''The Red Star'' is a third-person

action Action may refer to: * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video game Film * Action film, a genre of film * ''Action'' (1921 film), a film by John Ford * ''Action'' (1980 fil ...

video game, based on ''

The Red Star ''The Red Star'' is a comic book series created by American artist Christian Gossett and a large team, and first published by Image Comics in 2001. It was one of the first computer-generated comics, making heavy use of line-art from 3D models to p ...

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

Plot

The story is based on a graphic novel of the same name. It is set in a futuristic, magic-using Soviet Union, which uses floating Skyfurnaces (magical ships) and Warkasters (sorcerers) to conquer its enemies.

Gameplay

''The Red Star'' is a mix of several video game genres like

beat'em up The beat 'em up (also known as brawler and, in some markets, beat 'em all) is a video game genre featuring hand-to-hand combat against a large number of opponents. Traditional beat 'em ups take place in scrolling, two-dimensional (2D) levels, ...

and

shooter Shooting is the act or process of discharging a projectile from a ranged weapon (such as a gun, bow, crossbow, slingshot, or blowpipe). Even the acts of launching flame, artillery, darts, harpoons, grenades, rockets, and guided missiles can ...

. The action is seen from the

isometric perspective Isometric video game graphics are graphics employed in video games and pixel art that use a parallel projection, but which angle the viewpoint to reveal facets of the environment that would otherwise not be visible from a top-down perspective o ...

, with the goal of walking around and fighting enemies along the way. RPG elements are also apparent as players have the option of upgrading certain attributes of a character depending on how well levels are completed. The players can choose between three characters: Makita who relies on speed and fast movements, Kyuzo who is slow but resistant and strong and Maya with a balanced approach of speed and power. Maya is unlocked by beating the game once. Losing a life at any point will force a reset to the beginning of the current stage.

Development and release

In 2003,

Acclaim Entertainment Acclaim Entertainment, Inc. was an American video game publisher based in Glen Cove, New York. Originally formed by Greg Fischbach, Robert Holmes and Jim Scoroposki out of an Oyster Bay storefront in 1987, the company established a worldwide ...

signed an exclusive agreement with Archangel Studios to develop a video game based on ''

''. At the time, it was in development at

Acclaim Studios Austin Acclaim Studios Austin (formerly Iguana Entertainment) was an American video game developer based in Austin, Texas. The company was founded in 1991 by Jeff Spangenberg, previously lead designer for Punk Development, and originally located in ...

with a scheduled release date in 2004. Ray Peña and Stephen Dupree were given the roles of art and design team leads respectively. Acclaim used an in-house level editor, which allowed them to create a ''

Smash TV ''Smash TV'' is a 1990 arcade video game created by Eugene Jarvis and Mark Turmell for Williams Electronics Games. It is a dual-stick shooter (one for moving and the other for firing) in the same vein as 1982's ''Robotron: 2084'' (co-created b ...

''-like prototype by using the existing assets from '' Vexx'' and '' Turok Evolution''. ''The Red Star'' was originally scheduled for release for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox on September 4, 2004. The first time that gamers could get their hands on ''The Red Star'' was in August 2004 on the ''Official PlayStation Magazine'' Demo. ''

Game Informer ''Game Informer'' (''GI'', most often stylized ''gameinformer'' from the 2010s onward) is an American monthly video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and associated consoles. It debuted in August 1991 w ...

'' made an early review on both the PS2 and Xbox versions. The Xbox version was made in parallel with the PlayStation 2 version. It was completed with a press review copy circulating among gaming publications, including ''

'', but was never commercially released. After Acclaim went bankrupt in 2004, XS Games took the publishing rights to the game. The PlayStation Portable port was released in March 2010, through PlayStation Network. An

iOS iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also include ...

version of ''The Red Star'' was released in June the same year.

Reception

The game received "average" reviews on all platforms according to the

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website

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Notes

References

*Halverson, Dave.
The Red Star Review
. ''Play Magazine''. October 2006.

External links

Official ''The Red Star'' site
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Red Star, The 2007 video games Acclaim Entertainment games Alternate history video games IOS games PlayStation 2 games PlayStation Network games PlayStation Portable games Cancelled Xbox games Cooperative video games Science fantasy video games Video games based on comics Video games based on Image Comics Video games developed in the United States XS Games games Multiplayer and single-player video games