E.V.O.: Search for Eden
Encyclopedia
E.V.O.: Search for Eden, originally released in Japan as , is a side-scrolling
action role-playing
video game developed by Almanic Corporation
and published by Enix
for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System
. Released in 1992 for Japanese audiences, the game was later translated and released in North America in 1993 by Enix America Corp. Combining aspects of traditional platforming and role-playing video games, the game involves the player navigating a creature through a number of side-scrolling levels while undergoing bodily evolution
to cope with ever-changing environments. The game is heavily based on Almanic's original title 46 Okunen Monogatari: The Shinka Ron released exclusively in Japan in 1990 for the PC-9801 home computer.
Spanning a period of several millennia, the game's story involves Gaia
, daughter of the sun and mystical embodiment of the Earth, guiding the player through five distinct geological periods of the planet's history. Beginning the game as a fish, the player must travel across the planet defeating enemies and gaining the strength to evolve into more powerful and complex organisms before eventually earning a chance to enter the paradise realm of Eden, becoming Gaia's immortal partner. Crystals with the ability to influence evolution are laden throughout the player's quest, with the mystery of their origin becoming a secondary factor to the main story.
("The World Before Land"), the Carboniferous period
("Early Creatures of Land"), the Jurassic period
("Age of Dinosaurs"), the late Paleogene era
("Ice Age"), and finally the early Neogene period
("Early Man"). Each period has its own map screen, which is divided into various levels. While each era takes historical liberties with both its inhabitants and time frames, the player's choices for evolution are dependent on the current era of play, ranging from aquatic bodies during the Age of Fish to mammalian physiology during the Age of Man. During the first two eras you are forced to gain a new body to progress, but once you reach the Age of Dinosaurs, a side quest will give you the option to remain as a reptile, or become a bird, gaining the ability of flight. As you enter the Ice Age as a bird or reptile, you are immediately given the option to become a mammal. You can finish the game as a reptile, bird, or mammal and the outcome is still the same, only the interaction dialogue is affected by your choices.
As the player progresses through each level, other organisms are encountered who must be confronted by biting, ramming them with horns, or jumping on them until they are defeated. Defeated enemies leave behind meat which the player can consume to grant them "evolution points" used towards upgrading specific body parts. The body of the character controlled by the player is divided into eight sections which can be upgraded by spending evolution points, making them stronger as well as changing their appearance. New abilities such as tail swings, greater jumping ability and increased movement speed can also be obtained through evolution.
During gameplay, the player will also encounter crystals that either display hints and tips, grant large amounts of Evolution Points or transform their character into a unique body for a limited time. As the player takes damage from enemy creatures, one may restore health at any time by either consuming the meat of their foes, eating nearby plant life, or by undergoing selective evolution. At the end of each level, the player must face a stronger boss character in order to progress, requiring much more effort to defeat than a typical foe. There is no game over
mechanism, if the player's character loses all their health points the player is revived by Gaia and sent back to the game's map screen with a deduction of roughly half of their Evolution Points. The game utilizes a built-in battery backup save system for storing game data. The player may record progress directly to the cartridge to be continued at another time, and store up to fifty formerly created creatures using the game's built-in "Book of Life" feature. Creatures stored in this index have the option to be recalled at any time when the player encounters special crystals during the quest.
. The player takes the role of one of many billions of lifeforms created by Gaia, the nurturing and benevolent daughter of Sol, the Sun. Among the creatures known as life, there is a competition to evolve, and the best lifeform will eventually be granted the privilege of entering the Garden of Eden and becoming the husband and partner of Gaia. As the game progresses, it soon becomes apparent some mysterious external force is interfering with evolution on Earth in a destructive manner. Strange crystals not native to Gaia appear across the planet, and creatures that eat the crystals are transformed into monstrously powerful beings that dominate all other lifeforms, overconsume resources and disrupt the flow of evolution. In each Age the player character is tasked with confronting the species transformed by the crystals and defeating them so that the evolution of life can continue as intended.
