Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday

Moby ID: 37833
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Description

This version of Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday retains most of the story and the core gameplay of the computer version of the same name, but differs in several gameplay- and interface-related aspects.

The main differences involve reduction of some of the skills and equipment types present in the computer version. Limitations have been imposed on character creation as well: there are only four character classes (Warrior, Rocketjock, Medic, and Rogue) and three races (Human, Desert Runner, and Tinker) to choose from, as opposed to five character classes and six races in the computer release.

You play as a party of new recruits to the organisation NEO which is fighting the RAM faction, a group of tyrants who previously ruled the solar system. The game begins with you preventing an invasion of earth headquarters by alien mutants. After this you transit to an orbital command base where you take on several different missions.

In the computer version, first-person view and pseudo-3D graphics were used for navigation, while combat was viewed from isometric perspective. In this release, isometric view is used both for navigation and combat, the player-controlled party visible from third-person perspective.

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Screenshots

Credits (Genesis version)

26 People · View all

Game Creation:
  • SSI Special Projects
Team Game Development
Producer (Electronic Arts)
Technical Director (Electronic Arts)
Lead Programmer
Assistant Programmer
Encounter Development
Art Management
Lead Artist
Additional Art
Music
Documentation
Product Management (Electronic Arts)
Project Management (SSI)
Cluebook
Documentation Layout
Testing
[ full credits ]

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 80% (based on 12 ratings)

Players

Average score: 3.5 out of 5 (based on 21 ratings with 2 reviews)

One of the top 10 Genesis games...an underrated gem!

The Good
Solid strategy and good variety of weapons/enemies. Decent story line. Lots of side quests to lengthen the game. Collecting, using, selling opponents weapons and armor motivates you to explore areas with unique weaponry. Space battles add to the variety.

The Bad
Game is a little too short, even with the side quests. The space battles can go South pretty quick resulting in a restart from the last save.

The Bottom Line
In short, this is a fantastic game for the Sega Genesis. I played this back when it came out and was absolutely won over by the unique and varied gameplay. I recently purchased a used copy and played through it again. It's just as good as I remembered.

At its core, Buck Rogers is a turn based strategy. Unlike Shining Force, here you travel around a map and engage in random battles, similar to the Final Fantasy games. When you start a battle, you actually get to move the characters around the battlefield and take advantage of the environment during the fight. After the battle, you can collect the opponents weapons and armor, which is a unique feature not found in too many other games. In addition to the standard scenarios, there are also space battles of a completely different nature adding to the variety of the game.

Genesis · by zemonn (174) · 2012

No Twiki here!

The Good
Buck Rogers, in my opinion, is the best RPG ever released for the Sega Genesis during the entire run of the console. It's not just RPG, it's also turn based strategy. There's both land and space combat.

The Bad
The game is just too short. When you beat it, you find yourself wanting more, but there is no more to be had.

The Bottom Line
This one is often overlooked by.. well.. everyone. It wasn't extremely popular in its day, but it is a worthy addition to any collector's library.

Genesis · by Nick Seafort (16) · 2008

Trivia

Version differences

While the game started out as a direct port of the PC version, it ended up with a number of subtle changes and new features, including: a new isometric "explore" mode, trimmed description text, expanded sub-plots, some new portraits, a number of UI enhancements and completely new space travel and space combat engine.

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Identifiers +

  • MobyGames ID: 37833
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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by Corn Popper.

Genesis added by PCGamer77.

Additional contributors: Tony Van, Patrick Bregger.

Game added November 26, 2008. Last modified November 17, 2023.