Turok 2: Seeds of Evil
The most frightening game of your childhood is getting a remake.
The title music alone is enough to bring chills. It generates bloodcurdling memories of evolved dinosaurs, isolating dark settings, and fear. Plain fear. Turok 2: Seeds of Evil puts you in the shoes of a silent, yet heroic protagonist as he tries to rid the world from these weapon-wielding dinosaurs. The gameplay is quick-paced, the action is frantic, the experience is unforgettable.
1998 provided some of the most classic Nintendo 64 games to date. Titles such as Zelda: The Ocarina of Time, Banjo Kazooie, and Star Wars: Rogue Squadron. Turok 2 may have not topped the highest selling list (it sits number 35 on the best selling N64 list) but it’s a title that is fondly remembered. To this day there is a cult following for the Turok series, so much so that news of a remastering has spread all over the internet. But just why was this action/adventure/horror/FPS so popular in the first place?
Turok’s storymode quite literally throws the player straight into the action. Turok rolls through a portal into what seems to be the middle of space. You are met by a blue woman named Adon. She informs the player that an alien race has attacked a sacred land, and it’s up to you to stop them. Thus begins the story! You begin in what seems to be an abandoned village, with the remains of dead soldiers on the floor. Over the haunting music you can hear the screams and cries of the distant villagers…gulp.
The opening cut scene really creates the atmosphere and sets the tone. You witness helpless children and powerless soldiers being slaughtered by these monsters. The visuals were cutting edge for the time: they really aided in making the player nervous and afraid. Something that really made Turok stand out at the time was the spoken dialogue. In a time of written text, Turok really engaged the player through the speech. You were captivated by all that Adon said, and how she said it.
In order to take out these mutant-dinosaurs you need an array of weapons. Luckily Turok does not disappoint. There are countless exciting and dangerous weapons available, from powerful shotguns to explosive grenade launchers. The aiming system was brilliant too: it really helped make these weapons feel authentic and dangerous. Although you can expect the enemies to have these weapons too, so you have to be on your guard. Turk does have the incredibly sharp claws connected to his gloves, but believe me, you do not want to get close enough to the beasts to have to slash at them. Treat it as a last resort!
Sadly the control system doesn’t really hold up to modern standards. The N64 is known for its controller that splits opinion more than Marmite.
However Turok used a system where you controlled your aim with one side of the controller, and movement with another. This does sound similar to most modern FPS, but Nintendo did not use two analog sticks. Controlling your aim with the yellow C buttons was incredibly challenging to get the hang of. Of course the benefit of this is the added ability to aim precisely, but it’s a steep learning curve for players. Especially as it’s a difficult game even on the Easy level! It’s something that will need to be addressed for the modern remastering.
Where Turok also really stood out was in its graphics. For its time the game was spectacular. The early level in the village introduces a stark contrast of lightness and darkness. The village itself utilises the graphical power to represent a bleak, yet beautiful setting. When inside of the many buildings then the darkness is incredibly real, which makes it even more petrifying. Dark corridors become a visual masterpiece which paints the fear amongst every new location. It’s incredibly difficult to find a game that uses darkness so well. Turok is all about the fear of the unknown, and the graphics aid it completely.
No screenshots have been released yet for this new remastering. However if it captures the essence of the original Turok then it’ll be a classic. Turok stands out amongst the fierce competition to be one of Nintendo 64’s greatest games. It sets out to make the player nothing more than a nervous wreck, and it achieves it so well. But there is a truly spectacular game if you are brave enough to venture further than the isolating village. A new remastering of this instant classic is something that all gamers should be excited (and nervous) for. Turok gave a whole generation of children nightmares in 1998, and it’s time for a new generation to suffer/appreciate the same feeling.
Do you agree that Turok is the most frightening game? What would you say is the scariest game? Are there any particular moments in Turok that stand out to you? Comment below and have your say!
