Chuck Rock II: Son of Chuck

Lore & Background

The story takes place after the first game, where Chuck Rock rescued his wife Ophelia from the T-Rex bully Gary Gritter. Chuck and Ophelia had a son named Chuck Junior. Chuck senior works in a factory carving automobiles out of stone, and a rival manufacturer named Brick Jagger (a pun on Mick Jagger) becomes jealous and kidnaps him, leaving Junior to rescue his father. The gameplay is similar to the first game but with Junior wielding a club for extended attack reach, and includes side-scrolling platforming with occasional rock-moving puzzles.

Reader's Guide

Chuck Rock II: Son of Chuck is significant as a sequel that shifted the protagonist from the father to the son, allowing the developers to experiment with new gameplay techniques. The game was inspired by the title Son of Godzilla, and its development reused leftover ideas from the first game. The Sega CD version featured an opening cinema animated by Mark Mason at Tony Garth Animation Ltd., and the game's acid jazz soundtrack was composed by Martin Iveson, with influences from contemporary acid jazz bands. The game received mixed reviews, with Electronic Gaming Monthly praising the Game Gear version's features and animations but criticizing loose controls, while the Sega CD version was noted for stiff controls but praised for its humor and opening cinema. The game's legacy includes a comic strip in the UK children's magazine Look-in, which ended with a surreal strip featuring then-Prime-Minister John Major.

Did You Know?

• The game's title was inspired by the film Son of Godzilla, seen by designer Robert Churchill before the first Chuck Rock game was completed.
• The in-game boss 'Ozrics Tentacles' shares a name with the psychedelic rock band Ozric Tentacles.
• The Sega CD version of Chuck Rock II was based on the same engine as another Core Design game, Wonder Dog.
• A comic strip in the UK magazine Look-in featured Chuck Junior owning a 'SteggaDrive' console, a reference to the Mega Drive name.