Time Crisis
Encyclopedia
Time Crisis is a light gun shooter
arcade game
produced by Namco
in 1995 and released in early 1996. It was later ported for the PlayStation in 1997, bundled with the G-Con 45 controller
.
and The House of the Dead
installments, in which the player holds a light gun
and goes through the motions of firing at on-screen enemies. Time Crisis is best known for its cover system
, in which players can duck behind cover to avoid enemy fire and reload his weapon. There are three stages, each consisting of three areas and a boss fight. Unique features are described herein:
The PlayStation port features an exclusive side-story mode, in which the player's performance, such as how quickly he can clear an area, affects the path he takes through the game, resulting in multiple possibilities.
The last remaining member of the Garo family, Sherudo Garo, sought to recapture the throne from the hands of President MacPherson. He sends a mercenary named Wild Dog and kidnaps the president's daughter, Rachel. Garo demands military secrets in return for Rachel's safe return or he will kill her by sunset. V.S.S.E. sends its best agent, Richard Miller (called the One-Man Army) to break in, invade Garo's castle and rescue Rachel.
Miller makes his way through the lower levels of the castle only to find a trap set up by Moz, one of Garo's henchmen armed with a clawed hand. After defeating Moz and being directed to the clock tower, Richard works up through the upper levels of the castle and finds Rachel and Garo. Garo pulls out his knives and they battle, which ends when Miller kills him; however, Wild Dog reappears, kidnaps Rachel, and drags her away. Miller pursues Wild Dog, and it finally ends on a bridge just outside of the castle. Wild Dog begins detonating the castle and is planning to fly away on a helicopter, shooting Rachel in the arm as she tries to escape. After a lengthy battle, Miller shoots Wild Dog, causing him to drop his radio detonator and becomes engulfed in the destruction. Miller and Rachel safely make it out and return home.
The Kantaris deal is a side special story exclusive to the PlayStation version of Time Crisis, later made as Time Crisis: Project Titan
. Miller has received orders to infiltrate a mysterious hotel known as Chateau Du Luc, which is operated by Kantaris, leader of the smuggling network of the same name. The V.S.S.E. has received positive verification that Kantaris supplied arms to the Wild Dogs, and it is Miller's mission to disband this organization. Exactly how this happens will differ depending on the player's performance in this story. Depending on these different routes, Miller may face off against Kantaris' pet cyborg "Web Spinner" in the ballroom, a giant robot in the Lounge, a Spider-like tank in the Parking Lot, or the Kantaris gunship on the Heliport. The story will end with a "Mission Complete" message if the player managed to gun down Kantaris' car, destroyed the robot in enough time so it causes Kantaris to be pushed out of the window, or shoot down the gunship. However, it will end with a "Mission Failed" message if Kantaris managed to get away or remained alive. It is likely that Time Crisis: Project Titan
takes place after the mission, if it was failed.
Light gun shooter
Light gun shooter, also called light gun game or simply gun game, is a shooter video game genre in which the primary design element is aiming and shooting with a gun-shaped controller. Light gun shooters revolve around the protagonist shooting targets, either antagonists or inanimate objects...
arcade game
Arcade game
An arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
produced by Namco
Namco
is a Japanese corporation best known as a former video game developer and publisher. Following a merger with Bandai in September 2005, the two companies' game production assets were spun off into Namco Bandai Games on March 31, 2006. Namco Ltd. was re-established to continue domestic operation of...
in 1995 and released in early 1996. It was later ported for the PlayStation in 1997, bundled with the G-Con 45 controller
GunCon
The Guncon , known as the G-Con in Europe, is a family of light gun peripherals designed by Namco for the PlayStation consoles.-Background:...
.
Gameplay
Time Crisis is a three-dimensional first person rail shooter similar to Virtua CopVirtua Cop
Virtua Cop is a lightgun shooter arcade game created by Sega-AM2, and headed by Yu Suzuki. Its original incarnation was an arcade game in 1994 and it was later ported to the Sega Saturn in 1995, and Microsoft Windows in 1997...
and The House of the Dead
The House of the Dead
The House of the Dead may refer to:* The House of the Dead , an 1862 novel by Fyodor Dostoyevsky* The House of the Dead , a light gun video game series by Sega** The House of the Dead , a 1997 arcade light gun game...
installments, in which the player holds a light gun
Light gun
A light gun is a pointing device for computers and a control device for arcade and video games.Modern screen-based light guns work by building a sensor into the gun itself, and the on-screen target emit light rather than the gun...
and goes through the motions of firing at on-screen enemies. Time Crisis is best known for its cover system
Cover system
A cover system is how a video game lets a virtual avatar avoid dangers usually in a three-dimensional world. This method is a digital adaptation of the real-life military tactic of taking cover to dodge enemy gunfire or explosives. Similar gameplay elements can be traced back to as early as 1986,...
