 Work on the game began in late 1993, with a development deadline of June 1994.The development team initially came up with six different worlds themed around varying TV channels, including a horror world and a science fiction world.Each world was given three distinct sets of art design that could be used to create unique levels; for instance, the horror world had a haunted house set, a graveyard set, and a "Mode 2" set for a vertically scrolling level.