{"id":26617,"date":"2024-11-27T15:03:03","date_gmt":"2024-11-27T14:03:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/geimers.com\/?p=26617"},"modified":"2025-07-22T22:12:33","modified_gmt":"2025-07-22T21:12:33","slug":"worst-sega-mega-drive-genesis-games-back-to-the-future-part-iii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/geimers.com\/en\/worst-sega-mega-drive-genesis-games-back-to-the-future-part-iii\/","title":{"rendered":"Worst SEGA Mega Drive \/ Genesis Games: Back to the Future Part III"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Back to the Future 3 the Video Game<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\tTable of Content<\/span>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t

Back to the Future Part III<\/b> is the video game adaptation of the film of the same name, known in Spain as <\/span>Regreso al futuro<\/b> and in Latin America as <\/span>Volver al futuro<\/b>. The successful film series owned by Universal Pictures was a mass phenomenon in the 80s and although its third installment was not as popular as its predecessors, it managed to garner outrageous numbers, not only at the box office but also in sales of products associated with the film. Obviously, each film was accompanied by its corresponding video game version for both computers and home consoles and the third installment would be no exception, reaching the market in 1991 for several systems. On this occasion, development would be handled by the experienced British studio <\/span>Probe Software<\/b>, with <\/span>Image Works<\/b> in charge of publishing the <\/span>computer<\/b>, <\/span>Master System<\/b> and <\/span>Mega Drive<\/b> versions in <\/span>Europe<\/b>, and <\/span>Acclaim <\/b>under the <\/span>Arena <\/b>label on <\/span>SEGA Genesis<\/b>. As usual, behind a blockbuster there is a terrible game, poorly designed, poor and made in a hurry, whose only sales are dragged down by the fame of the franchises that they claim to represent, hiding under a cover that is eye-catching for their fans a true audiovisual aberration.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Mechanics<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t

The plot loosely follows the plot of the film it is based on, in which Marty travels back in time to the year 1885 to rescue Doc Brown and prevent him from being killed by Buford \u201cMad Dog\u201d Tanner. The story is presented through a few static images that seem very disjointed if you have not seen the film, although certainly the target audience for this title is precisely fans of the film. The game itself is made up of <\/span>4 levels <\/b>that represent the most emblematic scenes of the film, some with greater freedom than others and the third in particular completely modifying the confrontation between Marty and his antagonist. <\/span>Each level is played in a completely different way and with its own controls, in essence the entire game is more a combination of 4 minigames than anything else<\/b>, and all the instances are quite short which increases this feeling of \u201cquantity\u201d over quality.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t

First Level: Saving Clara from the Out-of-Control Carriage<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t

We begin our adventure as Doc Brown. Clara is on an out-of-control carriage heading towards a ravine. Our mission is to reach her before she falls into the void. To do this, we get on our horse and begin the chase at top speed. Along the way, we must avoid countless obstacles, some static and others moving at breakneck speed. In fact, the speed of the moving obstacles is so exaggerated that it is almost impossible to avoid them all. Some of them, like tomahawks and birds, can be eliminated with a shot, but rocks must be avoided no matter what.<\/span><\/p>

The speed of this side-scrolling level is so ridiculously high that most players never manage to beat it. Every time we are shot down, we lose a lot of time and it becomes increasingly difficult to reach the carriage. What’s worse, the animation to get back on the horse takes so long that we inevitably lose synchronicity, which causes us to often be hit by the next obstacle again. This level is one of the most hated, not only in this game but in all video games in general and is remembered by many as one of the hardest sections of any game. It feels like during development they took the computer versions and loaded them onto the Genesis without making any adjustments and due to the difference in processor frequency this level moves much faster in its console version. This could explain why it is extremely difficult to beat in the Genesis version while in the other versions it is very easy, you only need to take a look at it to realize how fast it goes, as if someone were fast-forwarding a tape. Another difference present in this variant is the complete absence of the top-down segments which do not exist in either the Genesis or the Master System, SEGA users were left without those segments but they did not miss much either.<\/span><\/p>

Personally, I always hated this level, and this game starts off like this, it’s terribly poorly executed and extremely frustrating and fun at all, in all my years as a gamer I’ve never been able to complete it. With the sole purpose of doing this review I set out to finish it no matter what, so I used an emulator to be able to save the game between sections, repeating and memorizing each part of the map until I was able to complete it. It literally took me hours to be able to advance from start to finish without loading the game along the way, obviously this wouldn’t be possible naturally playing on the original hardware. But it doesn’t matter, I don’t plan on going through such an epic again, frustrating, poorly designed, monotonous and not fun, a waste of time from start to finish, which shows the lack of attention of the developers by starting the adventure with an insurmountable barrier.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Second Level: Shooting Gallery<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t

The second level takes place in Colt’s shooting gallery, being the only scene in the movie where Marty shoots a gun, obviously he couldn’t leave it out of the cartridge. Here we control Marty, although we wouldn’t know this if we hadn’t seen the movie since we only see one gun. It’s a first-person shooter in the classic shooting gallery style, a fixed scenario where some moving and some static targets appear. The objective is to score a certain amount of points to be able to advance to the next level, the problem is that the game doesn’t tell us how many points we need and this information isn’t given in the manual either. This means that we have to blindly shoot as fast as possible and cross our fingers to reach the necessary score without knowing how close or far we are. If the amount of points needed had been indicated at least approximately, it could be a fun mini-game, but it becomes frustrating when we lose again and again without even knowing if we are getting close to the target. If we manage to reach or surpass that secret number before the time runs out, we advance to the next level and a box appears where Colt gives us the revolver and tells us to mention his name wherever we use it. Something that will never happen since this level is the only time we will use a firearm in the entire adventure, even though it would be useful in the following levels.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Third Level: Throwing \"cakes\"<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t

