Sewer Shark

The Good
Sewer Shark was probably the first game that people played on the Sega CD, especially if you bought the second model. It dazzled us with its B-minus acting, dark and grainy full motion video. The science fiction storyline about how most of humanity was forced to live under ground, as a result of environmental devastation, seemed mighty topical.

The Bad
Sewer Shark is a linear 'rail gun' game. Generally, you must remain on a certain path shooting sewer bats and rats in order to advance to the next level. You only venture off the rail when you want to refill your precious energy and or avoid ramming into a wall. Both of which require split second timing while you are attempting to rack up enough points. Lose one life or fail to score enough points and you get to start the game from scratch. Not only is the game frustratingly difficult but the quality of the full motion video (FMV) is no where near television or cinema quality. Some bozo at Sega decided to veto any suggestion that the Sega CD be able to display more then 64 on-screen colors. As a result the "next level" turned out to be some really grainy, muddy and pixelated video.

The Bottom Line
Sewer Shark showed the potential for the CD-ROM revolution. Credit has to be given for Digital Pictures in helping to bring extensive Full Motion Video to consumers, something that we take for granted today with video on demand web pages. Initially the Full Motion Video, was very impressive for gamers who grown up in the era of computer disks and video cartridges. Yet, once the initial praise and awe died down, consumers were left with a game that was not really that fun to play.