Runaway 2: The Dream of the Turtle | |
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Developer(s) | Pendulo Studios |
Publisher(s) | Focus Home Interactive, FX Interactive |
Platform(s) | Windows, Nintendo DS, Wii, iOS |
Release | |
Genre(s) | Adventure |
Mode(s) | Single-player |
Runaway 2: The Dream of the Turtle is a 2006 graphic adventure game developed by the Spanish company Pendulo Studios and published by Focus Home Interactive. The sequel to Runaway: A Road Adventure , it follows protagonists Brian Basco and Gina Timmins as their vacation in Hawaii goes awry, sweeping up the two of them into a secret project by the United States military. The player controls Brian and explores the game world while collecting items, solving puzzles and interacting with non-player characters.
The game had begun preproduction at Pendulo Studios by early 2003. Runaway was a commercial hit for the company and saved it from bankruptcy, and Pendulo rehired much of its lost staff for the sequel. New employee Josué Monchan wrote the game in collaboration with project lead Ramón Hernáez. The project's scope grew ambitious and it was beset by numerous delays. It first launched in France in fall 2006. Originally a computer game, Runaway 2 was later ported to iOS, [1] the Nintendo DS and the Wii.
Runaway 2 received mixed reviews upon release, the worst for a Pendulo title at the time. Monchan later called it the studio's worst-ever game, and said that the team heavily revised its development process for the third Runaway game, Runaway: A Twist of Fate (2009).
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Runaway 2: The Dream of the Turtle is a graphic adventure game controlled with a point-and-click interface.
Runaway 2: The Dream of the Turtle picks up after Runaway: A Road Adventure , as protagonists Brian Basco and Gina Timmins go on the run with $20 million. Much of Runaway 2 takes place in flashback sequences, narrated by Brian via instant messages to his hacker friend Sushi Douglas. The story begins when Brian and Gina's vacation in Hawaii goes awry: during a plane ride, their pilot experiences health problems over Mala Island. Brian pushes Gina out of the plane with the only parachute and then crash lands in the island's jungles. A sniper seemingly shoots Gina with a tranquilizer dart as she falls; her parachute sinks into a lake. Brian awakens aboard the plane and finds that the pilot has vanished. Exiting the jungle, Brian stumbles across an American military camp near the lake in which Gina had landed. He meets with the soldiers' leader, Colonel Kordsmeier, who refuses to provide information about the parachute or the military's presence.
Brian investigates Mala Island for clues. Most of the civilian population has been evacuated by the military, but a few remain: Lokelani, a barmaid and former theatrical makeup artist; surfers Knife and Kai; and Joshua, a man who claims to have returned from an alien abduction to the planet Trantor. Brian also meets a soldier named Zachariah O'Connor who—believing Brian to be an undercover superior—reveals his assignment to escort an Afro-French scientist named Pignon to Kordsmeier's camp. Lokelani and Brian have sex, after which she uses her skills with makeup to disguise him as Pignon. Brian's disguise fools both O'Connor and Kordsmeier, and he is taken to a secured Tiki temple to activate a device called the A.M.E.B.A. Unable to look for Gina because of the military presence, Brian inspects the A.M.E.B.A. and learns that it is a teleportation device. At the same time, Brian finds a secret chamber guarded by special operatives under the command of a ruthless woman named Tarantula. He eavesdrops on Kordsmeier and Tarantula, discovering that the two are collaborators and that they have finally seen through his disguise. Brian uses the A.M.E.B.A. to reach the beaches of Mala Island and meet with Joshua, who claims that the Trantorians are behind the teleportation technology.
Brian and Joshua flee in a motorboat: Joshua believes that he is on a mission from the Trantorians, and must speak with a reclusive scientist named Professor Simon in Alaska. Outside the professor's walled compound, Joshua eats poisonous berries and forgets the password to enter. Brian searches the area and meets bear specialist Ben Wazowski and the violent, condescending Archibald. With help from the two men, he prepares a dish of sushi that counteracts the berries and restores Joshua's memory. Brian and Joshua meet with Professor Simon, who explains that the Trantorians are a scientifically advanced alien race that communicates via telepathy. Kordsmeier seeks to use their technology as a weapon. To force the aliens into complying, Kordsmeier is holding hostage a substance called Trantonite, to which the Trantorians have a special bond. Brian learns that a cache of Trantonite hidden in Palenque—left behind when aliens contacted mankind in antiquity—could ease Kordsmeier's leverage over the Trantorians. Tarantula and her men arrive to assassinate Professor Simon on Kordsmeier's orders, but Brian and Joshua escape, leaving the scientist behind. Brian's instant-message conversation with Sushi is cut short by Tarantula's attack.
