Adventure Island II/Takahashi Meijin no Bouken Jima II (NES, 1991)
Graphics-7 Sound-7 Control-6.5 Challenge-7 Story-5
Level Design-6.5 Frustration-8 Fun-6.5 Originality-4
Overall Score-6.5
+
Somewhat improved variation (vertical scrolling, new mounts)
Dinosaur mounts (flight, faster swimming)
Decent art direction overall
Some hidden bonus levels (same as in the first Wonder Boy) or rooms where you get an item
Temporary invincibility power up
Item inventory (only accessible between levels but it saves mounts that you've beaten levels with for later use)
Some large sprites
+/-
Very similar to the previous game
One hit kills unless you're on a mount or skateboard (mounts also die in one hit)
Can't replay beaten levels
There's a hub map but you can't move manually between levels
Need to keep eating food to survive (a health meter depletes fairly quickly like in Wonder Boy)
Unlimited continues?
No checkpoints (short levels though)
While there are warps they're generally very hard to spot (no visual clue)
Pterodactyl lets you fly past entire levels
-
No passwords or save feature (fairly long game)
Repetitive (lack of a distinction between worlds when it comes to the enemies and backgrounds, repeats some music in unfitting places)
Uneven difficulty (levels without eggs (=no hammer) and/or very little food and the game doesn't give you a new hammer after dying, many easy levels even later on with the hammer or on a mount, simple bosses up until the octopus)
Can't duck
Trial & error (eggs become pretty rare later on, a few leaps of faith (can't look up/down), some traps, you'll hit a rock on a platform above while riding the skateboard (platforms that you can jump up through but not down through), the hammer doesn't fall through the aforementioned platforms)
Somewhat floaty controls (pretty much the same as before)
Too easy for the first two worlds or so
Loose scrolling to the left
Some super short levels
Some sprite swaps and backgrounds look pretty generic
Lame end of level bonus game
Level Design-6.5 Frustration-8 Fun-6.5 Originality-4
Overall Score-6.5
+
Somewhat improved variation (vertical scrolling, new mounts)
Dinosaur mounts (flight, faster swimming)
Decent art direction overall
Some hidden bonus levels (same as in the first Wonder Boy) or rooms where you get an item
Temporary invincibility power up
Item inventory (only accessible between levels but it saves mounts that you've beaten levels with for later use)
Some large sprites
+/-
Very similar to the previous game
One hit kills unless you're on a mount or skateboard (mounts also die in one hit)
Can't replay beaten levels
There's a hub map but you can't move manually between levels
Need to keep eating food to survive (a health meter depletes fairly quickly like in Wonder Boy)
Unlimited continues?
No checkpoints (short levels though)
While there are warps they're generally very hard to spot (no visual clue)
Pterodactyl lets you fly past entire levels
-
No passwords or save feature (fairly long game)
Repetitive (lack of a distinction between worlds when it comes to the enemies and backgrounds, repeats some music in unfitting places)
Uneven difficulty (levels without eggs (=no hammer) and/or very little food and the game doesn't give you a new hammer after dying, many easy levels even later on with the hammer or on a mount, simple bosses up until the octopus)
Can't duck
Trial & error (eggs become pretty rare later on, a few leaps of faith (can't look up/down), some traps, you'll hit a rock on a platform above while riding the skateboard (platforms that you can jump up through but not down through), the hammer doesn't fall through the aforementioned platforms)
Somewhat floaty controls (pretty much the same as before)
Too easy for the first two worlds or so
Loose scrolling to the left
Some super short levels
Some sprite swaps and backgrounds look pretty generic
Lame end of level bonus game