![]() Sadly though you’ll be looking to pay large amounts to own a copy. Time Gal was also remastered and brought to the Laseractive, Play Station and Sega Saturn in Japan. It’s without question that if you have an original arcade edition you’d be looking for 1000’s of dollars on the open market, especially outside of Japan. If I’m honest I’ve only ever seen photos on the internet and they are almost never traded outside of private collections making it near impossible to value. In terms of pricing the Japanese arcade edition is by far the most expensive. Understandably bringing this type of game to work at all was a technological hurdle to clear back in the early 90’s. The Sega CD version of Time Gal is sadly not as detailed as the original arcade or laseractive versions. She would certainly be in my nominations for most overlooked female gaming protagonists of all time. Since her 1985 debut, Reika Kirishima never really went away she’s just been doing her own thing. You can find her in Elevator Action Deluxe as an additional character but you’re most likely to know her from the shoot ’em up Castle of Shikigami III. However, you may have stumbled across her if you are in to collecting Japanese games new and old. The chances are that unless you are in to Japanese gaming you may not know the character as she’s not exactly a household name in Europe or the Americas. ![]() So, you’re probably wondering a bit more about Reika and why you haven’t heard of her. Reika’s first appearance predates Samus Aran in a time before strong females took the main stage in gaming. Reika is not damsel in distress like Paula, Peach or Zelda were back in the early 80’s. It’s clear that there are, it’s just that most don’t know about them. She really is a standout heroine and it’s a shame that she never became a household name.Īs gamers we often hear that there are few strong female leads in retro games. Whilst the title “Time Gal” can almost sounds a little patronising to Western ears, when you get down to it there’s a very solid character here. There’s a vulnerable edge to her in some scenes but you’ll know that she will battle through. She’s got that gutsy edge to her that she’s up for the fight but also has some great one liners and a positive attitude. Reika herself is a really likable character. Overall the video is reasonably crisp and the audio is also quite decent for a Sega CD game. Most levels will take under a minute to complete if you know what you’re doing but there is a good deal of preparation needed to get to this level of memorisation. There are 16 stages in all, each with their own distinctive theme. Simply enter the password and watch each stage play out. ![]() As well as being able to adjust the lives and difficulty you can access a video mode. It’s time for me to come clean, for the rest of this episode I’ll be showing the full play through but with a little help from a menu feature. You can only imagine the amount of Yen that this mechanic must have single handedly made Taito. If you’ve never seen the level it’s a straight 1 in 3 chance of success. It’s worth remembering that its arcade origins have a lot of influence here. Pick the correct option and you’ll continue on your journey. Periodically Reika can stop time in order for you to select one of three options as in this sequence. Time Gal does offer up a rather quirky variation on the theme. Fail to react in time and you’ll be killed in a humorous cut scene. The movie will play out as an action sequence, as the action progresses you will need to either press up, down, left, right or the action button to guide yourself to safety. As with most interactive movie games the control system is very basic. All in all, that’s quite a lot of scope for a plot. To do this you’ll guide Reika as far back as 70,000,000 BC right through to 4001 AD. Reikas mission is to stop Luda’s abominable plans to change history. Our heroine Reika, time travels throughout history in order to track down the criminal known as Luda. The plot of the game is easy enough to follow as there is minimal dialogue and plenty of action. The game used laserdisc technology similar to that of 1983’s Dragon’s Lair to create the distinctive animated feel to the game. I’m looking here at the 1992 Sega CD edition but the game has its Japanese arcade origins right back in 1985. ![]() Join me today as we step back in time to experience the joys of Time Gal.Īs you may have guessed from the introduction, Time Gal is best described as an interactive movie. Despite all of this the game remains relatively unknown in western culture. A Japanese animated classic, fast paced action, a resurrection of a hidden gem and a charming heroine to top it all off. I’m rather excited about today’s episode as we get a bit of everything. Greetings collectors and welcome to today’s retro game review.
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