I am still playing Psygnosis’ Lemmings on my Amiga from 1991 – so here are a few more news from Lemmings: I’ve found it fairly sad all along, that for some abilities that you can give your Lemmings, you will have to leave them behind. The game design doesn’t allow for all Lemmings to be rescued, depending on how the level is setup or how you solve a level.
The whole point of Lemmings is that you bring your green-haired fellas safely to their home, rescuing as many as possible. While every level has a minimum number of Lemmings you need to save, there’s very few levels that require you to save all Lemmings. Still, there’s some mastery and art in being as efficient as possible, saving all Lemmings. The more the better.
However, if you are using the “Stopper” ability on a Lemming, you can’t bring them back to a non-working life and make them a running Lemming again. They’ll stand there, watching and blocking, until either the time runs up – or you blow them up with explosion or “explode all” buttons. What a waste and how sad that is – they are left behind for the herd. Or so I thought.
It appears that you *can* bring back a Stopper to life – and make them a normal Lemming citizen again. It’s a little complicated and certainly not possible in all levels – but it may still ease your mind that hope is not lost for all of these stoppers.
The trick is simple – you need another Lemming than the Stopper, and also a digging ability for that other Lemming. You’ll tell the other Lemming to dig underneath the Stopper — and as soon as the Stopper lost the ground it stood on, it turns into a running Lemming again. Yay!
There’s another problem – now that you’ve made another Lemming a digger, you’ll need to give them the bridge builder ability, so that they stop digging, and lay bricks, until they reach a wall, turning them into a running Lemming again.
I didn’t say it’s easy or convenient – but it’s worthwhile leaving no Lemming behind! All you need is another Lemming, a digging ability and the bridge builder ability.
FRICKELSOFT 