Altered Beast (Genesis) Playthrough - NintendoComplete

A playthrough of Sega's 1989 action beat 'em up game for the Sega Genesis, Altered Beast.
The years may have dimmed the the game's luster a bit, but the original pack-in game for the Sega Genesis is still an incredibly fun, if short-lived and simplistic, bit of arcade fun. It doesn't look or sound quite as good as the 1988 arcade game, but it does feature parallax scrolling, which looks pretty nice. I've always found it pretty creepy - between "Rise from your grave!" (complete with speech impediment), the foreground of the final stage, and the beast transformations, the game freaked me out as a kid. That didn't stop me from tearing through it over and over again, though. Not by a long shot.
______
No cheats were used during the recording of this video.
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[@mglenning1]

I've always loved how he was polite enough to at least WELCOME the hero to his doom.

[@NewYorkS4U]

Not to mention let him keep his power ups before the fight.

[@johnm1874]

Such a nice laddie

[@gamerramley9178]

nice and a evil and a polite dude

[@jackmomma7481]

@@gamerramley9178 good ol' Neff. We need him to overthrow incontinent incompetent Joe. At least he would welcome us to our doom and not lie about it... unlike Mr. Poopy pants

[@harviustm4282]

You are bad guy, but it does not mean that you are BAD guy

[@Daymusik]

Seeing how long this game actually is after all this time really makes me feel bad that I've never gotten past the second level.

[@discoverysmith1111]

Same lol

[@MrOrthopedia]

Ditto.

[@Farja88]

Haha, true story. 😢😅😂

[@waleedmughal4439]

We were bad LOL

[@zero31114]

Don't feel bad! The game is quite difficult. Try eïnhander next

[@user-js2mu3ik4z]

2nd boss battle Villain: Welcome to your doom! *is defeated in less than 4 seconds*

[@laseorel3k690]

Btw the villain is called Neff

[@user-js2mu3ik4z]

@@laseorel3k690 okeh

[@MrDibara]

To be fair, if you don't spam that lightning storm right to his face, that boss can be a true fucking nightmare.

[@FLASH3G]

@@MrDibara happened to me. lol.

[@toreywhite9917]

Guile/Nash: Too easy!!!!

[@erinmcgrath214]

Fun fact: One of Altered Beast's head designers, Takeshi Uto, was a massive Judas Priest fan and got the idea for the boss on level 2 from Judas Priest's hit song Electric Eye. How cool is that!

[@yardoom42]

Awesome!🤘🏻

[@swaggypanda1808]

getcha pull brutha \,,/

[@Betaleikz]

Thats mad dope

[@kramalerav]

Priest also recorded an outtake from that same album that Electric Eye was on called Prisoner of Your Eyes. So who knows..

[@thespaceram2879]

​@@yardoom42 Stop doing satan's horns. Unless you want to end up in hell with satan after passing away for representing him. Denounce satan and his horns and willingly accept God=Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior and repent from your wrong doings before it is too late. And mods stop being satan's puppets by erasing by posts or you will end up like satan too. So stop it already.

[@triizziy]

I swear this game was loads longer when I was a boy. Now I find out it’s ten minutes lol

[@dominickrodriguez2302]

So true I am shocked it's only 10 minutes.

[@Andrew-wb2zq]

Could never get past level 3. Doesn't look so bad now that I watch it all these years later. I guess I just sucked.

[@rolandreeves8818]

I could never get past round 2

[@Vasses935]

It is! If youre not a beast by the time the boss comes the stages keep going. By the third “beast check” you fight the boss anyways.

[@_JRythmixx_314]

Exaclty bro lmfao!

[@larrynintendo6838]

I get so hyped during the transformation scenes haha.

[@realtexxxmancosplay]

Same here.

[@miguelcolon5933]

@@realtexxxmancosplay the wolf form always been my favorite mad hype when he turns into a wolf

[@rellman85]

They were the best part!

[@matthewmontalvo5066]

Best part lol

[@manlymanyo2511]

Yesss

[@squarewave808]

I'll never forget it. Christmas Morning, 1989. My new Sega Genesis came with this game. The music for this game is seared into my memory as my soundtrack for Christmas '89.

