Gadget Twins USA

Gadget Twins is an action adventure game developed by Imagitec Design and published by Piko Interactive and Bleem! for the Sega Genesis in 1992. Being developed in the United Kingdom, a European release was planned after its US counterpart, but failed to materialise.

Gameplay – Gadget Twins USA

The game plays like a shoot-’em-up, though the characters attack mostly with short-ranged punches rather than long-range projectiles. Players control the anthropomorphized cartoon jet planes Bop (red) and Bump (blue), which can fly through both the air and sea. It can be played by one player or by two players simultaneously. The goal is to get through each stage by destroying enemies and fighting Thump (green) in various mechanical contraptions. The planes are initially armed with small, spring-loaded fists. Defeated enemies drop gold coins, which can be spent on new, stronger weapons in the shops found throughout the game.

The planes move in any direction using the D-Pad. They face toward the last direction that they were moved. The screen autoscrolls (except in the bonus sections, where the players can move around freely). Arrows sometimes appear to indicate a detour that can be taken to collect bonus items.

Planes have five energy points each and lose part of their energy when they hit an enemy or obstacle. There are no crush deaths, since planes are instead bumped out of the way at the cost of some energy. Players lose a life when they run out of energy, but the plane respawns in place if the player has extra lives remaining. The player loses whichever weapon was currently selected (reverting to the base weapon in that position) upon losing a life, but it can be collected again by flying over its icon, which appears near where the plane was downed.

Bonus section – Gadget Twins USA

Finding a Bonus item unlocks a bonus section that is played after completing the current level. The bonus section is a maze filled with treasure chests containing gold coins. Players must collect as much gold as possible and find the exit within the time limit. Players only keep the gold that they collected if they exit before time runs out.

Legacy – Gadget Twins USA

An emulated version of the game was released on Steam in 2019 by Piko Interactive.

Production credits – Gadget Twins USA

• Programming: Carl Wade
• Game Design: Nigel Cook
• Graphics: Alan MacFarlane
• Additional Graphics: Pete Goldsmith, Slick, Nigel Cook
• Music and Sfx: Barry Leitch, Ian Howe
• Produced by: Martin Hooley
• Developed by: Imagitec Design Inc.

Gadget Twins USA