After he escapes, Brian wakes up on Sushi's yacht with no memory of his arrival, as a side-effect of party drugs given to him by Sushi's friend Rutger. He learns that Sushi had gone to Palenque while he was unconscious, only to find that the Trantonite had been stolen centuries before by a pirate named Malantùnez, who had subsequently disappeared. Sushi and her friends help Brian locate Malantùnez's shipwreck and dive for the Trantonite, but he is knocked unconscious by a falling timber underwater. He dreams that he is a captive named "Brushian" aboard Malantùnez's ship. Characters from throughout the game and Runaway: A Road Adventure appear in new guises, and Brian eventually locates the Trantonite. After waking up on Sushi's yacht, rescued by a crewmember, Brian knows the Trantonite's location and obtains it on his next dive. The crew prepares to return to Mala Island, deliver the Trantonite to the Trantorians and rescue Gina. Having survived Tarantula's attack, Professor Simon reappears and promises to help. The game ends on a cliffhanger as the crew approaches Mala Island.
Following the international launch of Runaway: A Road Adventure , Pendulo Studios began to plan a sequel. [2] The team had spent a year in a legal battle for Runaway's rights with Dinamic Multimedia, its bankrupt publisher, [3] [4] during which Pendulo had laid off almost its entire staff. [4] After procuring the rights in mid-2002, [3] the team had launched Runaway worldwide to great success, [5] and Pendulo's Rafael Latiegui said that the team "wanted to immediately get [into] a video game" again. He noted that a sequel was the "quickest way" because of the groundwork already laid: [2] Runaway had not been developed with a sequel in mind, but a large number of unused ideas nevertheless remained after the first game's release. [6] In January 2003, PC Games reported that Runaway 2 was under consideration and had been partly storyboarded, but that it was not yet greenlit. [7] According to Latiegui, Pendulo was waiting for the rest of the game's global returns before committing to a new title. [8] The first game's commercial performance, combined with the team's desire to explore Runaway further, ultimately became a key inspiration to greenlight a sequel. [4] [2]
Runaway 2 was first announced by DTP Entertainment in August 2003, at the Games Convention in Leipzig. [9] By that time, the game had passed the initial concepting phase and its plot was finished. [10] Runaway 2's subtitle was revealed as The Dream of the Turtle in October 2004. [11] For Runaway 2, Pendulo rehired the "vast majority" of those laid off due to the Dinamic turmoil, according to Rafael Latiegui. [4]
Discussing Brian's change in appearance and personality in Runaway 2, Latiegui said that the team intended him to lose control of his life following the events of Runaway. [12] [2] The team had considered early in the process that Brian might discover himself to be gay in Runaway 2, according to Ramón Hernáez, to create a situation "such that he does not really know who he is anymore." [13] Latiegui said of the final story in Runaway 2: "He very much tries to prove himself with his [new] look. He has gained a more realistic view of the world but, deep down, he is not a very commendable person. In the first game, Brian had a lot of principles and he lost a lot along the way." [12] Hinting in 2007 at the story of Runaway 2's potential sequel, Latiegui said that "we will probably soon see a Brian who may have changed too quickly and he doesn't feel comfortable with himself." [2]
Pendulo opted to use an upgraded version of the same game engine from the first title, [14] which had itself used an upgrade of the Hollywood Monsters engine. [15] The project was initially scheduled for late 2004. [9] Because of Runaway's high profits, Pendulo was able to put its own money into Runaway 2, [14] although most of the game's funding was derived from French investments. [16] The company held a contest to add the likeness of a player of Runaway to Runaway 2 as a character, resulting in Camille, based on a French fan. [17]
Runaway 2 underwent numerous delays, [18] [19] first to mid-2005 and then to late 2005, spring 2006 and September 2006. [20] [21] [22] [23] Discussing these setbacks at the time, Latiegui argued that it was "important for the quality of development" to take precedence over deadlines. [6] Runaway 2 received an international release roughly 8 months before its mid-2007 Spanish launch. [16]
On the week ending November 19, 2006, Runaway 2 debuted at #4 on France's GfK-SELL sales charts for computer games. [24] [25] It placed second and sixth the following two weeks, respectively, [26] [27] before exiting the top 10 from December 4 through December 17. [28] [29] However, the game returned to #9 on the charts during the week ending December 24. [30] Combined sales of Runaway 2 and its predecessor had reached 250,000 units in France alone by April 2009. [31]
