Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg
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| Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg | |
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| Developer(s) | Sonic Team |
| Publisher(s) | Sega |
| Engine | N/A |
| Platform(s) | GameCube, PC |
| Release date | September 23, 2003 October 9, 2003 |
| Genre(s) | Platform |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Everyone (E) |
| Media | 1 × GameCube Optical Disc, or PC CD-ROM |
| System requirements | GameCube: 2 blocks |
Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg is a video game for the Nintendo GameCube that was developed by Sonic Team. It was published by SEGA on September 23, 2003 in the US, and on October 31, 2003 in Europe. The game was released on PC on March 31, 2006 in Europe.
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[edit] History
The story begins with a fantasy world (called "Morning Land") becoming overthrown by evil crows. Normally inhabited by happy chicken-people, Morning Land is shrouded in darkness and under the rule of the sinister Dark Raven.
After defending a helpless chick from two attacking crows in the human world, Billy and his friends are transported to Morning Land and each endowed with their own chicken suit, giving each the ability to move, use, and hatch giant eggs.
Billy, being informed by a "chicken god" that he needed to save the six chicken elders in order to save Morning Land, and to prevent the darkness from spreading to the human world. The crow of each elder would bring morning back to the area they governed, but each of the elders has been trapped in golden eggs which Billy must hatch in order to free them. Through the game, Billy manages to defeat each area's Crow Boss and free the six chicken elders.
Billy defeats Dark Raven, which brings light and morning back to Morning Land.
After celebrating the victory and honoring Billy for his accomplishments, Billy and his friends hand over their chicken suits and return to their world, leaving Morning Land in peace.
[edit] Gameplay
"Billy Hatcher" has a unique style of gameplay revolving around rolling large eggs. The player controls the hero, Billy, who cannot do much by himself aside from moving and jumping. However, he becomes a powerhouse once he finds an egg. While rolling an egg, Billy moves faster and is more agile. He can also dash, throw and return the egg along the ground, slam the egg down from the air, and Billy can travel on rails and fly through magical rings.
The color-coded eggs themselves are another gameplay element. As Billy runs over fruit while holding an egg, the egg gets larger until it flashes and is ready to hatch. Then Billy can hatch the eggs, which can contain helper animals, character powerups, and extra lives. With variables such as egg size, helper animals, and personal powerups, "Billy Hatcher" can be played in many ways. Different animals can come out of the same eggs, and some creatures are vital to progressing through certain challenges.
Players should be wary of their handling of the eggs, as they take damage when attacked by enemies or impact certain obstacles. The egg gauge in the lower right-hand corner of the screen begins to crack, as does the egg Billy wields. When the egg takes enough damage, it is destroyed and no bonus comes from it. Eggs can also be 'lost', i.e. put into positions or situations that the player can not retrieve them from. In such cases, the egg will disappear from its position after several seconds of inactivity and will 'respawn' in its nest of origin. All work done to the egg, however, is lost.
[edit] Levels
"Billy Hatcher" is divided into seven (7) stages, six that are seen almost immediately and a seventh that is unlocked when the requirements of the previous six have been met. Each stage is divided into a series of 'Missions' that Billy can play through to collect 'Emblems of Courage'. The goal of each Mission is to fulfill the conditions required and collect the Emblem as a reward. The player is graded on their skill in completing the mission and given a rank letter, with S-Rank being the highest. There are eight (8) Missions per stage, and Billy can only play through the first five Missions. Upon rescuing his friends, Rolly, Chick and Bantam would each unlock their respective Missions in the stages and become playable for those Missions only.
Stages include the following:
- Forest Village
The game begins here and the first Mission includes Billy obtaining his Rooster Suit and learning to use its abilities. The Elder for this stage is Oma-Oma.
- Pirates Island
A small island cluster full of pirate ships and includes a Skull Cave. Billy will put the cannons to use as transportation. Rolly Roll is held captive here. The Elder for this stage is Uri-Uri.
- Dino Mountain
A land trapped by history and surrounded by lava. Billy must contend with dinosaur-like creatures and traverse volcanoes to reach the Elder. Chick is trapped here. The Elder for this stage is Ura-Ura.
