Genocide is a series of side-scrolling action games developed by ZOOM Inc. for the Sharp X68000. Each game sees you through the exploits of Ken Ryugasaki in the hotseat of a giant mecha hacking and slashing your way through other mechanical enemies and mutant monstrosities.
The first game, released in 1989, takes places in a cyberpunk future where humanity is suffering through harsh living conditions, an economical crisis between countries, and countless wars. In the year 2121 A.D., to save the planet from its impeding doom, scientists from every country across the globe banded together and spent over fifty years to create a supercomputer with a sophisticated A.I. called "Magnetic Extrasensory perception System Incorruptible A-class" (codenamed "MESIA") to maintain order for the world. Everything worked out fine... until those who were against the idea of a supercomputer helping humanity orchestrated what was known as the "OROPPAS" operation to corrupt MESIA and give it self-awareness, where it decided to wipe out the human race. In 2230, as last resort to stop the coup and MESIA from destroying humanity, an experimental battle armor equipped with a powerful saber known as the Tracer and a highly-advanced A.I. called "Randy/Landy" was created, and Ken Ryugasaki was chosen for the mission.
A sequel, Genocide 2: Master of the Dark Communion was released in 1991. The story takes after the events of the previous game, after the world was devastated from the MESIA incident. A multinational corporation CONEX seemed to be willing to humanity during its time of need, but they had hidden agenda of their own: world domination. When CONEX's true motives became clear, Ken Ryugasaki is sent in once again to stop CONEX's plans with a modified version of the Tracer. Aside from the expanded repertoire of your mecha, Genocide 2 incorporates some platforming elements to make the gameplay stand out from it predecessor.
The first game was also ported by Brain Grey (who also developed the RPG Last Armageddon) to the PC Engine CD in 1992. Genocide 2 also saw a Super Famicom port published by KEMCO in 1994 like Lagoon before it although it was handled by British developer Bits Studios with a lot of changes from the Sharp X68000 version. A Compilation Re-release for FM Towns was also released in 1993 as Genocide2: Genocide Square with updated visuals and music, rebalanced gameplay, and new cinematic sequences. Another port of Genocide 2 was released for MS-DOS in Korea by Mantra in 1995, based on the FM Towns version with enhanced CD-quality music.
The Genocide series features examples of:
- After the End: The sequel. Just when things started to calm down, CONEX puts the world in jeopardy again.
- A.I. Is a Crapshoot: MESIA, after gaining self-awareness, decides to wipeout all of humanity.
- An Arm and a Leg: After defeating Raijin in the second game, it loses its arms and ability to fly, but still tries to fight by kicking you.
- Battleship Raid: Stage 3 Area 2 has you taking on mechas on one of CONEX's battleships, eventually proceeding Area 3 where you destroy its engine and run like hell from the ensuing explosion.
- Blocking Stops All Damage: In Genocide 2, you can block some attacks by holding down the attack button and prevent damage.
- The Cameo: Zoom's Dolucky mascot makes an appearance at the beginning of Stage 4 Area 2 in the second game.
- Charged Attack: Betty in both games can be charged up to perform a powerful shot in any direction.
- Classic Cheat Code: In the Sharp X68000 version of Genocide 2, holding the Registration key (the one next to the Help key) and entering "ZURUIHITONEANATATTE" at the Options menu will unlock a stage select feature. Entering "ENDINGMITENE" the same way as the previous cheat grants you God Mode.
- The Super Famicom version of Genocide 2 also has a stage select cheat by holding Select and entering A, X, Y, L, X at the Options menu.
- Compilation Re-release: Genocide2: Genocide Square for FM Towns, compiling the first and second game in one package.
- Computer Voice: In the FM Towns and DOS versions of Genocide 2, the Tracer will say the name of the power-ups you pick up.
- Continuing is Painful: In Genocide 2, dying means kissing all of your power-ups and your kill-count good-bye.
- Death Is a Slap on the Wrist: In the first Genocide, dying just sends you to the Game Over screen, where you can continue from the last checkpoint or start the game over; in the FM Towns version, you get booted to the title screen where there's a Continue option that allows you to resume at the previous area. This wasn't as much of a case in the sequel.
