In Comix Zone, the level is a page of a comic book. Sketch Turner, the cartoonist who drew it, has been trapped inside by his own villain, Mortus. As Sketch fights across the panels, Mortus’s hand appears and draws fresh enemies in front of him. The white borders and paper are part of the action: Sketch jumps between frames, chooses routes through the page and tears the background to make a weapon.
Sega Technical Institute made the game for the Mega Drive in 1995. Peter Morawiec handled concept, design and art direction; Adrian Stephens was technical director and programmer. Howard Drossin supplied the music, sound effects and several character voices, including Sketch and Mortus. The original manual names them in its credits.
Inside the comic
This is a beat-’em-up spread over three episodes of two pages each. Fighting clears a path, but some panels also contain puzzles. Arrows point to the next frame, sometimes offering a choice of route.
Sketch can carry three items. Tea restores health; knives and explosives deal with enemies and obstacles. Punching solid objects drains his health, so a barrier can be costly even when nobody is attacking him. There is also a hidden paper-plane move: Sketch tears a piece from the background, folds it and throws it, sacrificing health to do so.
His pet rat is Roadkill. He can attack enemies and sniff out hidden items. Retro Gamer described how he gnaws through the page to expose a concealed power-up, another use of the comic itself as something the player can manipulate.
Sketch starts with one life, but completing an episode earns a continue. The early pages therefore leave little room for mistakes; reaching the next episode gives a limited chance to recover from a later failure. The HonestGamers walkthrough documents that rule alongside the paper-plane move.
From Joe Pencil to Sketch Turner
Morawiec told Sega-16 in 2007 that he pitched the idea using an animation made on his Amiga. The original hero was Joe Pencil. Marketing wanted a different appearance and a sidekick; Morawiec redesigned him as a grunge rocker and chose a rat small enough to help with puzzles without crowding the screen.
The project paused while the team made Sonic Spinball. Morawiec recalled that Sega of America president Tom Kalinske remembered the earlier demonstration and backed it when the team presented it again. Retro Gamer’s history of STI describes further delays as the team added features.
Reception and timing
The reviews show more disagreement than a simple verdict of style over substance. Brazil’s SuperGamePower, reviewing it in August 1995, admired the graphics and page layout but criticised imprecise controls and repetitive play. Computer and Video Games included it among its recommended Mega Drive games in January 1996, listing a score of 90% and praising both the fighting and the idea.
Morawiec later said sales fell short of the team’s hopes, attributing that partly to the arrival of the PlayStation. Retro Gamer also connected its reception to the shift towards the Saturn and PlayStation. These are accounts of the timing, rather than published sales figures. Morawiec developed ideas for a 3D follow-up, but they did not become a released game.
Later versions
A Windows conversion followed. Computer and Video Games reported in January 1996 that it retained the Mega Drive game’s look and play while restoring some speech effects. Virtucraft’s Game Boy Advance conversion reached Europe in 2002, according to Sega Retro’s release catalogue.
Later releases put the original in front of new audiences. Nintendo offered it on the Wii’s Virtual Console in 2007 and added it to Nintendo Switch Online’s Mega Drive/Genesis selection in June 2022.
Sources
- Sega, Comix Zone, Genesis instruction manual, 1995, pp. 18–21 and 26–27: episode structure, inventory, health costs, Roadkill and credits. Original published manual, reissued by Sega.
- Sega Visions, May 1995, p. 69: preview of Sketch, Mortus and the comic-book setting.
- SuperGamePower (Brazil), year 2 no. 17, August 1995, pp. 34–35: review and six-page structure.
- Computer and Video Games issue 170, January 1996, pp. 9 and 12: 90% recommendation and Windows conversion report.
- Retro Gamer issue 27, 2006, “Retrorevival: Comix Zone”: branching panels and Roadkill revealing hidden items.
- Retro Gamer issue 36, 2007, “Company Profile: Sega Technical Institute”, pp. 30–32: development delays and retrospective account of its sales.
- Ken Horowitz, “Interview: Peter Morawiec (STI Programmer)”, Sega-16, 20 April 2007: first-person recollection of the pitch, redesign, interrupted development, sales and proposed sequel (web interview).
- HonestGamers, Comix Zone guide, “Basics”: paper-plane move and continues (web, secondary).
- Sega Retro, “Comix Zone”: Virtucraft and the 2002 European Game Boy Advance release (web, secondary).
- Nintendo, Comix Zone, Virtual Console, and “Four SEGA Genesis games added for Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack members”, 30 June 2022: later releases (publisher records).