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Post by Woody Alien on Jul 30, 2018 5:53:35 GMT -5
4-part article. A simple and very average Euro-platformer about a caveman, that however is much better remembered than its improved sequels/"remaquels" for some reason. The abysmal 2013 remake should be left alone though.
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Murphy
Junior Member
Posts: 75
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Post by Murphy on Jul 30, 2018 8:17:44 GMT -5
This is the game where I learned about Titus and its absolutely terrifying logo. It still freaks me out. Nevertheless, well written retrospective.
Is it just me, or doesn't "scream attack" in Prehistorik Man sound like Tom's from Tom & Jerry?
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Post by Gendo Ikari on Jul 30, 2018 9:49:16 GMT -5
I still remember Prehistorik 2 fondly, it may have been not an exceptional game, but the average of DOS platformers at the time wasn't much, so it stood out with its colorful graphics and expansive levels. Although in a little annoying way, it encouraged exploration because there were many secret passages (invisible "doors" where you had to press Down to enter) and spots where you could "hit" thin air until causing food to pour out.
I see, however, no mention of one of its big quirks, the scrolling. The game cannot keep the character centered in the middle of the screen, it scrolls only when he's near the edges, so they added the ability to look forward, which forces the scrolling left or right. The probable cause is the game's code being an improved version of the one used for Moktar / Titus the Fox, which suffered the same problem, often forcing the player to stand still a few seconds so the screen would show what lied further forward before taking risks. It was also limited to the DOS version, as videos of the Amiga version of TtF show much better scrolling routines. It's also cute that both games were coded to show a message "you are still playing this in [insert year]" every time you start them up since 1996.
The 2013 game is even more awful that Woody's description. It looks really bad, it's full of grating "humour", it controls sloppily... I can't find a video going that forward (I think no one has had the stomach to make a full longplay of it) but I recall the first or second boss making some Rocky parody, music included, possibly a reference to how they ripped off the theme back in the very first Prehistorik. That may be the only clever moment of the game.
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Post by spanky on Jul 30, 2018 11:08:41 GMT -5
The SNES game is really excellent. I remember magazines trashing it because at the time, a 2D platformer couldn't get any love unless it had fancy graphics. I rented it a couple years after it came out and was really impressed at what a solid, fun game it was. Good music too!
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Post by kaoru on Jul 30, 2018 11:28:41 GMT -5
The 2013 game is even more awful that Woody's description. It looks really bad, it's full of grating "humour", it controls sloppily... I can't find a video going that forward (I think no one has had the stomach to make a full longplay of it) but I recall the first or second boss making some Rocky parody, music included, possibly a reference to how they ripped off the theme back in the very first Prehistorik. Someone did, as I found out when searching for something showing the final boss.
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Post by spanky on Jul 30, 2018 12:11:08 GMT -5
Holy cow does that game look cheap in motion.
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Post by dsparil on Jul 30, 2018 14:04:53 GMT -5
I have Prehistorik 2 for god knows why, and it always felt like a B- or C-list platformer. Not exactly terrible, but it lacks a certain je ne sais quoi.
Titus itself is better left forgotten for a variety of reasons, but their destruction of Interplay is unforgivable.
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Post by Woody Alien on Jul 31, 2018 6:05:34 GMT -5
The 2013 game is even more awful that Woody's description. It looks really bad, it's full of grating "humour", it controls sloppily... I can't find a video going that forward (I think no one has had the stomach to make a full longplay of it) but I recall the first or second boss making some Rocky parody, music included, possibly a reference to how they ripped off the theme back in the very first Prehistorik. Someone did, as I found out when searching for something showing the final boss. I only put in the article a pic showing the final boss from an artwork rather than gameplay, because at that point I was too frustrated and annoyed by the game and creeped out by the boss' moans and air humping to remember to take a screenshot... But I think nothing of value was lost.
It does quite sound like it, I wonder if it's a modified sample.
It sure is a forgotten little gem whose only problem is the lack of passwords or save states, frustratingly common in Titus games for some arcane reason.
I remember some time ago a HG101 forum denizen complaining about the vehicles in Prehistorik Man being hard to control and that they ruined the experience; but honestly, when I emulated the game to take screenshots for the article, I played it with the keyboard and didn't notice any real problem with them.
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Post by kaoru on Jul 31, 2018 7:03:26 GMT -5
Someone did, as I found out when searching for something showing the final boss. I only put in the article a pic showing the final boss from an artwork rather than gameplay, because at that point I was too frustrated and annoyed by the game and creeped out by the boss' moans and air humping to remember to take a screenshot... But I think nothing of value was lost. Oh, it wasn't meant as critique to the article. Just got curious how bad it is once I read the description (also didn't even notice that last picture to be honest - the side bar scrolls a bit late on these short articles).
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