Clockwork Knight.com » Clockwork Knight: Joukan - Tokyo Toy Show '94 Prototype

Clockwork Knight: Joukan - Tokyo Toy Show '94 Prototype

Sometime in 1993, during the early development of the Sega Saturn console, a few new games were set to be made that took advantage of the brand new hardware. To go about this, SEGA created four special CS Sub-Divisions from their “Sega AM6” research and development division, all named after constellations and stars, which is keeping with the celestial theme that SEGA were big fans of at the time (think Sega Mars aka Sega 32X, Sega Saturn, the cancelled Sega Jupiter and the also cancelled Sega Neptune which was set to be a Mega Drive/32X Hybrid console, etc).

The CS teams were named named “Team Andromeda” (named after the Andromeda constellation), who worked on “3D Shooting Game” which later became Panzer Dragoon, “Team Aquila” (named after the Aquila constellation), who worked on “Victory Goal” which is assumed to have later become “Virtua Soccer”, Team Vega (named after the star Vega in the Lyra constellation) who would go on to release “J.League Pro Soccer Club o Tsukurou!” which strangely wasn’t released until 1996, and finally “Team Ara” (named after the Ara constellation), who worked on “Action Game” which later became Clockwork Knight. Of course, the Clockwork Knight which was “Action Game” is absolutely not the same Clockwork Knight that we know and love today. This version of Clockwork Knight would go on to first be seen at Winter CES in January of 1994…

Winter CES 1994 - January 1994

Action Game
Source: Beep! MegaDrive (JP) #54 1994.03, p. 33.

Prior to the now famous E3, video game companies would show off their new and upcoming products at the then twice-yearly (Summer and Winter) Consumer Electronics Show event. The CES event we will be focusing on is Winter CES 1994, which was held on January 6th to January 9th of that year, at the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, and was attended by around 79,000 people. SEGA chose this event for the unveiling of their then in-production console “Saturn”. Of course, as we noted earlier, Clockwork Knight (known then by it’s working title “Action Game”) was one of several titles in production for the unfinished console, and SEGA took the oppurtunity to show off footage of it, alongside the other then in-production games. This would mark the first time anyone outside of SEGA would ever see what would go on to become Clockwork Knight.

Sadly, “Action Game” was not a playable title, as what was seen was simply pre-rendered footage that was created using SGI Workstations. That said, the pre-rendered 3D video was interesting, as it demonstrated several concepts, some of which would later appear in the final game, such as running, jumping and picking up/throwing objects. Also included was a sequence where Tongara pushes a stack of tins off the edge of a shelf, pushes a floor switch, and fights a jack-in-the-box with a small, red umbrella rather than his “key sword” in the final game. The fight is short, but is more involved than anything seen in the final product, with Tongara blocking attacks and even kicking, as opposed to the later one-hit or wind up explosion.

Action Game Action Game
Source: Beep! #MegaDrive (JP) #55 1994.04, p. 34.

The first gaming publication to report on “Action Game” seems to have been Beep! MegaDrive (JP) in their “1994.03” issue (street dated 1994.02), where Tongara can be seen standing on a platform with a Grandfather Clock to his left, and a Cuckoo Clock to his right.
The next time “Action Game” would be seen was in the “1994.03” issue (street dated 1994.02) of Beep! MegaDrive (JP), and it contained what is probably the most well-known shot of “Action Game”, with Tongara standing to the right of a Jack-in-the-box in an attack stance. Also included in the issue was a picture of a screen from the Winter CES event showing a promo for the recently announced Saturn console surrounded by clips of games, including one of “Action Game” with Tongara shown in a mid-air jump.

Action Game
Source: Official Sega Magazine (UK) #6 1994.06, p. 51.
Action Game
Source: Official Sega Magazine (UK) #7 1994.07, p. 52.

Thankfully, that would not be the end of screenshots of “Action Game”, as 2 months later in Official Sega Magazine (UK)’s “1994.06” issue (street dated 1994.05), a whopping 21 still images of the video were posted, including the previously mentioned famous image of Tongara standing to the right of the Jack-in-the-box. While other magazines also printed some of the same shots around this time, this as far as I can tell is the first time that the general public outside of Japan were seeing shots of this, and it was far more than what had been shown in to Japan up to that point, making the issue very special. Again, the UK would have more to come in the way of “Action Game”.

