| Phase Zero | |
|---|---|
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| Developer(s) | Hyper Image Productions |
| Publisher(s) | B&C ComputerVisions, Songbird Productions (Demo) |
| Director(s) | Paul Good |
| Producer(s) | Ted Tahquechi John Skruch |
| Designer(s) | Matías Duarte |
| Programmer(s) |
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| Artist(s) | Matías Duarte |
| Composer(s) | Andy Carlson |
| Platform(s) | Atari Jaguar |
| Release |
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| Genre(s) | Shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
Phase Zero is an unfinished shooter video game that was being developed by Hyper Image Productions and would have been published by Atari for the Atari Jaguar. Set in the future on a terrestrial planet, the player takes on the role of a newcomer to the Phase Zero squad, piloting a hovercraft to fight rival corporate states. The player is tasked with various objectives while fighting enemies in multiple missions.
Phase Zero was the first project by Hyper Image, a game company led by Jeremy Gordon, Matías Duarte, and brothers Otávio Good and Paul Good. In 1994, the group took an academic hiatus and banded together to enter the video game industry by establishing Hyper Image. It was initially conceived as a top-down shooter for the Super NES, but the team decided to move with Jaguar due to its powerful hardware, opting to use heightmaps for the graphics and support local area network (LAN) play for multiplayer. It was produced by Ted Tahquechi, who worked on Jaguar titles such as Cybermorph and Kasumi Ninja.
In 1996, Atari laid off several staff members amid rumors that they were leaving the console market, which included the departure of Tahquechi. Hyper Image suspended production of the game indefinitely pending word from Atari about its plans. Atari halted its development before ceasing production of the Jaguar and merging with JTS, resulting in Phase Zero not being released. After a demo was leaked online in 2000, publisher Songbird Productions tracked down former Hyper Image staff and obtained the rights to publish it alongside B&C ComputerVisions in 2002.