- Denial of Diagonal Attack: Played straight in the first game since all you have is a saber until the third stage where you find Betty, an Attack Drone that can be shot in eight directions. You start out with Betty+ from the get-go in the second game.
- Difficulty Levels: In both games save for the original Sharp X68000 version of Genocide and its PC Engine CD port: Easy, Normal, and Hard.
- Dual Boss: Fuujin and Raijin, the main bosses of Stage 3 in Genocide 2. The Final Boss battle consists fighting the Goliath and a T-1000-esque clone of yourself.
- Dual Wielding: A Mini-Boss in Stage 3's second part of the first game fights you with dual tonfas.
- The End of the World as We Know It: The world was suffering through harsh living conditions and economical problems, and the wars that followed didn't help.
- Full Motion Video: The FM Towns version features FMV sequences when the game starts up and after the story openings of each game. The start-up Zoom screen was done in live-action with an actor in a Dolucky mascot costume, while the cut-scene that plays after the intro showcases some Stop Motion animation.
- Gameplay Grading: In Genocide 2, the game shows how much enemies you defeated and how quickly you've beaten the level while comparing it to your fastest run.
- Giant Enemy Crab: One boss in the first Genocide is a giant mutated crab that requires you to hack off its individual body parts to kill it.
- Go for the Eye: The boss of Stage 3 has you fighting a giant mutant abomination by attacking its eye.
- Gratuitous English: The cut-scenes in the Sharp X68000 version and the DOS port of Genocide 2 is rife with this, and with sub-par English translations at that. The final boss even speaks in Engrish before the fight.
- Humongous Mecha: Ken's Tracer. You also fight off other mechas as enemies and sometimes bosses.
- Kill All Humans: The game is named Genocide for a reason, at least in the first game: The MESIA supercomputer tries to invoke this.
- Lethal Lava Land: Stage 5 Area 2 in Genocide 2 has you going through an volcanic, underground cavern fighting of robots soaked in lava.
- Life Meter: Your ENERGY meter in the first game and the SHIELD meter in the second.
- Mecha-Mooks: A lot of the lesser mechas and robots you face.
- MegaCorp: CONEX, a multinational corporation of robotics and technology, with plans to take over the world.
- Mercy Invincibility: Usually you take many hits at once in the second game. You get knocked back and start flashing white while you're invincible.
- One-Mecha Army: You take on small robots, humongous mechas, mutants, and battleships, all by yourself.
- One-Word Title: The first game.
- Power-Up: Only one to speak of in the first game aside from Betty, the Energy Unit that replenishes lost energy. In the sequel, you get four more at your disposal: Mad Betty, which causes Betty+ to attack enemies on its own; High-Power, which briefly doubles your damage output; a Shield that gives you temporary invincibility; and Explode, a Smart Bomb that damages enemies around your surroundings.
- Reverse Grip: How Ken's mecha is wielding its blade in the sequel.
- Sound Test: In the FM Towns version of both games, as well as the Sharp X68000 version and the DOS version of the second game, you can listen to the music in the options menu.
- Scoring Points: Genocide 2 has a counter at bottom-right corner keeping track of all of the enemies you have slain.
- Spider Tank: Stage 2's boss in the FM Towns was changed from a battle tank to a spider tank.
- Stuff Blowing Up: And lots of it. Enemies you slay explodes upon defeat, and the same goes for you.
- Sword Lines: With each swing of your blade.
- To Be Continued: The stop motion animations in the FM Towns version end with "To Be Continued" in both games, assuming the player will see the rest of the game through.
- Turned Against Their Masters: MESIA when it was corrupted during the OROPPAS operation. It saved humanity from the brink of its destruction, then after being corrupted, decides to destroy it.
- Updated Re-release: The Genocide2: Genocide Square compilation for FM Towns featured new cut-scenes, updated graphics, remixes the music, rebalances the first game's difficuly and enemy placement, and adds a new ending if both games are played in order at once on Normal or higher.
- The Korean-only DOS version of Genocide 2 is based on the FM Towns port with CD-quality music although uses cutscenes from the Sharp X68000 version.
