Time Gal[a] is an
interactive movie video game developed and published by
Taito and
Toei Company, and originally released as a
laserdisc game in Japan for the
arcades in 1985. It is an
action game which uses
full motion video (FMV) to display the on-screen action. The player must correctly choose the on-screen character's actions to progress the story. The pre-recorded animation for the game was produced by
Toei Animation.
The game is set in a fictional future where
time travel is possible. The protagonist, Reika, travels to different time periods in search of a criminal, Luda, from her time. After successfully tracking down Luda, Reika prevents his plans to alter the past.
Time Gal was inspired by the success of earlier laserdisc video games that used pre-recorded animation, including
Dragon's Lair (1983) and the previous Taito/Toei collaboration
Ninja Hayate (1984), while Reika's character design bears similarities to the
anime characters
Lum (from
Urusei Yatsura) and Yuri (from
Dirty Pair).
The game was later
ported to the
Sega CD for a worldwide release, and also to the
LaserActive in Japan. The Sega CD version received a generally favorable reception from critics.
