Atari ST
release of ChuChu Rocket!, released as freeware by Reservoir Gods in 2001, featured the same single-player gameplay as the original Dreamcast release and up to 4 players on the same machine in 4Player Battle & 2 vs. 2 modes. All the original Dreamcast music was remade by MSG using SID Sound Designer. Two versions exist - one for STe/Atari TT030
/Atari Falcon
requiring 2Mb or more of memory & a 'ChuChuLite' version for 1Mb Atari ST
computers. This game received MyAtari Magazine Game of the Year award 2002.
A version of the game for Apple iOS was announced on September 9, 2010. The game features Wifi multiplayer for up to four players and was released on October 28, 2010, However, it does not include any of the enhancements of the Game Boy Advance port.
An unofficial port called ShokoRocket is also available for users of Android. It provides original levels and an editor, and recently added multiplayer support (locally).
There is also an opensource port called Mures, which is available for Linux and other platforms and has multiplayer and network support.
Hairy Games released a game called Puppet Rush that features the same gamplay as the original Dreamcast release.
The Game Boy Advance version's graphics as 2D sprites substituted the 3D-Cel shaded miniature models were sacrificed due to the lesser power of the GBA and were also criticized, but noted the gameplay was essentially the same as the Dreamcast version. The GBA version has an aggregate score of 83% on GameRankings.
IGN
had one complaint about both versions of the game, "It feels like they were going in the right direction but wound up with a game that could be played on a PS1." Robert Townslend of Game Informer
stated, "Just another Japanese anime with a rocket and a panda, we have seen this done thousands of times now and it's gotten old and stale."
Sonic Team
is a Japanese computer and video game developer established in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan in 1990, originally known as Sega AM8. The Japan-based division is also known as G.E. Department Global Entertainment. The studio has collaborated with several in-house Japanese studios as well as other American-based...
. The game was the first popular game with online mode
Online game
An online game is a game played over some form of computer network. This almost always means the Internet or equivalent technology, but games have always used whatever technology was current: modems before the Internet, and hard wired terminals before modems...
support for any major video game console. The game was later given away free with every Dreamcast as a demonstration of its online abilities, and also given away free to European console owners, who could order a copy by connecting to the Dreamarena
Dreamarena
Dreamarena was a free online gaming service provided with all Sega Dreamcast consoles in Europe. As the console had a bundled 33.6 kbit/s modem built in , it was a dial-up service...
online service with the Dreamcast browser. In October 2010, the game was ported to iOS platforms, followed by an Android
Android
An android is a robot or synthetic organism designed to look and act like a human, and with a body having a flesh-like resemblance. Although "android" is used almost universally to refer to both sexes, and those of no particular sex, "Android" technically refers to the male form, while "Gynoid" is...
version in November 2011.
Gameplay
The object of the game is to guide one or more miceMICE
-Fiction:*Mice , alien species in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy*The Mice -Acronyms:* "Meetings, Incentives, Conferencing, Exhibitions", facilities terminology for events...
("ChuChus") around a board into one or more goals while avoiding cats ("KapuKapus") roaming the board. The mice and cats all move in predictable paths by always turning right when hitting a wall head on
Head-on collision
A head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
, by following corners or by turning around when in a dead end.
ChuChu Rocket!s multiplayer mode revolves around up to four players placing arrows on the level at once, trying to direct mice into their own rocket
Rocket
A rocket is a missile, spacecraft, aircraft or other vehicle which obtains thrust from a rocket engine. In all rockets, the exhaust is formed entirely from propellants carried within the rocket before use. Rocket engines work by action and reaction...
s and cats into other players' rockets. Each player can only have three arrows on-screen at a time and cannot place them on other players' arrows or their own arrows. Arrows would disappear over time, or could be removed by a player placing his fourth arrow (which would eliminate the first arrow placed, thus leaving three). Although a simple concept, this quickly becomes frenetic with the relentless speed of the mice and four players fighting over them.