In the final Age, the Age of Eden, the player learns a mysterious entity is controlling the world's other lifeforms and sending them against the player. This entity turns out to be Bolbox, a lifeform that has evolved into a freakish and evil advanced being by consuming the crystals, believing itself to be the first human, but in reality is a gigantic single-celled organism. In the game's final battle, the player and Bolbox fight to determine who will gain entry into Eden and become Gaia's partner. Bolbox is defeated, and the player joins Gaia in Eden and is granted the gift of intelligence. It is also revealed the crystals were introduced to Earth by an advanced civilization
on Mars
, who misguidedly wished to help Earth by speeding its evolution with the crystals. Upon realizing the dangers the crystals create, the Martians decide to leave Earth alone and observe until it becomes advanced enough for them to interact with.
E.V.O. was developed by Almanic Corporation in early 1992 under the Japanese title 46 Okunen Monogatari ~Harukanaru Eden e~ (literally, "4.6 Billion Year Story: To Distant Eden") and was headed by project director Takashi Yoneda, who had designed Quintet
's Actraiser
three years prior. The title was largely based on the company's earlier text-based adventure game 46 Okunen Monogatari ~The Shinka Ron~ (literally, "4.6 Billion Year Story: The Theory of Evolution"), released for the NEC PC-9801 home computer in 1990, and carries over much of the game's theme, designs and story. Although the design staff had opted to give a fantastic
rather than scientific representation of evolutionary theories and planet development, the crew was assisted by teachers from local schools to provide information on geology and biology to the programmers. While some of the game's designers were similar to that of the original PC-9801 title, much of the staff for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System version was made up of a younger, less experienced crew, which Yoneda stated made things "interesting" during development.
The North American version was translated and marketed by Enix America Corporation. While originally planned for a March 1993 release, the game was beset by last-minute delays for several months until the following June. The company would later hold a promotional contest where players could send in photographs of their favorite customized creatures for a chance to win a free Enix game.
who is most famous for his work on Enix's Dragon Quest
series. The game was his first composition for a 16-bit system, with each theme made to fit the imagery of a particular era, which director Takashi Yoneda stated he was "quite passionate" about. In late 1992, select songs from the game were performed by the Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra during their second annual Game Music Concert
series in Tokyo, Japan. Two of these songs, "Great Hymn of Nature, Earth" and "Sorrow" were made available on the Orchestra Game Music Concert 2 album the following November. In December of the same year, an official soundtrack for E.V.O. was released exclusively in Japan by Apollon Records. Rather than featuring the same instrumentation present in the game, the 46 Okunen Monogatari Symphonic Synth Suite soundtrack was composed of music re-recorded and arranged by Motoaki Takenouchi
.
magazine praised the game's originality and overall design but found fault with the visual presentation of the title, stating "although this game has an interesting concept, the sluggish game play and average graphics may make you return to the caves." The publication also found the background music lacking, stating the game's compositions ranged from "soothing" to "annoying". Nintendo Power
also called attention to the game's ingenuity and theme, remarking that "[t]he idea of this game is great and the weird creatures you can evolve can be both bizarre and hilarious." However, the magazine felt the game's representation of the concept of evolution was too fanciful, also stating the process of obtaining power-up items being "tedious". Nintendo Power would later give the game an honorable mention during its "Top Titles of 1993" awards segment as one of the most innovative games of the year.
Allgame
was less positive about the game, giving it two stars out of five. They praised the challenge that the bosses presented, and the quantity of creatures the player could evolve into, but noted that the game was "marred by mediocre graphics and sluggish gameplay." Although not officially released in Europe, the game was covered in an import review by Super Play
in late 1993 and although they found the game's strategy components to be "top-notch", the rest of the game was regarded as "very mediocre", garnering only a 47% average score.
