The Code Monkeys

Background

The Code Monkeys was founded in Leeds, United Kingdom in 1989 by Colin Hogg and Mark Kirkby. They had originally done console ports of various titles, though later in their history they began to release now-infamous shovelware "games" of knock-off cartoons by German animation studio Dingo Pictures, many of which were published by Midas Interactive and Phoenix Games on the PlayStation 1 and 2, along with poorly developed titles based on various films and cartoons such as The Simpsons, Garfield, Shrek, and Postman Pat. On February 1, 2011, the studio was closed.

1st Logo (1990-1998)

Logo: On a black or white background, we see a stretched out "C" with a smaller "M" inside it, and a red rectangle near the "C" behind it. Below it is the words "THE CODE MONKEYS".

Variants:

On Game Boy, the logo is in monochrome.
On the Game Boy Color version of Centipede, the logo is colored blue and light blue.
On Crime Wave for Amiga, the white logo (with the rectangle in pink) zooms towards us against a fiery background, before panning down.

Technique: None.

Music/Sounds: The opening theme of the game.

Availability: Seen on a few early games like all monochrome Game Boy games the company developed, as well as Crime Wave for Amiga. Does not appear on other games. The logo is retained on Majesco's rerelease of Centipede for Game Boy and Game Boy Color.

2nd Logo (March 1994)

Logo: On a blue marble background, we see the panning down of the red rectangle and the "M" and we see the black "C" rotating, zooming out. The yellow words "THE CODE MONKEYS" appear letter by letter. The logo then rotates to the left slightly.

Technique: Decent CGI animation.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Seen only on Tomcat Alley for Sega CD, only when completing the game.

3rd Logo (June-September 1995)

Logo: On a dark blue marble background, we see the black "C" and the red rectangle rotating, and we see the "M" panning down, and we see the black text "THE CODE MONKEYS" in a black font zooming down. The logo then slowly zooms in and fades out.

Technique: The panning and zooming, better CGI than before.

Music/Sounds: A triumphant fanfare.

Availability: Only seen on two games Surgical Strike for Sega CD and Sega CD 32X and Wirehead for Sega CD. Like before, it was only used when completing the game.

4th Logo (1999-2004)

Logo: On a white background, we the Code Monkeys logo encased in a wooden frame. A cartoon monkey wearing overalls and a cap holding a bucket, ladder and a broom is seen at the bottom right.

Variant: A variant exists with the URL "www.codemonkeys.com" under it.

Technique: None.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Seen on some early games made by the company, mostly for the PlayStation 1, such as the PS1 version of Worms: World Party. It was also seen on Garfield for the PlayStation 2 and PC, and the Game Boy Color version of Force 21. This was also attached to the Dingo Pictures "games" on the PlayStation 1, proceeding the Midas logo. It also appeared on a beta version of The Simpsons: Skateboarding for the PS2, the final game used the 6th logo instead.

5th Logo (July 3, 2001)

Logo: In a jungle, we see a blank sign. A monkey (wearing blue denim overalls) swings towards it on a vine, carrying a rolled up white banner. The monkey lands on top of it, rolls down the banner (containing the logo) and leaps off, walking off screen. The camera zooms in on the logo.

Technique: The monkey's movement and the banner's appearance. Basic cel-shaded animation.

Music/Sounds: A bongo theme with noises from the monkey.

Availability: Only seen on Goofy's Fun House for the PlayStation 1.

6th Logo (October 18-December 6, 2002)

Logo: A white square zooms in, then a monkey with red boxing gloves, red trunks and an "M"-shaped mouth slides in, then doing a boxing pose. We then see his arms as he punches. Then, a full shot of him slides in. He moon-walks as he is punching, and bumps into a giant gorilla, also with red gloves. The gorilla growls, much to the monkey's dismay. The gorilla then punches him into the camera, where the monkey's face gets squashed, before cross-fading into the Code Monkeys logo (this time, the text is thinner). The URL is seen under it.

Technique: The movements of the monkey and the formation of the logo.

Music/Sounds: Descending whooshes for the sliding, quick whooshes for the punching in action, a thump when the monkey bumps into the gorilla, then the gorilla's growl and a whimper from the monkey. We then hear a punching sound when the gorilla punches the monkey, followed a weird descending sound, and ending with a distorted synth splash (which is actually a high-pitched glass-shattering sound).

Availability: Rare. This is seen on only two games: Shrek: Treasure Hunt, and The Simpsons: Skateboarding; the former for the PlayStation 1 and the latter for the PlayStation 2.

Legacy: While the two games this was used on aren't well received, this logo is funny to those who have seen it.

7th Logo (200?-2007)

Logo: On a dark stage, a wooden crate is seen. A small monkey dressed in a pink/purple jester costume runs, with a spotlight following him. He then hits the crate, and a small white rectangle shoots upward out of it. The monkey bounces back, then the rectangle lands on the crate, now bigger and with the Code Monkeys logo on it. It lands upside-down, then turns the right way. The monkey shakes his head and looks at us, and the camera zooms into the rectangle, where the screen fades to black leaving just the rectangle with the logo.

Trivia: The monkey appears on the menus and box art for games published by Phoenix Games.

Technique: All the animation in this logo.

Music/Sounds: A weird trumpet solo to start with, then the sound of an audience laughing, then some funny sound effects to go with the animations, and as we zoom into the logo, an applause is heard.

Availability: Found on some later games by the company. This was also attached to the Dingo Pictures "games" on the PlayStation 2, proceeding the Phoenix logo, such as the infamous Dalmatians 3.

Legacy: Another humourous effort from The Code Monkeys, having better animation than most of the "games" this logo appeared on.

8th Logo (2007-2011)

Logo: On a white background, three shapes are arranged to form the letters "TCM". Below it is the text "THE CODE MONKEYS Ltd.".

Technique: None.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Rare. Found on the latest games by the company before their closure in 2011. One known example of this logo appearing is Postman Pat for the PlayStation 2.

Legacy: This logo is a noticable downgrade from the previous logos, and it's also a good metaphor for their last few products. It also looks like a logo that was made in Logo Maker in less than five minutes.