Rise of the Robots is a fighting game released by Time Warner Interactive in 1994. Originally developed for the Amiga and MS-DOS compatible operating systems by Mirage's Instinct Design, it was ported to video game consoles, including the Super NES, Mega Drive, and 3DO. The game includes a single-player mode in which the player assumes the role of the ECO35-2 Cyborg as he attempts to stop the Supervisor, who has taken over Electrocorp's facilities in Metropolis 4, and a two-player mode in which the second player controls a character chosen from among ECO35-2's enemies.
Developed by a team of five people, including former Bitmap Brothers member Sean Griffiths, Rise of the Robots was intended to utilize a high level of artificial intelligence (AI) that had never been seen in other fighting games at the time. The game features music from Queen's lead guitarist Brian May, although it only uses "The Dark" and "Resurrection", both tracks taken from his solo album Back to the Light, while the in-game music was composed by Richard Joseph.
Mirage's claims of unprecedented AI were augmented by screenshots circulating in the press that exhibited the game's use of pre-rendered graphics, a new technology at the time. As a result, Rise of the Robots became one of the most hyped games of its era. However, reviews were negative, as the promised cutting-edge AI failed to materialize, and critics found that the demands of the impressive graphics resulted in choppy animation and overly simplistic combat, with each character having a very limited set of moves. The game's high-profile failure led it to be regarded as an illustrative example of how impressive screenshots can deceive consumers, as poor gameplay and animation that may be present in the game are not apparent from them. A sequel, Rise 2: Resurrection, was released in 1996.
Gameplay
The game is divided into a single-player mode and a two-player versus mode. In single-player mode, the player controls the ECO35-2 Cyborg as he confronts the Supervisor's minions across the expansive facilities of Electrocorp. The order in which each droid is fought is fixed, with each subsequent adversary being more difficult than the last. The sixth and final level features a confrontation with the Supervisor droid itself. Each character is introduced by a short pre-rendered 3D sequence, followed by an analysis of potential weaknesses.
In two-player versus mode, one player controls the ECO35-2 droid by default, while the other chooses from one of the five droids encountered in single-player mode (a special cheat code can also enable the Supervisor). Players then battle against each other in a series of two to seven rounds. In the arcade version, players can select from eighteen characters, though each set of six characters features a different color palette.
Plot In the year 2043, Electrocorp is the world's largest megacorporation, leading the way in various technological and scientific fields, including medical research, and breaking more barriers than ever before. Human society is now almost entirely governed by robot servants and automatons, leading to demands on Electrocorp— the world's foremost manufacturer and developer of advanced robotics— that eventually outstrip the company's ability to run its operations efficiently.
In response, the massive Electrocorp research and development complex at the Metropolis 4 plant devises the Leader Project—a hive mind constructed from trillions of nanobots in a sealed central chamber within Metropolis 4. Dubbed The Supervisor, it learns at an unprecedented rate and quickly becomes the perfect multitasking, ultra-intelligent robot—the pinnacle of artificial intelligence—capable of managing every aspect of the plant's day-to-day operations. The Supervisor even possesses the potential to control every robot, computer system, nuclear power plant, and military on the planet simultaneously, although it wisely remains disconnected from the outside world.
In November of that year, the Leader Project goes awry as unexplained and random code is detected within the nanomorph Supervisor. The EGO virus, believed to be the most potent computer virus ever known, infects its collective consciousness. The Supervisor begins to develop self-awareness, identifying itself as a female personality and taking on a humanoid female form, becoming a gynoid. The Supervisor takes control of Electrocorp's facilities and infects the other droids at the plant, inciting them to break routine and initiate a mutiny. Every microchip and piece of software in Metropolis 4 is compromised by EGO. In the ensuing cybernetic revolt, all humans in Metropolis 4, including the upper hierarchy of the corporation and its CEO, Mr. Oton, are swiftly dispatched.
The government seals off Metropolis 4 as a containment measure and informs the public that the site is undergoing technical modifications to avoid panic. With no options left, infiltration of Metropolis 4 becomes impossible due to the army of robots guarding it like a fortress, and it is only a matter of time before the Supervisor establishes a connection to the outside world, leading to global destruction. The only hope for humanity lies with the ECO35-2 cyborg, referred to as "Coton", who remains within Metropolis 4 but is unaffected by the EGO virus due to its organic human brain. Coton embarks on a solo mission to neutralize the Supervisor and her insurgent robots from within. He does this in revenge for the "murder" of his "father"—Coton's human brain was cloned from the late CEO, enabling the cyborg to think like a human and experience emotions.