[@Curlyheart]

Did you ever get sonic?

[@jackmomma7481]

I got my genesis Christmas 1989 as well 😄 and, of course, it came with Altered Beast. And the music is burned into my head permanently as well, which is hilarious. Madden football and Madden '92 intro music are also permanently etched Iinto my memory as well Tommy Lasorda's baseball has what sounds like late 80s shot-on-videotape cheap porno music that I couldn't forget if I tried

[@squarewave808]

@@Curlyheart Yes I got Sonic a bit later, can’t remember the exact year. That one isn’t burned into my memory as much, other than the sounds of hitting the little floating coins. Another banger from back then was Golden Axe.

[@rodmunch69]

Same here, got it for Christmas 1989. I remember turning it on and being blown away by the graphics - I literally thought at that time that you had to have a computer monitor to have graphics so crisp and clear as the 'high definition' Genesis produced. Then, after playing this for a half-hour or so, I put in Ghosts'N Goblins, and was blown away again because it looked even better and the sound was stunningly good. Then, finally, my third and last game, was Thunder Force II, which was also amazing. Also I got a Gameboy that year from my grandparents, and learned that it made me motion sick if I used it in a car, so I traded it for a Sony Walkman. But, overall, that was probably my top Christmas haul ever - it's been all downhill since then.

[@sonic_genesis]

The sound chip for the sega genesis was great compared to VHS and cassette tapes that sounds muffled most of the time

[@KalmarDeZZe]

I have played this game so many late nights back in the 90s. So damn frustrating to not be able to save the game. Love my childhood

[@80skid83]

Loved the 90s too, omg awesome

[@rodmunch69]

well I got this for Christmas 1989, so by 1990, it was old news.

[@MSgtPorkinsLP]

This game was a staple of my childhood and I remember the day my best friend's game bought this game. We sat for hours playing this game as he watched us from the comforts of his Ea-Z-Boy. Even now, I still talk with my friend and his dad about this game and many more we have played over the years. Thanks for the memories, NintendoComplete!

[@tyi6708]

Bruhhh I’ve been looking for this game for sooo long. Y’all don’t understand how many times I’ve searched up “old school game that lets you transform into animals” 😂 but hey this is brining back memories

[@johnlekocevic2143]

You can play it for free on IPhone or Android if you DL on App Store

[@Arthur5000]

It's on PS4

[@norbertruiz5110]

I used to search up sega genesis game wolf transformation

[@petjuska211]

I searched it by "welcome to your doom game". This was the first video.

[@Plex274]

@@petjuska211 lol

[@hypercc1]

"Wise from your gwave" lol.

[@wilsonbedoya1184]

lmao

[@GuardedBard25]

That's when the cannibalism started

[@MickeyD2012]

It quite clearly says "rise from your grave," with a low sample rate. You just have bad hearing.

[@MickeyD2012]

To be fair, it is a pretty bad recording, but it isn't so bad I can't understand it.

[@JulesIceRaver]

@@MickeyD2012 you just have bad humor

[@willd.8040]

This came with the Sega Genesis when I got mine on Christmas Day 1991.. Man, this brings back memories. I played this SO much, that I remember every sound and scene so well. I remember being BLOWN AWAY by the graphics when the character would become the "altered beast".. I thought it was so life-like. lol. Little did I know what we'd have now.

[@VirtualVernon]

I believe there were various bundles. I grew up in the Detroit area in Michigan. I was born in 1984 I remember seeing all different kinds of bundles. My first console I got was a NES for Christmas in 1989, basically a few 8 days before 1990. When my friend got a Genesis 1991 it came with the not for resale Sonic the Hedgehog, and Golden Axe. When I got my Genesis in 1992 in came bundled with Streets of Rage 2, and Sonic 2.

[@Basicaly-sf7zn]

*I just uncovered so many childhood nightmares, this was a full on PTSD attack*

[@NintendoComplete]

Altered Beast is super trippy and a ton of fun - it's too bad that it's only ten minutes long once you know it well enough to beat it.

