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| Chee-Chai Alien | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Creatures |
| Publisher(s) | Creatures |
| Director(s) | Hirokazu Tanaka |
| Platform(s) | Game Boy Color |
| Release |
|
| Genre(s) | Action |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Chee-Chai Alien (ちっちゃいエイリアン, Chitchai Eirian, "Tiny Alien") is a video game developed by Creatures, Inc. and released on the Game Boy Color in Japan on February 27, 2001.[1] It was designed and developed by Hirokazu Tanaka.[2]
It utilizes the Game Boy Color's infrared port and has a built-in rumble feature. It is compatible with the Game Boy Printer.[3] Because the game must use the Game Boy Color's IR sensor, the game will display an error screen when inserted in a Game Boy or a Game Boy Advance, being one of the only Game Boy Color games that the GBA does not support.
Players use the infrared sensor on the Game Boy Color to find artificial light sources, to which the Game Pak responds by rumbling. The game comes with a "spectrum communicator", a plastic device that can be attached to the Game Boy Color to enhance the sensitivity of the infrared sensor.[3][4] However, even with the attachment, the game still struggled to detect light sources.[5]
- ^ "ちっちゃいエイリアン". Creatures, Inc. Archived from the original on 20 March 2015. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
- ^ Horowitz, Ken (2020). Beyond Donkey Kong: A History of Nintendo Arcade Games. McFarland. p. 230. ISBN 9781476684208.
Nintendo's corporate policy probited employees from working for other companies, leading Tanaka to resign in 1999 to join Creatures full-time. While there, he designed and developed the Game Boy title Chee-Chai Alien (2001).
- ^ a b 船津稔 (January 19, 2001). "クリーチャーズ、新感覚"宇宙救済ゲーム"「ちっちゃいエイリアン」". Game Watch (in Japanese). Retrieved 6 May 2015.
- ^ Baxter, Daniel (13 March 2023). Peripheral Vision: Inside the Game Boy's Accessories & Add-ons.
In another notable example, Chee Chai Alien, players had to harness everyday liught sources such as lamps in order to capture tiny creatures called Chaliens. The game even came packaged with a plastic tool that snapped onto the Game Boy Color to better filter and concentrate infrared light into the port.
- ^ Baxter, Daniel (13 March 2023). Peripheral Vision: Inside the Game Boy's Accessories & Add-ons.
Despite how it looks, the attachment didn't always work as intended and sometimes failed to help with the game at all. Chee Chai Alien was not always sensitive enough to infrared light to begin with.