If you’re looking for a free SNES game to play this weekend, check out Dottie Flowers, newly available in digital form from its developer.
Originally available as a limited run of 100 cartridges (distributed via a mail-in competition) for fear of litigation and bootlegging, developer Goldlocke has decided to make the game more widely available this week. Of course, there is no physical version – instead, the game is available from itch.io.
Essentially a cute Turrican, in Dottie Flowers you control a witch that has been given extensive powers by fairies. (Goldlocke has blogged about how Dottie Flowers is a “Turrican fan game.”)
Here’s a look at Dottie Flowers in action:
There are definitely Turrican vibes in there, from the “walkers” and armoured fist boss to the “gyroscope/broom drill” and even the power ups are in the style of Turrican 2.
The music isn’t a million miles away, either.
Says Goldlocke:
This game was a gift of mine to the fantastic SNES community and a bow to my childhood heroes of the German 16Bit video game development scene of the early nineties – I sincerely hope that everybody who received a copy has as much fun playing as I had creating it.
Like the Factor 5 team who developed the Amiga and Atari ST versions of Turrican, it seems Goldlocke grew up near their base in Cologne, Germany. After receiving an Amiga while waiting for the arrival of the N64, Goldlocke discovered Turrican.
Having fantastic, responsive gameplay, great leveldesign and an exceptional soundtrack, this one was more like it!
Playing this game, you can literally feel the fun and excitement the team at Factor 5 must have had creating it.
I was hooked!
And I rushed to my local second-hand store to get boxed original copies of all three games, which could be had for a couple of bucks each back then.
Later on, I learned about series creator Manfred Trenz and his crowning achievement on the SNES called Targa/Rendering Ranger created in the same spirit and learned to love it, aswell.
Here’s a look at the main features of this free SNES game:
- 6 Stages
- Game progress save functionality
- Game length: 30 – 60 minutes
- A bit like Turrican
Frankly, this has everything I want from a videogame, so as a big fan of Turrican, I’m checking it out soon. You are not likely to find a physical copy of Dottie Flowers, so instead head to the game’s itch.io page to grab the download. Dottie Flowers will run in a SNES emulator or on a flashcart (a cartridge that supports SD cards).
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Christian Cawley is a writer and editor who covers consumer electronics, IT, and entertainment media. He has written for publications such as Computer Weekly, Linux Format, MakeUseOf.com, and Tech Radar.
He also produces podcasts, has a cigar box guitar, and of course, loves retro gaming.
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