Segmented weapons that you build over time were a staple of the N64 Turok games. Turok: Dinosaur Hunter had the Chronoscepter, Turok 2 had the Nuke, and Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion has the Personal Singularity Generator (PSG). Now, where do you find the pieces?
Right off the bat, note that much like previous games, there is one part of the PSG in each of the chapters. There are five chapters, there are five parts. Thankfully, because Turok 3 is a lot more linear than its predecessors, you don’t really need to go out of your way to find the parts. However, they are missable, so to make sure you’re prepared, here’s where all the pieces are.
Chapter 1 (City)
The PSG part in the first chapter is found near the beginning of The Sewers segment. At the end of the tunnel you begin the level in, you’ll drop down into water. There, you’ll find one exit pipe, and on the opposite side of that is a dead-end pipe. Inside that dead-end pipe is the first piece of the PSG.
Chapter 2 (Military Base)
Early in the second chapter, the base will be set to self-destruct. I don’t know why. However, you need to abort the sequence, which takes you to various missile silos. The PSG part here is at the bottom of Silo 3. There are two silos in that area, but both have goodies at the bottom, so you might as well visit both of them. I’d recommend looking for the part after you’ve aborted the self-destruct. Otherwise, you might see what those missiles look like when they’re set off.
Chapter 3 (Lost Lands)
This one’s a bit difficult to explain. When you’re looking for the fuses, you go through two areas: The Dam and the Lab. Right before you transition from The Lab and into the Dam, there’s a small open area with palm trees. While passing through, you might have had your attention grabbed by a series of Life Force gems that lead up a sheer cliff face to a cave. The PSG is in that cave, but you won’t be able to get to it until you’ve flooded the area. After you do that, you can swim up to that cave and nab the part.
Chapter 4 (Temple)
The part in Chapter 4 is in a somewhat obvious place, as you find it atop a pyramid that is a focal point of one area in the chapter. Don’t get too excited when you first see the structure. You’re not going to be able to climb it right away. Seriously, don’t waste your time. Don’t try to jump off the waterfall, and don’t look for a ladder or something inside. You’re first going to go through a section of the volcano itself. Then, after you’ve defeated the Alpha Fireborn boss and picked up the Fire Gem, you’ll ride an elevator back up to the pyramid. It’s there that you’ll see some rocks stacked against it, and can climb to the PSG part at the top.
Chapter 5 (Oblivion Refinery)
Chapter 5 is one of the easier places in Turok 3 to get lost. However, if you’re going to get through the chapter, you’ll eventually find yourself at ore processing plant A. It has to be destroyed. However, while you’re in the room with the pump, check the right side of the room for the last part of the PSG. Just note that it won’t destroy the pump. You’re going to need an explosive device for it.
The PSG is an extremely powerful weapon that kind of sucks to use. It has infinite ammo, so don’t be shy with it, but has a recharge time of about 1 minute (you can put it away and let it recharge). Why does it suck? Well, it creates a quantum singularity (a portable black hole) that draws all the enemies in the area toward it. Then, the singularity explodes, killing everything near it.
What sucks is that you are also affected by the gravity distortions. Speaking of distortions, the level geometry will stretch and contort in a programming trick that was extremely cool at the time. It stops combat completely while it draws everybody in. Meanwhile, enemies not under its effect can still shoot you.
It does have its use. It can stun the penultimate boss, allowing you to feed shots into its torso without worry. However, when it comes to the last boss, it seems to do nothing. Bummer.
Published: Nov 30, 2023 07:00 am