{"id":27811,"date":"2025-06-18T12:55:00","date_gmt":"2025-06-18T11:55:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/geimers.com\/?p=27811"},"modified":"2025-07-22T22:27:25","modified_gmt":"2025-07-22T21:27:25","slug":"worst-sega-mega-drive-genesis-games-time-killers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/geimers.com\/en\/worst-sega-mega-drive-genesis-games-time-killers\/","title":{"rendered":"Worst SEGA Mega Drive \/ Genesis Games: Time Killers"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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When Capcom<\/strong> Released Street Fighter II in 1991<\/strong>, It Revolutionized the Video Game Industry Capcom’s fighting game became an instant success, and its formula turned into the recipe everyone wanted to replicate. It wouldn\u2019t be entirely fair to say they invented the genre, but they were the ones who turned it into the mass phenomenon that dominated the 90s and the early 2000s. Virtually every company in the industry tried to develop a game that could rival it, with varying results. Some franchises earned a place in history, but most simply faded into obscurity, as was the case with\u00a0Time Killers<\/strong>.<\/p>

Is Time Killers a Copy of Mortal Kombat or Just a Coincidence?<\/h2>

When we think of the great rivalries within the fighting game genre, one of the first that comes to mind, due to its age, is the confrontation between\u00a0Street Fighter<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0Mortal Kombat<\/em>. In this sense,\u00a0Time Killers<\/em>\u00a0was born with the idea of creating a much more violent, impactful, and gore-filled version of\u00a0Street Fighter<\/em>. It\u2019s normal for it to be compared to\u00a0MK<\/em>\u00a0due to the similarities, but in reality, it\u2019s more of a coincidence than anything else.<\/p>

At first glance,\u00a0Time Killers<\/em>\u00a0uses sprites to bring its characters and settings to life, just as Capcom did, and not pre-rendered graphics like Midway\u2019s title. However, the basis for this comparison lies in the excessive use of blood, dismemberments, and gore in general as the central axis of the experience. Surprisingly, this approach was unlikely born from plagiarism.<\/p>

If we search for information about this obscure game, we\u2019ll mostly find it referred to as a copy of\u00a0Mortal Kombat<\/em>, a rip-off, or outright a “Mortal Clone.” But this doesn\u2019t have to be true, and there isn\u2019t much evidence beyond the use of gore to support this claim. If we consider the release dates of both games, we\u2019ll discover that it\u2019s highly improbable that\u00a0MK<\/em>\u00a0was the main inspiration for\u00a0Time Killers<\/em>. Midway released its game in arcades in August 1992, just a month before\u00a0Time Killers<\/em>\u00a0launched. In just one month, it would have been impossible to complete the game.<\/p>

The only assumption that could support the plagiarism theory is that some of the people involved in the development of\u00a0Time Killers<\/em>\u00a0somehow had access to prototypes or early versions of\u00a0MK<\/em>, which seems highly unlikely. Personally, I believe the similarities were purely coincidental. Both games relied on an abundance of visual violence as a hook for the audience, which inevitably created a sense of d\u00e9j\u00e0 vu.<\/p>

History and Context<\/h2>

Time Killers<\/em>\u00a0was developed by Incredible Technologies, formerly known as Free Radical Software. This company specialized in developing video games for computers of the time as well as arcade software and hardware. Before starting this project, the company already had considerable experience in the field, having published around twenty games, most for computers but about nine for arcades. However, most of these were sports games, making this title their first foray into the fighting genre. The game was published by Strata, a small and not very well-known distributor.<\/p>

Finally, in 1992,\u00a0Time Killers<\/em>\u00a0debuted in North American arcades with decent results. While it fell far short of its main competitors, it\u2019s estimated that around 7,000 arcade cabinets were sold at the time, which was a significant success for a small company. Following the positive results of the original version, several companies became interested in the project, and THQ acquired the rights with the idea of releasing ports for the 16-bit SEGA and Nintendo consoles.<\/p>

Nintendo outright refused, as they didn\u2019t want to deal with the controversies that arose during those years following the release of the popular\u00a0Mortal Kombat<\/em>. SEGA, however, gave the green light, and THQ even announced in some media outlets of the time that the game would be released on Genesis\/Mega Drive in 1994. However, this didn\u2019t happen, and THQ ended up canceling the release despite the port being 100% complete, citing the desire to “avoid controversy.” The reality was likely that the game received terrible feedback during preliminary testing.<\/p>

Fortunately (or unfortunately), Black Pearl Software purchased the rights from THQ and announced its release for July 1996. This announcement was covered by\u00a0GamePro<\/em> magazine in its May 1996 issue (#92).<\/p>

Mechanics<\/h2>

The mechanics are the same as any one-on-one fighting game: we face off in a deathmatch, best of three rounds, against each opponent until reaching the final boss. One difference from most titles in the genre is that in this game, all characters use weapons during combat, in addition to punches and kicks. However, without a doubt, the game\u2019s main feature is the ability to dismember and even decapitate opponents mid-fight.<\/p>

Controls<\/h3>

A very curious feature of this game is its control scheme. In the original arcade version, five buttons were used: one for each body part\u2014left leg, right leg, left arm, right arm, and the head. This may seem illogical, but if we lose all or several limbs, we can still defeat our opponents with headbutts.<\/p>

In the Genesis version, as was common in most fighting games, the button layout changes depending on whether we use a 6-button or 3-button controller.<\/p>

Controls with a 6-Button Controller<\/h4>

In the ideal setup for this type of game:<\/p>