, in which players can duck behind cover to avoid enemy fire and reload his weapon. There are three stages, each consisting of three areas and a boss fight. Unique features are described herein:
- A foot pedal which performs multiple functions: when the pedal is released, the player takes cover to conserve hit points while reloading the gun. While the pedal is released, the player cannot attack. In console conversions, a button command replicates the foot pedal's functions. The player loses a life if he is hit by a direct bullet or obstacle whilst not taking cover, with the game ending if he loses all lives.
- A light gun (introduced in Point Blank) which utilized a special memory chip to synchronize areas of the screen's image as the player rotates the gun around. The light gun also features a blowback function which simulates real-life gun recoil.
- A countdown timer, recharged by clearing an area of enemies, as running down the clock causes an instant game overGame overGame Over is a message in video games which signals that the game has ended, often due to a negative outcome - although the phrase sometimes follows the end credits after successful completion of a game...
, the player must take risks, shooting enemies rapidly and hiding only when necessary. A time extension is rewarded when an area is passed. There are also time bonuses awarded for shooting certain enemies quickly.
The PlayStation port features an exclusive side-story mode, in which the player's performance, such as how quickly he can clear an area, affects the path he takes through the game, resulting in multiple possibilities.
Story
The main plot of the original Time Crisis arcade game release involves an attempted coup in the fictional republic of Sercia. For a millennium, the Garo family ruled Sercia with an iron fist. In 1995, the V.S.S.E. International Intelligence Agency sent William MacPherson, who successfully toppled the Garo regime and became its first democratically elected president.The last remaining member of the Garo family, Sherudo Garo, sought to recapture the throne from the hands of President MacPherson. He sends a mercenary named Wild Dog and kidnaps the president's daughter, Rachel. Garo demands military secrets in return for Rachel's safe return or he will kill her by sunset. V.S.S.E. sends its best agent, Richard Miller (called the One-Man Army) to break in, invade Garo's castle and rescue Rachel.
Miller makes his way through the lower levels of the castle only to find a trap set up by Moz, one of Garo's henchmen armed with a clawed hand. After defeating Moz and being directed to the clock tower, Richard works up through the upper levels of the castle and finds Rachel and Garo. Garo pulls out his knives and they battle, which ends when Miller kills him; however, Wild Dog reappears, kidnaps Rachel, and drags her away. Miller pursues Wild Dog, and it finally ends on a bridge just outside of the castle. Wild Dog begins detonating the castle and is planning to fly away on a helicopter, shooting Rachel in the arm as she tries to escape. After a lengthy battle, Miller shoots Wild Dog, causing him to drop his radio detonator and becomes engulfed in the destruction. Miller and Rachel safely make it out and return home.
The Kantaris deal is a side special story exclusive to the PlayStation version of Time Crisis, later made as Time Crisis: Project Titan
Time Crisis: Project Titan
Time Crisis: Project Titan is a side-story installment to Time Crisis released exclusively for the Sony PlayStation.-Story:Following the assassination of the President of Cuba, Xavier Serrano, VSSE agent Richard Miller has been implicated in the crime. V.S.S.E. only has 48 hours before it must turn...
. Miller has received orders to infiltrate a mysterious hotel known as Chateau Du Luc, which is operated by Kantaris, leader of the smuggling network of the same name. The V.S.S.E. has received positive verification that Kantaris supplied arms to the Wild Dogs, and it is Miller's mission to disband this organization. Exactly how this happens will differ depending on the player's performance in this story. Depending on these different routes, Miller may face off against Kantaris' pet cyborg "Web Spinner" in the ballroom, a giant robot in the Lounge, a Spider-like tank in the Parking Lot, or the Kantaris gunship on the Heliport. The story will end with a "Mission Complete" message if the player managed to gun down Kantaris' car, destroyed the robot in enough time so it causes Kantaris to be pushed out of the window, or shoot down the gunship. However, it will end with a "Mission Failed" message if Kantaris managed to get away or remained alive. It is likely that Time Crisis: Project Titan
Time Crisis: Project Titan
Time Crisis: Project Titan is a side-story installment to Time Crisis released exclusively for the Sony PlayStation.-Story:Following the assassination of the President of Cuba, Xavier Serrano, VSSE agent Richard Miller has been implicated in the crime. V.S.S.E. only has 48 hours before it must turn...
takes place after the mission, if it was failed.