- Blizzard Castle
A snowy region full of mazes and snowmen. In this wintry world, Billy will have to watch his step across the ice and search carefully for Emblems. Bantam is held captive in this world. The Elder for this stage is Ponee, the only female Elder in the game.
- Circus Park
A difficult level full of circus tricks and high-rise rides. Navigate carefully here, lest this level become frustrating to play. The Elder for this stage is Allani.
- Sand Ruin
A ruin in a desert land, pyramids and statues are plentiful here, as are the traps. The secret to unlocking the last level is located here. The Elder for this stage is Meri-Meri.
- Giant Palace
A beautiful castle in the sky populated by small egg creatures and the shrine where the Giant Egg is hidden. Billy can only access this level by reaching the Rainbow Gate in Sand Ruin with 25 or more Emblems in his possession. The final battle is also here, and is the very first Mission you receive in this stage.
[edit] Sonic Team Eggs
There are certain eggs hidden in the game that, when a certain amount of Chick Coins are attained, the egg is controllable. Inside of these rare eggs are creatures from other Sega games such as Sonic the Hedgehog, Nights, Samba de Amigo, etc. Here is a list of all the Sonic Team eggs, when they are attainable, and where they are found:
Sonic the Hedgehog - Requires 135 Chick Coins to find him in the 3rd Mission of Dino Mountain.
Miles "Tails" Prower - 155 Chick Coins on the 5th Mission of the Sand Ruins to obtain.
Knuckles the Echidna - 215 Chick Coins and go to Forest Village with Bantam to obtain.
Chao - 25 Chick Coins and visit Forest Village to obtain.
Kapu Kapu - 35 Chick Coins on the 5th Mission of Pirate's Island to obtain.
Nights - Go to Giant Palace with 180 Chick Coins to obtain.
Amigo - Collect 100 Chick Coins and go to the fourth mission of Circus Park to obtain.
[edit] Characters
Billy Hatcher - An inquisitive boy from the human world. With the courage bestowed upon him, he has been chosen by the Chicken God to save the Elders and return the Light to Morning Land he's the main protagonist.
Rolly Roll - A lighthearted and carefree girl. She always tries to help others who are in trouble, but can sometimes be a bit "scatterbrained".
Chick Poacher - Chick may look small but his spirit is strong, giving him a misplaced air of superiority. He has a tendency to act before thinking, which always makes his friends a little nervous. He wears teal goggles on his head and seems to have the biggest of the chicken combs on his head.
Bantam Scrambled - The heavy and powerful friend of Billy, Rolly, and Chick. He wears the largest and most distinctive clothing of the entire human crew. Bantam is a gentle giant and only uses his strength to look after his friends. Despite his rough outward appearance, he adores cuteness but hates injustice.
Chicken Elders - Each of the regions of Morning Land is ruled by an elder, who brings morning to the world each day with a hearty "cock-a-doodle-do." The Crows however have captured the elders and sealed them within golden eggs.
Crows - Through some strange power, the Crows have taken the form of monsters and plan to engulf the world in eternal night.
[edit] Reception
Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg was viewed in a somewhat positive light, but overall, the game spawned mixed reactions from many resources as seen below:
- Gaming Age - C+
- IGN - 7.7/10
- GameSpot - 6.7/10
- GameSpy - 3/5
- GameZone - 7.8/10
- GamePro - 4/5
- Nintendo Power - 4.5/5
- X-Play - 3/5
Game Rankings currently scores it 71%.
[edit] Other Games
- Billy is a playable character and he has his own mini-game on the game Sega: Super Stars
- Various references to Billy Hatcher are made in the "Sega Carnival" stage in Sonic Riders. Billy also makes a cameo appearance in the game.
- Billy is a playable character in Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity when you complete both Sonic and Babylon Missions.
- The Vacuum Egg, one of the unlockable weapons in Shadow the Hedgehog, is highly reminiscent of this game. The vacuum head is a chicken head, with a collection bag that resembles the Basic Egg.