Runaway 2's computer version received a "Gold" certification from the Asociación Española de Distribuidores y Editores de Software de Entretenimiento (aDeSe), for sales of at least 40,000 units in Spain. [32]
Worldwide, Runaway 2 and its predecessor together sold one million copies by April 2009. [31] According to ABC , the Runaway series as a whole—including Runaway: A Twist of Fate —had risen to 1.5 million units sold worldwide by March 2010. [33]
Aggregator | Score |
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Metacritic | 67/100 [34] |
Publication | Score |
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4Players | 80/100 [35] |
GameSpot | 5.8/10 [36] |
GameSpy | [37] |
IGN | 7.2/10 [38] |
Joystick | 5/10 [39] |
PC Games (DE) | 76/100 [40] |
PC Zone | 60/100 [41] |
X-Play | [42] |
PC Action | 78/100 [43] |
MeriStation | 8/10 [44] |
Runaway 2's original computer release received "mixed or average reviews", according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. [34] Josué Monchan of Pendulo Studios noted that the game was widely disliked by reviewers. [45]
Aggregator | Score | ||
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DS | iOS | Wii | |
Metacritic | 64/100 [46] | 55/100 [47] | 68/100 [48] |
Publication | Score | ||
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DS | iOS | Wii | |
Adventure Gamers | [49] | N/A | N/A |
GamesMaster | 78% [50] | N/A | N/A |
NGamer | 50% [51] | N/A | N/A |
Marca Player | 7.9/10 [52] | N/A | N/A |
Like its computer version, Runaway 2's ports received "mixed or average" reviews, according to Metacritic. [46] [47] [48]
In retrospect, Pendulo's Josué Monchan called Runaway 2 "a horrible game" and "the biggest shit we've ever made". [45] He cited his own dialogue writing as a key flaw, as "comedy is rhythm and [he] had no rhythm." In 2019, Monchan stated that he still occasionally returned to Runaway 2's dialogue to learn from his mistakes. [53] He noted that the entire team learned from Runaway 2's poor reception to take feedback into greater consideration for its future titles, which influenced the design of the next Runaway entry. [45] A third Runaway had been considered during Runaway 2's creation, [6] and Pendulo unofficially confirmed that it was under development in November 2006. [54] [55] It received an official announcement at Games Convention in August 2007; certain outlets initially reported that Runaway 3 would be set in Japan and would take place immediately after its predecessor. [56] The game was first shown in February 2008 at the Game Developers Conference, where its name was revealed as Runaway: A Twist of Fate . [57] Pendulo and publisher Focus Home Interactive hoped to attract series newcomers with the numberless title, and Jeux Video reported that the game was "not the direct follow-up" to Runaway 2, but a relatively standalone project. [58] Monchan said that Pendulo "rethought everything" about adventure game development as it created the game, in hopes of avoiding the mistakes of Runaway 2. [45]
A new engine was adopted for A Twist of Fate that offered improved graphics, [59] [60] although the game retained a pre-rendered 2D visual style. [61] A Twist of Fate tells the story of Brian's attempt to escape from an insane asylum, where he is detained due to a murder accusation against him. Unlike the first two Runaway entries, the game features Gina as a playable character alongside Brian. [62] A Twist of Fate was first released internationally in November 2009; [63] its Spanish version, again delayed, launched in early 2010. [62]
Pendulo opted to temporarily retire the Runaway franchise after A Twist of Fate, although the team retained ideas for potential sequels. Latiegui explained in 2011, "After almost a decade with the saga, we needed a break." [64] The team reported that it was particularly tired of Brian as a character. [65] [66] Nevertheless, Pendulo undertook a new Runaway title the following year, under the name Hidden Runaway . [67] Unlike Pendulo's earlier work, Hidden Runaway is a hidden object game aimed at casual players. [66] The game was released for iOS devices in October 2012. [68]
Runaway: A Road Adventure is a 2001 graphic adventure game developed by the Spanish company Pendulo Studios and published by Dinamic Multimedia. It follows the story of Brian Basco, an American college student on the run after he unwittingly saves a murder witness named Gina Timmins from assassination by the New York Mafia. Searching for clues about a mysterious crucifix linked to the murder, Brian and Gina embark on a cross-country journey through the United States while pursued by two Mafia hitmen. The player assumes the role of Brian and explores the game world while collecting items, solving puzzles and conversing with non-player characters.
