Recommended only to collectors.

User Rating: 7.3 | Sewer Shark SCD
The early 90’s was a time of change for the video game industry. One innovation was the use of CDs as a medium for game storage. Sega and NEC were one of the few game companies that were pioneering the new technology. Since CDs had exponentially more storage than cartridges, the use of full motion video was becoming a big gaming craze. One problem with FMV games is that they were mostly technical flash and short on depth. They were more like semi-interactive movies. The use of FMV would eventually die off with only a few games using for cut scenes. Sewer Shark was one the first to showcase this new fad on the Sega CD. Many will blast it due to its lack of game play, but I grew fond of this game.

By today’s standards and even by the standards back then, the video is grainy. But actually seeing real actors was pretty cool when you are used to sprite-based characters. Actually hearing people talk and a true soundtrack was also a great novelty back then. The game play is shallow, though. It has been described as a light gun game without the light gun. It is pretty mundane and mindless, but sometimes you just want a game where you don’t have to think and just destroy things.

I do have some fond memories of this game, which does make me biased towards it. I do appreciate its place in gaming history and the risks it took to change it. Unless you are a gaming buff like myself or have a soft spot for older games, this game will see ridiculous. If you are only old enough to remember the Playstation, then I wouldn’t recommend this game. But for those of us who fondly remember the 16-bit days as kids, this game will always be a cult favorite.