Vimm's Lair: NES Reviews - Zoda's Revenge: StarTropics II
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Zoda's Revenge: StarTropics II

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Overall:		 8.97
8.93
8.91
8.99
Votes: 88
Reviews: 2


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Reviewer: Porkman_2 Date: Dec 12, 2006
If you like lots of dungeons and a great story about a boy traveling through time, then you will love this excellent RPG. This game is about a teen named Mike and he's trying to find his uncle (again) and he ends up traveling through time and making history. The main boss is Zoda BUT there are three of them?!? You'll figure it out if you play it.

Graphics: 9
This game came out during the final years of the NES. The SNES was flying off of the shelves by the time this game was made. The graphics still have the NES feel but you can do much more. In fact the dialogue scenes remind me of some of the early SNES games. They really paid attention to detail.

Sound: 5
On the downside, the dungeons almost always have the same music. You still get a boss theme and a victory theme but otherwise the dungeon and overworld theme repeats itself and may become kind of annoying and lead to slight boredom.

Gameplay: 8
You run around (in all directions) and throw weapons: Rock, Axe, Dagger, Three Rocks, etc. at many creatures. Bosses usually occupy levels. You collect lives and...you get it, it's an action RPG but it's pretty enjoyable and you might like it better than some older classics.

Overall: 9
I really like this game. I played the first one afterwards and went back to playing this one. A word if advice though, Don't jump too much you might fall into a pit. The controls work really well and will respond if you jump and use the D-pad so watch out for pits.

Play it! It's really fun and will please any RPG gamer.

 

Reviewer: Oscil Date: Nov 6, 2001
This game is a direct continuation of the original starring the classic Nintendo character, Mike Jones.

Graphics: 9
Because of its release late in the life of the NES, you'll be hard pressed to find many games with better graphics. Overall they have great variety and are crisp and detailed, and there is little flashing or slowdown.

Sound: 10
Greatly improved over the original in this aspect. Startropics II does not feature only one or two dungeon themes and one or two for the overworld. Rather it has a great selection and variety that always seem to fit. This game has some of the most pleasing sound for the NES.

Gameplay: 8
Like the original, this one takes Mike Jones through several chapters (9) of adventure. There are two modes of play: a map view, where you talk to people and solve puzzles but never fight, and the dungeon view, which takes place in battle areas, where you fight enemies and collect more powerful weapons, and battle bosses. For each chapter, there is always a main map, along with around 2 battle areas. The game is fairly lengthly for a NES game. It is also Challenging, though not as much as the original. The puzzles in the map view are not as difficult, and the battles are easier as well. The main reason for this though is that the play control is greatly improved, allowing Mike to jump at diagonals. The game is far more lenient on jumps and battles, and jumping around pits is actually more difficult however, because the control is not as ""strict"" as the first game. If you loved the control of the first game, it will take you a bit to get used to this, as it is actually quite different. But if you disliked the control of the original, you're in for a nice surprise.

Overall: 9
A very pleasing adventure game for the NES. Perhaps not quite as good as the first. Many people enjoyed the ""tropical"" feel of the first game, with the island exploring. That is virtually absent in this game, replaced by a time travel concept where you jump around through various periods in history. It's different, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Just different.

Oh, and the game is funny, too!