Altered Beast

aka: 3D Altered Beast, Altered Beast Classic, Jūōki
Moby ID: 2019
Arcade Specs
Buy on Commodore 64
$36.00 used, $329.99 new on eBay
Buy on Genesis
$20.50 used on eBay
Buy on Windows
$0.99 new on Steam
Note: We may earn an affiliate commission on purchases made via eBay or Amazon links (prices updated 3/28 1:37 AM )
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Description official descriptions

You are a hero raised from the dead by the god Zeus to rescue his daughter Athena. With scenery inspired by Ancient Greece, you have to fight hordes of undead and demons, with a boss at the end of each level until you meet the god Neff, who holds the girl captive.

The Altered Beast title refers to your shapeshifting abilities. In this platformer, you can collect spirit balls by defeating two-headed wolves, allowing you to mutate into different beasts such as a werewolf, a dragon, a tiger, a bear and others depending on the version. Each form, tied to a level, comes with special abilities such as flight and powerful attacks, easily superseding the basic set of punches and kicks in your human form.

The game can be played in single player mode, or in same-screen multiplayer co-op mode.

Spellings

  • 兽王记 - Chinese spelling (simplified)
  • 獣王記 - Japanese spelling

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Credits (Arcade version)

11 People

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Reviews

Critics

Average score: 60% (based on 58 ratings)

Players

Average score: 3.1 out of 5 (based on 221 ratings with 10 reviews)

Cult Hit, But Not For me.

The Good
Some of the boss designs. Transformations are cool.

The Bad
General gameplay. Getting animation stunned by enemy attacks.

The Bottom Line
A slog to play. It has not aged well for me.

Arcade · by Sagebirt · 2024

Nice!!!

The Good
When I first played this game I was only 9 years old ,and for me, it is one of the greatest 2d action platform games ever, The Voices like : "POWER UP" was very nice for the time.

The Bad
I can't say anything bad to this game, cause I really like it

The Bottom Line
Play it... =)

Genesis · by Thiago Loureiro (2) · 2004

A particularly good conversion of a particularly bad arcade game.

The Good
I must say that the PC version of Altered Beast is by far the most fun of all the versions of Altered Beast I ever played, the arcade version included. The original arcade game was terrible. Aside from great graphics, it had absolutely none of the elements that make a good game: terrible controls (playing this game with a joystick is next to terrible) and stupid, non-varying gameplay.

However, I must give credit where credit is due: the PC version is that much more fun than the arcade version. Despite the hardware inferiourity, the CGA graphics (not to mention VGA if you had it) were really terrific and the game was fast and fun. Not having to pay for the game has its merits, and the frustration of wasting money on dumb, unforgiving gameplay is gone here, which makes the PC version of Altered Beast what it is: a simple, fun-to-play platform game.

The Bad
Admittedly the ridiculous plot from the arcade remains; however, the horrendous gameplay does not.

The Bottom Line
Just goes to show that superiour hardware does not necessarily translate to a better game. For another example, see Laser Squad.

DOS · by Tomer Gabel (4539) · 2000

[ View all 10 player reviews ]

Discussion

Subject By Date
Steam release (2010) is Mega Drive/Genesis version Andrew Fisher (697) Nov 28, 2022
Back story, Japanese vs. rest of world Andrew Fisher (697) Nov 16, 2022
Short review(arcade, MD/Gen, SMS) Andrew Fisher (697) Oct 6, 2022

Trivia

Compilation

A version of Altered Beast is included in Sega's Smash Pack compilation CD.

Genesis pack-in game

This game was the first pack-in game to come with the Genesis when it first came out in 1989.

Megadriver

The Brazilian Heavy metal band Megadriver, specialized in SEGA MegaDrive music, did a cover of the first level theme, complete with one of the band members saying "Rise from your grave".

References

The ride-able lizard-birds from Golden Axe make a cameo appearance in the second stage. Bizarrian, a hybrid between an amphibian and a parrot, is also present in Golden Axe.

Version differences

The NES version adds 3 new stages and 2 unique transformations: a shark, and a bird. On the other hand, the SMS version removes the tiger level. The Zodiac release is an emulation of the Genesis version, but for one player only.

Awards

  • Power Play
    • Issue 01/1990 - Biggest Failure of 1989

Information also contributed by Mad_Griffith, Matthew Melbourne, Robbb and Zovni

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  • MobyGames ID: 2019
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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by Luiz Pacheco.

Android added by mars_rulez. Nintendo 3DS added by GTramp. Commodore 64, NES, SEGA Master System, Genesis added by PCGamer77. PlayStation 3 added by Lain Crowley. Nintendo Switch added by Rik Hideto. Wii added by Guy Chapman. iPad, Zodiac added by Sciere. TurboGrafx CD added by Zovni. Windows, Linux, Macintosh added by Foxhack. ZX Spectrum added by Martin Smith. Atari ST added by ZZip. TurboGrafx-16 added by Terok Nor. Arcade added by The cranky hermit. iPhone added by Scaryfun. Xbox 360 added by Ben K. MSX added by koffiepad. Amstrad CPC added by Katakis | カタキス. Amiga added by Syed GJ.

Additional contributors: Rogee, Unicorn Lynx, Sciere, lugnut, Игги Друге, LepricahnsGold, MegamanX64, Patrick Bregger, Starbuck the Third, GTramp, Kennyannydenny, Harmony♡, heather sturmer.

Game added July 21, 2000. Last modified March 4, 2024.