Action Game
Source: Official Sega Magazine (UK) #7 1994.07, p. 52.

The very next month in the “1994.07” issue (street dated 1994.06) of Official Sega Magazine (UK), another 12 brand new still images of the video were posted, each of which demonstrated Tongara in different parts of the room, performing different actions. This would be the last time any new materials of action game would be seen in the press, and the game would go on to become the Clockwork Knight we all know and love today. BUT, that wasn’t the end for “Action Game”, as something strange would happen around a year later…

Action Game Action Game
Source: Official Sega Magazine (UK) #7 1994.07, p. 53.

Sega Saturn US Launch Promotional Video - May 1995

The retail version of Clockwork Knight would be release in Japan on 1994.12.09 (with the console itself launching there 1994.11.22), making “Action Game” a forgotten relic of the past. Going into 1995, SEGA decided to delay the launch of the Sega Saturn until later in 1995 due to the a combination of the 32X just releasing, making sure there were enough western friendly games at launch (at least 10) and the price of the console not being viable for the US market at the time, but it was later decided that the console was to be launched on US shores on “1995.09.2”, which being a Saturday, was marketed as “Saturnday”. This, however, quickly changed when Sega of America caught wind of Sony’s plans to release their new console “Playstation” on the exact same day. As such, SEGA jumped the gun, and decided to announce the launch at the very first E3 on 1995.05.11… and that it would actually be launched that very day, taking not only the audience, but also retailers by surprise (You can read more about this here). Of course, this meant that on that very same day, Clockwork Knight was officially released onto US shores, allowing the US to get a taste of the knight himself… but, there was something else that happened, and it was really REALLY weird.


Source: “It’s Coming/It’s Here” Sega Saturn USA Launch Promotional VHS Tape (1995)

A STRANGE promotional VHS tape named “It’s Here/It’s Out There” was released to promote the newly launched console, that was not only apparently shown at E3, but also sent to people throughtout the US who had registered their SEGA consoles with the company. The video itself is VERY 90’s and features some… interesting visuals and scenes, but is generally look upon as “of the time” and even humorous. Along-side the weird video content and buttrock/dance soundtracks was clips of Saturn launch era games, including Clockwork Knight. But, something VERY strange was shown, and out of nowhere some Winter CES 1994 era footage was inclkuded of several games, including a 1-1.5 second shot of the Jack-in-the-box from “Action Game” springing from a wind-up box! There was absolutely no reason for it to be included, especially as this was a 1995 US promotional tape, and to this day there has been no explanation as to why it was included, and sadly, we’ll probably never know the reason why it was included or if there was any significance to it. Regardless, it was the general public’s first ever viewing of “Action Game” video content, even if it was just a very short glimpse at what once could have been Clockwork Knight.

Source: “It’s Coming/It’s Here” Sega Saturn USA Launch Promotional VHS Tape (1995)

For documentation purposes, all of the Clockwork Knight scenes (including the above mentioned “Action Game” clip) from the promotional VHS have been compiled into the above video.

The Birth Of Pepperouchau - December 1995

On 1995.12.15, a compilation disc of Clockwork Knight 1 (Joukan) and Clockwork Knight 2 (Gekan) was released in Japan, known as “Clockwork Knight: Pepperouchau no Fukubukuro” (Pepperouchau’s Lucky Bag). As a quick note, the NTSC-U version of Clockwork Knight 2 was built from this special version of the game. The disc included special features such as a Boss Rush mode (Boss On Parade/Bosses Galore) and a Movie Theatre (Movie On Parade/The Movies!), which upon completing certain parts of the games, will unlock different videos to watch. If you complete the Boss Rush mode with a rank of “Kanpeki Knight/Master” will unlock the extra-special video #16, which just so happens to be the following video…

Source: Clockwork Knight: Pepperouchau no Fukubukuro (1995)
Source: Clockwork Knight 2 (NTSC-U Ver.) (1996)

That’s right, you get to see the origins of Clockwork Knight, but not only that, you actually get to see footage of “Action Game” that had up to this point only ever been shown in Magazines and at Winter CES 1994. Sadly, the video is compressed, and in a lower quality, and the colours appear duller than previously seen footage/images, but December 1995 marked the first point in time where everyone finally got to see “Action Game”, including some parts not seen in magazines!

