By Paul Robert Scott
There have been some fairly maniacal villains in gaming's history. Their goals can often differ and their methods can range from overtly simple to impossibly convoluted, but on the whole they will all share the fact that they are just a big, bad bag full of crazy, and none to my mind are more so than the antagonist in Lucasarts classic; Day of the Tentacle.
There have been some fairly maniacal villains in gaming's history. Their goals can often differ and their methods can range from overtly simple to impossibly convoluted, but on the whole they will all share the fact that they are just a big, bad bag full of crazy, and none to my mind are more so than the antagonist in Lucasarts classic; Day of the Tentacle.
Like all the best villains Purple Tentacle didn't start out bad. He was just wandering around, doing whatever genetically engineered, disembodied appendages do when they're bored, until he took the option to drink from the outpourings of the mad Dr. Edison's Sludge-O-Matic machine. The result was a mutation that gave Purple Tentacle a pair of vestigial arms, an enhanced intellect and a burning desire to enslave humanity. And thus, the world was doomed.
Realising the danger that an insane tentacle posed to the world, Purple Tentacle's brother, Green Tentacle, sent word out via messenger hamster to his good friend Bernard, who in turn dragged along his cohorts, Hoagie and Laverne in order to stop Purple Tentacle from taking over the Edison Mansion and later, the world.
That all takes place in the space of a five minute intro. If it sounds a little crazy then that's because it is, but believe me when I say it gets far weirder as you play through the game. What follows is a hilarious romp through the fourth dimension, as Dr. Edison assigns the three main characters to travel back in time a day to stop Purple Tentacle, only to see them flung into three separate time zones away from each other. While Bernard stays in the present and has to assist Dr Edison with repairs to his time machine (some of which involve an arrest by the IRS), Hoagie is stranded in the past with the founding fathers and Laverne is taken as a slave by the now dominant Tentacle overlords in the far future.
Realising the danger that an insane tentacle posed to the world, Purple Tentacle's brother, Green Tentacle, sent word out via messenger hamster to his good friend Bernard, who in turn dragged along his cohorts, Hoagie and Laverne in order to stop Purple Tentacle from taking over the Edison Mansion and later, the world.
That all takes place in the space of a five minute intro. If it sounds a little crazy then that's because it is, but believe me when I say it gets far weirder as you play through the game. What follows is a hilarious romp through the fourth dimension, as Dr. Edison assigns the three main characters to travel back in time a day to stop Purple Tentacle, only to see them flung into three separate time zones away from each other. While Bernard stays in the present and has to assist Dr Edison with repairs to his time machine (some of which involve an arrest by the IRS), Hoagie is stranded in the past with the founding fathers and Laverne is taken as a slave by the now dominant Tentacle overlords in the far future.
Day of the Tentacle comes from a time when point and click adventure games were in their prime. Made by Lucasarts in 1993 as a sequel to 1987's Maniac Mansion, the game challenged players to all manner of puzzles, while at the same time finding the items needed in all the correct combinations along the way. The solutions could be maddening to work out, as items found by a character in one period of history may need to be sent to another, using Dr. Edison's patented Chron-O-John (by flushing the item down the toilet). This then added a new dimension, quite literally, as unlike previous point and click adventures you couldn't just pick an item out of your inventory and try merging it with everything else you held... instead you had to juggle from character to character, trying to decide who needed what when.
It has been argued that the inventory system is a little overly random, due to the fact that there is no real logic behind what you use when most of the time, which to a degree is true considering how random much of the humour in the game is. But its random nature does add to the longevity of the game. If you know what you're doing, you may be able to blitz through the whole thing in a little over an hour, but on the other hand if you're new to the game you can be wandering around for days trying to find the right combination. Despite this though the game doesn't tend to grow tiresome. You'll always be on the look out for new items or new dialogue options to help you through and nine times out of ten what you'll discover is something randomly hilarious.
It has been argued that the inventory system is a little overly random, due to the fact that there is no real logic behind what you use when most of the time, which to a degree is true considering how random much of the humour in the game is. But its random nature does add to the longevity of the game. If you know what you're doing, you may be able to blitz through the whole thing in a little over an hour, but on the other hand if you're new to the game you can be wandering around for days trying to find the right combination. Despite this though the game doesn't tend to grow tiresome. You'll always be on the look out for new items or new dialogue options to help you through and nine times out of ten what you'll discover is something randomly hilarious.
Visually the game is a treat. Despite being a good twenty-one years old now it is still original in style. Colours are vibrant and while the character design is occasionally reminiscent of a Simpsons reject bin, the scenery is entirely unique, even when compared to other Lucasarts' point and click titles. The different time periods are kept distinct; with the past given a warm, friendly looking tone, the present offering a run down, dirty motel sort of feel, and the future given the usual futuristic, stainless steel look on steroids.
All in all this is a game that has aged very well over the years, if only because the genre itself doesn't tend to exist any more. Today our point and click games tend to take the form of overly dour forensic affairs with none of the charm of lucasarts' own creations. And while people who remember their legacy may recall the more successful Monkey Island franchise, I think it's fair to say that Day of the Tentacle is an equally brilliant creation which is well worth the chance to pick up and play again. Fans of the game will always remember its laugh out loud moments and its creatively illogical puzzles, and for those who have never played, it is definitely one for both kids and adults who want a more cerebral, if light hearted option to the latest big releases.
All in all this is a game that has aged very well over the years, if only because the genre itself doesn't tend to exist any more. Today our point and click games tend to take the form of overly dour forensic affairs with none of the charm of lucasarts' own creations. And while people who remember their legacy may recall the more successful Monkey Island franchise, I think it's fair to say that Day of the Tentacle is an equally brilliant creation which is well worth the chance to pick up and play again. Fans of the game will always remember its laugh out loud moments and its creatively illogical puzzles, and for those who have never played, it is definitely one for both kids and adults who want a more cerebral, if light hearted option to the latest big releases.
"To save the world, you have to push a few old ladies down the stairs."
Do you remember this golden oldie? If you miss it then you may be interested to know that it will be returning to our lives soon in the form of a brand new special edition for 2015 with its eye on Playstation, Windows, OS X and Linux platforms. We can hardly wait, how about you?
Let us know what your memories of Day of the Tentacle are in the comments below!
Let us know what your memories of Day of the Tentacle are in the comments below!
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