| Creatures II: Torture Trouble | |
|---|---|
 Cover art | |
| Developer(s) | Apex Computer Productions |
| Publisher(s) | Thalamus Ltd |
| Platform(s) | Commodore 64 |
| Release | |
| Genre(s) | Platform |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Creatures II: Torture Trouble is a platform game for the Commodore 64 computer, released in 1992. It was developed by Apex Computer Productions, the company started by two brothers, John Rowlands (who wrote the code) and Steve Rowlands (who created the graphics and music). It is the sequel to Creatures .
The game is composed of three islands, each with a set of stages that have to be completed. During torture screens, interludes, and island-hopping levels, bonus coins can be gathered for extra lives.
These levels offer a Heath Robinson situation in which one of Clyde's children has been placed. The player must figure out which actions to take in order to free his child. For example, in the first level shown in the screenshot, the player must navigate over the stepping stones and push the bomb down to the loose rock; then he must kill the monster in the middle and light the bomb. After this is done, the player must shoot the switch that is attached to the bicycle, detaching it from the generator and freeing his child. If this is not done in time, the child will be transported by the conveyor belt until he is under the rock-crushing machine, at which point he will be reduced to pulp.
Following each torture screen are the interludes. These levels are fairly straightforward. A monster at the top right of the screen will throw Clyde's child over the edge. The player must then use the stretcher as a trampoline, bouncing the child safely to the other side.
After two torture screens and two interludes come the demon screens. The player must kill three demons of increasing size, by kicking small animals secreted from a Bug-O-Matic into pneumatic tubes at either end of the screen.
After clearing an island, it is time to move onto the next island. During Island Hoppin', Clyde is wearing scuba gear and must transport his children across a series of islands while avoiding various dangerous animals and monsters.
After the last demon family has been destroyed, an end sequence follows wherein Clyde and his children capture the last remaining monster and kill it with a chainsaw.
The built-in cheat in Creatures II is unorthodox. To gain infinite lives, the player must wait for the credits screen to appear, then wet their finger and quickly rub it across Joystick Port One. A big picture of Maximus Mouse (from the games Summer Camp and Winter Camp by Thalamus) will appear, waving his arms every time the player rubs their finger across the port. The player must repeatedly rub the port until Maximus Mouse turns grey, at which point the Fuzzy fountain will also flash to confirm that the cheat is now active. [2]
Creatures II was awarded 97% in Zzap!64 [3] and 90% in Commodore Format . [4]
Thalamus Ltd was a British computer game developer that published titles for a number of 8-bit and 16-bit platforms during the late 1980s and early 1990s.
H.E.R.O. is a video game written by John Van Ryzin and published by Activision for the Atari 2600 in March 1984. It was ported to the Apple II, Atari 5200, Atari 8-bit family, ColecoVision, Commodore 64, MSX, and ZX Spectrum. The player uses a helicopter backpack and other tools to rescue victims trapped deep in a mine. The mine is made up of multiple screens using a flip screen style.
Bone Cruncher is a puzzle video game for the Acorn Electron, BBC Micro, and Commodore 64 first published by Superior Software in 1987. It uses the "rocks and diamonds" mechanics of Boulder Dash. An Amiga version was released in 1988.
Project Firestart is a cinematic survival horror game for the Commodore 64 computer system. It was designed by Jeff Tunnell and Damon Slye and published by Electronic Arts in 1989. Taking place in the 21st century, the game follows a government agent dispatched to a research station in orbit around Saturn's moon, Titan, to learn why the scientists there abruptly cut off communication with Earth. The game has been cited by various gaming journalists and writers as one of, if not the first, survival horror game, pioneering many conventions of the genre including limited ammunition, an emphasis on escaping enemies and puzzle solving over combat, solving a central mystery, and multiple endings.
Wizard of Wor is an arcade video game released in 1980 by Midway. Up to two players fight together in a series of monster-infested mazes, clearing each maze by shooting the creatures. The game was ported to the Atari 8-bit family, Commodore 64, Atari 2600, and Atari 5200 and renamed to The Incredible Wizard for the Bally Astrocade. The original cartridge came with a cash prize offer to the first person to complete the game.
The Movie Monster Game is a computer game released by Epyx for the Apple II and Commodore 64 in 1986. The game offers a variety of scenarios, playable monsters, and cities to demolish. The monsters are based on popular movie monsters such as The Blob, Mothra, the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man, and the Transformers, and Epyx was able to officially license Godzilla.