Periodically, special colored mice would appear. A gold mouse would add 50 mice to the player's rocket, while a pink mouse would trigger a random event. These events could benefit the player who collected it (for example, by routing all the mice on screen to their rocket, or dropping cats directly into all the opponents' rockets), benefit all players (such as removing all the cats for a short time and flooding the board with mice) or even change the dynamic of the game by swapping the rockets around to different players.
While billed primarily as a multiplayer game, the single-player puzzle mode of ChuChu Rocket! had a strong online
ONLINE
ONLINE is a magazine for information systems first published in 1977. The publisher Online, Inc. was founded the year before. In May 2002, Information Today, Inc. acquired the assets of Online Inc....
following. In this mode, players are presented with levels with mice and cats on it and are tasked with placing arrows in order to get all the mice into the rockets and keep all the cats out without further guidance after setting the level in motion
Motion (physics)
In physics, motion is a change in position of an object with respect to time. Change in action is the result of an unbalanced force. Motion is typically described in terms of velocity, acceleration, displacement and time . An object's velocity cannot change unless it is acted upon by a force, as...
. A level editor allows players to create their own puzzle levels to share with others, and thousands of levels were uploaded to Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
's online service during the game's lifetime.
A less-featured Stage Challenge mode challenges players to get mice into rockets, guide a cat to eat all the mice, put cats into a computer-guarded rocket, and other tasks, all within a specified time limit
Time limit (video game terminology)
A time limit is a phrase in video game terminology that is used to make gameplay faster on the threat of losing a life. A typical time limit can range from a single second to multiple amount of minutes. Although it is possible to have a Super Mario World level with zero seconds on the timer A time...
. One or two players can work together to solve the 25 available levels
Level (video gaming)
A level, map, area, or world in a video game is the total space available to the player during the course of completing a discrete objective...
.
Ports
A Game Boy AdvanceGame Boy Advance
The is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...
release of ChuChu Rocket! featured the same gameplay as the original Dreamcast release, complete with single-cartridge multiplayer gameplay across multiple GBAs. The original 100 puzzle levels were included, as well as 2,500 user-submitted levels from the online service. This version's level editor
Level editor
A level editor is a software tool used to design levels, maps, campaigns, etc and virtual worlds for a video game. In some cases the creator of a video game releases an official level editor for a game, but other times the community of fans step in to fill the void...
is capable of creating levels for 4Player Battle, Team Battle, Stage Challenge and Puzzle mode. Numerous new features and effects were added to the GBA version as well, some taking advantage of each player having their own screen.
An unofficial Atari ST
Atari ST
The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
release of ChuChu Rocket!, released as freeware by Reservoir Gods in 2001, featured the same single-player gameplay as the original Dreamcast release and up to 4 players on the same machine in 4Player Battle & 2 vs. 2 modes. All the original Dreamcast music was remade by MSG using SID Sound Designer. Two versions exist - one for STe/Atari TT030
Atari TT030
-History:Atari Corporation realized that to remain competitive, they needed to begin taking steps to exploit the power offered by other processors in the Motorola 68000 series. At that time, the best option was the 68020. It was the first true "thirty-two bit bus/thirty-two bit instruction" chip...
/Atari Falcon
Atari Falcon
The Atari Falcon030 Computer System was Atari Corporation's final computer product. Codenamed Sparrow, the machine was based on a Motorola 68030 main CPU, and had a Motorola 56000 digital signal processor, a feature which distinguished it from most other microcomputers of the era.-History:The...
requiring 2Mb or more of memory & a 'ChuChuLite' version for 1Mb Atari ST
Atari ST
The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
computers. This game received MyAtari Magazine Game of the Year award 2002.
A version of the game for Apple iOS was announced on September 9, 2010. The game features Wifi multiplayer for up to four players and was released on October 28, 2010, However, it does not include any of the enhancements of the Game Boy Advance port.
An unofficial port called ShokoRocket is also available for users of Android. It provides original levels and an editor, and recently added multiplayer support (locally).
There is also an opensource port called Mures, which is available for Linux and other platforms and has multiplayer and network support.
Hairy Games released a game called Puppet Rush that features the same gamplay as the original Dreamcast release.
