Devilish: The Next Possession

From Sega Retro

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DevilishTheNextPossession MDTitleScreen.png

BadOmen MD title.png

Bad Omen/Devilish: The Next Possession
System(s): Sega Mega Drive
Publisher: HOT-B (Japan), Sage's Creation (US)
Developer:
Sound driver: Terpsichorean (Hitoshi Sakimoto)
Genre: Action[1], Table[2]

















Number of players: 1-2
Release Date RRP Code
Sega Mega Drive
JP
¥6,800 (7,004)6,800e[3] T-28043
Sega Mega Drive
US
$49.9549.95[6] T-47066
Sega Mega Drive
KR
GM4046JT

Devilish: The Next Possession, known as Bad Omen (バッドオーメン) in Japan, is a 1992 Sega Mega Drive game by Aisystem Tokyo and HOT-B as a sequel to Genki's 1991 Game Gear game Devilish. When released overseas, the name was changed to highlight its relation to the previous game.

The game appears to not have been made with Genki's involvement, but this is unconfirmed (HOT-B was responsible for distributing Devilish in Europe and possibly contracted out to Genki on a number of occasions). It may have meant to be a port rather than a sequel (and the overseas release simply reuses the original's title screen).

The game's soundtrack was composed by Hitoshi Sakimoto.

Story

Devilish The Next Possession, Introduction.png

Introduction

Long ago in a far away land lived a prince and a princess. Gamma, the lord of darkness, jealous of their happiness, cast a spell that dropped rocks from the sky, covering the land in stones and demons and transforming the prince and princess into two stone paddles. Suddenly, a mysterious and magical sphere fell from the sky that the prince and the princess could use to defeat Gamma.

Gameplay

The game plays similarly to Breakout. The player controls a pair of paddles and must use them to guide the sphere to the goal at the end of the stage, breaking blocks and finding items along the way. Each stage contains a boss or other challenge before the goal. Stages are mostly vertical tunnels and sometimes contain horizontal sections. Some stages contain branching paths.

The upper paddle can move in any direction with the D-pad. It moves independently vertically, but the lower paddle always follows it horizontally. The paddles can cycle between three different formations, which push the sphere in different directions, with A (rotates counterclockwise) or C (rotates clockwise). The player can change the speed of the paddles between three different speeds with B.

The screen scrolls to follow the sphere but does not allow backtracking; if the sphere falls below the screen, the player loses it. If the player has extra balls remaining, a new sphere materializes after a moment. Each stage has a time limit, and the player loses a ball and must restart the stage from the beginning if time runs out. The game ends if the player runs out of balls. The player gains extra balls at certain points thresholds.

There is a two-player mode where the first player controls the upper paddle and the second player controls the lower paddle. There is also a Time Trial mode where the player can select any stage and try to complete it in the fastest time. In this mode, the timer counts up instead of down.

Formations

The upper paddle is the offensive paddle and used to directing the sphere. The lower paddle is the defensive paddle and used to catch the sphere to prevent it from falling through the bottom of the screen. The upper paddle does not block the sphere when it bounces from the lower paddle.

Items

Devilish The Next Possession, Items.png
Treasure Chest
Break open to release a bonus item, which falls to the bottom of the screen and must be caught by a paddle to collect. There is a colored dot on the top of the treasure box that corresponds to the item it contains.
Devilish The Next Possession, Items.png
Time Stop
Stops the timer for 10 seconds.
Devilish The Next Possession, Items.png
Long
Widens the paddles for a short time. It also revives the offensive paddle if it has been disabled by a Short Block.
Devilish The Next Possession, Items.png
Buster Ball
Temporary turns the sphere into a fire dragon that pierces through blocks without bouncing off, allowing it to quickly cut through groups of blocks.
Devilish The Next Possession, Items.png
Flashing Bomb
Destroys many blocks in the surrounding area in a flash.
Roulette
This item cycles between the four colors in intervals.
Devilish The Next Possession, Items.png
Gargoyles
Gargoyles resemble Treasure Chests but change into a winged form if hit by the sphere.

Blocks

The appearance of blocks can vary slightly depending on the stage.

Devilish The Next Possession, Blocks.png
1 Density Block
The basic block, blueish in color, destroyed in one hit.
Devilish The Next Possession, Blocks.png
2 Density Block
A tougher block, brownish in color, destroyed in two hits.
Devilish The Next Possession, Blocks.png
Giant Block
A large block, four times bigger than the standard block, destroyed in two hits.
Devilish The Next Possession, Blocks.png
Mega Block
An especially large block, nine times bigger than the standard block, destroyed in two hits.
Devilish The Next Possession, Blocks.png
Short Block
Temporarily disables the offensive paddle.
Devilish The Next Possession, Blocks.png
Bonus Block
Awards 100 points.

Stages

Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 1.png

Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 1 Boss.png

  • Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 1.png

  • Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 1 Boss.png

Graveyard

Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 2.png

Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 2 Boss.png

  • Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 2.png

  • Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 2 Boss.png

Clock Tower

Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 3.png

Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 3 Boss.png

  • Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 3.png

  • Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 3 Boss.png

The Waterfall

Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 4.png

Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 4 Boss.png

  • Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 4.png

  • Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 4 Boss.png

Air Passage

Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 5.png

Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 5 Boss.png

  • Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 5.png

  • Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 5 Boss.png

Seaside

Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 6.png

Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 6 Boss.png

  • Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 6.png

  • Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 6 Boss.png

Volcano

Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 7.png

Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 7 Boss.png

  • Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 7.png

  • Devilish The Next Possession, Stage 7 Boss.png

Prairie

History

Legacy

The series saw another entry released named Devilish: Ball Bounder, released on the Nintendo DS in 2005.