[@bigstopowens]

i still remember playing this as a kid, it is super fun. the first boss theres a spot you can stand and just fire the blasts and not get hit by the heads, but all the other bosses you do just like you did in the video. i dont think any of these tactics work in the other versions though

[@kauanvictor2009]

🤔👻 Jogo de idade de 12 anos Jogo de Terror

[@kauanvictor2009]

JOGO DE Terror 👻🎮

[@kauanvictor2009]

Final Deles👍😁😀

[@johnsantos507]

Ah, that game brings back memory.

[@LTDANMAN44]

i love those purple pictures with music between stages

[@ShaggyWaggy1]

😂 It’s a whole vibe

[@KPad87]

couldnt pass the second stage as a kid lol

[@funkykongforreal]

Same

[@MelodicTurtleMetal]

Really? I think that was easier than the first. I remember getting to level 5 often enough as a kid, but never finished the rhino. I didn't know it was the last level, and was always dying to know what was next.

[@bonniethebunny7325]

Saaaaaaame

[@thetacortex7959]

lol same

[@Nbjk01]

the levels were the money eater the bosses....... took care of what ever hope you had along with the little life you had remaining

[@jackhackett80]

remember this at the arcade. This is on the genesis mini and my 5 year old daughter and I love it. And Golden Axe. Would love to see a modern reboot of this game

[@mamaluigi2064]

This was probably my favorite Genesis game I remember playing it in the arcades back in the day Then I got a Genesis in 1989 along with a copy of altered beast for Christmas Oh my God was That a great day I love this game

[@Pitbulls_and_Plumbing]

I remember playing this back in 93, I was 10yrs old...i never made it past the Bear level... Back then it was much harder than you made it seem.

[@andredeliz2983]

Woah. The memories! I never finished this game. There was a boss that was just too hard back in the days. I loved this game.

[@christophervalery6795]

This takes me way back to my childhood. Altered Beast was one of my most favorite SEGA games.

[@93deiondavis]

Kids these days don't even know

[@creewho8448]

I do im a kid I’ve played this game

[@giovannilazzarotto5032]

They don't know how frustrating it is to not be able to save and get hit so cheaply

[@ObaShango7]

Man WHAT!!

[@cj694x2]

...paying $49.99 for a game and then beating it in 10 minutes :(

[@dbodooley]

They don’t know shit!

[@rodeoxvi3265]

Literally tearing up rn, this game hits home.

[@andrewcruz1931]

I remember this being a much deeper game lol .

[@Prizrak-hv6qk]

Kids, this is what "next gen" was back in 1989! Compared to the NES' that we all had and loved, the striking features here were the three button gameplay, four times the colors on screen, four times larger player sprites (with two players simultaneous!) with little to no sprite flicker, screen-filling animated boss sprites that you couldn't even imagine on the NES, smooth parallax scrolling giving you a perception of depth, way more realistic sound effects and voices, colorful full screen animations and music that didn't sound like the "blip bloop blop" 8-bit stuff. All in smooth 60 fps! This game blew me away when I first saw it and made me want a Genesis more than anything. It helped that Genesis system itself was a masterpiece of modern design back then. So slick and sexy... I still get the goose bumps thinkin about it!

[@parallaxview2143]

Yet the gameplay was a backwards step. Any Natsume game on Famicom urinates on this 'classic'.

[@Prizrak-hv6qk]

@@parallaxview2143 It was a rather flashy arcade game with an interesting setting and aesthetic, unique power-up scheme, as well as tight, responsive controls. Not everything has to be Super Mario Bros 3 or whatever. Yeah. The Genesis game mostly worked as a 16-bit side scroller tech demo, didn't last very long and didn't age too well. Still, at the time it WAS impressive as heck and I did have fun with it.

[@parallaxview2143]

@@Prizrak-hv6qk it did look nice. Mind you, I had the Master System version which ran at 3 FPS. Super Monaco GP was the game that made me beg my parents for a Mega Drive.

[@Prizrak-hv6qk]

@@parallaxview2143 From what I recall, the Master System version used the trick of getting around the system's ridiculously low (typical for 8-bit hardware) max sprite size by using animated background tiles to represent the characters. Unfortunately, these tiles could only animate at 7 FPS, making everything very jerky. One of the biggest improvements brought about by the 16-bit hardware were the much larger max sprite sizes.

