WELCO METOT HENEX TLEVEL - Fahrenheit

Publisher: Sega Developer: Sega Studios Release: 1995

Full-motion video games were, for the most part, pretty bad. Although I enjoy a few of them, they pretty much sucked. And Fahrenheit is a perfect example of why they sucked.

Playing this game now, one of the first things that strikes me is that the production values are actually pretty darn good as far as Sega CD FMV games go. The sets look convincing, as do all the props. And that's no mean feat considering the whole game is based on entering burning buildings.

I also have to say that it sounds like the casting couch was located somewhere north of the 49th parallel – the actors all seem to have very noticeable Canadian accents. A little research uncovered that this is indeed the case for a few of them, and also that Sega cast a bunch of stunt people in the main character roles (which I guess explains the bad acting to a degree). A lot of the main cast is still active today, in fact.

But the reason that it sucks is that its game play is almost entirely based on trial-and-error.

Take the first house, for example. Most of the family has escaped the burning home, but you're informed that one of the daughters may still be inside. And so you are tasked with entering the house, disposing of any hazardous materials and saving any people who might be trapped.

Game play is comprised of various video clips shot from a first-person view, accompanied by on-screen indicators of the choices at your disposal. These can be directional arrows or action commands. All are shown with a timer, which, if it runs out indicates that the game will make the (wrong) decision for you.

The problem is that the camera is constantly moving, so it's next to impossible to get your bearings. And even if you do push “up” while facing a door, it's not guaranteed you'll actually head in that direction at all.

Also, most of the major decisions are absolutely random, with no real tell as to what the proper choice is. Sure, you definitely want to get rid of that kerosene heater that may explode. But when you want ot turn off the gas to the range, you're presented with three valves to choose from. None of them stand out, and none of your teammates has any advice that helps you choose which valve to turn. So, turn the wrong one, and you lose. Start over.

The whole game is like this, and it's a crying shame. The premise is actually a very cool one, not to mention pretty unique as far as video games go. And with production values higher than you normally see on the average Sega CD FMV game, Fahrenheit just begs to be played.

Fahrenheit is also unique in another way – as far as I know this is the only dual-format Sega CD/32X game release in the US (perhaps the world). When you bought Fahrenheit, it came on three discs – a Sega CD disc, a 32X disc, and a Key Disc. The Key Disc needed to be loaded first, followed by whichever version of the game you wanted to play. The function of the key disc was to supposedly keep players from selling the version of the game they didn't want.

NOTE: The images that accompany this article were taken from the 32X version of the game.