Ankh: Heart of Osiris is the second game in the Ankh series of video games. The game was released in Germany on October 30, 2006, in France on November 17, and in the United Kingdom on May 18, 2007. The development team originally considered to make the game as an expansion pack to Ankh, but was later developed as a pseudo-sequel to the first game.
Jack Keane is a 2007 point-and-click adventure game developed by Deck13 Interactive, published by 10tacle Studios, and digitally distributed by Legacy Interactive. Jack Keane is an adventure game in the spirit of Monkey Island, with references to well-known computer games and classic films. Players assume the role of a hapless, swashbuckling adventurer and accompany him in his travels across 15 locations throughout London, Cape Town, and Tooth Island. The game contains various humorous references, e.g. regarding Indiana Jones, the Monkey Island adventure game series, the computer game Ankh, Star Wars, the TV series Lost and the Lord of the Rings films.
Pendulo Studios S.L. is a Madrid-based video game developer founded in 1993 by Ramón Hernáez, Felipe Gómez Pinilla, Rafael Latiegui and Miguel Angel Ramos. Since the company's 1994 debut project, Igor: Objective Uikokahonia, it has specialized in graphic adventure games. Pendulo first achieved mainstream prominence in Spain via Hollywood Monsters (1997), which met with critical and commercial success in the country but was never released beyond Southern Europe.
So Blonde, subtitled Lost in the Caribbean in Spanish and Blonde in Trouble in Russian and Polish, is a point-and-click adventure game released for Windows in 2008. Two spin-off games have been released: So Blonde: Back to the Island in 2010 and Captain Morgane and the Golden Turtle in 2012.
Egypt III, known as The Egyptian Prophecy in North America, is a 2004 graphic adventure game developed by Kheops Studio and published by The Adventure Company. The player must solve an array of ancient riddles that will help a dying Pharaoh survive and restore Egypt to glory. The game is the third and final game in the Egypt trilogy, following Egypt 1156 B.C. and Egypt II: The Heliopolis Prophecy. In 2010, Microïds released an adaptation of the game, split into parts, for the Apple iPhone.
Salammbo: Battle for Carthage is a first-person perspective adventure video game. It began development at Cryo Interactive, but the company went bankrupt during production. The Salammbo team was ultimately acquired by DreamCatcher Interactive, which finished the game's development.
Hollywood Monsters is a 1997 graphic adventure game developed by the Spanish company Pendulo Studios and published by Dinamic Multimedia. It takes place in an alternate-history 1950s, where the creatures from Golden Age monster movies are played by real monsters who lead otherwise normal lives. Controlling reporters Sue Bergman and Ron Ashman, the player seeks to unravel a mystery surrounding the murder of Frankenstein's monster. In the process, the player undertakes a globetrotting journey to locations like Transylvania and Egypt, while solving puzzles and interacting with characters such as Count Dracula, the Invisible Man and the Mummy.
Runaway: A Twist of Fate is a 2009 graphic adventure game developed by the Spanish company Pendulo Studios and published by Focus Home Interactive. It is the third entry in the Runaway franchise. The game follows series protagonists Brian Basco and Gina Timmins as they seek to clear Brian's name of a murder. Taking control of both characters, the player explores the game world, collects items, solves puzzles and converses with non-player characters.
