Developer : Iguana Entertainment / Nightdive Studios

Publisher : Acclaim Entertainment / Nightdive Studios

Platform : Nintendo 64 / PC-Steam

Release Year : 1998 / 2017

Are You Worthy of the Title of Turok?

Turok 2: Seeds of Evil should be a case study on how you make a sequel. It took everything the first game did well, refined and improved those aspects, and then added better stuff on top of all of that, because that’s what you do when you’re making a sequel to a beloved game. I know this may sound crazy these days, when throwing the baby out with the bath water is all the rage, but holy moly, did it give us an awesome game. Really, the only problem I had with the modern version of this game is that after about an hour or so of playing, it would crash; there was more than a few times I lost some progress because I forgot to save, which as we all know, is irritating as fuck. Even with the game crashing every hour, Seeds of Evil has easily been my favourite when replaying the trilogy, which I think says a lot. Yes, the other Turok games on the 64 are all good in their own ways, but Seeds of Evil is just so good, and I think really captures what made these games so special for their time.

Gameplay

The following statement may come as a shock, but it is undeniable: having the gun play in a first-person shooter feel good is rather important. Crazy, I know, but it’s true, and the gun play in Turok 2: Seeds of Evil is one such example to prove this rule. Even on the N64, with its terrible control scheme by our modern standards, the gun play is fast, furious, and satisfying. The biggest change is the fact that you can actually aim your shots, unlike in Turok 1 where you just aim at the enemies and fire (very old school). This means where you place your shot is important, which adds to the satisfying feeling of the game’s combat; popping your enemies in the head and watching them drop is so good. Your arsenal is also fantastic, ranging from your FPS classics like the shotgun, pulse rifle, and grenade launcher, to the overly violent and awesome cerebral bore, which is one of my all time favourite video game weapons. Every weapons also has a secondary firing mode, which effectively doubles the already impressive weapon count, and is always a welcome addition to any FPS. Needless to reiterate, but the gun play here is awesome, and along with the refined map design, make for a really fun game to actually play.

Just like the first game, a lot of your time here is spent searching the massive and maze-like maps for keys to open the way to the other levels, where you then look for more keys to open more levels, and so on. Unlike Turok 1, where the key quest was basically all you did, in Seeds of Evil each the levels also have objectives you must complete before you can leave. The objectives add some much needed context and direction that I, as a kid all those years ago, didn’t know was missing in the first Turok. Each level also ends with you defending an Energy Totem in a very early version of a horde mode. Defending the Totems was really cool back in the day, and the waves of enemies seemed endless back then, but here in the remake, I found them really easy and lack luster. I think my feeling of disappointment is because since 1998 the horde mode came and went, so playing such an old iteration of it is just kind of ‘okay.’ I was never worried about the Totem falling, which kind of made the encounter rather dull.

One thing I was not expecting/did not remember is the very light metroidvania aspect here in Seeds of Evil. You acquire special moves (like being able to swim through poison water, or ride wind currents, just to name a few) as you make your way through the game, and these abilities open new paths which lead to secrets, weapons, and the special keys needed to open the way to the game’s final boss: the Primagen. These new paths are usually pretty short, but having to revisit levels a few times to check out new paths is something I have loved for years and makes me love this game even more.

Seeds of Evil also has multiplayer, but I didn’t play it back in the day, nor did I with the remake. It’s probably good enough, and I bet it was a good time back in the day on the 64, but yeah, I had no urge to play it now. I could look into it, but I have an ever growing backlog of games to play, and posts to write, so onwards and upwards!

Level Design

Turok: Dinosaur Hunter’s map design was one of my favourite things about it. I really liked that game’s large and winding maps, and here in Seeds of Evil, they are just that much better. There is also a solid variety of places you’ll explore in your quest, from the amazing opening level, The Port of Adia, to the fetid swamps of The Death Marshes, and even the interior of the Primagen’s Lightship. The levels themselves also have a variety of different areas to explore within them, which help to portray the world’s large scope, as well as help with navigating said maps. The variety also helps to drive home the strange and timeless nature of the Lost Lands, and makes the journey feel just that much bigger. Sometimes the maze-like design goes a little too hard, the Hive of the Mantid for example, but thanks to the remarkable in-game map, you’ll find your way…eventually.

The maps are also alive with detailed in Seeds of Evil, which is so very welcome after the baren levels of the first game. These places feel lived in, well, as much as a level from an old 3D game from ’98 can feel lived in, and this is something to be admired even today. Even on the Nintendo 64, the levels are dense with stuff and effects, which is kind of nuts. All in all, the level design here is solid, and very much a standout feature for me.

An Actual Story?

That’s right, there is a story here, and it is even told to you in game, which is a massive step up from the first Turok. Now, don’t think there is some grand and sweeping narrative here, what we get is a pretty basic tale of having to stop an ancient and evil being escaping its prison and trying to destroy our reality. For an FPS from the late ‘90s, the story is par for the course, but we all know none of us were playing these types of games for their stories back in the day. It’s a nice bonus that it is here, and with voice acting to boot, but it does not make or break the game. I will say that I am a fan of the more sci-fi feel of everything, and that it’s kind of funny that there are more dinosaurs here than in the game with the subtitle “Dinosaur Hunter.”

A Worthy Warrior

If it wasn’t clear by now, I really like Turok 2: Seeds of Evil. It is better in basically every single way when compared to Turok: Dinosaur Hunter, and I had so much fun playing it again now damn near 20 years later. I would like to say that the series gets even better from here on out, but in my humble opinion, Seeds of Evil is the highpoint; the rest of them did not live up to the high bar this game set. It’s a shame really, because you would have thought that the only way to go from here was up. I guess, like in life, things don’t always work out how you want.