"You read comics? Now finally play them!"

You love reading those comic books? Then this is the game for you!
You assume the role of sketch turner, a comic book writer/artist as profession. On one stormy night something terrible happens! A character from Sketch's comic is loosed from the comic, and sends Sketch and his pet rat Roadkill into the comic book world. If Sketch dies the enemy will become mortal, and will then take over the world! So you better keep your wits about you.

Gameplay: One of the things I've always liked about Comix Zone is the level design. Instead of the typical going from one end of a stage to another format the developers opted to lay out the stages from panel to panel. This is a perfect example of developers using the main subject to make a experience unique. As for the actual gameplay, it largely consists of side-scrolling beat 'em up action. Thankfully, Sketch has a large amount of martial art/street fighting moves to keep things interesting. Even if you get tired of hand to hand combat you can collect weapons to dispatch your foes such as a knife, bomb, and my personal favorite the power fist. Upon using this weapon Sketch transforms into a superman knock-off, then pounds the ground killing all enemies in the panel. Cool stuff! The only problem with the gameplay is the length, since Comix Zone only features six stages. (three chapters split into 2 parts) However, this is a pretty difficult game, so it balances out in the end. Replay is encouraged since there is two endings to see.
How do you see them? Just find out for yourself.

Graphics: You want a game that shows off the power of the Sega Genesis? Then look no further. Honestly I'm not surprised this game looks so great, after all it was developed by Sega Technical Institute. This branch of Sega was devoted to showcasing the strength of the console.
When I compare this title to many SNES games it easily stands toe to toe with the likes of them. Big bold sprites, great effects, bright colors, it's all here. Also the panel to panel look of the game was simply ingenious.

Sound: Nice! The music is very well done, and conveys the right feeling of the stage at hand.
The sound effects are also top notch, dare I say it? rivaling the Super Nes. Also the squeak for roadkill the rat is quite cute.

Control: Really smooth.... if you have a six button game pad that is. The reason for this is inventory management is handled with the C button on a three button game pad, hogging up one of your moves buttons. Trust me, you'll enjoy the game much more if you spring for a six button pad if you don't already have one.

How does it perform on the Sega Nomad portable?:
This game looks simply awesome on a TV, but on a Nomad it will knock your socks off. The only problem I could find with the translation is some text is hard to make out, but it's definitely manageable. Otherwise, this awesome title is all the better off on the Nomad.

Comix Zone is a breath of fresh air. Rarely do you see a developer exploit the subject at hand so well. The panel to panel gameplay had me hooked from the start, and the incredibly diverse control scheme kept me playing. If you don't already own this awesome title, by all means buy it.
It generally goes for a paltry five dollars of the second hand market.

Score:8/10

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 09/09/02, Updated 09/09/02