[@danr2652]

3:35 I always wondered what this cut-scene was about but now I see the girl pinned to a crucifix on the left as the bald dude is performing is ritual.

[@mglenning1]

Haha I always thought the guy with the arms in the air was being boiled alive!

[@toreywhite9917]

Yes.

[@TheRexhim]

Who's the guy on the left then?

[@danr2652]

@@TheRexhim He's bald guy #2 or #3 (you pick). There are Three blad dudes.

[@TheRexhim]

@@danr2652 lol

[@danalong1237]

What an awesome soundtrack by Toshio Kai, who also did the sounds for Pac-Man!

[@Thewolfguys.cartoons2000]

Really?!?! I didn't know that!!!

[@derpwon597]

The cutscenes with the daughter scared the shit outta me

[@nighurt478]

why would you think was gonna happen???

[@randydubin7118]

And to think, this was the game that was supposed to be the 'mascot' for the Sega Genesis (READ: The pack-in game) pre-Sonic.......

[@TheGenericNerd]

Randy Dubin yeah...Sega was really desperate to have a mascot that they passed over many better games until they designed sonic. I remember when Toejam & Earl were gonna be their mascot, and before that it was Alex Kidd.

[@NintendoComplete]

Dexter Riley Haha I remember how hard they pushed Alex Kidd. A friend had it and everytime I suggested playing it we'd end up at my house playing Mario instead.

[@danalong1237]

Nintendo has only one mascot and one mascot only, and that's Mario and Sega had two mascots: before 1991, Alex Kidd, and since 1991, and for the past 25 years, Sonic the Hedgehog!

[@ItsJustMilkISwear]

@@danalong1237 nintendo also had Link, Donkey Kong, Kirby, samus, etc. it wasn't just mario.

[@TheHistorianKing]

@@ItsJustMilkISwear yup & star fox. I mean Nintendo got so many mascots, but Mario is clearly their biggest one.

[@ddub2039]

Fuck this game. When I was around 5, I found a dusty Sega Genesis with this game plugged in, presumably my uncles, in my grandmas basement. Played the hell out of it but never got past the eyeball boss, and that god damn electric sound from the altered dragon beast is ingrained in my soul. Luckily I also found Road Rash, thus beginning my love affair with gaming and hitting people with hard random objects.

[@cas6356]

This, Golden Axe, and Castle of Illusion were my favorite games on Sega💕💕. We played at my Grandma's house, until we got our own system a few years later.

[@MrProminister]

Does it meat that your grandma was a hard player for years before you as a kids got your own system? Haha, i would see or even meet your grandma.

[@atomicplayz2436]

Bro golden axe was so coooool

[@daminmancejin]

i still play altered beast

[@hugh2hoob668]

daminmancejin THUMBS UP! (power up voice) lol

[@hugh2hoob668]

daminmancejin this and NHL 94 on Sega were my childhood HELL even my early 20s loved those games

[@fatkid66]

Same

[@auron570]

i love how the bosses explode into clouds of popcorn o3o

[@thelastdragan]

This right here is a straight up classic, I have no idea why when I was a kid I struggled hard to beat some levels 🤣😅

[@WLAs_Finest3x]

Love this game! One of my favorites of all time! Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo!

[@thundernegro]

The art of this game is glorious.

[@MisterVercetti]

*Altered Beast:* I'm gonna be the definitive game for the Sega Genesis! *Sonic:* I'mma end this man's whole career.

[@felixfranzen7318]

I love how the first power up just makes the hero's shirt go away.

[@parallaxview2143]

Kenshiro vibes.

[@kramalerav]

*Fun Fact:* Clara “Where’s the beef?!” Pell recorded the “Welcome to your doom!” bit for this Genesis port.

[@vanessagarcia2329]

We love altered beast we can't stop playing it

[@dbodooley]

Power up, music restarts. I love that

[@user-jb9jy6hn5e]

OMG! What drugs did they use to create this masterpiece?

[@80skid83]

Strange game for sure

[@maceastin27]

Makes me wanna cry flash backing on this one..so many memories.. I think this game came with the unit

[@ShootYourRadio]

I spent so many hours playing this when it came out. Man, the good Ole days when you had no responsibility.