More contemporary reviews of the game were largely positive. In his 2001 collector's guide Video Game Bible
, author Andy Slaven called the game "wildly underrated (and highly original)". In February 2007, IGN
ranked E.V.O. second in its list of the greatest "Prehistoric Games" of all time, stating "[n]o other title before or since has so effectively captured the essence of evolutionary theory in videogame form." The website additionally likened the title to the then-upcoming and highly-anticipated Spore
by Maxis Games
, calling E.V.O. the "original success story" in life-simulation gaming and the standard for which it would be judged.
Side-scrolling video game
A side-scrolling game or side-scroller is a video game in which the gameplay action is viewed from a side-view camera angle, and the onscreen characters generally move from the left side of the screen to the right. These games make use of scrolling computer display technology...
action role-playing
Action role-playing game
Action role-playing games form a loosely defined sub-genre of role-playing video games that incorporate elements of action or action-adventure games, emphasizing real-time action where the player has direct control over characters, instead of turn-based or menu-based combat...
video game developed by Almanic Corporation
Givro
was a Japanese video game development company founded in 1989 in Tokyo, Japan by former employees of Technos Japan. The company was originally established under the name , which it operated under for five years before changing its corporate name in 1995...
and published by Enix
Enix
The was a Japanese company that produced video games, anime and manga. The company was founded by Yasuhiro Fukushima on September 22, 1975 as and renamed Enix in 1982...
for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
. Released in 1992 for Japanese audiences, the game was later translated and released in North America in 1993 by Enix America Corp. Combining aspects of traditional platforming and role-playing video games, the game involves the player navigating a creature through a number of side-scrolling levels while undergoing bodily evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
to cope with ever-changing environments. The game is heavily based on Almanic's original title 46 Okunen Monogatari: The Shinka Ron released exclusively in Japan in 1990 for the PC-9801 home computer.
Spanning a period of several millennia, the game's story involves Gaia
Gaia (mythology)
Gaia was the primordial Earth-goddess in ancient Greek religion. Gaia was the great mother of all: the heavenly gods and Titans were descended from her union with Uranus , the sea-gods from her union with Pontus , the Giants from her mating with Tartarus and mortal creatures were sprung or born...
, daughter of the sun and mystical embodiment of the Earth, guiding the player through five distinct geological periods of the planet's history. Beginning the game as a fish, the player must travel across the planet defeating enemies and gaining the strength to evolve into more powerful and complex organisms before eventually earning a chance to enter the paradise realm of Eden, becoming Gaia's immortal partner. Crystals with the ability to influence evolution are laden throughout the player's quest, with the mystery of their origin becoming a secondary factor to the main story.
Gameplay
E.V.O. is a side-scrolling platformer action game where players must navigate a creature of their own design across a number of environments resembling Earth's past. The game is divided into five distinct geological periods: the Devonian periodDevonian
The Devonian is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic Era spanning from the end of the Silurian Period, about 416.0 ± 2.8 Mya , to the beginning of the Carboniferous Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya...
("The World Before Land"), the Carboniferous period
Carboniferous
The Carboniferous is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Devonian Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya , to the beginning of the Permian Period, about 299.0 ± 0.8 Mya . The name is derived from the Latin word for coal, carbo. Carboniferous means "coal-bearing"...
("Early Creatures of Land"), the Jurassic period
Jurassic
The Jurassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about Mya to Mya, that is, from the end of the Triassic to the beginning of the Cretaceous. The Jurassic constitutes the middle period of the Mesozoic era, also known as the age of reptiles. The start of the period is marked by...
("Age of Dinosaurs"), the late Paleogene era
Paleogene
The Paleogene is a geologic period and system that began 65.5 ± 0.3 and ended 23.03 ± 0.05 million years ago and comprises the first part of the Cenozoic Era...
("Ice Age"), and finally the early Neogene period
Neogene
The Neogene is a geologic period and system in the International Commission on Stratigraphy Geologic Timescale starting 23.03 ± 0.05 million years ago and ending 2.588 million years ago...
