The retro scene has truly blossomed over the last decade or so, to the extent that it’s now more accessible than ever to legally obtain and play games from long-thought dead consoles of yesteryear – Genesis game ‘Sacred Line II’ is one of the latest, but let’s take a quick look at the current state of retro scene before we take a closer look at Sasha Darko’s new horror title!
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Games from decades ago are being given another chance…
Companies such as Limited Run Games are bringing back long-forgotten titles such as Dragon View in SNES cartridge form (see our news story on Dragon View – New SNES Cartridge here) and even NES cartridges such as Battletoads & Double Dragon (in fancy translucent green plastic no less!).
Then there’s the Evercade; Blaze’s pair of consoles (a handheld and home version, the Evercade VS – see here for our reviews of the Evercade and Evercade VS) have done a great job bringing back not only iconic classics, but genuinely forgotten, obscure titles that are being given another chance in the spotlight.
It’s not just old games though!
Incredibly, it really isn’t just old games that are getting a new lease of life on retro consoles – even the Evercade has played host to new retro-styled titles – but old consoles themselves are seeing new releases on original, proprietary media on a fairly regular basis.
Games such as Xeno Crisis and Tanglewood have both been released on Mega Drive/Genesis cartridges (and, coincidentally, on their very own Evercade compilation cartridge) – and companies such as Mega Cat studios (whose first Evercade cartridge features on our list of the best Evercade games) release games on decades-old formats such as NES and Genesis cartridges on a fairly regular basis.
And now there’s a new horror game on Genesis?
Yes! Horror wasn’t a widely represented genre on consoles back in the 80s and early 90s – with games assumed as being ‘for kids’ and the technology of the day meaning that scares and gore weren’t all that effective for the most part (shout out to games such as Splatterhouse for giving us a truly disturbing and oppressive experience despite technical limitations though!). Over the years, game design has evolved and developers have found ways to utilise older technology to bring us truly effective horror games.
Sasha Darko’s Sacred Line II
Which brings us to Sacred Line II, both a sequel and a prequel to Sasha Darko’s previous visual novel horror, Sacred Line Genesis. According to Sasha Darko’s website, Sacred Line II, “follows the story of Sarah, a girl with a troubled past, who was kidnapped by the religious cult Svete Namjere (“Holy Intentions”).
She dies after being attacked by one of the cult members, but then comes back to the world of the living aided by a mysterious force.
Set in the year 1999 of an alternate reality world, where Yugoslavia still exists, she tries to keep it from crumbling.”
Coming in physical form on cartridge for Mega Drive/Genesis; the aforementioned Mega Cat Studios will be handling the publishing of the physical version.
Excitingly, you can pick up a personalised version of the game digitally from Sasha Darko’s website; this will feature your own name in the main menu.
Along with this, your purchase will net you the Survivor DLC; this gives you your own exclusive game – set in Sacred Line universe – featuring a story based on you!
You can check out Sacred Line II on Sasha Darko’s website at this link.
Jason – who lives in the UK – has had a lifelong interest in video games, which all started when he discovered Space Invaders in the early 80s. The first game he ever completed was Wonder Boy in Monster Land on the Sega Master System – which remains one of his proudest gaming achievements. Jason is a passionate writer – and has been writing about gaming since the late 90s. He currently runs pop culture blog midlifegamergeek.com, which he updates on a daily basis (and has written more than 700 articles on the blog alone!).
Outside of video games, Jason is a keen tabletop gamer, film buff and comic book fan.