Sanxion is a horizontally scrolling shooter developed by Stavros Fasoulas for the Commodore 64 and published in 1986 by Thalamus Ltd. It was the first game released by Thalamus. A ZX Spectrum port followed in 1989. Fasoulas also wrote Delta and Quedex.
Super Pipeline is a puzzle game written by Andy Walker for the Commodore 64 published by Taskset in 1983. The objective is to keep a series of pipes unblocked so that water may flow through them. It was followed by Super Pipeline II by the same author in 1985.
Creatures is a platform game for the Commodore 64 computer developed by Apex Computer Productions and released in 1990. The game was made by two brothers who were founders of the company, John Rowlands (programming) and Steve Rowlands. It was later ported by WJS Design for Atari ST and released in 1992 and to the Amiga in 1993.
Druid is a hack and slash dungeon crawl developed by Electralyte Software and published by Firebird in 1986 for the Atari 8-bit family and Commodore 64. It was also ported to Amstrad CPC, ZX Spectrum, and by Nippon Dexter in 1988 for the MSX, although the MSX port was released in Japan only. Another Japanese port of Druid entitled Druid: Kyōfu no Tobira (ドルイド 恐怖の扉) was made for the Famicom Disk System by Jaleco in 1988. The game was followed by Druid II: Enlightenment and Warlock: The Avenger.
Apex Computer Productions was the brothers John and Steve Rowlands, British based game designers and programmers on the Commodore 64 in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Kane is a multi-section action game published by Mastertronic for the Commodore 64 in 1986. It was ported to the Acorn Electron, Amstrad CPC, BBC Micro, ZX Spectrum, and the Commodore 16 and Plus/4. The game is set in the Wild West, and its name is a reference to the main character of the film High Noon. It consists of four distinct scenes, although some versions only contain two. A sequel was released in 1988.
Dropzone is a horizontally scrolling shooter developed by Archer Maclean for the Atari 8-bit family and published in 1984 by U.S. Gold. It was ported to the Commodore 64, and later released for the Nintendo Entertainment System, Game Boy, Game Gear, and Game Boy Color.
Beach Head II: The Dictator Strikes Back is a 1985 video game for the Commodore 64, a sequel to Beach Head, developed and published by Access Software. It was designed by Bruce Carver and his brother, Roger, and was released for the Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari 8-bit family, Commodore 64, and ZX Spectrum.
Forbidden Forest is a game designed by Paul Norman, published by Cosmi Corporation in 1983 for the Commodore 64 and Atari 8-bit family.
Myth: History in the Making is a 2D platform game developed and published by British publishing house System 3 for the Commodore 64, Amiga, Amiga CD32, Amstrad CPC and ZX Spectrum. It was also released on the NES as Conan: The Mysteries of Time. It was officially announced for Atari ST and a preview version was available, but the full version was never released.
Black Lamp is a platform game, originally published by Firebird Software for the Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum computers in 1988, and later published by Atari Corporation for the Atari 8-bit family in 1989.
Barbarian II: The Dungeon of Drax is a video game first published in 1988 for various home computers. It was released as Axe of Rage in North America. The game is the sequel to Barbarian: The Ultimate Warrior, which was published in 1987. In Barbarian II, the player controls a princess or barbarian character, exploring the game world to locate and defeat an evil wizard. The game's plot is an extension of its predecessor, although the gameplay is different. While the first game offers two players the opportunity for virtual head-to-head combat, the second is a single-player beat 'em up with fewer fighting moves. It uses a flip-screen style instead of scrolling.
Cops 'n' Robbers is a video game published by Atlantis Software in 1985 for the VIC-20 and in virtually identical form on the Commodore 64. It was ported to the Commodore 16 and Commodore Plus/4 (1986), Acorn Electron and BBC Micro (1987), and the Atari 8-bit family (1988). The game was controversial when released as the player takes the role of a robber and must shoot the police.
The Real Ghostbusters is a 1987 shoot 'em up arcade game developed and published by Data East in the United States. It is loosely based on the animated series of the same name. In Japan, Data East released it as a non-Ghostbusters arcade game under the title Meikyuu Hunter G. In 1989, Activision published The Real Ghostbusters for Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, and ZX Spectrum.