Cover-Up At Roswell
In 1996, Virgin Media released a PC game called Cover-Up At Roswell based on the first season designs for The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest. The game used footage from six shows -- The Darkest Fathoms, In the Realm of the Condor, Ndovu's Last Journey, Manhattan Maneater, Trouble on the Colorado, and Alien in Washington -- to piece together a new story. Interestingly, the game features a complete guide to all Quest vehicles not found in other media, and provides a map of the Quest Compound. It makes full use of The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest merchandising graphics and fonts. At the time, Virgin Media's games were aimed at providing action-packed, educational adventures for kids, which largely mirrored the original mission of the show. Voices are provided by season two actors except for Hadji and Dr. Quest, who are voiced by [] and an unknown.
Gameplay
Scenes from locations in each episode, including the Quest Compound, are shown to the player with sprites of Jonny, Jessie, or Hadji in the foreground. Players click entrances or objects to move forward or interact with items in the search for three alien artifacts. Jonny is equipped with three tools to help him in his search, including the Tracking Device artifact radar, a GPS unit, and a homing beacon locater for finding Dr. Quest. Players must often complete mini games through the journey, such as driving a jeep across the African savanna or aligning figurines to open a Mesoamerican passage. Help tips are provided for every stage, narrated by a female Questworld voice comparable to EVA from the Command & Conquer series.
Plot
The manual describes the plot thusly:
In an isolated area of Nevada exists AREA 51, a huge tract of land with underground facilities for top secret U.F.O. research. Recently, several rumors have circulated in regard to the nature of this research, most prominently that the government is trying to use alien technologies to create weapons of mass destruction.
Assigned to guard the secretes of Area 51 are the MEN IN BLACK, a battalion of combat-ready "enforcers" who are under the supreme authority of GENERAL TYLER. Several former MEN IN BLACK have recently been indicted on Federal tampering charges, but this hardly seems to have affected their ruthless policies. They are widely considered to be the most dangerous of all government agencies.
Like his subordinates, GENERAL TYLER is not to be taken lightly. Openly criticized by many in military circles as a "rogue lifer," TYLER Is recognized by the Pentagon brass as an extremely effective "silencer." Along with his MEN IN BLACK, he has kept the lid on many a classified operation. He was recently placed in charge of SuNaPhen, an embryonic agency designed to investigate supernatural phenomena. Many individuals who have questioned his authority have disappeared without a trace. TYLER has little tolerance for civilians, in particular RACE BANNON, whom he refers to a "loose cannon."
GENERAL TYLER'S hatred for BANNON is second only to that of DR. JEREMIAH SURD, an evil genius whose deteriorating physical condition has left him relegated to a wheelchair. He blames the QUEST TEAM, and BANNON in particular, for his misfortunes and will stop at nothing to destroy them all. it is a safe bet that most QUEST adventures will involve overcoming SURD and his loyal subordinates. His recent acquisition of a portable QUESTWORLD SYSTEM allows him access to the world of cyberspace, a fantasy land where his physical imitations do not interere with his fanatical obsessions. SURD takes full advantage of QUESTWORLD'S ability to bend reality, prompting the QUEST TEAM to adopt a "trust no one" policy.
When a bank of highly sensitive government monitors pick up a "U.F.O. that is entering Earth's atmosphere, GENERAL TYLER is immediately notified. After the "U.F.O." crashes near the remote town of Roswell, New Mexico, it soon becomes evident that it is actually an alien spaceship. Furthermore, it jettisons several objections prior to impact with the Earth's surface. With these alien components scattered across the globe, GENERAL TYLER dispatches the ruthless MEN IN BLACK to contain the situation. The QUEST TEAM knows full well that they must retrieve these objects before their adversaries do.
The stakes are high for the QUEST TEAM - if the secrets of this alien technology are obtained by either TYLER or SURD, there's not telling what sort of cataclysms could ensue. Most likely, i would spell the end of the QUEST TEAM, not to mention the world as we know it.
Full Summary
An alien vessel has broken up over the earth's atmosphere. Tracked by governmental monitors, it crash lands in Roswell, New Mexico. The observers immediately call General Tyler, head of the Men in Black; he activates their unit on the spot and commands his subordinates to keep the crash from the public. Meanwhile, at the Quest Compound, Jonny jacks in to Questworld's cycle racing game. While in level two, Jonny helplessly watches as Questworld experiences a system overload, with the source cryptically identified as the "Orion Nebula". Hadji manages to pull him out before the system completely crashes; Dr. Quest then arrives, revealing that he has received an urgent e-mail and needs to access Questworld's post office. Frustrated with the crash, he tells Jonny to go to each terminal in the compound and perform the system diagnostics necessary to restore access and Questworld's integrity. Jonny first heads to the Laboratory in the barn to restore the security system. The team notice that a strange commercial ship is docked outside. They then return to the lighthouse to fix the network before going to Jonny's room, where the databanks are put back together. It seems bad data was injected into each system.
Dr. Quest is now able to load the databanks, using the Quest Holographic Operating System version 1.6.2, dated September 19, 1996. The databanks are still somewhat damaged, restricting access to e-mail, video enhancement tools, equipment listings, vehicle listings, a scanner, and the hologlobe.
Audio
It is unknown whether original music was composed for the game or Gary Lionelli's general audio suite for the show was used. Cover-Up At Roswell seems to have a distinctive theme appearing in the title menus of the game and the Quest Compound. Most of the music is featured within the Quicktime files with video, although three suites and one with the distinctive theme are contained in separate AIF files.
- Quest Compound Theme Two (AIF, 347 KB)
- Suite One (AIF, 5.2 MB)
- Suite Two (AIF, 5.8 MB)
- Suite Three (AIF, 11 MB)
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- Quest Compound Theme One (MP3, 1.1 MB)
- Quest Compound Theme Two (MP3, 379 KB)
- Suite One (MP3, 5.8 MB)
- Suite Two (MP3, 6.3 MB)
- Suite Three (MP3, 12 MB)
Media
- Game Manual (PDF, 1.2 MB)
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