Look Who it Was Random video

13. (60 FPS Genesis) The Library - Ecco the Dolphin

226 views · Published 1 February 2015 · 8:16 · Indexed 31 October 2026

Channel: WhiteKhakis · 2015 · Gaming

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Please pick the 720p60 or 1080p60 resolutions to play back in 60 frames per second. (Internet Explorer, surprisingly, appears to be the best browser for playback.)

Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7IEN-HGlR44pXq11KhYKOaoSZM0zN-18

So, here's a lot of exposition dropped on us. Atlantis was apparently destroyed, by, um... Aliens. And now they are back to EAT US ALL!!! (The aliens.) Yeeeeeesh~~! Well, I guess I better get back to travelling back in time because a big DNA strand made of basketballs told me to! Yup.

This level is also home to the horrifically nasty BLOCK MOVEMENT PUZZLE! Gaaaah! It's not even really a puzzle! You're just supposed to lift this block over some pits! But it always seems to glitch off your nose and becomes extremely aggravating! However! There's a trick! When the block is laying on the ground, go straight towards it facing the floor, hit the floor, then press up to balance it on your nose! Well... this is NORMALLY how these puzzles work, but this one slips right off! So what do you do? As SOON as you press up to flip it up, press down and then up again to flip it up AGAIN in mid-flip. It's, um... stupid. But it works.

I show this at 7:00
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Hey, there! This is a series that'll be featuring the Sega Genesis at 60 frames per second captured on the original system! Why? Well... have you ever watched an older game on YouTube and noticed the main character turn invisible when hit, or some other such nonsense? That's because some older games use some ridiculously high speed flicker effects to achieve those crazy hitflashes on bosses or that "ouch I'm hurt!" flicker! These are not displayed properly at 30 fps, but now that we're able to upload at 60 fps we can see all the special effects that older games would use! (They'll be smoother, too!)
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Aw, look't the cute dolphin! It's Ecco~! He can jump n' flip and swim fast and hit things with his wittle nose, aw~! He can also talk to other sea creatures by singing, and he can create a map in his head by pinging! He also tampers with things way WAY beyond his understanding and you'd never even begin to think that a game about a sweet little dolphin would delve into such things but, uh... let's just say it does. The first level will give you a pre-tty big hint about the direction this game takes. 

The game itself plays like a, well, a well-thought out "underwater stage". It has the problem with being difficult, like those kinds of levels, but not generally unfairly so. There are some wonky portions, yes, but overall a good experience. The game focuses on exploration and resource management, your air basically. You can't hold your breath for all too long so you need to always be on the look out for air pockets. Good thing your echolocation can bring up a handy-dandy map! I love the map~ You also need to keep an eye on your health, but eating fish generally takes care of that. The "shelled ones" will heal you too if you sing at them. Though, some aren't quite so benevolent.

You can dash at enemies to defeat them, and you may learn some new techniques if you save your dolphin friends in the first few levels. There's a super special technique that isn't in the manual doesn't appear to be in-game, either. If you defeat an enemy (primarily with your dash) you can press the dash button just as they dissipate into stars to "suck up" the star. This'll make it so the enemy never returns. SUPER useful considering they usually pop right back as soon as you turn your back on them. I didn't remember this technique until after a few levels though.

Come and join me for a swim as we discover the deep (and beyond~) with Ecco!
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(See Technical capture details in other descriptions in this playlist)

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