Reception for the game was generally positive, but the game's initial release was overshadowed due to the imminent ending of the Genesis's lifecycle and the succession of the Sega Saturn and other fifth generation video game consoles. Ristar is a 1995 platform game developed and published by Sega for the Sega Genesis.

The Story Behind Ristar

Some years later, Sega developed another prototype, Feel, with a character that used its arms to pick things up instead of ears, which became Ristar. In a 1994 Electronic Gaming Monthly interview, Sega marketing staff Lisa Best and Terry Tang claimed Ristar was not designed by the same Sonic programming team, although much of the game's staff would later go on to create Nights into Dreams for the Saturn, the next game to be officially credited to Sonic Team. Ristar is a 1995 platform game developed and published by Sega for the Sega Genesis.

He must stop Greedy and the brainwashed leaders of each world to restore peace to the Valdi System. Much like other games from the same timeframe, the game's story varied between the Japanese-language release and its English-language counterpart. The ending scene in the international version shows Ristar being reunited with his father once again.

How Ristar Plays

Locating and grabbing a Ristar figure grants Ristar an extra life, while finding traditional star figures replenish his health; a yellow star replenishes one star, while a blue star restores all four. Ristar's health is shown through an icon based health system consisting of four stars in the upper-right corner of the screen. Taking damage removes one star, and losing all stars causes Ristar to lose a life.

If enough momentum is gained, sparkles appear behind Ristar and he performs a move called the "Meteor Strike", which makes him invincible and able to defeat any enemy upon touching them. Additionally, "Star Handles" are placed in levels, where the player must have Ristar grab and use momentum to swing him around in a 360 degrees circle. When enough momentum is lost, usually a few seconds, flight ceases, and he drops to the ground back into his normal state, though this can be extended by bouncing off walls and ceilings during flight.

Why Players Still Load It Up

In a 2006 interview, Ristar designer Akira Nishino said:Will Ristar come back? He also made an appearance as a flagman in the sequel, Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, in 2012. At the time of the original, I was thinking of a sequel.

It has also been released for digital download for the Virtual Console and Steam. Ristar and his enemies have a good variety of animations, but what you'll probably notice the most are the colorful, multilayered backgrounds that constantly flaunt animated details in the form of moving clouds, falling debris, and rampaging creatures that have a habit of hurling things at you from a distance". Ristar, as a character, has only made a few minor cameo appearances outside of his two original games in 1995.

Ristar — Frequently Asked Questions