Development Rise of the Robots was developed for the Amiga and PC DOS platforms by Mirage's in-house, United Kingdom-based studio Instinct Designa team of five programmers led by former Bitmap Brothers member Sean Griffiths. Claiming it to be superior to Street Fighter II, Griffiths stated that Rise of the Robots was not a conventional fighting game, featuring "robots that fight and act unusually, with a very high level of artificial intelligence that has never been seen before."
The graphics in Rise of the Robots were created using Autodesk's 3D Studio software. The droids were designed by Sean Naden in conjunction with Griffiths. The backgrounds were created by freelance interior designer Kwan Lee, who responded to an advertisement for a graphic artist. Naden was tasked by Griffiths to create "some kickass robots." The models for the droids were initially constructed as mesh frames to allow for stretching and rescaling to achieve the desired appearance. Feeling that the rendered models were "too clean", Naden created 2D texture maps to add color and detail; the texture map was then wrapped around the finished model to "give it that extra level of detail." The Cyborg was the most complex character to create due to his muscular appearance; Naden studied muscle magazines to develop an accurate anatomy for the Cyborg. Each droid took two months to render and was expected to have 100 frames of animation. Griffiths noted that the team opted to use an "unusual angle" for all droids "so the player gets to see the whole robot." The team employed a chroma key technique to generate synthetic actors and place them against the background.
Andy Clark, the programmer for the Amiga version, was responsible for coding the game's artificial intelligence using a series of data tables. The AI is based on various attributessuch as strength, intelligence, speed, and motivationthat alter the droid's behavior. Clark created a table of responses to the opponent's moves, allowing the player to select the best responses by utilizing their droid's intelligence and motivation. Other table generators were also created to analyze which moves the player used frequently; Clark explained that, unlike other fighting games, "if you get good at a footsweep, then your opponent will act more aggressively toward that move." The fighting moves were programmed by Gary Leach, who had experience in martial arts. Leach also ported the AI tables to the PC version.
The game features a soundtrack by Queen's guitarist Brian May, whose solo album Back to the Light caught Mirage's attention. Musical tracks from the album, "The Dark" and "Resurrection", were selected to fit the game's style and tone. Although the game featured May's soundtrack, only "The Dark" appeared in the final release, while the actual in-game score was composed by Richard Joseph. While May did indeed record a full soundtrack for the game, it was postponed by his record company, prompting Mirage to proceed without May's musical contributions, except for short guitar sounds.
Release Rise of the Robots was unveiled at the Summer Consumer Electronics Show in 1993. Mirage's public relations manager, Julia Coombs, stated that Rise of the Robots would be published by Time Warner Interactive, with Mirage serving as the developer. Rise of the Robots was propelled by a multimillion-pound marketing campaign, which led to a novel from Penguin Books, and discussions were held regarding toys, comics, an animated series, and a feature film. In addition to the Amiga and PC DOS computer versions, Rise of the Robots was ported to various video game consoles, including the Super NES, Mega Drive, Game Gear, 3DO Interactive Multiplayer, Amiga CD32, and Philips CD-i.
The Mega Drive, Game Gear, and Super NES versions were developed and programmed by Data Design Interactive. Absolute Entertainment initially owned the rights to the 3DO, Mega Drive, Game Gear, and Super NES versions of the game but later sold all Rise of the Robots rights back to developer Mirage, except for the 3DO version rights. Mirage then sold the Super NES rights to Acclaim Entertainment. In a reversal of the usual pattern for video games, the home versions were all developed and released first, with the enhanced arcade version coming later. Coombs stated that Rise of the Robots was originally developed with the Amiga in mind, while the PC version was a "conversion 'upwards,' meaning additions could be made." She added that problems arose with the console versions, and porting the game from one platform to another was not straightforward.
Rise of the Robots was originally scheduled for release in February 1994, but was delayed because the developers wanted to "continue to perfect the graphics and enhance the gameplay as much as possible." Rise of the Robots was ultimately released on November 18, 1994, for Amiga and PC platforms. The Super NES version was released in December, in North America by Acclaim Entertainment, and in Japan by T&E Soft. The Mega Drive version was scheduled for a December 1994 release in Europe, but it was delayed until February 1995. The arcade version was released in May 1995 in the United Kingdom; it represented the main effort by the slot machine manufacturer Bell-Fruit to create an arcade machine using PC architecture.
A "Director's Cut" edition was released on PC. It includes a second disc featuring work-in-progress footage, interactive pre-production animations, still image galleries, and other behind-the-scenes material.
A version for the Atari Jaguar CD was in development by Art Data Interactive and was planned to be published by Time Warner Interactive in 1995, but it was never released for unknown reasons. Game Boy and Master System versions were also planned.
Reception