("Early Man"). Each period has its own map screen, which is divided into various levels. While each era takes historical liberties with both its inhabitants and time frames, the player's choices for evolution are dependent on the current era of play, ranging from aquatic bodies during the Age of Fish to mammalian physiology during the Age of Man. During the first two eras you are forced to gain a new body to progress, but once you reach the Age of Dinosaurs, a side quest will give you the option to remain as a reptile, or become a bird, gaining the ability of flight. As you enter the Ice Age as a bird or reptile, you are immediately given the option to become a mammal. You can finish the game as a reptile, bird, or mammal and the outcome is still the same, only the interaction dialogue is affected by your choices.
As the player progresses through each level, other organisms are encountered who must be confronted by biting, ramming them with horns, or jumping on them until they are defeated. Defeated enemies leave behind meat which the player can consume to grant them "evolution points" used towards upgrading specific body parts. The body of the character controlled by the player is divided into eight sections which can be upgraded by spending evolution points, making them stronger as well as changing their appearance. New abilities such as tail swings, greater jumping ability and increased movement speed can also be obtained through evolution.
During gameplay, the player will also encounter crystals that either display hints and tips, grant large amounts of Evolution Points or transform their character into a unique body for a limited time. As the player takes damage from enemy creatures, one may restore health at any time by either consuming the meat of their foes, eating nearby plant life, or by undergoing selective evolution. At the end of each level, the player must face a stronger boss character in order to progress, requiring much more effort to defeat than a typical foe. There is no game over
Game over
Game Over is a message in video games which signals that the game has ended, often due to a negative outcome - although the phrase sometimes follows the end credits after successful completion of a game...
mechanism, if the player's character loses all their health points the player is revived by Gaia and sent back to the game's map screen with a deduction of roughly half of their Evolution Points. The game utilizes a built-in battery backup save system for storing game data. The player may record progress directly to the cartridge to be continued at another time, and store up to fifty formerly created creatures using the game's built-in "Book of Life" feature. Creatures stored in this index have the option to be recalled at any time when the player encounters special crystals during the quest.
Story
E.V.O. tells the saga of life's evolution on Earth, with a subtext of a creation myth and polytheistic evolutionTheistic evolution
Theistic evolution or evolutionary creation is a concept that asserts that classical religious teachings about God are compatible with the modern scientific understanding about biological evolution...
. The player takes the role of one of many billions of lifeforms created by Gaia, the nurturing and benevolent daughter of Sol, the Sun. Among the creatures known as life, there is a competition to evolve, and the best lifeform will eventually be granted the privilege of entering the Garden of Eden and becoming the husband and partner of Gaia. As the game progresses, it soon becomes apparent some mysterious external force is interfering with evolution on Earth in a destructive manner. Strange crystals not native to Gaia appear across the planet, and creatures that eat the crystals are transformed into monstrously powerful beings that dominate all other lifeforms, overconsume resources and disrupt the flow of evolution. In each Age the player character is tasked with confronting the species transformed by the crystals and defeating them so that the evolution of life can continue as intended.
In the final Age, the Age of Eden, the player learns a mysterious entity is controlling the world's other lifeforms and sending them against the player. This entity turns out to be Bolbox, a lifeform that has evolved into a freakish and evil advanced being by consuming the crystals, believing itself to be the first human, but in reality is a gigantic single-celled organism. In the game's final battle, the player and Bolbox fight to determine who will gain entry into Eden and become Gaia's partner. Bolbox is defeated, and the player joins Gaia in Eden and is granted the gift of intelligence. It is also revealed the crystals were introduced to Earth by an advanced civilization
Extraterrestrial life
Extraterrestrial life is defined as life that does not originate from Earth...
on Mars
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
, who misguidedly wished to help Earth by speeding its evolution with the crystals. Upon realizing the dangers the crystals create, the Martians decide to leave Earth alone and observe until it becomes advanced enough for them to interact with.
Development
Quintet (game developer)
is a Japanese video game developer, founded in 1987 or 1989. The company name is derived from musical terminology, as well as 5 elements of game design - planning, graphics, sound, programmers, and producers...
