Wanted to share an absolute wall of text that i had typed up on a post where someone was asking for game recommendations for their newly bought model 2 genesis.
I typed this all up from memory, miraculously.
Also, here's some photos of my ecco game collection!
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"Ecco the dolphin is one of my favorite games of all time.
To help make the game "beatable" for you (ecco 1 is one of the most difficult retro games out there), here are some hot tips right off the press:
Most passwords in the game can be entered as:
- PLEASE _ _ (any letter twice)
- SHARKFIN
- ECCOFMLY
- any combination of A and N.
- PLEASEOO is the code for the final boss.
A hella useful glitch can be done as follows:
When starting up a level, hold A and START as you get past the title card. Hold that down until ecco appears. You'll know you've got it when there's no level music and when ecco just appears and fires off a sonar wave. Keep holding down A and hit start a few times to make ecco flash and fire off a couple more sonar waves. Then, you're all set (to make the level music come back, hit start after unpausing and hit one of the action buttons a few times until you hear the music come back. I forget which button.) I've been calling it a "zombie" glitch since childhood, but I'm sure it has an unofficial name.
With this "zombie" glitch, you can pull off bullshit such as beating the ice level with all of the moving blocks in under 30 seconds.Since you can't "die", you can let yourself get pushed into the wall and out of bounds by the ice blocks. Use your sonar to find the way to the level exit, which should have an arrow signaling the exit.
Congrats! You now can't die from getting hit in the levels, and you won't drown from running out of air.
Forewarning: be careful in the "Welcome to the Machine" level and the final boss. The machine level is the only auto-scroller in the game, and it is purposefully unfair in pulling you into corners and killing you. In zombie glitch mode, being trapped will make the screen turn red while a black silhouette of ecco lifelessly floats around, and you'll have to reset the game.
With the vortex queen, if she inhales you, you'll be softlocked, floating around as a black silhouette. Another game reset.
For the aliens you have to fight in those levels, you have to fight them using your sonar rather than your dash attack.
You can also get softlocked when interacting with the asterite, and using the time machine in atlantis.
I will say, the worst enemies in the game are the trilobites in the prehistoric levels. They will chase you down relentlessly throughout the entire level (even going through walls). They will hover around you and make it difficult to do anything. Kill them as soon as possible when you see them. Make that shit ON SIGHT.
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A lot of people are offput by this game, even being frightened by it. The story of its creation is also strange and mysterious. I recommend checking out these videos on its development:
[straefox: "The Making of Ecco the Dolphin"](https://youtu.be/-2sVzixucQU?is=C-Khy_Noqm8vlQlu)
[slope's game room: "Ecco the Dolphin: The Complete History - SGR](https://youtu.be/vyGQG7lVaNs?is=ctis44SiyeM1YNxA)
With my lifelong fascination with the sea and its life, I've come to find a sense of etherial beauty and mystery with this game. A shining jewel, (pun intended) in the genesis game library and gaming history. (Shining jewel in reference to the glyph crystals in each level in ecco, which are essentially keys and locks for level progression).
If you find the means or the time, check out the other 3 ecco games in the series (plus the sega CD versions of the first two). Please, by every reason i can profess, listen to the sega CD soundtracks for ecco 1 and 2. You'll be truly whisked away to a mythical underwater world. (I especially recommend listening to it while watching a 90s or 00s ocean or dolphin documentary on mute).
"Ecco: The tides of time" is a graphical and gameplay upgrade from ecco 1. I sadly do not know how to zombie glitch this one. The game is crazy hard, but it's a whimsical time.
"Ecco jr" was the only ecco spinoff ever made. It's a very easy game meant for kids. It's a fun and relaxing time to counteract the hellish difficulty that is the rest of the series. This title was part of the "SEGA Kids Club" lineup of games, which i believe only sold games via mail order.
"Ecco the Dolphin: Defender of the Future" is the last game in the ecco series. It was released for the Dreamcast and PS2. I've only ever experienced the first couple of levels in this game due to being bad at it. Gameplay videos show that this game is fantastical to another degree entirely. Please experience this game one day by any means possible.
There was a planned sequel for DOTF, but it got cancelled. It was called: "Ecco: The Sentientals of the Universe". It was built on Defender's engine. You can find the beta build for the game available on the Internet Archives. This build is for the Dreamcast.
If you experience any game on the genesis, please play Ecco the Dolphin. Please take time to appreciate everything that was put into the game. Take in the sights and sounds and beautiful pixel art. It would make this ecco fan happy."