Super Nintendo Entertainment System Lemmings 2 - The Tribes (USA)
0Lemmings 2: The Tribes, a computer game released in 1993, is the first real sequel to the popular puzzle game Lemmings.[1] As with the original, it was developed by DMA Design and published by Psygnosis. The gameplay remains mostly the same as the original game, requiring the player to lead a certain number of lemmings to their exit by giving them the appropriate "skills".
Numerous changes and additions were made in this sequel. First of all, there is an introduction movie explaining the storyline of the game. Secondly, there are now many, many more skills available to give to the lemmings, unlike the eight in the original game. There is still a total of 120 levels, but in this game they are divided into ten levels for each of twelve tribes.
Lemmings 2 was not quite as popular as Lemmings was, nor was it ported to as many platforms.[2] In spite of all this, it was well received and considered by many as a worthy sequel.[3][4]
The gameplay in Lemmings 2 differs from the original in the following ways:
As mentioned before, there are many more (51 in total) skills available in the game, although no more than eight are available in each level. Some of the skills are similar to the original ones (like digging and building variants), others are all new (several flying skills, for example). One skill, the "attractor", will cause the lemming to play a musical instrument and have nearby lemmings stop walking to do a dance. The instrument and dances they do vary by tribe.
A practice mode has also been added. In this mode, any type of skill available can be selected for the player to experiment with. There is a choice of four different practice levels.
Each tribe's levels can be started at any time, and progress can be saved from the main menu. The player starts out with 60 lemmings for each tribe, but only one lemming needs to make it to an exit in order to progress to next level. The amount saved will then be the amount left in the next level. As some levels may require several lemmings to complete, the player might have to replay an earlier level to save more lemmings for the following ones if they realize they do not have enough.
The player will be rewarded with a bronze, silver or gold medal, depending on how many lemmings are saved in the level. This will also dictate the type of the talisman part received once all the tribe's levels are completed. To watch the outro and credits, all golden talisman parts need to be won, as well as rescuing at least 20 lemmings from each tribe.
A new fast forward button and fan button have been added to the controls. The fast forward replaces the release rate button in the original game, which would let the player release more lemmings at a time. There is also the ability to fast forward. The fan button turns the cursor into a fan, which is used to push around any flying lemmings or to affect wind-powered elements.
Smaller additions include:
When falling from moderate heights, instead of just dying, lemmings will now stun themselves upon landing, taking a second to get back up to continue walking. (Lemmings will still die instantly from higher falls.)
Trampolines will let lemmings jump and bounce about.
Cannons and catapults in levels will launch a lemming away.
Lemmings can grab on wind-powered swing ropes to allow them to travel across gaps.
Levels can span vertically as well as horizontally (mostly because of the flying skills).
Lemmings with permanent skills have their colours switched for easier identification.
Lemmings caught in explosions will be temporarily stunned.
Skills [edit]The various skills that the Lemmings are given can be broken into three different classes, referred to here as permanent, continuous, and temporary skills.
The permanent skills are irreversible enhancements to the behaviour of a lemming, staying with the lemming until the end of the level. When a lemming is given a permanent skill, their hair and shirt colours are swapped to make them easier to identify. An example of a permanent skill is the runner, which makes the selected lemming run for the rest of the level, and jump over small gaps.
Continuous skills are those that a lemming will continue doing until it is ordered to do something else, encounters an obstacle, or reaches the end of the appropriate terrain. An example of a continuous skill is the fencer, which gives the selected lemming a small sword, and enables it to dig a tunnel on a slight upward slant until there is no more dirt, or until the sword hits something more solid than dirt.