's Actraiser
ActRaiser
is a 1990 Super Nintendo Entertainment System action and city-building simulation game developed by Quintet and published by Enix that combines traditional side-scrolling platforming with urban planning god game sections. A sequel, ActRaiser 2, was released for the Super Nintendo in 1993...
three years prior. The title was largely based on the company's earlier text-based adventure game 46 Okunen Monogatari ~The Shinka Ron~ (literally, "4.6 Billion Year Story: The Theory of Evolution"), released for the NEC PC-9801 home computer in 1990, and carries over much of the game's theme, designs and story. Although the design staff had opted to give a fantastic
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
rather than scientific representation of evolutionary theories and planet development, the crew was assisted by teachers from local schools to provide information on geology and biology to the programmers. While some of the game's designers were similar to that of the original PC-9801 title, much of the staff for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System version was made up of a younger, less experienced crew, which Yoneda stated made things "interesting" during development.
The North American version was translated and marketed by Enix America Corporation. While originally planned for a March 1993 release, the game was beset by last-minute delays for several months until the following June. The company would later hold a promotional contest where players could send in photographs of their favorite customized creatures for a chance to win a free Enix game.
Audio
The music for E.V.O. was composed by Koichi SugiyamaKoichi Sugiyama
is a Japanese music composer, council member of JASRAC , and honorary chairman of the Japanese Backgammon Society...
who is most famous for his work on Enix's Dragon Quest
Dragon Quest
, published as Dragon Warrior in North America until 2005,Due to the inconsistent usage by sources since Square Enix obtained the naming rights to Dragon Quest in North America. Dragon Quest has been used by sources to refer to games released solely under the Dragon Warrior titles...
series. The game was his first composition for a 16-bit system, with each theme made to fit the imagery of a particular era, which director Takashi Yoneda stated he was "quite passionate" about. In late 1992, select songs from the game were performed by the Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra during their second annual Game Music Concert
Orchestral Game Concert
The were a series of Japanese video game music concerts. The events took place in Tokyo from 1991 to 1996 and were performed by different orchestras. Recordings of the concerts were released as a series of albums, which are known for their rarity....
series in Tokyo, Japan. Two of these songs, "Great Hymn of Nature, Earth" and "Sorrow" were made available on the Orchestra Game Music Concert 2 album the following November. In December of the same year, an official soundtrack for E.V.O. was released exclusively in Japan by Apollon Records. Rather than featuring the same instrumentation present in the game, the 46 Okunen Monogatari Symphonic Synth Suite soundtrack was composed of music re-recorded and arranged by Motoaki Takenouchi
Motoaki Takenouchi
Motoaki Takenouchi is a Japanese composer, most recognised for his video game soundtracks during the 1990s, particularly for the Shining series of games...
.
Reception
The game received mild but generally positive reviews during its initial release in North America. GameProGamePro
GamePro Media was a United States gaming media company publishing online and print content on the video game industry, video game hardware, and video game software developed for a video game console , a computer, and/or a mobile device . GamePro Media properties include GamePro magazine and...
magazine praised the game's originality and overall design but found fault with the visual presentation of the title, stating "although this game has an interesting concept, the sluggish game play and average graphics may make you return to the caves." The publication also found the background music lacking, stating the game's compositions ranged from "soothing" to "annoying". Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power magazine is a monthly news and strategy magazine formerly published in-house by Nintendo of America, but now run independently. As of issue #222 , Nintendo contracted publishing duties to Future US, the U.S. subsidiary of British publisher Future.The first issue published was...
also called attention to the game's ingenuity and theme, remarking that "[t]he idea of this game is great and the weird creatures you can evolve can be both bizarre and hilarious." However, the magazine felt the game's representation of the concept of evolution was too fanciful, also stating the process of obtaining power-up items being "tedious". Nintendo Power would later give the game an honorable mention during its "Top Titles of 1993" awards segment as one of the most innovative games of the year.
