Tentacles freak me out. I don’t like the way they move – like they are not to be trusted – and I’m not a fan of the beasties they are typically attached to. So I guess it is odd, then, that – when I’m not writing for PCGN – I write for a site with a cephalopod mascot, and count Day of the Tentacle as one of my all time favourite games. I’m a complicated man.
So I’m not sure how I should feel about Tentacles: Enter the Mind. I’m conflicted. It’s from the creators of Max: The Curse of Brotherhood, and tasks you, controlling a tentacled creature called Lemmy, with cleaning out the brain of Doctor Phluff. The esteemed doctor is, as it happens, a man with the head of a dolphin and wants to make the world “cuter”. Unfortunately his brain has become infested with his cute creations. Isn’t that always the case?
“Tentacles is first and foremost about playful, challenging mechanics that are both entertaining and engaging. It takes place in a twisted, surreal universe where there are no limits to Professor Phluff’s fantasies” said Creative Director, Ole Teglbjærg. “And I guess this game speaks to a very broad audience…who doesn’t like mad scientists and tentacles?”
Lemmy explores the 3D realm of Phluff’s brain, travelling from his libido to his super ego, consuming the eyes of fallen enemies to steal their power.
I’m suddenly and sickeningly reminded of Corinthian, one of the demonic nightmares from Neil Gaiman’s Sandman series, who eats the eyeballs of his victims. Gross.
Conveniently I won’t need to decide how I feel about rubbery monsters with tentacles eating cute creatures in a dolphin-man’s brain, because it’s only coming out for Windows 8. It’s a shame, because it looks wonderfully surreal.