Sentinel Returns
A dark sequel to Geoff Crammond's The Sentinel.
Sentinel Returns is a 1998 video game published by Sony under the Psygnosis label for Microsoft Windows and PlayStation. Developed by Hookstone and produced by No-Name Games, it is the sequel to Geoff Crammond's The Sentinel, featuring 651 levels, a multiplayer mode, and a soundtrack by John Carpenter. The game's dark, hallucinated visual style and dynamic lighting contrast sharply with its predecessor's bright, colorful levels.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Hookstone
- Publisher
- Psygnosis
- Composer
- John Carpenter
- Released
- 14 August 1998 (UK); 28 September 1998 (NA)
- Genre
- Puzzle
- Modes
- Single-player, multiplayer
- Platforms
- Windows, PlayStation
Facts from the source article.
Gameplay
Players control Synthoids positioned at higher elevations, as only objects on visible squares can be interacted with. The player may absorb or create objects on a boulder if its sides are visible, while monitoring the Sentinel's rotation to avoid being seen and having energy drained. Height is gained by placing a boulder on a visible square, putting a Synthoid on it, transferring consciousness, and absorbing the old Synthoid. Stacks of boulders of any height can be created with sufficient energy. To absorb the Sentinel, the player must build a stack tall enough for the Synthoid to look down on the Sentinel's platform. Winning a level requires absorbing the Sentinel, creating a new Synthoid in its place, transferring consciousness, and hyperspacing. The amount of energy absorbed determines how many levels are skipped: less than 50% skips one level, 50-69% skips two, 70-89% skips three, and 90-100% skips four. After absorbing the Sentinel, no further energy can be absorbed from the landscape, though objects can still be created. Later levels include Sentries that behave like the Sentinel but are not required to be absorbed. The Sentinel and Sentries rotate slowly and predictably, but stop to absorb energy from squares they see with more than one unit. For each unit absorbed, a tree is created randomly on the landscape, keeping total energy constant.
Development
The project was initiated by John Cooke, a fan of the original The Sentinel who claimed to have finished it twice. Cooke's company, No Name Games, held rights to spin-offs and negotiated with Hookstone to develop the game for Psygnosis. Developers aimed to refine the difficulty slope without straying far from the original, and at one point planned 666 levels without the level-skipping mechanic. Geoff Crammond was not involved.
Reception
The PC version of Sentinel Returns earned favorable reviews, but the PlayStation version received a mixed reception on GameRankings. Next Generation called the PlayStation version an acquired taste and advised renting before buying. Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine panned it roughly two months before its U.S. launch. The game was a nominee for GameSpot's 1998 Puzzles and Classics Game of the Year award, which was won by You Don't Know Jack: The Ride.
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