[@rolandreeves8818]

8:07 when I stub my toe and I'm home alone

[@JoshuaGanoTyraxLightning]

... all those times I fought that Final Boss as a kiddo... I never once thought of trying ducking under the Punches... :O

[@black2785]

I remember playing this game when I was 5 in a California Burrito shop and I couldn’t even make it to the 1st level boss cause I died trying to focus on just getting the orbs lol. 50 cents well spent

[@seansullivan7928]

This game costed 50 cents. 25 cents in my day. Or you had some slopes owning it to try and milk it for all it's worth. It was LA after all

[@nexcellpride5454]

Level 1: Announced Death Chronicle... Tombs in Cemetery have the names "Alex" and "Stella", the first one a former SEGA mascot until 1991.

[@itachiuchiha6876]

This game scared me as a kid

[@Freshbrood]

Please note what an excellent port this was, and how very humble the developers were to spread a message of peace instead of taking credit for this amazing console seller.

[@mikemaceda3222]

First videogame I ever played. I just bought it on sale on the Microsoft store. Brought back good memories 😌

[@Zzzzz_Zzzzzz______]

I've only just noticed that the icon in the top left corner next to the lives counter changes when you power-up.

[@JuanVasquezhasreturned]

Geez this game is super old. It's from the 80's, which is pretty old even for Genesis standards. You can tell by looking at the gameplay, and graphics that it's early Genesis.

[@geekbyhart1004]

This game brings me back!

[@johnsantos507]

Me too.

[@cace83]

Played this with my best friend on two gamers mode as a kid and we actually got to the final level and final boss, but we never realized that we were that close to victory...! This is true revelation!

[@danieldevito6380]

Man, I used to LOVE this game!

[@mglenning1]

I also loved how he was able to jump in the hole at the VERY last minute before the vortex closed.

[@afifzahiruddinrohaizan52]

Does anyone notice that the werewolf's howl in the transformation sounded just like the howl from An American Werewolf in London? Well for does who hadn't played the game but see the movie will remember it.

[@jsmith6111]

It is

[@durrdeedeedz]

I was today years old when I finally noticed the beast bodies are just various power up bodies with different colors and heads. That's hilarious!

[@user-rt5ep4ux2g]

Plying this on the old wooden tv right now would be peak nostalgia! Throw in some madden with the 16 team game play and I’m set for the weekend!

[@themightytrixter]

Wow so that’s how it ends

[@user-mc1uc1xo3z]

the werewolf looks like a horse

[@j.t.thomas1859]

LoL LoL LoL

[@robheskin]

I can't imagine the direction that was given for the "power up." "Yeah, uhhhhhh we need you to sound like you were defrosted from caveman times and just had a shot of Vodka."

[@es-ed5ug]

one thing that always irked me about this game was you got the beast transformation right as you fought the state boss. You didn't get to wreck stuff with your beastly power at all

[@fidopapoi7792]

I never got to beat this game but now I've seen it all!

[@Waynyyy]

I remember playing this game at 4 years old with my dad😂 I sucked so bad but my dad was a god at this game, crazy to see how fast time flies

[@SUPERFlyGuy_1]

I remember this game as a kid but I never knew the name of it and finally after some searching i found it and this brings up some old memories 👌🏼 Sega was the nr 1 console at that time

[@CVerse]

0:55 I totally forgot Palpatine was in this game

[@viggagotoku720]

1:05 WELCOME TO YO DOOM!!

[@LiverAndOnions69]

Dude . Your an altered beast master

[@NintendoComplete]

Thanks :) I played the sh!t out of it when I was a teenager!

[@projectpamaphd7042]

Got the Genesis with this game when I was 9. I’m now 42 and this brings back a lot of memories. I miss my childhood.

