Author Topic: Who Made A Bug's Life?  (Read 2740 times)

Kosmicheskaya

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Who Made A Bug's Life?
« on: November 20, 2016, 07:00:58 AM »
Hello all,
I'm a big fan of A Bug's Life, ever since I was little.
So you can imagine my surprise when I found out about the SNES and Genesis bootleg games.
Unfortunately, not much is known about the game, other than the fact it came out after May 1999.

However, there is a slight clue on the box.

At the bottom of the spine reads "CC001"

Many companies that developed and/or published pirate games, such as JY Company, would often put their initials on a game cartridge and/or box, as seen below, followed by the game number

So, could "CC" be the developer of the game, since it was published by X-Boy on the Genesis?
« Last Edit: November 20, 2016, 07:01:23 AM by Kosmicheskaya »

codeman38

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Who Made A Bug's Life?
« Reply #1 on: November 27, 2016, 01:14:03 AM »
Unfortunately, I have a fairly strong suspicion that the letter codes in this series of cartridges were all based on the game's title (in Chinese), and not anything relating to the developer or publisher. (Links given below are to SegaRetro wiki pages with box scans.)

The Chinese title for A Bug's Life is 蟲蟲特工隊, Chong Chong Te Gong Dui.

The two Mortal Kombat-titled pirates - Top Fighter 2000 MK VIII and Mortal Kombat 5 Sub-Zero - have codes starting in ZR, for 真人快打 (Zhen Ren Kuai Da), Mortal Kombat's Chinese title.

Pocket Monster is BK001. The Chinese title given on it is 比卡超 (Bi Ka Chao) = "Pikachu".

This series of games definitely has connections to Gamtec and/or its related companies (Chuanpu, NeverEnding), but I'm not sure which of this tangled web of companies was specifically responsible.


Edited to add: A couple more examples demonstrating the pattern, via SegagagaDomain:

The Lion King 2 = SZ006 = 獅子王 (Shi Zi Wang)
Super Donkey Kong 4 = DJ004 = 大金刚 (Da Jin Gang). This one's a bit odd, because it doesn't use the same yellow oval for the product code as the other games do, but the numbering scheme is still very much the same.

As for the Gamtec connections:

* The "MD compatible" logo seen on some of these games is exactly the same one found on several games that are known to have been developed by Gamtec-affiliated companies (e.g., the GM-95 series, as documented here by taizou). It doesn't seem to have ever appeared on any other unlicensed developer's work.

* A Bug's Life uses the High Seas Havoc sound engine, also used in numerous games developed by the Gamtec-affiliated Chuanpu and NeverEnding Soft teams.
« Last Edit: November 27, 2016, 01:40:29 AM by codeman38 »

Kosmicheskaya

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Who Made A Bug's Life?
« Reply #2 on: November 27, 2016, 02:47:17 AM »
Thank you for that information, codeman38.  :)
It is a shame that we may never know who made this game.  :D
Especially when you consider the amazing work they did with the opening.
It certainly shows off the 16-bit capabilities of the Mega Drive.

It can't have been Chuanpu Technology, as they ceased business in 1996.
It was probably NeverEnding Soft. They seem to be rather obscure, and not much can be found about them.
There is, however, a chance that some ex-Chuanpu staff developed the game.
Some of NeverEnding Soft's games from 1997 had other contributions.
Information from BootlegGames Wiki.
« Last Edit: November 27, 2016, 02:55:08 AM by Kosmicheskaya »