Line #22 VideoGame/TimeGal


1	[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/280px-Time_gal_8149.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:280:Ice Age? More like Not-So-Nice Age!]]
3	''Time Gal'' is an InteractiveMovie in the vein of ''VideoGame/DragonsLair'', originally developed by Creator/{{Taito}} for arcades in 1985, with the animation done by Creator/ToeiAnimation with an uncredited Creator/StudioJunio.
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5	The [[ExcusePlot "plot"]] revolves around a time bandit named Luda going through different time periods in order to make himself leader of the world in his own time. Another time traveler, 16-year-old Reika Kirishima, aka Time Gal, is out to stop him. [[AllThereInTheManual There is no hint of this in the actual game, however.]] Besides the last part, anyway.
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7	The game was eventually ported by Wolf Team to the Platform/SegaCD for a Western release in April 1993. It also saw releases on the Pioneer [=LaserActive=], {{Platform/MSX}}, Platform/SegaSaturn and Platform/PlayStation. Additionally, Reika has made appearances in ''VideoGame/CastleOfShikigami 3'' and ''VideoGame/ElevatorActionDeluxe'' as a playable character, and also appears in ''VideoGame/{{Arkanoid}} vs. VideoGame/SpaceInvaders''.
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9	In July 2023, a sequel exclusive to the Taito LD Game Collection called ''Time Gal Re:Birth'' was announced and released on December 14th. It follows a new protagonist by the name of Luna who must team up with Reika to stop Luda.
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11	----
12	!!Tropes:
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14	* ActionGirl: Reika. She travels through time and space fighting in nothing but a bikini and manages to kick butt.
15	* AmericanKirbyIsHardcore: Japanese covers present Reika as an energetic and cheery girl who'll get the job done because she believes in herself. The singular Western cover in existence depicts her as a hard-boiled, no-nonsense agent who shoots first and asks questions later.
16	* BatmanCanBreatheInSpace: Reika spends the later stages in outer space.
17	* BeautyIsNeverTarnished: Like ''VideoGame/NinjaHayate'', ''Time Gal'' shies away from the gruesome yet comical deaths as utilized in ''VideoGame/DragonsLair'' and ''VideoGame/SpaceAce''. Few of ''Time Gal's'' game overs explicitly kill Reika off onscreen; most simply have her receiving the blow and then gaining either a shocked or exhausted expression. Most of them also have her turn into a chibi rather than stay an anatomically correct human, presumably to avoid showing a beautiful girl being seriously hurt. The only deaths that explicity kill Reika off are her disintegrating if she shoots the cavemen and her [[WingedSoulFliesOffAtDeath turning into an angel]] after her ship is shot by a missile.
18	* BigBad: Luda is a criminal attempting to use time travel to TakeOverTheWorld, with Reika following him to stop his plans.
19	* BloodlessCarnage: Several of Reika's deaths like being hurled into a whirling propeller or eaten by a shark ''should'' be gory, but are done as cartoon slapstick instead.
20	* {{Bowdlerize}}: The U.S. Platform/SegaCD version, released in 1992, had the year 666 changed to 999, and 1990 to 1991, the latter due to the unfortunate coincidence of UsefulNotes/TheGulfWar. It also changed the text for a Time Stop option in 1941; the original version had "Pray to God". The U.S. version changed it to "Hope for luck". What's more, if this option is selected, Reika actually starts praying in the Japanese version, while the American version has her say, "Please help!" She turns into an angel in both versions, though.
21	* TheCameo: Hayate from ''VideoGame/NinjaHayate'' is among the crowd welcoming Reika home and applauding her success.
22	* CasualDangerDialog: In B.C. 44, Reika flirts with the man she's fighting against.
23	-->'''Reika:''' Hey, good-looking. You're my kinda guy! Oh, how old ''are'' you?
24	* CatchPhrase: "''Sore!''" (literally "There!" but oftentimes used as a grunt), said by Reika enough times to count.
25	* ClothingDamage: Some of her "deaths" are this.
26	* ConvectionSchmonvection: The very first level has Reika hopping over lava.
27	* DefeatByModesty: Some of Reika's "death" scenes just have her losing her clothes.
28	* DoItYourselfThemeTune: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TaqylnjSCU The Japanese version]] of the Sega CD port has a vocal song, "Exceed the Space Time", performed by the voice of Reika Kirishima, Creator/YurikoYamamoto.
29	* TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt: 3001.
