Ecco the Dolphin

Manual

110K plays 1992 #Action

Ecco the Dolphin is an action-adventure game developed by Ed Annunziata and Novotrade International and published by Sega for the Mega Drive/Genesis in 1992. Versions for the Sega CD, Master System, and Game Gear were released the following years. It is the first installment in the Ecco the Dolphin video game franchise. The player character is a bottlenose dolphin who travels through time to combat hostile extraterrestrials in Earth's oceans and on an alien spacecraft.

Ecco the Dolphin received favourable reviews and became a bestseller on the Genesis. It has been re-released several times, including on the Nintendo Virtual Console, Xbox Live Arcade, Steam, iOS, Nintendo 3DS, and the Nintendo Classics service. A sequel, Ecco: The Tides of Time, was released in 1994.

From Wikipedia's article Ecco the Dolphin (video game), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

Keyboard controls

GenesisPlayer 1Player 2
D-pad↑↓←→IKJL
AZN
BXM
CC,
XAY
YSU
ZDO
ModeShiftB
StartEnterSpace

Hotkeys

  • 1 Quick save state
  • 2 Quick load state
  • 3 Change save slot

X, Y and Z are for six-button games such as Street Fighter II.

Gamepads are detected when you press a button. Remap any key from the emulator’s Controls menu (gear icon).

Emulator help & troubleshooting

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Keyboard controls

GenesisPlayer 1Player 2
D-pad↑↓←→IKJL
AZN
BXM
CC,
XAY
YSU
ZDO
ModeShiftB
StartEnterSpace

Hotkeys

  • 1 Quick save state
  • 2 Quick load state
  • 3 Change save slot

X, Y and Z are for six-button games such as Street Fighter II.

Gamepads are detected when you press a button. Remap any key from the emulator’s Controls menu (gear icon).

Emulator help & troubleshooting

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Pixel Verdict

Ecco the DolphinGenesis

3.5 Good job

GameRankings 76% (archived)

What the reviews talk about

Key wordsresponsivesmooth

What the critics said

  • A reviewer for Next Generation called the PC release "little more than a conversion from the yesteryears of the 16-bit Sega Genesis. Except for a few video cut-scenes, there is little attempt to make this game look or play better for the PC".

    — Next Generation

From the Reception section of Wikipedia's Ecco the Dolphin (video game) article, under CC BY-SA 4.0. The words are the critics'; their full reviews are on the publishers' pages.

Scores

  • GameRankings 76% · archived average
  • AllGame 4.5/5 (GG) ; 4/5 (GEN)
  • Aktueller Software Markt 1993 8/12 (SMD) ; 7/12 (SMS)
  • Beep! MegaDrive 1993 21/40 (SGG) ; 32/40 (SMD)
  • Consoles + 1993 90% (SGG) ; 88% (SMS) (other versions)
  • Computer and Video Games 1993 94/100 ; 93/100 (SGG) ; 96% (PC)
  • Electronic Gaming Monthly 1993 31/40 (MCD) ; 33/40 (SMD)
  • Eurogamer 2007 3/5 (WII) ; 3/10 (X360) (other versions)
  • Famitsu 27/40 (MCD) (other versions)
  • GamesMaster 1993 90/100 (MCD) ; 95% (SMD)
  • GameSpot 2007 6.5/10
  • IGN 2006 7/10 (WII) ; 6/10 (X360) (other versions)
  • Joypad 1993 85/100 (SGG) ; 96% (SMD)
  • Mean Machines Sega 1992 96/100 (MCD) ; 80% (PC) ; 88/100 (SGG) ; 97/100 (SMD) ; 92/100 (SMS)
  • Mega Fun 1993 72/100 (MCD) (other versions)
  • Next Generation 3/5 (PC) (other versions)
  • Nintendo Life 2006 6/10 (3DS) ; 7/10 (WII) (other versions)
  • PC Gamer (UK) 1996 81%
  • Player One 1992 95% (MCD) ; 96% (SGG) ; 90% (SMD) ; 94% (SMS)
  • Electronic Entertainment 1994 9/10
  • MegaTech 94%
  • Sega Magazine 1994 92%

From the review table of Wikipedia's article. The face takes, first that applies: the Metascore for this platform, GameRankings' archived average, our average of the critics (one number per publication, a panel averaged), one review alone, the players' rating. Critics and players are never mixed.

Players' rating: 75/100 · 214 votes

Full reviews

Face key

  1. 1.00+
  2. 1.540+
  3. 2.050+
  4. 2.560+
  5. 3.068+
  6. 3.575+
  7. 4.080+
  8. 4.585+
  9. 5.090+

5.0 Outstanding! · 4.0 Great job! · 3.0 Good job · 2.0 Could be better · 1.0 Wake me up when it's over · A thumbs-up adds half a point. Our own drawings, in the spirit of the faces GamePro magazine used in the '90s.

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