D/Generation

D/Generation is a puzzle/adventure game released by Mindscape in 1991 for the PC, Amiga, and Atari ST. The game even got a port to the Amiga CD32 in 1993.

Robert Cook initially developed the game for the Apple IIe in 1989 under the name D-Generation. It was supposed to be published by Brøderbund, but this version was never released. Later, Cook converted it for PC and Amiga, and the game was finally released in 1991.

So, what is this popular 90s game like? In my eyes, it's a shooter-based arcade game built around a puzzle system, and it turned out great for some reason!

The story for D/Generation takes on a futuristic/Cyberpunk approach based on the year 2021, where a French organization known as Genoq has broken through science by building a set of genetically engineered bioweapons. Unluckily for them, the weapons have now taken over their Singaporean lab. You, the player, take on a role of a jetpack riding courier who wakes up at sea, lost, utterly oblivious to what's going on. You must deliver a package of crucial importance to Genoq's top researcher Jean-Paul Derrida, who is locked away on the 10th floor in a bioweapon-infested research facility.

The game takes on a 3D-isometric view where it has multiple elements of puzzle, adventure, and shooting built into an arcade-centered playstyle. Although you are initially unarmed, the game quickly provides you with your most reliable means of defense and offense, a laser gun with infinite gun ammo. This gun will be your partner throughout this mad run as it can do anything from putting holes in your enemies to tripping switches. The game is broken down into floors and rooms filled with hostile enemies, including the faculty's self-defense system that has gone haywire.

The bioweapons are Neogen's that come in 4 generations: A, B, C, and D. All 4 of these state of the art killing machines have a unique design and trait to them;

A: A bouncing red ball that will smother you to death with the added ability to go invisible at will.

B: A bouncing blue cylinder that will crush anything in its way.

C: A humanoid that can disguise himself as another. It will take you by surprise and decapitate you even before you know it

D: With only a single prototype created, this is the ultimate weapon. Equipped with ''Neuro-holographic'' camouflaging and a nearly indestructible armor, this is the real deal.

All these scientific creations of death will pursue you to give you the fight of your life.

With some neat graphics that imaginatively depict a cyberpunk city, the game never gets visually boring; each room is exceptionally well designed with catchy colors and excellent animations. Sadly it does not have any in-game music, but the atmosphere is terrific anyway.

Overall, the game is pretty tricky, and the "save by floor" feature doesn't help, but it's challengingly entertaining. The mixture of puzzles and arcade shooting allows a dynamic gaming experience where you aren't put in a one-dimensional monotonous playstyle. In my eyes, the game is one of the highlights of the early 90s gaming era and is a definite yes by me to anyone who wants to give it a go.

If you want, you can also try the HD version that has been published on Steam.