Allgame
Allgame
Allgame is a commercial database of information about arcade games, video games and console manufacturers.Allgame is owned by All Media Guide, along with Allmusic and Allmovie....
was less positive about the game, giving it two stars out of five. They praised the challenge that the bosses presented, and the quantity of creatures the player could evolve into, but noted that the game was "marred by mediocre graphics and sluggish gameplay." Although not officially released in Europe, the game was covered in an import review by Super Play
Super Play
Super Play was a UK based Super Nintendo Entertainment System magazine which ran from November 1992 to September 1996.Super Play was notable for a number of reasons. Firstly, it covered in great detail the console role-playing game genre...
in late 1993 and although they found the game's strategy components to be "top-notch", the rest of the game was regarded as "very mediocre", garnering only a 47% average score.
More contemporary reviews of the game were largely positive. In his 2001 collector's guide Video Game Bible
Video Game Bible
The Video Game Bible was founded in 2001 by Andy Slaven and Michael Collins. It published a game collector's guide, which covered United States-released home consoles from 1985 to 2002....
, author Andy Slaven called the game "wildly underrated (and highly original)". In February 2007, IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
ranked E.V.O. second in its list of the greatest "Prehistoric Games" of all time, stating "[n]o other title before or since has so effectively captured the essence of evolutionary theory in videogame form." The website additionally likened the title to the then-upcoming and highly-anticipated Spore
Spore (2008 video game)
Spore is a multi-genre single-player god game developed by Maxis and designed by Will Wright. The game was released for the Microsoft Windows and Macintosh operating systems in September 2008 as Spore...
by Maxis Games
Maxis
Maxis is an American company founded as an independent video game developer in 1987. It is currently a subsidiary of Electronic Arts . Maxis is the creator of one of the best-selling computer games of all time, The Sims and its first sequel, The Sims 2...
, calling E.V.O. the "original success story" in life-simulation gaming and the standard for which it would be judged.
See also
- SporeSpore (2008 video game)Spore is a multi-genre single-player god game developed by Maxis and designed by Will Wright. The game was released for the Microsoft Windows and Macintosh operating systems in September 2008 as Spore...
- Impossible CreaturesImpossible CreaturesImpossible Creatures is a real-time strategy game released on December 29, 2002 developed by Relic Entertainment in conjunction with Microsoft Game Studios. Its unique feature is that the armies used are all created by the player...
- Black & White
- L.O.L.: Lack of LoveL.O.L.: Lack of LoveL.O.L.: Lack of Love, or simply Lack of Love, is an evolutionary adventure game developed by Love-de-Lic and published by ASCII Entertainment for the Sega Dreamcast...
- Seventh Cross: EvolutionSeventh Cross: EvolutionSeventh Cross: Evolution, known in Japan as simply Seventh Cross, is a video game for the Sega Dreamcast video game console. It was released on December 18, 1999. A sequel titled Ninth Will was announced shortly after the game's North American release, but it was apparently cancelled.-Gameplay:The...
- Evolution: The Game of Intelligent LifeEvolution: The Game of Intelligent LifeEvolution: The Game of Intelligent Life, also known as Genetic Evolution: The Race for Intelligent Life in Germany and Evolução: O Jogo da Vida in Brazil, is a life simulation & real-time strategy computer game that allows players to experience, guide, and control evolution from an isometric view...
- CreaturesCreatures (artificial life program)Creatures is an artificial life computer program series, created in the mid-1990s by English computer scientist Steve Grand whilst working for the Cambridge computer games developer Millennium Interactive...
- SimLifeSimLifeSimLife: The Genetic Playground is a computer game produced by Maxis in 1992. The concept of the game is to simulate an ecosystem; players may modify the genetics of the plants and animals that inhabit the virtual world. The point of this game is to experiment and create a self sustaining...
- SimEarthSimEarthSimEarth: The Living Planet, the second life simulation computer game designed by Will Wright in which the player controls the development of a planet. The game was published in 1990 by Maxis...