[@NoUser23]

Bro this was legit a furry game

[@marquirasheed]

Bro this game scared the hell out of me when I was younger😂Looks so creepy

[@Cdubya719]

I love seeing the playtime clock in at just over 10 minues, while as a child I don't think I ever beat the second level 😂😂

[@moisesaranda4780]

Bro I used to have horrible nightmares as a kid for playing this game with my brothers, good old times when I was 6 years old❤

[@aidangolembiewski1225]

*Me too. The transformation sequences jumpscared me when I was 9 or 10. Now I'm 23. I started to like it.*

[@Rascott03]

I think this was the 1st game I had on SEGA. I played this game to death!! Brings back memories.

[@Gotchism4Life]

I like how the low kicks in the game would have been the kind used in Pankration. Small detail, but nice.

[@anthonyharmon4561]

Still love this game. The Eye boss can literally be beaten in five seconds! lol

[@jamesmoss3424]

I play altered beast on the genesis and it's an excellent port of the arcade game. 😀👍🎮

[@user-gm7tc7zd5t]

The bears like blowing bubbles with his spearmint lmao

[@cordarryl101]

when he become a beast, he howl just like the werewolf on An American Werewolf in London

[@magdumpmoravec3557]

Oh man I loved this fricken game

[@piggypooo]

0:11 "Wiseee fwom your gwave" Elmer Fudd beseeches you, oh bwave warrior!

[@TheDrexxus]

How are these levels so short?! It feels like they were longer when I was a kid. :(

[@JayByrd83]

I remember playing this game as a kid. Talk about short. The stages could've been longer. Once you got the beast power-ups, you were already at the boss battle!! It would've been nice to use the beast mode for a lot longer.

[@rachellee5797]

Thank you for posting this. I couldn't remember what this game was from my childhood

[@thomasschepers8350]

Growing up I always liked hearing rise from your grave!😎

[@els1f]

This soundtrack is so damn cool considering the limitations! It really sticks with you

[@YeiYeiC]

I could not find this game anywhere!!! swore to my life this was Castlevania back when I was a kid lmao

[@John-TV_Random-Videos]

It's on the app store and Google play.

[@boredstudent]

I played Altered Beast as a kid but I didn't have it. It was merely a rental. And I couldn't get through the second level. It's pretty cool that it's included in the Sega Genesis Mini.

[@Shiningforceking]

I can't believe i had such a hard time playing this. Now it looks trivial.

[@Lionhart526]

I remember beating this game without getting the final orb. Nothing changed with the ending, but it was cool to have won as a monstrosity of a human being, and not the beast in question

[@zacharyhutchison4006]

This brought back memories buried deep in my childhood

[@willd.8040]

I know right? I can't believe how when I hear the intro music and the "welcome to your doom", how it brings back the memories so much. I hadn't seen this since like 1993.

[@SkodenJay]

somehow as a kid who grew up in the 2000s and 2010s, I found my way playing this game 😂

[@Olvera_emi]

After about two decades I’ve finally found it. Never made it after the transformation haha

[@stepheng8061]

I've been trying for basically 30 years to beat this game. It's pretty fun, despite a lot of hate nowadays. Just like all game of its time (8 bit and early half of 16 bit era) games were largely limited in their length due to cartridge memory limitations and costs. So they were hard. Did I mention costs? You didn't have many games because of this. So you just kept playing the ones you had. Make it further and further each time, there are no continues in this game but there is a code for the. Anyway I made it to stage 3 a lot but never further. I'm gonna try to beat it this weekend! I've sunk hundreds of hours into a game I just watched someone beat in about 15 minutes... wow

[@adamgardner28]

I used the continue code until I beat it. It's the same as original Super Mario...

[@cabdragon333]

Story of my life man. I never saw what was beyond the 3rd stage

[@Rashers-]

Happy day’s playing this 🐻

[@DeathDelver]

This game seemed so much longer as a kid...

[@meg-k-waldren]

I think the arcade version was longer. Edit: longer levels that is. I think it was still 5 or so levels.

[@drstepan1078]

This game is INSANELY good

[@kugangles9860]

We need a remake of this game on current gen....

[@firname395]

Probably be a pay to win multiplayer

[@80skid83]

Well there's one on ps2

[@NintendoComplete]

​@@80skid83 Oh God. I wish I could forget that one.

[@andrewmcdonald1614]

I had completely forgot about this game.

[@citisolo1]

Dude is a beast