Software:Clock Tower II: The Struggle Within

From HandWiki
Short description: 1998 video game
This page is about the third game in the series. For the second game in the series, known as "Clock Tower 2" in Japan, see Clock Tower (1996 video game).

Clock Tower II: The Struggle Within
North American cover art
Developer(s)Human Entertainment
Publisher(s)
Director(s)Yutaka Hirata
Producer(s)Yuichi Kobayashi
Designer(s)Yutaka Hirata
Programmer(s)Kazuhiro Takeshima
Artist(s)
  • Masatsugu Igarashi
  • Kiichi Takaoka
Writer(s)Yutaka Hirata
Composer(s)Kaori Takazoe
SeriesClock Tower
Platform(s)PlayStation
Release
  • JP: March 12, 1998
  • NA: November 3, 1999
Genre(s)Point-and-click adventure, survival horror
Mode(s)Single-player

Clock Tower II: The Struggle Within, known in Japan as Script error: The function "nihongo_foot" does not exist. is a horror-themed adventure game developed by Human Entertainment and released for the PlayStation in 1998. It is the third game in the Clock Tower series. The story follows 17-year-old Alyssa Hale who occasionally is possessed by an alter ego named Mr. Bates. The player must guide Alyssa through various environments, altering between her normal and twisted personality, to uncover the secrets of her and her family's past.

Clock Tower II was met with negative reviews. Journalists heavily criticized the gameplay which they found to be poor due to its slow and dated point-and-click interface, as well as its reliance on trial-and-error mechanics. The story was criticized by some but found to be mature and creepy by others. Critics ultimately did not recommend the game except to those looking for an experience similar to Clock Tower (1996) and those looking for a game that, like a cult film, is flawed conventionally but redeemed by its willingness to stray from the mainstream.

Gameplay

Alyssa runs to a door after the player double-clicked it.

Following its predecessors, Clock Tower II is a point-and-click adventure game with 3D graphics and survival horror elements.[1][2] The player can use either a standard PlayStation controller or the PlayStation Mouse to control the protagonist, Alyssa Hale, through the game.[1][3]: 5–7  The cursor changes shape when placed over certain objects, which the player can click to interact with. Clicking on any location guides Alyssa in that direction. Moving the cursor to the top of the screen reveals the player's inventory. Clicking on an item and then clicking on an object on the screen uses the item on that object or in that location.[3]: 9–10 

Alyssa starts the game with an amulet which keeps her alter ego, Mr. Bates, from emerging and controlling her. However, the amulet can be placed within cases or other containers. Without the amulet, Alyssa will become Mr. Bates if provoked with fear. To revert to Alyssa, the player needs to simply retrieve the amulet back. Some events can only be cleared as Mr. Bates and likewise some only as Alyssa. The choices the player makes as both Alyssa and Mr. Bates change the scenario development and lead to one of 13 possible endings.[3]: 11 

When Alyssa is being chased or is in danger, the cursor will flash red. During this panic mode, the player must rapidly tap a button to escape. When escaping enemies, click points will appear on items or objects that Alyssa can use to fight back or hide from the enemy. Escape mode will not end until the enemy is repulsed or successfully evaded.[3]: 9–10  If playing as Mr. Bates, the player may use weapons such as pistols and shotguns against the enemies.[4][3]: 12–13  When equipped with a weapon, the cursor becomes a crosshair used to aim and shoot. The cursor changes color during panic mode from white, to yellow, and finally red to indicate Alyssa's stamina. First aid kits can be used to improve stamina by one level.[3]: 12–13  If Alyssa's stamina reaches zero or the player fails a panic scenario, the screen will read "game over" and provide the player the option to restart from the last room they entered with one extra stamina level.[3]: 14 

