Display MoreThere's very exciting news in the Crusader community today. Crusader was another Origin series that was played as a top down isometric shooter. There were only two main games released, but they've now found and archived a version that may have been a precursor to an unreleased sequel - or perhaps an unreleased console port! You can download a copy for yourself and stay up to date with all of the latest Crusader news at EchoSector.com.
Crusader 2 PSX Pre-Pre Alpha recovered and releasedIt’s a wonderful day for Crusader history, as I am proud to announce the recovery and preservation of a pre-pre-alpha build of Crusader 2 for the Sony Playstation. It has been uploaded online for all to enjoy.
Following the departure of Tony Zurovec from Origin Systems in late 1996, there was a bit of a scramble to keep Crusader going as both No Remorse and No Regret were financial successes for the company. You can peruse some of the design documents of this time. Ports of No Remorse to the Playstation and Saturn came out in December 1996, but nothing else ever did after that. The release today shows that there was at least some developmental effort during this period. Dated February 11, 1997, the pre-pre-alpha has interesting differences between both the original games and even the console version of No Remorse. It’s hard to say if this was intended to be No Regret on console, since the levels are iterations of No Remorse levels, or if it’s one of the undeveloped Crusader ideas.
I tested it via original hardware, DuckStation, and MiSTer FPGA, and all work wonderfully. Bear in mind it is a pre-pre-alpha and can easily break. Big hint: use L2 + R1 to switch weapons.
For other preservationists, I have dumped the disc according to Redump.org standards and will be submitting it to their database.
I’m always looking for Crusader history to save. If you were involved with the game and–somehow–still haven’t heard from me, please reach out to keenan@echosector.com and I’ll make sure what you have is saved forever!