Ankh: Battle of the Gods is a third-person adventure video game, released in 2007 for the Windows and Macintosh computers, developed by Deck13 and published by BHV Software. As with Ankh and Ankh: Heart of Osiris, Ankh: Battle of the Gods utilises a modified version of the Ogre 3D graphics engine.
Igor: Objective Uikokahonia is a 1994 graphic adventure game developed by the Spanish company Pendulo Studios and published by DROsoft. The game tells the story of Igor Parker, a university student in love with a classmate named Laura Wright. Hoping to win her affection, Igor surmounts a series of obstacles in an effort to join her on a field trip to the island paradise of Uikokahonia. The player assumes the role of Igor and navigates the campus while collecting items, solving puzzles and conversing with non-player characters.
The Next Big Thing is a 2011 comedy graphic adventure game developed by the Spanish company Pendulo Studios and published by Focus Home Interactive. The spiritual successor to Pendulo's Hollywood Monsters (1997), it takes place in an alternate-history 1940s Hollywood where real monsters portray themselves in monster movies. The game follows reporters Dan Murray and Liz Allaire as they uncover a conspiracy within the film industry. Assuming control of Dan and Liz, the player navigates the game world, converses with non-player characters and solves puzzles.
Yesterday is a 2012 graphic adventure game developed by the Spanish company Pendulo Studios and published by Focus Home Interactive. It follows the story of John Yesterday, a man hired to investigate the murder of homeless people in New York City.
3 Skulls of the Toltecs is a point-and-click graphic adventure game designed by Revistronic for IBM PC compatibles and published by Warner Interactive Europe in 1996. The game uses a 3rd-person perspective, inventory-based puzzle solving, and horizontally scrolling cartoon graphics. 3 Skulls of the Toltecs sold 200,000 copies throughout Europe and 25,000 copies in Spain.
The Westerner is a graphic adventure game developed by Revistronic. It was published in late 2003 in Spain by Planeta DeAgostini. In 2004, it was published worldwide, including in the US, where it was renamed Wanted: A Wild Western Adventure. Set in the Wild West, it is the sequel to 3 Skulls of the Toltecs. The game is in 3D, although it preserves the traditional point and click gameplay and comic style of LucasArts productions. In May 2016, Casual Brothers reintroduced the game on both iOS and Android. By March 2005, The Westerner had sold more than 200,000 units worldwide.
Mortadelo y Filemón: Una Aventura de Cine is a 2000 adventure video game for Windows. It was re-released in Spain in November 2003, and in Germany in 2004 by Crimson Cow, and was developed by Spanish studio Alcachofa Soft. The game is in German, but was never localized to English. It is the third game in the Mort & Phil adventure game series, following El Sulfato Atómico (1998) by Alcachofa and La Máquina Meteoroloca (1999) by Vega Creaciones Multimedia.
Yesterday Origins is a 2016 graphic adventure game developed by the Spanish company Pendulo Studios and published by Microïds. Both a prequel and a sequel to Pendulo's earlier Yesterday, the game follows protagonists John Yesterday and his girlfriend Pauline as they try to unravel the mystery of John's immortality. The player takes control of John and Pauline and explores the game world, solves puzzles, collects items and converses with non-player characters.
Blacksad: Under the Skin is a 2019 adventure game developed by Pendulo Studios and published by Microïds. The game is an adaptation of the Spanish comic series Blacksad by Juan Díaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido. It follows John Blacksad as he investigates the suspicious death of a boxing club owner.
Hidden Runaway is a 2012 hidden object game developed by the Spanish company Pendulo Studios and published by BulkyPix. It follows protagonists Brian Basco and Gina Timmins as they retell events from Runaway: A Road Adventure (2001) to a film producer interested in their life story. Along the way, the player plays minigames and searches for objects hidden in the game's environments. Hidden Runaway marked a departure for Pendulo, as it was the company's first casual game and first project outside the graphic adventure game genre.
Alfred Hitchcock – Vertigo is an adventure video game developed by the Spanish company Pendulo Studios and published by Microids. It is loosely based on the films of Alfred Hitchcock, particularly Vertigo (1958). The story follows a man named Ed Miller, who enters therapy to cope with the mysterious after-effects of a car crash.