Plot

Alyssa Hale is a 17-year-old high school girl who, during the spring of 1999, is on her way to a distant town in California to visit her father's friend Phillip Tate. Previously, it was discovered that another person resides in Alyssa's soul named Bates. Alyssa underwent intense therapy because she lost control of him. Along the way to Phillip's home, Alyssa looks at her amulet, which she believes has some sort of power over her. As she stares at it, she realizes that it must somehow be related to Bates, as she remembers not having it when she awoke from Bates' invasion of her psyche. Meanwhile, at the house, Philip and his wife Kathryn hear a noise at the door, Kathryn goes to see if it is Ashley. Philip says something about the "Maxwell Curse", before Kathryn screams and he rushes over to see what is happening. When Alyssa arrives at the Tate's residence that night, no one appears to be home. She comes across her cousin's bedroom to find her cousin Ashley decapitated. Her other cousin Stephanie attacks her with a knife and stalks her around the house. She hears a series of odd noises through the home and eventually finds Philip, who requests that she burn a statue related to the Maxwell Curse. Stephanie tries to stop her but Alyssa turns into Bates and stabs her, severely wounding her. Alyssa manages to throw the statue into a fireplace, freeing Stephanie from her possession but loses consciousness.

She wakes up in a zombie-infested hospital and meets a detective named Alex Corey, who saved Alyssa from the house and tells her Stephanie will survive her injuries. She is later overrun by zombies as she tries to escape and faints. When she awakens again, she finds that Alex took her to a pharmaceutical lab. She soon finds a man armed with a hatchet and wearing an oni mask named George Maxwell, who begins to stalk her. She also finds her father, Allen. He explains that Alyssa is not his daughter, but rather, the daughter of George. The Maxwell Curse states that every few generations, cursed children with a cruel alter-ego are born into the Maxwell line. To protect their family, they must be buried beneath the Maxwell tree as soon as they are born and left to die. Allen, jealous of George's wealth, dug up the child with Philip to spite him. George tries to attack Alyssa, but Allen shoots him. He then requests Alyssa to go, explaining that the building is about to explode. Alyssa escapes and watches the building burn from the hillside. Alyssa mourns her father's death, claiming that she should have died instead.

Development and release

Clock Tower II was the last Clock Tower game developed by Human Entertainment.[4] It was also the first in the series not directed by series creator Hifumi Kono.[5][6] Kono was asked by Human to make a sequel to the first two games, but he felt he was out of material and could not make it. Yutaka Hirata stepped in and offered to direct the game.[7] Its Japanese title, Clock Tower: Ghost Head, was changed to Clock Tower II in North America due to the first game being released exclusively to Japan and the second game was retitled Clock Tower for western audiences. It was not given a numbered title in Japan because it moves away from the story and setting in the two previous Clock Tower titles, and is considered a spin-off, taking place in the "real world" outside of the continuity of the series which establishes the first two games as fiction.[lower-alpha 1] In the Japanese release, the game is set in Osaka. This was changed to California for the North American release. In the North American release, Alyssa's alter ego, Mr. Bates, is voiced by Roger L. Jackson, known as the voice of Ghostface from the Scream franchise.[4] The game supports enhanced rumble features in DualShock controllers.[8]

The game was released on March 12, 1998, in Japan,[9][10] and on November 3, 1999, in North America.[11] A drama CD based on the game was released in 1998.[4] The game was re-released on the PlayStation Store in Japan on May 9, 2012.[12][9]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
Metacritic49/100[13]
Review scores
PublicationScore
AllGame2.5/5[2]
Famitsu24/40[9]
GameSpot3.9/10[1]
IGN4.8/10[14]
OPM (US)2.5/5[15]

According to review aggregator Metacritic, Clock Tower II was met with "generally unfavorable" reviews.[13] The game is generally considered to be the worst in the entire Clock Tower series of games.[16] The gameplay was found to be flawed due to the dual personality mechanic and poor storytelling methods.[1][14] Joe Fielder of GameSpot described the puzzles as counter-intuitive, like being stuck on a Rubik's Cube and coming back later to find the cube solved. In the same vein, he noted how sometimes events are triggered or areas become accessible only after spending time exploring other unrelated areas.[1] Mark MacDonald writing for Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine shared these sentiments, saying the player spends most of their time wandering around, hoping to trigger the next event.[15] The point-and-click interface was also criticized as slow and inaccurate.[1][2][14]

Fielder criticized the graphics as "pure first-generation PlayStation" and believed the sound design was also poor.[1] Marc Nix of IGN argued the sound design was good and the graphics were clear and sharp but the scenery was ultimately lifeless.[14] The story was criticized by some, but MacDonald found it to be more adult and "out there-spooky" than any other PlayStation title yet.[1][14][15] Mark Kanarick of AllGame heavily criticized the voice acting, describing it as the worst aspect of the game.[2]

Ultimately, Fielder could not recommend Clock Tower II as an adventure or horror game, saying "leave this one for the antique collectors".[1] Nix felt the game fell considerably short of its potential. He found the rumble feature the "sole perfect feature of the game".[14] MacDonald called the game "seriously flawed, but unique". He described it as a terrible game in a conventional sense, but like a cult film, it is redeemed by its willingness to take risks and stand apart from the mainstream and therefore is "strictly for hardcore niche gamers".[15] Kanarick called it a poor attempt at a survival horror game, but that fans of Clock Tower (1996) may enjoy it.[2]

The Electric Playground presented Clock Tower II with its 1999 "Console Adventure Game of the Year" award. The editors called it "decidedly the best of the few challengers" in its field, despite competition from the PlayStation release of Software:Broken Sword II: The Smoking Mirror.[17]

Notes

  1. ↑ If the player directs Alyssa to examine a poster of 1996's Clock Tower (labeled by its Japanese title as Clock Tower 2) with series protagonist Jennifer Simpson on the cover, she will reply "This isn't a game!"

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 Fielder, Joe (November 5, 1999). "Clock Tower II: The Struggle Within Review". http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/clock-tower-ii-the-struggle-within-review/1900-2545939/. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Kanarick, Mark. "Clock Tower II: The Struggle Within - Review". AllGame. http://www.allgame.com/game.php?id=20300&tab=review. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 Clock Tower II: The Struggle Within instruction manual (US, PlayStation)
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Kalata, Kurt (December 12, 2013). "Hardcore Gaming 101: Clock Tower". http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/clock-tower-ii-the-struggle-within/. 
  5. ↑ In-game credits. Clock Tower II: The Struggle Within. PlayStation: Agetec. 1999. 
  6. ↑ Szczepaniak, John (November 2015). The Untold History of Japanese Video Game Developers Vol. 2. SMG Szczepaniak. p. 304. 
  7. ↑ (in ja) Clock Tower: 20th Anniversary Sound Collection booklet. Japan: City Connection. 2016. 
  8. ↑ Mollohan, Gary (August 1998). "Previews: Clock Tower II: The Struggle Within". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine 1 (11): 69. 
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 "クロックタワー ゴーストヘッド [PS / ファミ通.com"]. https://www.famitsu.com/cominy/?m=pc&a=page_h_title&title_id=2168. 
  10. ↑ "まお「世界観が日常に近いほど怖い」『クロックタワーゴーストヘッド』【ホラゲレビュー百物語】" (in ja-JP) (July 24, 2016). July 24, 2016. http://news.denfaminicogamer.jp/horror2016/hr-review011. 
  11. ↑ "Game Informer Magazine - News Story". Game Informer. 2000-01-22. http://www.gameinformer.com/news/news_story.cfm?NEWS_ID=123. Retrieved 2023-04-06. 
  12. ↑ "CLOCK TOWER GHOST HEAD | ソフトウェアカタログ | プレイステーション® オフィシャルサイト". http://www.jp.playstation.com/software/title/jp0202npjj00649_000000000000000001.html. 
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 "Clock Tower II: The Struggle Within for PlayStation Reviews". CBS Interactive. https://www.metacritic.com/game/clock-tower-ii-the-struggle-within/critic-reviews/?platform=playstation. 
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 14.5 Nix, Marc (November 11, 1999). "Clock Tower 2: The Struggle Within". http://www.ign.com/articles/1999/11/12/clock-tower-2-the-struggle-within. 
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 MacDonald, Mark (January 2000). "Reviews: Clock Tower II: The Struggle Within". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine 3 (4): 100. 
  16. ↑ Elsam, Sarah (March 2021). "The Making of Clock Tower". Retro Gamer (United Kingdom: Future Publishing) (121): pp. 66–71. 
  17. ↑ Staff (March 2000). "EP Blister Awards 1999". The Electric Playground. http://www.elecplay.com/features/blisters99/. 
  • Clock Tower II: The Struggle Within at Agetec (official site)
  • MobyGames is a commercial database website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes over 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms.[1] Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It has been owned by Atari SA since 2022.

