Action 52 is a multicart consisting of 52 individual video games, released in 1991 for the Nintendo Entertainment System and in 1993 for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis consoles by Active Enterprises. It was initially sold for the comparatively high price of $200 USD (or "less than $4 for each game"), and became notorious among gamers for the poor quality of its games. Many video game collectors covet Action 52 for its notoriety and rarity. ImageMetadata File history File links Download high resolution version (640x926, 119 KB) Summary Box artwork for Action 52 for the Nintendo Entertainment System. ... A video game developer is a software developer (a business or an individual) that creates computer or video games. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... World map showing North America A satellite composite image of North America. ... 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... World map showing North America A satellite composite image of North America. ... el 18 de mayo nacio claudia // 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... Video games are generally categorized into genres. ... In computer games and video games, single-player refers to the variant of a particular game where input from only one player is expected throughout the course of the gaming session. ... NES redirects here. ... The Sega Mega Drive was a 16-bit video game console released by Sega in Japan (1988), Europe (1990) and most of the rest of the world. ... In various types of electronic equipment, a cartridge can refer one method of adding different functionality or content (e. ... In video game parlance, a multicart is a cartridge that contains more than one game. ... Namcos Pac-Man was a hit, and became a cultural phenomenon. ... NES redirects here. ... The Sega Mega Drive ) is a 16-bit video game console released by Sega in Japan in 1988, North America in 1989, and the PAL region in 1990. ... Four different video game consoles from different generations. ... The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ...

The cartridge states that it contains 52 "new and original exciting games". The games cover a variety of genres, although the most common are scrolling shooters and platform games. Examples of scrolling shooters include Star Evil, G-Force, Thrusters, and Megalonia. Some of the platform games available are Ooze, Alfredo, and Bubblegum Rosie. All but one of the games are single player, the exception being Fire Breathers, a simple two-player fighting game. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ... Scrolling shooters are a type of video game, a subgenre of shoot em up . ... Platform game, or platformer, is a video game genre characterized by jumping to and from suspended platforms. ... In computer games and video games, single-player refers to the variant of a particular game where input from only one player is expected throughout the course of the gaming session. ... Online gaming redirects here. ... Screenshot of Kung Fu Master (1984, Irem). ...

The majority of the titles included on the cartridge have significant glitches. Some games start on a real NES but fail in many emulators, while some actually only work on an emulator. Some freeze or crash for no apparent reason, and some levels exist only in incomplete and impassable forms. Many games have severe design flaws, including unresponsive controls and level designs leading to frequent instant deaths. Glitch City, a Pokémon programming error that creates a jumble of tiles. ... An emulator reproducing a console games playable atmosphere on a Windows computer. ... In computer and video games, a level (sometimes called a stage, course, episode, round, world, map, wave, board, phase, or landscape) is a separate area in a games virtual world, in modern games typically representing a specific location such as a building or a city. ...

While the original NES collection was developed internally by Active Enterprises, the Sega version, released two years later, was developed by FarSight Studios, who had also developed Color a Dinosaur for the NES. The Sega version featured a somewhat different lineup of games, and slightly superior graphics, but the majority of the technical problems remained. Plans for a Super NES version of the cartridge were announced, but Active Enterprises withdrew from the video game industry shortly thereafter, and no copies are known to exist. Color a Dinosaur is a video game for the Nintendo Entertainment System released in 1993. ... The Super Nintendo Entertainment System, also known as Super Nintendo, Super NES or SNES (pronounced either as a word or acronym), is a 16-bit video game console released by Nintendo in North America, Brazil, Europe, and Australia. ...

The games

Nintendo Entertainment System

Of special note is the last game on the cartridge, The Cheetahmen. The Cheetahmen were Active Enterprises' attempt to compete with the success of multimedia franchises such as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Action 52 was released along with a twelve page comic book providing the Cheetahmen's backstory. The game is noticeably superior to most of the other games on the cartridge, and contains considerably fewer glitches. However, further levels in the game reveal that like many of the titles before it, The Cheetahmen was not completely finished before release. The game consists of six levels, each of the three Cheetahmen getting two levels, the second of which includes a boss battle. It is also known on Action 52's menu by the title The Action Gamemaster, named for a humanoid character who appears briefly in the opening cinema sequence, but does not appear elsewhere in the game. Large indeed, their feet are about the size of his whole body. ... The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. ... A comic book is a magazine or book containing the art form of comics. ...

Sega Mega Drive/Genesis

Each game is color coded on the main menu screen. "Beginner" games are displayed in a green font, "intermediate" games are displayed in a purple font, "expert" games are displayed in a yellow font, and multiplayer games are displayed in a blue font. PONG helped bring computerized video games into everyday life “Pong” redirects here. ...

In addition to the fifty two games listed above, the Mega Drive/Genesis version features a music test mode, and a "randomizer" option. If selected from the main menu, the randomizer will randomly choose and start one game from the fifty two available on the cartridge. The fifty-second game, Challenge, is a random sequence of the highest levels of the other fifty-one games.

Several new games were introduced for the Sega version. A number of these have the same name as games on the NES cartridge, although they are not the same game: the Sega Haunted Hills, for instance, is entirely different from the NES Haunted Hills. Other games feature other changes, including a version of The Cheetahmen which completely deviates from the original NES platformer, and is replaced with a game where the Cheetahmen rescue captured cheetah cubs from monsters.

Screenshot gallery

Nintendo Entertainment System

Game 7, Critical Bypass	Game 13, Haunted Hills	Game 24, Micro-Mike	Game 35, Sombreros	Game 52, The Cheetahmen

Image File history File links Criticalbypass. ... Image File history File links Hauntedhills. ... Image File history File links Act52. ... Image File history File links Sombreros_(NES). ... Image File history File links Cheetahmen_NES_2. ...

Sega Genesis

Image File history File links Cheetahmen_(Genesis). ... Image File history File links Spidey_(Genesis). ... Image File history File links Sunday_Drive_(Genesis). ... Image File history File links Black_Hole_(Genesis). ...

Trivia

• A sample of Rob Base's song It Takes Two was used in the beginning sequence of the NES version.
• The sound generated for moving the select cursor on the NES version was used for the Power Player Super Joy III's menu.
• Active Enterprises advertised a competition in which anyone who could complete level 5 of Ooze (NES version) would be entered into a prize draw to win $104,000. It was soon discovered that the game would crash on level 3, making the prize impossible to win.

Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... It Takes Two was a 1966 hit song for Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston. ... The Power Player Super Joy III consoles (now known as Power Games) are a line of unauthorized handheld Nintendo Entertainment System/Famicom clones manufactured by NRTRADE that are sold in North America, Brazil, Europe, Asia, and Australia. ...

References

1. Action 52. MobyGames. Accessed on September 15, 2005.
2. "Jay Obernolte Interview." Cheetahmen Corner. Accessed on September 15, 2005.
3. FarSight Studios. Accessed on September 15, 2005.

See also

• Cassette 50 (1983), a 50-game compilation for various 8-bit home computers by the British software house Cascade Games Ltd.

Cassette 50 (in Spain released as Galaxy 50 - 50 Excitantes Juegos) was a compilation of games published by Cascade Games Ltd. ...

External links

• Cheetahmen Corner - A site dedicated to Action 52, Cheetahmen and other Active Enterprises information.
• Action 52 page located at NES HQ
• [1] - A website with information on both Action 52 and Active Enterprises.