Versions

Localised names

Also known as
Language Localised Name English Translation
English (US) Devilish: The Next Possession Devilish: The Next Possession
Japanese バッドオーメン Bad Omen

Production credits

  • Produce: Toyoden
  • Program: Puru Puru, Naō & Satōshi, Kurage, Mutsushige Tsuji
  • BG Graphic: Suzuki
  • SP Graphic: "Lisa" Polaire
  • Sound: YmoH.S
  • Special Thanks: Ohyama Gen, Daikoku Hisaya, A·Tomonaga, Elephant, Kemono Itas., Suzuki, Mr. G, Y.H, Oomori, Conishi, Pearl
Source:
In-game credits
Devilish MD credits.pdf
[7]


Magazine articles

Main article: Devilish: The Next Possession/Magazine articles.

Promotional material

Logo-pdf.svg
Print advert in (US) #32: "March 1992" (1992-xx-xx)
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Print advert in (JP) #1992-01: "January 1992" (1991-12-07)
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Print advert in (JP) #1992-03: "March 1992" (1992-02-08)
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Print advert in (JP) #1992-04: "April 1992" (1992-03-07)
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Physical scans

Sega Retro Average 
Publication Score Source
{{{{{icon}}}|L}} Division by zero.
Based on
0 review
Sega Retro Average 
Publication Version Score
(RU)
40
[8]
(JP) NTSC-J
58
[9]
(FR)
75
[10]
(UK)
87
[11]
(JP) NTSC-J
58
[12]
(US) NTSC-U
76
[13]
(JP) NTSC-J
50
[14]
(FR) NTSC-J
73
[15]
(FR) NTSC-J
60
[16]
(UK) NTSC-U
38
[17]
(DE) NTSC-U
56
[18]
(US) NTSC-U
48
[19]
(UK) NTSC-J
79
[20]
(DE)
41
[21]
(UK) NTSC-U
73
[22]
(UK) NTSC-J
78
[23]
(UK) NTSC-J
75
[24]
(UK) NTSC-U
85
[25]
(JP) NTSC-J
63
[26]
(RU)
56
[27]
(US) NTSC-U
70
[6]
(DE)
38
[28]
Sega Mega Drive
63
Based on
22 reviews

Devilish: The Next Possession

Mega Drive, JP
BadOmen MD JP Box.jpg
Cover
BadOmen MD JP CartTop.jpg
BadOmen MD JP Cart Back.jpgBadOmen MD JP Cart.jpg
Cart
Mega Drive, US
Devilish MD US Box.jpg
Cover
Devilish md us cart.jpg
Cart
Devilish MD US manual.pdf
Manual
Devilish MD US pcb.jpg
PCB
Mega Drive, KR
BadOmen MD KR cover.jpg
Cover
BadOmen MD KR cart.jpg
Cart

Technical information

Main article: Devilish: The Next Possession/Technical information.

References

  1. File:BadOmen MD JP Box.jpg
  2. 2.0 2.1 https://sega.jp/history/hard/megadrive/software_l.html (Wayback Machine: 2020-07-02 23:21)
  3. Beep! MegaDrive, "January 1992" (JP; 1991-12-07), page 27
  4. Sega Visions, "May/June 1992" (US; 1992-xx-xx), page 58
  5. Mega Play, "March/April 1992" (US; 1992-0x-xx), page 43
  6. 6.0 6.1 VideoGames & Computer Entertainment, "May 1992" (US; 1992-0x-xx), page 42
  7. File:Devilish MD credits.pdf
  8. 1700 igr dlya Sega, "" (RU; 2001-xx-xx), page 24
  9. Beep! MegaDrive, "May 1992" (JP; 1992-04-08), page 34
  10. Consoles +, "Mars 1992" (FR; 1992-0x-xx), page 88
  11. Computer & Video Games, "July 1992" (UK; 1992-06-15), page 31
  12. Famitsu, "1992-05-01" (JP; 1992-04-17), page 39
  13. GamePro, "April 1992" (US; 1992-xx-xx), page 60
  14. Hippon Super, "April 1992" (JP; 1992-03-04), page 85
  15. Joypad, "Juillet 1992" (FR; 1992-06-1x), page 86
  16. Joystick, "Juin 1992" (FR; 1992-0x-xx), page 115
  17. Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming, "January 1993" (UK; 199x-xx-xx), page 91
  18. Mega Fun, "07/92" (DE; 1992-0x-xx), page 37
  19. Mega Play, "June 1992" (US; 1992-0x-xx), page 64
  20. MegaTech, "July 1992" (UK; 1992-06-20), page 36
  21. Play Time, "(8/9)/92" (DE; 1992-07-08), page 92
  22. Sega Power, "August 1992" (UK; 1992-07-02), page 39
  23. Sega Pro, "June 1992" (UK; 1992-05-21), page 62
  24. Sega Pro, "April 1993" (UK; 1993-03-11), page 64
  25. Sega Pro, "April 1993" (UK; 1993-03-11), page 65
  26. Sega Saturn Magazine, "September 1995" (JP; 1995-08-08), page 87
  27. Tricks 16 bit, "Tricks Sega Gold 800 igr" (RU; 1998-03-20), page 17
  28. Video Games, "7/92" (DE; 1992-06-24), page 47


Devilish: The Next Possession

DevilishTheNextPossession MDTitleScreen.png

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Sega Mega Drive
Prototypes: 1992-01-16