Archer MacLean was impressed by its cuteness and attention to detail, while Andy Beveridge said 'It's refreshingly different, and fun too. This was the most popular choice when Amiga Power magazine asked a number of famous programmers which Amiga game they wish they'd written and why. He also expresses surprise at how strong a reaction the level got, particularly since from his perspective, players are actually rescuing the lemmings from Hell into a better place.ġ001 Video Games Lemmings appears in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die by General Editor Tony Mott. Then, thinking of the other Hell levels in the game, he thought of 666 and opted to go with that. Another level cut from some versions was 'A beast of a level' which may have been removed simply for fear that it was referencing the 'Beast' associated with the number 666, although the level title actually references Psygnosis' earlier title Shadow of the Beast.Ī webpage by Mike Dailly (founder of DMA Design) documenting the history of DMA explains that the 666 level originated when Mike wanted to make a 5-themed level, but he couldn't get the level to require 55% of the lemmings to be saved without changing the number of lemmings. Like many pop culture references to the number 666, this was meant as a joke and wasn't intended as an overt reference to Satanism or anything else of that nature, but the matter was sensitive enough that the 'Menacing' and 666 levels were removed from several versions of the game that were released for family-friendly consoles. It also contains a total of 66 lemmings, requires 66% to be saved, provides 66 of each skill, and provides 6 minutes in which to finish. Probably most (in)famous of all, however, is level 21 on the 'Tricky' difficulty rating, entitled 'All the 6's.' and consisting entirely of a playfield which is shaped like the number 666. This is particularly prevalent on the 'Hell' levels on which the exit portal is a horned pig's head, and especially on level 14 of the 'Tricky' difficulty rating (the level title is 'MENACING!!') which contains several skeleton limbs hanging from what appears to be dripping blood, and a large skull with a snake crawling through its eye sockets.

The original Lemmings had a strong edge of macabre imagery in it, perhaps to offset the excessively 'cutesy' look and feel of the lemmings themselves.

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