Universal Arcade Facts
@universalfacts
Shedding some light on the arcade manufacturer that time (mostly) forgot. | Account run by @clipthejester.bsky.social (owner uses he/him)
Strangely, Universal's internal company report documents and online history page all list the release of Time 80 as 1970, despite no evidence for them being manufactured or distributed existing before March 1972.
Gameplay footage of Kick Rider, a racing game released by Universal in 1984. Using the same combination of bird's-eye/third-person perspectives as found in Irem's Traverse U.S.A./Zippy Race, this game's main innovation on the formula comes in the form of its titular kick mechanic.
In the interview, Ueda gives context for the mysterious dinosaur tiles found within Lady Bug's sprite data. These sprites were actually designed to serve as an in-game ad for Ueda's next planned project, an entirely dinosaur-themed game, that ultimately never came to fruition.
An unlicensed SNES multicart which, for unknown reasons, uses key art from Dr. Mario to represent Mr. Do!.
Aside from a single mention in a 1980 issue of RePlay, Sharpe's review is the only contemporary English-language reference for Asteroid Killer. Although the IPDB and other assorted pinball databases do in fact include Asteroid Killer as an entry, no real information is given regarding the game.
Two photos of Asteroid Killer, a pinball table released by Universal in 1979, as featured in Roger Sharpe's review in Play Meter. Much like its contemporary, Harem Cat, Asteroid Killer supported up to six players & used a video monitor in order to display both score & animations during play.
Many of Tekhan/Tecmo's earliest staff were actually ex-Universal employees. When Kazutoshi Ueda left Universal after the release of Mr. Do!, he explicitly told the higher-ups that he was not quitting to join Tekhan. He joined Tekhan not long after. (shmuplations.com/mtjdesign/)
I have compiled a (seemingly) full list of songs known to have been featured in TypeTunes; the game was intended to receive several additions to the tracklist over the Internet. As the game never left location testing, this idea ultimately proved fruitless.
Despite only ever being on location test at a handful of game centers, TypeTunes gained somewhat of a reputation amongst those who played it as being unrepentantly difficult; Matsukan Samba II seems to be the most common example given in contemporary players' anecdotes.
A magazine ad for "TypeTunes: Chase the Music!", a 2005 rhythm game in which players had to type the lyrics to J-pop songs along to the beat. TypeTunes would end up being the last arcade game to be released in any capacity under the Universal/Aruze umbrella.
Although not displayed in the gameplay video above, after every stage on default settings, the game will display an low-resolution image of a naked woman, as is common from lesser-known arcade titles from the 90s onwards.
Gameplay footage of Twin Brats, an unlicensed adult clone of Lady Bug released in 1995 by Elettronica Video Games S.r.l. Alongside several presentational alterations, Twin Brats' main gameplay innovations are its simultaneous two-player and an attack the player can use to temporarily stun enemies.
Gameplay footage of Snap Jack, a game released in 1981 by Universal. Based on the framework of their previous Cosmic Avenger (released only a few months prior), players must avoid giant fireballs, barrels, and "Medusa Jacks" while also eating enough dots to acquire the table-turning "Power Dot".
As software piracy, especially in regards to the Commodore 64, was incredibly commonplace in Italy (as can be read about here), the C64 port of Mr. Do! was bootlegged several times, usually either under the titles of "Caves" or "Gigi il Minatore".
The cover for a bootleg Italian release of the C64 port of Mr. Do!, in which the protagonist is inexplicably depicted as a Jawa from the Star Wars series.
Unlicensed releases of Cosmic Avenger, Lady Bug, and Space Panic for the Splicevision, a clone of the ColecoVision sold in Brazil.
Gameplay footage of Cosmic Guerilla, a single-screen shooter released in 1979 by Universal. One of many games to come out in the wake of Space Invaders, Cosmic Guerilla's main defining feature is its aliens having the ability to steal bases - and your extra lives if you are not quick enough.
Two photos of a promotional Mr. Do! T-shirt. Very little information seems to be available regarding this shirt.
The flyer for B-29, an early lightgun game released by Universal in 1977.
If this version seems familiar, many (but absolutely not all) of the assets made for this port would later be reused for the MSX port, which was released a year later but lacks many of the features found in this version, including the Munchers and the intermission screen.
Gameplay footage of a Japan-exclusive port of Mr. Do! made for the short-lived Tomy Tutor/Pyūta computer.
A promotional store display made to advertise the ColecoVision version of Lady Bug.
The US flyer for No Man's Land/Sengoku no Jieitai, a game released by Universal in 1980. No Man's Land, interestingly, was the only Universal arcade game not to be distributed by Universal themselves in the US, instead being the first game to be distributed by Gottlieb.
Gameplay footage of Kong Strikes Back!, a clone of Mr. Do!'s Wild Ride released for several microcomputers by Ocean in 1984. Branded as the sequel to Ocean's earlier Donkey Kong clone, Kong Strikes Back's main distinction is its "bombs" system, which allows the player to destroy the oncoming carts.
The flyer and cabinet for "Hunt Down", an alternate (likely unlicensed) Spanish release of Space Panic put out by Andra S.A.
Two flyers advertising Universal's Laser System 1 standard for LaserDisc games, both of which reference games which ultimately never came out, such as "Adventure Mr. Do!" and "Space Dracula".
It should also be noted that Indoor Soccer was not the absolute last arcade game to be distributed by Universal, as they also released a handful of games for Seta's Aleck 64 arcade hardware under the Aruze name.
Gameplay footage of Indoor Soccer, a game released by Universal in 1985. The last known arcade game to be released under the Universal banner, Indoor Soccer's main defining feature is its quadruple-stick setup, with each player controlling the two members of each team.
The English-language flyer for Star Rub, a version of the 1974 Ramtek game Clean Sweep, released by Universal four years later.
The instruction card for "Super Pierrot", a rereleased/rebranded version of Do! Run Run made for the Japanese market in 1987. Being one of the last arcade games to be released by Universal, Do! Run Run originally only saw a very limited release across Universal-owned arcades in Japan.