A lost relic surfaces - October 2019

The years passed, and many discussion were had, usually ending with speculation of Sega of Europe having a copy of the the video shown that very day at Winter CES 1994, which we of course now know was very likely to be true, hence all the crisp screenshots from the official SEGA Magazine (UK)’s coverage on the subject. Still, despite this, nothing ever surfaced proving such, so the most we had to go on was the “Birth of Pepperouchau” video for the longest time.

Source: An unknown SEGA Japan Promotional VHS Tape (1994)

Then, out of nowhere on 2019.10.13, a Japanese language video was uploaded that changed everything. The footage featured content from Winter CES 1994, including the same “Action Game” shots that we saw in Magazines! Sadly, the video was seemingly in pretty bad shape, and as such, the quality isn’t perfect, it still gives us an insight into what SEGA had internally at that time. The first 20 seconds of the above video are the “Action Game” content.

A Clock Connection

In the previously seen “Birth of Pepperouchau” video, a significant feature was the Grandfather Clock. The face of the Clock displays the words “SEGA” towards the bottom, and the words “Saturn” towards in the centre of the golden pendulum. This makes sense, as when this video was first shown at Winter CES 1994 it was part of the unveiling of the then in-production Sega Saturn console. The Clock also begins to fall apart inside when Tongara uses a leaver to make a platform he’s standing on move upwards, and we can whitness cogs falling out of place within the clock, and the hands on the clock face swinging round wildly.

Action Game
Source: Clockwork Knight: Pepperouchau no Fukubukuro (1995)

Usually, such a thing would be left in the past, but not in this case. You see, the Clock actually went on to appear in the retail game, too. The background of the Crazy TV miniboss in Clockwork Knight 2 (Gekan), as shown belown, clearly shows the EXACT same clock as in the “Action Game” video. The face of the Clock says “SEGA”, although it is a bit hard to see, and the same for the word “Saturn” on the golden pendulum. The cogs inside the clock also match the same ones found in the “Action Game” video that would later fall out. In addition to this, the top of the Clock has the exact same shape as the one seen in the “Action Game” video. Honestly, it’s really nice to see that they didn’t just forget about this Clock, and even made sure to include it in the final game.

Action Game
Source: Clockwork Knight 2 (Gekan) - Crazy TV Miniboss Arena BG

As the fight in Clockwork Knight 1 (Joukan) against the Crazy TV Boss and the start of Clockwork Knight 2 (Genak) are set in the Study Room, when you finally return to that area, the overworld map not only shows the area of books where the boss fight happened, but also the book shelves in the background, and even the very same Clock that we saw in “Action Game”.

Action Game
Source: Clockwork Knight 2 (Gekan) - Study Room Overworld Map BG

As a small note, the face of this Clock also strangely makes an appearance in the background for Boss of Betsy’s Room “Dandy Bob” in Clockwork Knight 1 (Joukan):

Action Game
Source: Clockwork Knight 1 (Joukan) - Dandy Bob Boss Arena BG

The 32X Misconnection

Action Game
Source: Mean Machines SEGA (UK) #19 1994.05, p. 10.
Action Game
Source: Hobby Consolas (ES) #33 1994.06, p. 33.

A VERY common misconception is that Clockwork Knight and several other Saturn games were initially developed for the 32X before moving to the Saturn. This simply isn’t the case, and the reason for this mistake is due to Gaming Magazines of the era incorrectly identifying Winter CES 1994 Saturn promotional images as 32X game images (then known as Mars). Why they thought this isn’t clear. Clockwork Knight was one of several games including Panzer Dragoon and Daytona USA that were said to be coming to the 32X, but there is absolutely no evidence for such things ever existing. It wasn’t too uncommon for magazines to make mistakes by misinterprating the information they recieved back then, and at other times it wasn’t unheard of for them to just make things up. I believe the above magazine scans (and especially the first) were the reason this rumour has persisted for such a long time. We know for a fact at this point as mentioned at the top of this page, that these games were created by teams made from SEGA AM6 subdivisions, with their task being to make content for the then in production Sega Saturn console. Hopefully with the creation of this page, the issue will now be cleared up.

References

References


Share this: