Gateway II: Homeworld
Description official descriptions
A huge, strangely shaped object was spotted just outside the orbit of Pluto. Scientists dub this object "The Artifact", assuming it to be a spaceship possibly connected to the mysterious alien race, the Heechee, who have disappeared without a trace, leaving only ships with cryptic destinations behind. Meanwhile, a terrorist sect is planning to use The Artifact to lure in the Assassins, an alien community bent on destroying other species. Eventually, a sole explorer reaches the enigmatic ship, only to discover traces of former Gateway prospectors . This leads him to believe that something might be malfunctioning at the very core of the Heechee civilization.
Gateway II: Homeworld is a sequel to Gateway. It is the last adventure game by Legend Entertainment to use text-based input, after Companions of Xanth introduced a purely graphical engine. Its interface is identical to that of Eric the Unready: while most commands can be either typed in or selected from a list combining verbs and available objects, conversations with characters are handled by choosing pre-set topics and displayed on separate screens. The game also features some animated cutscenes.
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Credits (DOS version)
19 People · View all
Producer | |
Based on Hugo and Nebula award-winning Heechee Saga by | |
Design and Implementation of Part I: Escape | |
Design and Implementation of Part II: The Artifact | |
Design and Implementation of Part III: Rescue | |
Design and Implementation of Part IV: Homeworld | |
Additional Design | |
Computer Illustration | |
Special Cinematic Effects and Animation | |
Music Composition | |
AdLib Transcription | |
System Architecture | |
System Programming | |
[ full credits ] |
Reviews
Critics
Average score: 81% (based on 10 ratings)
Players
Average score: 4.0 out of 5 (based on 26 ratings with 5 reviews)
Puzzles preferred to plot in this sequel
The Good
Atmospheric, thought provoking sci-fi adventure. Beautifully designed, carefully constructed, and hard to fault. And, as you travel across the universe, you get to meet the alien race (the Heechee) that are introduced in the first Gateway adventure.
The Bad
However when you compare it to the original Gateway it's not as strong. (But then the original Gateway is one of the all-time great adventure games.) I think its because it's longer. This means although you get more game for your money, and more puzzles and gameplay, the plot tends to ramble in places, and the dialogue is sometimes a bit long and irrelevant.
The Bottom Line
You'll have trouble tracking down the first Gateway. I think there were more Gateway 2 published. Certainly they come up on e-bay regularly, and it's a game thats definitely worth playing.
DOS · by jossiejojo (37) · 2005
A great sequel to a great game. Now that IS rare!
The Good
Most of the things I mentioned about the prequel also feel at home here, too. The storyline is good and the 'being there' factor is a strong one.
The Bad
The same things as with the prequel apply here.. that is, the graphics and the musics are good but not great.. but as I stated before this game isn't a gfx blast.
The Bottom Line
A great, compelling sequel to a great, compelling game. And that doesn't happen too often.
DOS · by RmM (68) · 1999
A wonderful successor to Gateway 1.
The Good
Gateway 2: Homeworld is made in the same style as the Gateway 1, with a similarly involving storyline and acute attention to detail. All of the puzzles are clever and make sense in their context, and you never get "stuck" -- as long as you pay attention to the important conversations and remember to TAKE everything you come across, you'll always have access to everything you need to solve a particular puzzle, even if it isn't immediately apparent how to do so.
The Bad
The game isn't quite as impressive as its predecessor: it has none of the truly mindblowing puzzles of the first one, and the storyline is completely linear. At times the dialogue options are obnoxious or tongue-in-cheek, as if the designers felt they needed to make up for an uninteresting dialogue script. The graphics are primitive, but that isn't important, and the music didn't work on my machine, but I take it that's a plus :).
The Bottom Line
A very well-made and interesting adventure game. While you don't need to have read the Gateway books to play it, you should definitely play Gateway 1 first; it also helps to have a general background in science fiction, and being familiar with common science-fiction cliche's will help with some of the puzzles. If you're not a sci-fi buff you might not appreciate this game, but if you are it is a jewel... I thought the story was better than some of the Gateway books.
DOS · by rananite (2) · 2003
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information about Gateway 2 - covers, credits, walkthroughs and a transcription of the handbook that was included with the game
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Contributors to this Entry
Game added by RmM.
Additional contributors: Jeanne, formercontrib.
Game added October 22, 1999. Last modified January 19, 2024.