''Linus Spacehead's Cosmic Crusade'' is a

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

released in 1992 by

Codemasters The Codemasters Software Company Limited (trade name: Codemasters) is a British video game developer based in Southam, England, which is a subsidiary of American corporation Electronic Arts. Founded by brothers Richard and David Darling in Octo ...

for the

Nintendo Entertainment System The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit third-generation home video game console produced by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan in 1983 as the commonly known as the The NES, a redesigned version, was released in America ...

. A

remake A remake is a film, television series, video game, song or similar form of entertainment that is based upon and retells the story of an earlier production in the same medium—e.g., a "new version of an existing film". A remake tells the same ...

of the game, retitled ''Cosmic Spacehead'', was released in 1993 for

Amiga Amiga is a family of personal computers introduced by Commodore in 1985. The original model is one of a number of mid-1980s computers with 16- or 32-bit processors, 256 KB or more of RAM, mouse-based GUIs, and significantly improved graphi ...

MS-DOS MS-DOS ( ; acronym for Microsoft Disk Operating System, also known as Microsoft DOS) is an operating system for x86-based personal computers mostly developed by Microsoft. Collectively, MS-DOS, its rebranding as IBM PC DOS, and a few ope ...

Game Gear The is an 8-bit fourth generation handheld game console released by Sega on October 6, 1990, in Japan, in April 1991 throughout North America and Europe, and during 1992 in Australia. The Game Gear primarily competed with Nintendo's Game Boy, ...

Master System The is an 8-bit third-generation home video game console manufactured by Sega. It was originally a remodeled export version of the Sega Mark III, the third iteration of the SG-1000 series of consoles, which was released in Japan in 1985 and ...

, and

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Bible * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...

. The game features

adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...

elements, with locations connected by

platform Platform may refer to: Technology * Computing platform, a framework on which applications may be run * Platform game, a genre of video games * Car platform, a set of components shared by several vehicle models * Weapons platform, a system or ...

sections. The game is the sequel to ''Linus Spacehead'', which was released exclusively as part of the compilation ''

Quattro Adventure ''Quattro'' is a series of video game compilations (each with four games) released in the 1990s. They consisted of games developed by Codemasters. The NES versions were released as multicarts and were published by Camerica without a license by N ...

''.

Plot

Linus is an

alien Alien primarily refers to: * Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country ** Enemy alien, the above in times of war * Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth ** Specifically, intelligent extrater ...

from the planet Linoleum who crashed into the legendary

planet Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surface ...

. After returning home and expecting a hero's welcome, Linus soon found his fellow Linomen were skeptical of the existence of the so-called "planet Earth" and decides to return to it, this time with a camera. However, he has no money (Linoleum currency is the Linobuck), and must adventure around the planet to acquire a vehicle and a camera. In his adventures, Linus leaves Linoleum (using a fake ID for

Larry Flynt Larry Claxton Flynt Jr. (; November 1, 1942 – February 10, 2021) was an American publisher and the president of Larry Flynt Publications (LFP). LFP mainly produces pornographic magazines, such as ''Hustler'', pornographic videos, and three por ...

to compete in a bumper car contest), quashes a robot revolution in ''Detroitica'' and gets gas from an abandoned space station.

Gameplay

The game is similar to prior titles such as

Maniac Mansion ''Maniac Mansion'' is a 1987 graphic adventure video game developed and published by Lucasfilm Games. It follows teenage protagonist Dave Miller as he attempts to rescue his girlfriend Sandy Pantz from a mad scientist, whose mind has been ensla ...

(1987) and later titles such as

Day of the Tentacle ''Day of the Tentacle'', also known as ''Maniac Mansion II: Day of the Tentacle'', is a 1993 graphic adventure game developed and published by LucasArts. It is the sequel to the 1987 game ''Maniac Mansion''. The plot follows Bernard Bernoulli a ...

(1993), being an adventure game in which items must be collected and later used in specific locations in order to progress. The player's character is directed during much of the game with the use of a

cursor Cursor may refer to: * Cursor (user interface), an indicator used to show the current position for user interaction on a computer monitor or other display device * Cursor (databases), a control structure that enables traversal over the records in ...

and written commands. It also includes numerous short platforming sections, as well as other mini-games and puzzles. Each major location of Planet Linoleum has a teleporting device, which can be activated using a card. However, they often leave Linus with a side-effect, required to complete a puzzle. To travel between adventure sections, Linus goes through arcade sections, where he has to reach the other side of the level, avoiding free falls, enemies and collecting Cosmic candy at the same time (after collecting 10, an

extra life In video games, a life is a play-turn that a player character has, defined as the period between start and end of play. Lives refer to a finite number of tries before the game ends with a game over. It is sometimes called a chance, a try, rest ...

is added). Linus dies upon contact with enemies, so instead of speed-running (which can be done, since the levels are small), it may be more advisable to learn his foes' movement patterns and wait for a safe opening. This is particularly true in NES ''Linus Spacehead's Cosmic Crusade'', where Linus cannot change direction in mid-jump.

Password A password, sometimes called a passcode (for example in Apple devices), is secret data, typically a string of characters, usually used to confirm a user's identity. Traditionally, passwords were expected to be memorized, but the large number of ...

s are scattered at key locations.

Licensing

Like other Codemasters games, the NES versions were not licensed by

Nintendo is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles. Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produce ...

. ''Linus Spacehead's Cosmic Crusade'' was released both as a stand-alone cartridge and as one of seven games for the

Aladdin Deck Enhancer The Aladdin Deck Enhancer is a system-enhancing adaptor to use Compact Cartridges on the Nintendo Entertainment System. It was produced by Camerica and developed by Codemasters but not licensed by Nintendo. It is similar to the Datach system ...

. At least in Europe, a later/updated version of the game was released as ''Cosmic Spacehead''. There are several differences between that and the earlier version. ''Cosmic Spacehead'' includes the ''Pie Slap'' mode, and Linus can jump higher and change direction in mid-jump, which makes the platform arcade sections easier. The Mega Drive version was also included in a Codemasters "2-in-1" cartridge with ''

Fantastic Dizzy ''Fantastic Dizzy'' (''The Fantastic Adventures of Dizzy'' outside Europe & Australia) is a 1991 video game developed by Codemasters. It is part of the ''Dizzy series''. It was published on several platforms, including Mega Drive/Genesis, Master ...

''. All but ''Linus Spacehead's Cosmic Crusade'' include a two player mode named ''Pie Slap'', reminiscent of '' Armor Ambush'' for the

Atari 2600 The Atari 2600, initially branded as the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS) from its release until November 1982, is a home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977, it popularized microprocessor- ...

. While the Master System version is similar in graphics to the NES version, the gameplay is closer to the remaining versions. In the Amiga, Mega Drive and MS-DOS versions, the art style is different from the NES version.

Reception

GamePro Gamepro.com is an international multiplatform video game magazine media company that covers the video game industry, video game hardware and video game software in countries such as Germany and France. The publication, GamePro, was originally la ...

'' described the Game Gear version as "a great point-and-click text adventure", additionally praising the cartoonish charm of the graphics.

References

External links

* {{Camerica 1992 video games Adventure games Amiga games Unauthorized video games Codemasters games DOS games Game Gear games Nintendo Entertainment System games Sega Genesis games Master System games Video games scored by Allister Brimble Video games scored by Matthew Simmonds Video games set on fictional planets Science fiction video games Video games developed in the United Kingdom Supersonic Software games Single-player video games Camerica games