''SOS'', known in
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
as , is a
survival
Survival, or the act of surviving, is the propensity of something to continue existing, particularly when this is done despite conditions that might kill or destroy it. The concept can be applied to humans and other living things (or, hypotheti ...
adventure
An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...
video game developed by
Human Entertainment
was a Japanese video game developer and publisher founded in 1983. The company produced games for a number of platforms, including home consoles, portable consoles, and personal computers. Human declared bankruptcy in 2000 and disbanded. Its for ...
and published in 1994 by
Vic Tokai
Tokai Communications Corporation Inc (known as Vic Tokai Corporation until 2011) is a telecommunications company in Japan providing DSL services and network solutions. Its headquarters are in the in Aoi-ku, Shizuoka, Shizuoka Prefecture. In ...
for the
Super NES
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea, 1991 in North America, 1992 in E ...
. A sequel to the game was later released in Japan for the
PlayStation
is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...
known as ''Septentrion: Out of the Blue''.
Story
Mostly based on the
1969 book and
1972 film, ''The Poseidon Adventure'', the game is set on September 13, 1921, and the players must escape the sinking ship ''Lady Crithania'', which is hit by a gigantic wave and capsizes off the coast of
Humbleton, England.
The game features four playable characters, each with a different story:
* Capris Wisher - An architect. This young man takes his younger stepsister, Amy Markarson, to the ''Lady Crithania''. However, Amy's sickness becomes a severe hindrance to him.
* Redwin Gardner - A counselor, traveling with a family consisting of an unnamed mother and her children Stella and Harry Adams. Plus, Jack Hamilton, a nephew.
* Jeffrey Howell - A senior doctor, he travels along with his wife Adela.
* Luke Haines - A crewman of the ''Lady Crithania''. He suspects that the sea conditions are too much for the ''Lady Crithania'' to handle, much to the opposition of his superiors.
Gameplay
left, An example of the main game screen. Luke Haines stands in a stairway before the tidal wave.
The player must escape from the ship within a one-hour time limit. The timer is hidden except when the player injures themselves, in which case they fall unconscious and lose five minutes of time. After a period of time, the ship begins to periodically tilt in the water and gradually fill with water.
The player can take up to seven other survivors, some of which have different value to each playable character, and all of them have different requirements in how to get to them and how to make them follow the player. Depending on how many survivors the player finds, who they are and how valuable they are to the character player selected, the ending will vary. The best ending for each character is obtained by escaping the boiler room, the final area of the game, with their sentimental person (Amy for Capris; Harry, Stella and Jack for Redwin; Ismay Carl Townsend for Luke; and Adela for Jeffrey) and over 25 "points" worth of survivors.
Release
The game was released in Japan as ''Septentrion'' on May 28, 1993 for the Super Famicom.
The game was released in North America April 1994, under the title ''S.O.S.'', and was published by Vic Tokai. It was followed up by the Japan-only release of ''
Septentrion: Out of the Blue'' in 1999 for the
Sony PlayStation
is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divi ...
.
Reception
The game received average reviews upon release. ''
GamePro
Gamepro.com is an international multiplatform video game magazine media company that covers the video game industry, video game hardware and video game software in countries such as Germany and France. The publication, GamePro, was originally la ...
'' gave the game a mixed review, saying that the premise is compelling but marred by too many poorly-designed segments. They summarized the game as "a movie-like trek that has great ambiance but hits some sticky spots along the way."
In Japan, ''
Famitsu
formerly ''Famicom Tsūshin'', is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Kadokawa Game Linkage (previously known as Gzbrain), a subsidiary of Kadokawa. ''Famitsu'' is published in both weekly and monthly formats as well as in the fo ...
'' gave it a positive score of 32 out of 40.
Notes
References
External links
Possible endings for the video game ''SOS''at VGMuseum.com
''SOS'' instruction manualat the
Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...
{{The Poseidon Adventure
1993 video games
Human Entertainment games
Naval video games
Super Nintendo Entertainment System games
Super Nintendo Entertainment System-only games
Vic Tokai games
Video games about disasters
Video games developed in Japan
Video games set in the 1920s
Fiction set in 1921
Survival video games
Single-player video games
Video games with alternate endings