Turrican II - The Final Fight

I remember that moment when I first launched Turrican II on PC and Chris Huelsbeck's main theme came blaring out of my SoundBlaster speaker. For a while, I just sat there and forgot to click.

Turrican II: The Final Fight is an action platformer that originally came out on Amiga in 1991 and didn't get ported to DOS until 1995 — right when the PC wind was blowing in a different direction. Factor 5 was working mainly for Commodore and Amiga back then, and this port was basically the closing of one chapter. You play as a warrior in powered armor, making your way through sprawling levels full of enemies, collecting weapons and hunting for the exit to each area. Nothing more, nothing less — genre purity without apologies.

The gameplay rests on smooth movement, three different weapon modes, and the legendary gyro spinner — the ability to turn into a ball and destroy everything around you. Controls work on PC with a keyboard, but you can feel this game was made for a joystick. The levels are open-ended, packed with hidden passages and alternate routes, which was a premium approach for 1991. The problem is that the DOS port doesn't quite take your breath away — the Amiga version had smoother animations and sound that PC hardware in 1995 just couldn't always faithfully replicate.

Why do we remember Turrican II? Because Huelsbeck's music is some of the finest ever to come out of a game. And because that feeling of being overwhelmed by massive levels where you have real freedom of movement wasn't a given on PC back then. The series as a whole defined what an action platformer could be on home computers. But the DOS version arrived late — in 1995 it was overshadowed by other titles, and the port itself isn't the best way to experience the game.

Today Turrican II on PC will mainly appeal to those who played it that way back in the nineties and want to come back. Or those who want to understand why Factor 5 was such a big deal on Amiga. You can easily fire it up in a browser today and even without nostalgia in your heart, it's got enough energy to keep you at the screen for at least a few levels. The music definitely carries it more than the level design, but for retro action that's still a pretty solid result.