30	* EnemiesWithDeath: The main opponent in 666/999 AD appears to be TheGrimReaper.
31	* EverythingTryingToKillYou: No matter what era, what location, what creature, what person, everything and everybody ''wants. Reika.'' '''''Dead.''''' In some cases, it's possible that Luda convinced people that Reika was evil, but still. The only exception seems to be 1941, where everyone [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII is clearly trying to kill]] ''[[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII each other]]'', and she just happens to be in the way.
32	* EvilLaugh: Whenever Reika dies, there is immediately a shot of Luda laughing his ass off. Can also count as GameOverMan if you're on your last life.
33	* ExcusePlot: A time bandit named Luda is going through different time periods in order to make himself leader of the world in his own time. Another time traveler, 16-year-old Reika Kirishima, aka Time Gal, is out to stop him. There is no hint of this in the actual game, however. Besides the last part, anyway.
34	* ExposedToTheElements: Even while in the Ice Age or space, Reika spends the whole game wearing a space bikini.
35	* {{Expy}}: Reika's appearance is based on Lum from ''Manga/UruseiYatsura'', and her outfit looks very similar to those worn by the protagonists in ''Literature/DirtyPair''. She received a redesign in ''Castle of Shikigami 3'' to reduce the similarity.
36	* {{Fanservice}}: Reika goes around the game wearing a space bikini and some failure scenes have her clothes torn up.
37	* GameOverMan: Luda serves as this if you lose your last life, though it's simply a repeat of the shot of him laughing from any other time you die.
38	* GenkiGirl: Reika. She’s flirty, generally cheerful as she giggles and skips through danger for most of the game, dolling out little quips here and there, with some shrieks of panic when in distress.
39	* GrandfatherParadox: One death scene has Reika fire her gun into a bunch of cavemen -- and promptly dematerialize, having [[RetGone allegedly shot one of her ancestors]].
40	* TheGrimReaper: The main opponent in 666/999 AD.
41	* GoryDiscretionShot: If Reika gets slashed with a sword, the screen just turns black as a white slash mark appears.
42	* GratuitousEnglish: For starters, "Time Gal". Another example would be whenever Reika uses her Time Stop ability; she announces it with a shout of "STOPPU!" She finally says the whole thing before defeating Luda, announcing it with "TIIIIIIIIIME STOP!"[[note]]Which she regularly says in the English versions[[/note]] ("Stop" being pronounced properly this time.)
43	* HumongousMecha: Appears chasing Reika in 3001.
44	* HydraProblem: The aliens in 3999 divide upon being shot. This is a hint that shooting them is the wrong choice, and that the correct solution is to [[ThrownOutTheAirlock open the airlock on them]].
45	* TheHyena: Despite constantly being in dangerous situations, Reika always finds something to laugh at. However, she does stop laughing when things get ''too'' dangerous. This only holds true for the Japanese version, however, as she's a lot less giggly in the U.S. version.
46	* IWantMyMommy: Dying in 1941 can cause Reika to cry out "''Okaa-san!''" ("Mommy!"), "''Otou-san!''" ("Daddy!"), "''Jii-chan!''" ("Grandpa!"), or "''Baa-chan!''" ("Grandma!")
47	* MajorInjuryUnderreaction: In 500 A.D., there are multiple death scenes involving Reika slamming her body into a boulder while riding a mine cart. In one of the scenes (in the U.S. version), her only reaction is a calm "[[OhCrap Uh-oh]]", said not before, but ''as'' she's slamming into said boulder.
48	* TheManyDeathsOfYou: Oh [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hyxm5XlPpUE yes]], they're one of the big highlights of the game. Though, getting your boobs whipped or your pants bitten off doesn't really qualify as a "death".
49	* MinecartMadness: In one segment Reika has to ride a mine cart through an underground area, while bending left and right and sometimes having to jump up or down out of the cart to avoid obstacles.
50	* MsFanservice: Reika. She wears nothing but a bikini.
51	* {{MST}}: WebVideo/{{Retsupurae}} did their usual lampooning of the game [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXuauClk_E0 here.]]
52	* NotZilla: The first enemy Reika fights, in 70,000,000 B.C., is basically Franchise/{{Godzilla}} without the dorsal spikes. It even has Godzilla's iconic roar.
53	* OhCrap:
54	** Reika in some of the death scenes.
55	** Also, Luda during his death scene. Reika uses her Time Stop to turn his cannon around so that he shoots the core of his fortress, which blows up before he can get away.
