Demon's World
A horror-themed run and gun arcade game from Toaplan.
Demon's World is a 1989 run and gun arcade game developed by Toaplan and published in Japan by Taito and in North America by Catalina Games. Players control ghost hunters fighting monsters unleashed by a demon king. It was later ported to the PC Engine Super CD-ROM² in Japan with added content.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Toaplan
- Publisher
- Taito (JP); Catalina Games (NA)
- Artist
- Atsushi Kawaguchi
- Composer
- Osamu Ōta; Toshiaki Tomizawa
- Platforms
- Arcade, PC Engine Super CD-ROM²
- Genre
- Run and gun
- Modes
- Single-player, multiplayer
Facts from the source article.
Gameplay
Demon's World is a horror-themed horizontally-scrolling run and gun game. Players take on the role of two ghost hunters across ten increasingly difficult linear autoscrolling stages, each set in various locations, with some stages ending in a boss fight. The main objective is to defeat ghosts and monsters unleashed by the titular demon king. The player characters are armed with a gun and an energy pack, reminiscent of the Ghostbusters franchise, and can shoot enemies, jump on them, or perform a double jump to move across platforms. Collectible weapon power-ups change the gun to fire lasers, bombs, or a spread shot. Other items include "P" icons that grant a shield after collecting three, and heart icons that give points. Firing at certain locations reveals bonus secrets that help achieve high scores and extra lives. The better-known arcade version begins in a modern town at a telephone booth and progresses to haunted American Old West levels. An alternative arcade version and the PC Engine port shuffle the stages, starting in an eastern setting with Chinese and Japanese folklore spirits such as karakasa, chochinobake, kappa, hitotsume-kozou, and rokurokubi, then moving to a ghostly pirate ship and the American Old West featuring Frankenstein's monster, Dracula, and Jason Voorhees-style masked monsters. All versions end in a medieval setting with cursed castles, haunted armor, goblins, and dragons. The PC Engine version and the alternative arcade revision add a cave segment before the final boss, and the PC Engine version includes an exclusive mid-boss: a cowboy skeleton that throws scorpions.
Development and release
Demon's World hit arcades worldwide in 1989, known as Horror Story in Japan under Taito, while Catalina Games handled North America and Toaplan covered other territories. Osamu Ōta and Toshiaki Tomizawa jointly composed the soundtrack, with artist Atsushi Kawaguchi creating the visuals. The arcade board supports multiple regions, adjustable through DIP switches that alter legal notices, show Taito's licensing, and toggle the title between English and Japanese. NEC Avenue brought the game to the PC Engine Super CD-ROM² on February 26, 1993, releasing it only in Japan under the original Horror Story name. This port uses Redbook CD Audio for an arranged soundtrack, builds on a later arcade board revision that adds a new stage, and introduces a unique cowboy skeleton mid-boss not found elsewhere.
Reception and legacy
In Japan, Game Machine listed Demon's World as the 22nd most popular arcade game of August 1989. The PC Engine Super CD-ROM² release received mixed critical reception from critics reviewing it as an import title. French magazine Consoles + praised the graphics, music, and gameplay but criticized the presentation. Markus Appel of German magazine Mega Fun gave mixed remarks on graphics and sound, while Andreas Knauf and Martin Gaksch of Video Games also gave a mixed outlook. Den of Geek called it a solid but forgettable Toaplan title. As of 2019, the rights are owned by Tatsujin, a company founded in 2017 by former Toaplan employee Masahiro Yuge, which became part of Embracer Group in 2022.
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