| Ed Hunter | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Compilation album &video game by Iron Maiden & Synthetic Dimensions | ||||
| Released | 17 May 1999 | |||
| Recorded | 1980–1998 | |||
| Genre | Heavy metal | |||
| Length | 103:16[1] | |||
| Label | EMI | |||
| Iron Maiden compilations chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| Melody Maker | [3] |
Ed Hunter is agreatest hits album andvideo game released in 1999 by English heavy metal bandIron Maiden andSynthetic Dimensions. The game objective consists of following Iron Maiden's mascot,Eddie, through various levels depicting the band's past album covers. The accompanying CDs have the group's most popular songs, as selected by fans on the band's official website.
The album was released alongside atour of the same name, in which the band only played songs which were featured in the compilation. The tour itself was also notable for marking the return of former guitaristAdrian Smith and vocalistBruce Dickinson, who had left the band in 1990 and 1993, respectively.
The band's intention to release their own video game was announced in a sticker which appeared on the case of their 1996 compilation album,Best of the Beast, which stated, "Available soon...Melt, Eddie's own state-of-the-art 3D game." In September 1997, the band announced that theMelt project had been cancelled, with then vocalistBlaze Bayley commenting, "It was crap. Maiden want to give their fans something to blow them away. The new one will."[4] The band also revealed that a different game would be released in its place, with Bayley commenting, "This game is nearly there. You've got to get to Eddie through time and space, heaven and hell..... the works ! It's ashoot 'em up which we promise will out-shoot`em all."[4] Prior to its release, bassistSteve Harris commented that "it's the most amazing thing I've ever seen. I don't get shocked very often, butEd Hunter was so good. It's like walking into a 3D version of theSomewhere in Time album cover, like going into the bar at the Ruskin Arms, only full of aliens and stuff. You go in and we'll be, like, holograms playing in the corner, or sitting at a table gambling. And then you've actually got the game itself, which is, like, this big shoot-'em-up chase through space and time to catch Eddie. It's brilliant."[5] Originally slated for release in the Spring of 1998,[4] the game was then pushed back to Christmas 1998[6] and eventually July 1999 to tie in withThe Ed Hunter Tour.
The package includes three CDs. The first CD contains 14 songs, the second CD contains six songs and the installation program for the game, and the third CD contains the game data. The soundtrack consists of the top 20 songs voted for by Iron Maiden fans on the band's official website.[2] The US version also contained a hidden bonus track of a new vocal version of "Wrathchild" withBruce Dickinson.[7]
The game passes through various levels, starting inLondon's East End before progressing to apsychiatric hospital,hell, and other various locations, all of which are lifted from the covers of past Iron Maiden albums.[8] While the gameplay itself consists of shooting the appearing enemies with themouse cursor, it acts as arail shooter, meaning that the player has no control over movement apart from occasionally choosing the route he will take through the levels.[8] In spite of this, the user can select which tracks play in the background, although only one song can be chosen for each level, which led to critics complaining about the soundtrack's repetitiveness.[8]
The Ed Hunter Tour was thetour supporting thealbum and was the first tour withBruce Dickinson on vocal duties since 1993,[9] and withAdrian Smith on guitar since 1988.[10][11]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original album | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Iron Maiden" (Live inLong Beach,USA 1985) | Steve Harris | 1985 ~Live After Death(1980 ~Iron Maiden) | 4:27 |
| 2. | "The Trooper" | Harris | 1983 ~Piece of Mind | 4:11 |
| 3. | "The Number of the Beast" | Harris | 1982 ~The Number of the Beast | 4:51 |
| 4. | "Wrathchild" | Harris | 1981 ~Killers | 2:54 |
| 5. | "Futureal" | Harris,Blaze Bayley | 1998 ~Virtual XI | 2:54 |
| 6. | "Fear of the Dark" | Harris | 1992 ~Fear of the Dark | 7:17 |
| 7. | "Be Quick or Be Dead" | Bruce Dickinson,Janick Gers | 1992 ~Fear of the Dark | 3:24 |
| 8. | "2 Minutes to Midnight" | Adrian Smith, Dickinson | 1984 ~Powerslave | 6:00 |
| 9. | "Man on the Edge" | Bayley, Gers | 1995 ~The X Factor | 4:11 |
| 10. | "Aces High" | Harris | 1984 ~Powerslave | 4:29 |
| 11. | "The Evil That Men Do" | Smith, Dickinson, Harris | 1988 ~Seventh Son of a Seventh Son | 4:34 |
| 12. | "Wasted Years" | Smith | 1986 ~Somewhere in Time | 5:05 |
| 13. | "Powerslave" | Dickinson | 1984 ~Powerslave | 6:48 |
| 14. | "Hallowed Be Thy Name" | Harris | 1982 ~The Number of the Beast | 7:14 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original album | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15. | "Wrathchild" (1999 Version) | Harris | Previously unreleased(1981 ~Killers) | 2:56 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original album | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Run to the Hills" | Harris | 1982 ~The Number of the Beast | 3:54 |
| 2. | "The Clansman" | Harris | 1998 ~Virtual XI | 8:59 |
| 3. | "Phantom of the Opera" | Harris | 1980 ~Iron Maiden | 7:06 |
| 4. | "Killers" | Harris,Paul Di'Anno | 1981 ~Killers | 5:00 |
| 5. | "Stranger in a Strange Land" | Smith | 1986 ~Somewhere in Time | 5:43 |
| 6. | "Tailgunner" | Harris, Dickinson | 1990 ~No Prayer for the Dying | 4:15 |
| Total length: | 103:16 | |||
Production credits are adapted from the album liner notes.[1]
| Chart (1999) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[12] | 69 |
| Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[13] | 27 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[14] | 94 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[15] | 43 |
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[16] | Silver | 60,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