56	* OwMyBodyPart:
57	** In the Japanese version, some of the fail scenes in 500 A.D. have a big, fat guy whip Reika's breasts, causing her to sometimes exclaim something to the effect of "Ouch, my boobs!"
58	** Luda does this as well, right before you defeat him.
59	* RayGun: Reika's primary weapon.
60	* RedIsHeroic: Reika wears a red bikini bottom, a red bikini top, red armbands, and red stockings.
61	* RetGone: One of Rika's deaths has her immediately dematerialize after shooting one of the cavemen attacking her in the distant past, apparently having [[GrandfatherParadox shot one of her distant ancestors]].
62	* ShamelessFanserviceGirl: Subverted. Reika has no shame running around in just a red bikini, boots, and a sachet, but she suffers DefeatByModesty in two fail scenes.
63	* ShoutOut:
64	** Japan-only: In one of the death scenes in 1588, Reika is chased by a shark. What does she say while this is happening? "[[Film/{{Jaws}} JAAAAAAAAAWZUUUUUUUUU!]]"
65	** In the U.S. version, when she swings on a vine in 65,000,000 B.C., she ''attempts'' a {{Franchise/Tarzan}} scream.
66	** [[Manga/FistOfTheNorthStar HIDEBU!]][[note]]Nobody's heads explode, though. It's just one of the "miss" sequences.[[/note]]
67	* {{Slapstick}}: Most of Reika's deaths are pretty slapstick-y, although less explicit than those of contemporary {{Interactive Movie}}s.
68	* SoftWater: Averted. Some of the failure outcomes show Reika falling from a great height into water, high enough for it to be fatal.
69	* {{Stripperiffic}}: Reika wears what looks to be a space bikini.
70	* SuperDeformed: Most of the death scenes render Reika as a chibi for [[RuleOfFunny some reason]].
71	* TakeOverTheWorld: Luda's end goal.
72	* ThisIsGonnaSuck: 1941 has a Time Stop option that has Reika stay on the plane that's about to collide with the side of a ship. [[http://i.imgur.com/4mREa.jpg The face she makes before collision]] ''screams'' this.
73	-->'''Reika:''' EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
74	* ThreateningShark: One chases Reika away in a failure scene, and presumably catches and eats her offscreen.
75	* ThrownOutTheAirlock: The correct solution to defeating the aliens in 3999. And unless you act fast, [[HoistByHisOwnPetard Reika gets sucked out, too]].
76	* TimeStandsStill: Every level has a section where Reika stops time in order to get herself out of a particularly tricky situation (read: you are given a set of choices and must pick the one that lets you continue the level). The rub is that the time stop freezes ''her'' as well; essentially, she's freezing time so as to give herself a few seconds to think of an out.
77	* TooDumbToLive: ''Why'', exactly, does Reika jump into 1941 ''on a plane at the battle of Pearl Harbor?!?'' It's possible that she can [[PowerIncontinence control when to jump to, but not where]]?
78	* UnderwearOfPower: Not exactly underwear, but her outfit is nothing but a bikini.
79	* UncertainDoom: A few of the death scenes aren't deaths at all. For example:
80	** In one scene in 66,000,000 B.C., a dinosaur rips her panties off. Embarrassing, but not fatal.
81	** Another one in 500 has someone whip her breast. Definitely ''painful'', but again, it's not fatal.
82	** Finally, there's a death scene in 2001 where a thug slices the back of her top in half. Same deal as the 66,000,000 B.C. scene. On the other hand, she does lose her gun along with her undies, and presumably she loses her time gizmo thingy along with her top, so that would make further progress impossible.
83	* WingedSoulFliesOffAtDeath: In the 1941 stage, while on the wing of a falling plane, there's a Time Stop moment where you have to choose the correct option to progress further into the level. If you choose the "Pray to God"/[[{{Bowdlerize}} "Hope For Luck"]] option, the plane will crash into the side of a ship, and you see Reika's spirit ascending into Heaven.
84	* AWinnerIsYou: Once you beat the game, you get a short scene in which Reika gets a medal for saving the world, and she blows a kiss at the player, with the screen saying, "VICTORY!"
85	* YouFightLikeACow: Reika often taunts whatever is chasing her. For example, while being chased by bugs in the year 4000, she says, "This way, this way!"
86	* {{Zeerust}}: 2001 and onward.

Context VideoGame / TimeGal