Sub-Terrania
Encyclopedia
Sub-Terrania is a multidirectional shooter developed by Zyrinx
and published by Scavenger, Inc.
. The game was originally released in Europe
for the Sega Mega Drive
and in North America
for the Sega Genesis.
, with the player rotating the ship with the directional pad and thrusting forward by pressing the B button. At all times, gravity is pulling down on the player's ship.
To beat each of the game's 10 levels, the player must complete various mission objectives, which are outlined before the level begins (with the exception of the last three levels). The bulk of the missions involve rescuing prisoners, collecting sub modules (to allow your attack ship to go underwater), and defeating alien bosses. To make things more challenging, your ship has a limited fuel tank, which must be constantly recharged by collecting fuel canisters, which are scattered throughout the levels.
There are various other elements that make it easier for the player to be able to finish without running out of fuel-- mining rails are suspended throughout many levels which you can ride on with your ship, which turns off fuel consumption while allowing you to freely slide along them while shooting. There are missile canisters and shield upgrades, along with a "Mega" attack which is released at the beginning of each volley of fire and slowly recharged.
Although the game did receive a 9 out of 10 review from the respected UK video game magazine Edge.
Zyrinx
Zyrinx was a video game developer founded in 1992 in Copenhagen, Denmark.The first game developed by Zyrinx was Subterrania for the Sega Mega Drive. During the development the team relocated to Boston. Later, the team developed the games Red Zone and Scorcher. Zyrinx's 3D rendering technology was...
and published by Scavenger, Inc.
Scavenger, Inc.
Scavenger was a video game publisher working closely with GT Interactive.The company was unique in the sense that most of its development teams were made up of members of the Amiga demoscene, which demonstrated that utilizing the potential of an underground talent pool of highly skilled self-taught...
. The game was originally released in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
for the Sega Mega Drive
Sega Mega Drive
The Sega Genesis is a fourth-generation video game console developed and produced by Sega. It was originally released in Japan in 1988 as , then in North America in 1989 as Sega Genesis, and in Europe, Australia and other PAL regions in 1990 as Mega Drive. The reason for the two names is that...
and in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
for the Sega Genesis.
Story
An unknown alien race has attacked an underground mining colony. A lone pilot has been charged with the task of defeating the aliens, while rescuing the trapped miners, using an experimental attack ship.Gameplay
The game takes place in a side-scrolling underground environment. The controls are based on the classic computer game ThrustThrust (computer game)
Thrust is a computer game originally for the BBC Micro and Acorn Electron. The perspective is 2 dimensional platform-based and the player's aim is to maneuver a spaceship by rotating and thrusting, as it flies over a landscape and along corridors....
, with the player rotating the ship with the directional pad and thrusting forward by pressing the B button. At all times, gravity is pulling down on the player's ship.
To beat each of the game's 10 levels, the player must complete various mission objectives, which are outlined before the level begins (with the exception of the last three levels). The bulk of the missions involve rescuing prisoners, collecting sub modules (to allow your attack ship to go underwater), and defeating alien bosses. To make things more challenging, your ship has a limited fuel tank, which must be constantly recharged by collecting fuel canisters, which are scattered throughout the levels.
There are various other elements that make it easier for the player to be able to finish without running out of fuel-- mining rails are suspended throughout many levels which you can ride on with your ship, which turns off fuel consumption while allowing you to freely slide along them while shooting. There are missile canisters and shield upgrades, along with a "Mega" attack which is released at the beginning of each volley of fire and slowly recharged.
Reception
After its release, Sub-Terrania was criticized in magazine reviews for its punishing difficulty.Although the game did receive a 9 out of 10 review from the respected UK video game magazine Edge.