Welcome to the 95th issue of the GBAtemp Recommends Revival Project! This is a weekly feature where we talk about some of our past favourites. Some may be famous, others have been ignored when released against larger titles but all are a worth your time.
C64
Amiga
The Turrican series, one of my all time favourite action/shooters. There isn't a single bad entry in the five official games (Mega Turrican & Turrican III are the same game). The games were combinations of some of the best shooters going and had fantastic atmosphere and a great sci-fi tone that we just don't get. Ultimately it was a game of its time, if it was done now it'll probably look way too clean and shiny and would probably have some kind of pet mini robot dog to assist you...or like Super Turrican II which is a good game but nothing amazing and really doesn't fit in with the rest of the series.[prebreak][/prebreak]
It's hard to say which one is technically best in the series, they all have their merits and have enough additional elements for them to stand on their own but I prefer Turrican II, maybe as that was the one I played growing up but it feels more varied and balanced.
Going in the game I was expecting it to be not as good as I originally thought it was and with the first couple of levels, I was wrong...it was better. I noticed things that I completely forgot about. The bleakness of the levels, the wind elements that helped and prevented you from getting to the end of the level and also how frantic it can be at times. I completely forgot how it mixed up various shooters and also how much a bitch was the side scrolling R-Type levels were!
Its 3025, there has been many many years of peace and everyone has been getting along with each other. Then some jerk Emperor called The Machine comes in, attacks the United Planets Ship with mean badass technology the likes the United Planets haven't come across before and they end up getting beaten to crap and peace is shattered. This really pisses of one of the Avalon 1 soldiers, a Bren Mcguire and he sets off to find this dickhead to defeat him.
Level design is really well made, platforms are seemingly placed not at random but in places that feel just right for the game. The five worlds are different to one another and the overall design of the parallax backgrounds, well animated sprites and nicely textured platforms and caverns fits a bleak late 70s/early 80s sci-fi setting. Also by the end you'll notice that they have ripped off the design of Aliens! But fuck it right? Personally I prefer the C64 version of the game for looks, it just has a more "dirty" look of it, and I like my sci-fi to look more dirty than clean.
Gameplay it's a big improvement over the first, while the run and gun elements are still there and the influence of the classic 1987 game Psycho-Nics Oscar is still shining through, there is more emphasis on platforming than before. In the first game you ran, jumped and shot your way to the end, in this game there is more exploring to do. While not as deep as exploring as Metroid, there is more to the game than just getting to the end. You also have more range in weaponry than before and many people who play this will have their own weapon of choice...and then bitch about losing it when they collect another by mistake. Taking inspiration from regular platformers there are secret rooms and hidden blocks that can help get you power ups. For the home computer owner, this was our Metroid and up until Super Metroid it was better. Once you've got to the end of each world you'll be faced against one big ass boss, like with most shooters all you have to do is find the sweet vulnerable spot and you'll be able to defeat the big bugger...well if you can dodge it and avoid the bullets.
The sounds are a delight. The sound effects have some cool blasty explosions noises and the odd vocal sample to add a little eeriness to the game. However its the music 1]in the game that is something special. The tunes aren't repetitive and really add to the overall theme of the 70s/80s the game has, just typing Turrican 2 in the Youtube search box will come up with many many videos that just showcase the excellent music that this game, and series has offered. I'll be honest, I do prefer the C64 version solely because of the music, while its crisper on the Amiga I'm just a sucker for the different C64 SID tunes, the Amiga music is good but I think the different music just suits the game far better.
Lifespan depends on the gameplay, its very easy to get into and hard to put down but some gamers may be put off by the fact that once you die...you're dead and you have to start all over again, but those babies can always use save states. As I said, I was expecting to not enjoy this as much as I did before but I ended up liking it even more! While it is a game of its time, it is different to many console games of similar type and its very typical of the C64/Amiga etc platforming shooter but because of those reasons it still stands out well today and I recommend any fan of shooters, especially those who may want a more linear Metroid to give it a go.
There was a port of this to the Mega Drive however it was basically a re-branded as Universal Soldier and re-skinned...the devs screwed it over and took some of the best bits out of it but just ignore that version and grab this for either C64 or Amiga. There is a PC version but its a bit too clean for my liking.
If you want to submit a game, please let me know first and we'll discuss it.For a look at all the games we have covered, please visit our Wiki page for a complete list with links.