Features

Edits and submissions to the site (including screenshots, box art, developer information, game summaries, and more) go through a verification process of fact-checking by volunteer "approvers".[2] This approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months.[3] The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copy-editing.[4] A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.[5]

Registered users can rate and review games. Users can create private or public "have" and "want" lists, which can generate a list of games available for trade with other registered users. The site contains an integrated forum. Each listed game can have its own sub-forum.

History

Logo used until March 2014

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999, by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, and joined by David Berk 18 months later, the three of which had been friends since high school.[6][7] Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience. The database began with information about games for IBM PC compatibles, relying on the founders' personal collections. Eventually, the site was opened up to allow general users to contribute information.[5] In a 2003 interview, Berk emphasized MobyGames' dedication to taking video games more seriously than broader society and to preserving games for their important cultural influence.[5]

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount.[8] This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign.[7] A few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025} On December 18, 2013, MobyGames was acquired by Jeremiah Freyholtz, owner of Blue Flame Labs (a San Francisco-based game and web development company) and VGBoxArt (a site for fan-made video game box art).[9] Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel,[10] and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.[7]

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million.[11] The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.[12][13][14] Over the next year, the financial boost given by Atari led to a rework of the site being built from scratch with a new backend codebase, as well as updates improving the mobile and desktop user interface.[1] This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.[15]

In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue.[16] Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.[17]

On February 13, 2025, Freyholtz stepped down as the site lead to move onto new projects, leaving operations to Tracy Poff, a veteran coder on the site, and Atari staff.[18]

See also

  • IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sheehan, Gavin (2023-02-22). "Atari Relaunches The Fully Rebuilt & Optimized MobyGames Website". https://bleedingcool.com/games/atari-relaunches-the-fully-rebuilt-optimized-mobygames-website/. 
  2. ↑ Litchfield, Ted (2021-11-26). "Zombie company Atari to devour MobyGames". https://www.pcgamer.com/zombie-company-atari-to-devour-mobygames/. 
  3. ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1. 
  4. ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Miller, Stanley A. (2003-04-22). "People's choice awards honor favorite Web sites". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 
  6. ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Plunkett, Luke (2022-03-10). "Atari Buys MobyGames For $1.5 Million". https://kotaku.com/mobygames-retro-credits-database-imdb-atari-freyholtz-b-1848638521. 
  8. ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/report-mobygames-acquired-by-gamefly-media. 
  9. ↑ Corriea, Alexa Ray (December 31, 2013). "MobyGames purchased from GameFly, improvements planned". http://www.polygon.com/2013/12/31/5261414/mobygames-purchased-from-gamefly-improvements-planned. 
  10. ↑ Wawro, Alex (31 December 2013). "Game dev database MobyGames getting some TLC under new owner". Gamasutra. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/game-dev-database-mobygames-getting-some-tlc-under-new-owner. 
  11. ↑ "Atari invests in Anstream, may buy MobyGames". November 24, 2021. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2021-11-24-atari-invests-in-anstream-may-buy-mobygames. 
  12. ↑ Rousseau, Jeffrey (2022-03-09). "Atari purchases Moby Games". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-purchases-moby-games. 
  13. ↑ "Atari Completes MobyGames Acquisition, Details Plans for the Site's Continued Support". March 8, 2022. https://www.atari.com/atari-completes-mobygames-acquisition-details-plans-for-the-sites-continued-support/. 
  14. ↑ "Atari has acquired game database MobyGames for $1.5 million" (in en-GB). 2022-03-09. https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/atari-has-acquired-game-database-mobygames-for-1-5-million/. 
  15. ↑ Stanton, Rich (2022-03-10). "Atari buys videogame database MobyGames for $1.5 million". https://www.pcgamer.com/atari-buys-videogame-database-mobygames-for-dollar15-million/. 
  16. ↑ Harris, John (2024-03-09). "MobyGames Offering “Pro” Membership". https://setsideb.com/mobygames-offering-pro-membership/. 
  17. ↑ "MobyGames on Patreon". http://www.patreon.com/mobygames. 
  18. ↑ "An update on MobyGames leadership". 2025-02-13. https://www.mobygames.com/forum/3/thread/269628/an-update-on-mobygames-leadership/#post-269628. 
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