Again we control Marty and this time we can tell just by looking at his sprite, which although simple and with few details, correctly represents the clothing that the character wears in the film. This stage is isometric and we can only move up and down to dodge enemy projectiles and collect the plates that we will throw at Buford’s soldiers. The objective is to shoot down the six bandits that will appear in different places; in the upper left corner of the screen we can see how many we have left to defeat. Below the enemy counter we can see the number of plates we have left (we can always refill our stock) and a shield that becomes more and more perforated as we receive damage; if it breaks, the next shot will be fatal. Once all the minions have been defeated, Tanner himself appears. He is the hardest of all, as you have to hit him six times to defeat him.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Fourth Level: The Train<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t

We finally get to the climax of the movie and also the game, the train scene. Here we are driving Marty again and this time the sprite does look similar and has some interesting details like the movement of the poncho. This side-scrolling level is the one with the highest visual level, although it is still quite flat and uninspired, in it we must advance from right to left collecting 8 logs to increase the speed of the locomotive in order to reach the 88 miles per hour necessary for the Delorean to be able to return us to the future. It is the only section of the game in which we can advance and retreat as well as jump and crouch, we can also dispatch enemies by throwing plates at them, I don’t know why the hell they gave us a revolver. Likewise, the enemy’s intelligence is so low that the easiest thing to do is to wait for a post office pole to knock them down or let them fall into the void when they try to get close to us. During the train ride we must be more attentive to dodging obstacles than defeating enemies. If we manage to collect all the logs and reach the Delorean we travel to the future and finish the game.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Dynamics<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t

The dynamics of the game change from level to level, as each one is a different game with its own rules and controls. The first is an auto-scrolling game where we can only jump, crouch and shoot back and forth. The second is a shooting gallery where we limit ourselves to moving the cursor represented by a revolver and shooting at the various targets. The third is an isometric view where we only move up and down and shoot plates in all directions until we kill all the enemies. And finally a traditional side-scrolling level where we can move in all directions and throw plates in the direction we are looking, this is the only one that allows us to \u201cgo through\u201d the level. It is the simplest level since it is just a set of wagons but at least some have stairs to get on or off.<\/span><\/p>

The general dynamics of the game are the poorest, a set of four mini-games that try to emulate some of the most iconic scenes from the film, in some cases extremely difficult and in others ridiculously easy. There is no balance between difficulty and genres in the gameplay aspect and it shows a complete lack of inspiration on the part of the developers. All the sections are very short and knowing what to do (and with lightning-fast reflexes in the first section) the game can be completed in just 10 minutes, even less if we make few mistakes. A very poor length for a most reprehensible title that is not worthy of the license it tries to represent or even of existing on its own.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Aesthetics<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Graphics<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t

The aesthetics of this game, like the rest of its aspects, are atrociously mediocre. The graphics are not very detailed, with very simple sprites and backgrounds with colors scattered around without rhyme or reason, especially in the first and fourth levels. These have the particularity of having some parallax scrolling, but it does not manage to save the flatness and monotony of the backgrounds. The plot is represented through static images (when it is not simply white text on a black background) and in all cases they are extremely simple but of acceptable quality. It completely lacks animated scenes, unlike the Amiga and Atari ST versions, which had some very simple little animations at the beginning and end of the game, the latter being the most interesting as it recreated the scene in which Doc appears in the future with his time machine created through a locomotive. In fact, the only animated sequence in the Genesis version is the appearance of the game’s title in the main menu. Aside from the narrative animations, the sprites are extremely limited both for characters and enemies, 2 or 3 frames each and that’s it.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Color errors in the Sega Genesis version<\/h4>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t

One of the most bizarre aspects of the game is how dark everything looks. This is noticeable at first glance, the Arena logo that normally has a white background serves to give us an idea of \u200b\u200bthe lack of brightness in the game’s image. Even more damaged is the Probe Software logo which can barely be read due to the poor contrast of the colors and this error in the color palette is not limited to the presentation but is present all the time, including the game. Clearly this is not a design decision, in fact it makes the game even more difficult, but a programming error, fortunately many years after its release a programmer not only detected the error but was able to correct it. He even uploaded a patched ROM to the internet so that we can all play it with the colors that were planned.<\/span><\/p>

This flaw in the colour palette is due to the fact that the colour values \u200b\u200bwere supposed to be stored in two bytes but they used an incorrect format by mistake, causing all the values \u200b\u200bto be shifted to the right one bit, thus losing part of the information. This is why the game is displayed with half the brightness and lower contrast. To err is human and there is nothing dishonourable about it, what is unacceptable is that they did not detect it or, worse, that they detected it but decided to release the game anyway without correcting it first. This demonstrates not only the lack of attention to \u201cdetail\u201d by the companies involved but also the total lack of scruples when it comes to selling such a defective product.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t