Stone Age Game Review: Christmas Lemmings

There used to be a time when companies would take their existing games, give them a Christmas theme, and put something special into the world for fans to enjoy. NiGHTS: into Dreams did it with Christmas NiGHTS. I’m pretty sure there was even some Christmas-themed DLC for Mega Man: Powered Up on the PSP. But for my money, my favorite game during the holiday season is Lemmings. Or should I say Christmas Lemmings?

In 1991, the fine folks at DMA Design delivered a handful of free levels, Shareware if you will, for Lemmings. They looked and sounded great and they continued to make more for several years. Sure, you could see it as if they were promoting their upcoming release, Oh No! More Lemmings, but I like to think it was just the team doing what they loved: spreading Christmas cheer through suicidal, explosive rodents. Or are lemmings marsupials? I honestly have no idea.

Origins aside, I’m specifically referring to the original 1991 Xmas Lemmings because, well, that’s the one I had. I first discovered Lemmings through the Super NES, where you had to move the cursor around a screen with a d-pad. It’s not the worst thing in the world, but it’s a far cry from the smoothness of a mouse. So when I turned on this Shareware disc I got from… I actually have no idea how I came into possession of this game. Strange. Anyway, I clearly remember turning it on and smiling from ear to ear.

Let’s get the basics out of the way. In case you’re not familiar with Lemmings – which, given how long it’s been since they had a proper new release, as far as I know is a distinct possibility – the game is about indirectly controlling a series of adorable little creatures that don’t They do more than walk forward. If there is a spike pit in front of them, they will walk directly into it. It’s up to you to provide them with jobs to guide them safely to the goal door. You can give them umbrellas so they can survive falls from great heights. You can turn them into climbers so they can climb walls. Diggers, miners, builders, there are all kinds of things you can make these critters do. It is a game about planning and management. And it’s really fun!

One of my favorite things about Lemmings was its visuals. All of the environments were beautifully detailed and the Lemmings themselves were animated extremely well. This is a game that brims with personality, and Xmas Lemmings is no exception. The stages are covered in snow, Christmas lights, and beautifully animated background elements, like little toys that swing back and forth, and these fun, silly snowmen that bounce up and down. Even the Lemmings themselves got into the Christmas spirit and swapped their traditional blue attire for red Santa suits, complete with hats that move!

Another of my favorite things about the original was its soundtrack. The original compositions were an absolute delight, but the rest of the game’s music was actually fun, high-energy versions of classic tunes. So when I booted up Xmas Lemmings for the first time and a super fun, VERY Jingle Bells-esque rendition started playing, I was immediately hooked.

At its core, Xmas Lemmings is just more Lemmings. It doesn’t introduce any new mechanics or do anything revolutionary, it’s just old-fashioned Christmas fun and I love it. I play it every year around this time and it makes me happy every time I do it. I wholeheartedly recommend Xmas Lemmings.

You can play the game on the Internet Archive. here.

Have a safe and happy holiday season everyone!