Other appearances
- A version of ChuChu Rocket! was featured in the EyetoyEyeToyThe EyeToy is a color digital camera device, similar to a webcam, for the PlayStation 2. The technology uses computer vision and Gesture recognition to process images taken by the camera...
minigame compilation, Sega SuperstarsSega SuperStarsSega Superstars is a game developed by Sonic Team in 2004 for the PlayStation 2 EyeToy. It features a series of games based on previous Sega titles. It also contains Chao, the virtual pets from the Sonic series....
for Playstation 2PlayStation 2The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
. Players use their hands to raise and lower bridges to guide the ChuChus to the rocket. - In Sonic Battle for Game Boy Advance, Tails' "mine" attack creates an explosive blue chuchu that chases opponents.
- ChuChus Chuih (blue), ChuPea (red), ChuBei (yellow), and ChuBach (green) are playable racers in Sonic & Sega All-Stars RacingSonic & Sega All-Stars RacingSonic & Sega All-Stars Racing is a racing game in the Sega Superstars series produced for Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo DS and Microsoft Windows, featuring characters from many Sega franchises. It is being published by Sega and developed by Sumo Digital...
. They are in the same rocket. Their All-Star move is unleashing a KapuKapu.- In the DSNintendo DSThe is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
and iOS versions, only Chuih is playable.
- In the DS
- In Billy Hatcher and the Giant EggBilly Hatcher and the Giant Eggis a video game developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega for the Nintendo GameCube. It was ported to Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X in 2006, exclusively for Europe.-Plot:...
, the KapuKapu can be found in an egg; it will help the player by attacking foes. Another egg can be found that leads the player to play a mini version of ChuChu Rocket! on the GBA. - In Sega Superstars TennisSega Superstars TennisSega Superstars Tennis is a tennis video game developed by Sumo Digital and published by Sega. The game was released on March 17, 2008 in Europe, on March 18, 2008 in North America, and on March 27, 2008 in Australia. The game includes 16 playable characters and 10 courts from Sega franchises...
, there are several missions in an unlockable stage in the "Planet Superstars" mode (obtained by finishing every Jet Set RadioJet Set Radiois a video game for the Dreamcast, developed by Smilebit and published by Sega on June 29, 2000. A 2D version of the game was later released for Game Boy Advance; this version was developed by Vicarious Visions and published by THQ. Its sequel, Jet Set Radio Future was released 2 years later for...
missions) and an unlockable minigame (after finishing the ChuChu Rocket! missions). The missions usually tell the player to guide all of the ChuChus to their rocket(s) while avoiding KapuKapus within the time limit.- These are played on a slightly modified version of the Space Channel 5Space Channel 5Space Channel 5 is a music video game developed by United Game Artists under the direction of Tetsuya Mizuguchi and published by Sega. The gameplay features a system where the player must copy sequences of dance steps performed by the computer...
court.
- These are played on a slightly modified version of the Space Channel 5
- In Adventures of game development the scripter Peter makes a similar game using lua and the engine
Reception
The Dreamcast version has an aggregate score of 86% on GameRankings. One of the most common complaints about the game was the lag time on the online play. The online interface was also criticized, though reviewers noted that it was Sega's first online game. IGN complained that the lobby system was poorly conceived. GameSpot said that the network mode "could have been the crowning moment" of the game. Gamespy reported problems with getting the settings to connect to the Internet correctly.The Game Boy Advance version's graphics as 2D sprites substituted the 3D-Cel shaded miniature models were sacrificed due to the lesser power of the GBA and were also criticized, but noted the gameplay was essentially the same as the Dreamcast version. The GBA version has an aggregate score of 83% on GameRankings.
IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
had one complaint about both versions of the game, "It feels like they were going in the right direction but wound up with a game that could be played on a PS1." Robert Townslend of Game Informer
Game Informer
Game Informer is an American-based monthly magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of popular video games and associated consoles. It was formed in August 1991, when FuncoLand started publishing a six-page magazine, free in all its retail locations...
stated, "Just another Japanese anime with a rocket and a panda, we have seen this done thousands of times now and it's gotten old and stale."