Golden Axe II

Golden Axe II
Developer(s)	Sega
Publisher(s)	Sega
Composer(s)	Naofumi Hataya
Series	Golden Axe
Platform(s)	Mega Drive/Genesis, MegaPlay, Virtual Console
Release date(s)	NA December 26, 1991 JP December 27, 1991 PAL 1992
Genre(s)	Hack 'n' Slash, Arcade Action, Medieval / Fantasy
Mode(s)	Single Player 2 Players Cooperative Duel
Rating(s)	Pre-Rating
Media	16 Bit Cartridge
Input methods	1-2 Players

Golden Axe II is a side-scrolling fighting game (or side-scrolling beat'em up) released for the Sega Mega Drive. It was released on December 26, 1991.^[1] It is the home console sequel to the popular game Golden Axe, marking the second game in the series, though the arcade did see a sequel of its own called Golden Axe: The Revenge of Death Adder a few years later. Golden Axe II was only released on the Mega Drive, whilst the original was released on many other platforms. The game will next appear in Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection for Xbox 360 and Playstation 3.

The three playable characters from the first Golden Axe, Ax Battler, Tyris Flare, and Gillius Thunderhead, return in Golden Axe II to fight the new evil forces led by Dark Guld. The game features a total of seven levels: six scrolling levels and a final end of game boss battle against Dark Guld.

Gameplay

Golden Axe II is a side-scrolling arcade hack 'n' slash game, very similar to the previous Golden Axe. The player is given a choice of three fighters: a battle axe-wielding dwarf, Gilius Thunderhead; a barbarian, Ax Battler, wielding a two handed broadsword; and long-sword wielding Tyris Flare, an amazon. Each of the fighters has a unique magic which can be used at any time in the game to inflict damage upon enemies. Each player is given a set of life bars which are lost one by one if the player is hit.

Though the characters and gameplay were virtually unchanged from the first game, there were a few improvements. The "back attack" (performed by pressing the Jump and Attack buttons simultaneously) for each character was changed to a more useful attack that hit enemies on all sides. Enemies could now be thrown in either direction by pressing right or left on the D-pad immediately after picking them up, allowing you to hit other enemies with them. Most importantly, the magic system was overhauled. Whereas in the first game, pressing the magic button used all of a player's magic pots, one could now use part or all of one's magic by holding the button and releasing it when the meter had reached the desired level. The magic was also changed - Ax Battler's exploding magic from the first game was replaced with wind magic, and Gillius Thunderhead now used rock magic instead of lightning. Tyris Flare retained her fire magic, but was still given entirely new animations for it. Finally, there were small cosmetic changes in the form of a shoulder guard for Ax Battler and black gauntlets for Gillius Thunderhead.

There are two types of game modes. One is "The Duel", where players are pitted against enemies in one arena, battling one after the other and gradually getting more difficult. The other is normal mode, where players must navigate through different areas battling various enemies.

An example showing a players skill rating.

Between each level a rating is awarded to the player(s) based on their performance, with a final rating awarded at the end of the game. A small exposition of the main story is also given.

Normal mode

Normal mode puts the player into the story of the game, where they must recover the golden axe from Dark Guld. The player must navigate through multiple areas until eventually they reach Dark Guld's castle. Each area ends with a boss where the player must battle a large group of enemies at once. Magic books are also gathered along the way allowing the player to increase their magic meter.

Duel mode

The duel mode consists of multiple rounds where the player must stand of an enemy, or a group. Every round is set in the same scenery.

Plot summary

Not long after the malignant reign of the Death Adder has ended, another evil rises. The peace of the land has again been threatened, this time by 'Dark Guld', who was supposed to be imprisoned but apparently is not. He has instead now got his hands on the Golden Axe, and is using it for his own nasty purposes, and with his minions is causing much chaos.

So once more, Ax-Battler, the fierce barbarian; Tyris-Flare, the fearless Amazon; Gilius Thunderhead, the ferocious dwarf, rise up to deal with the oppression, with their might and magic, and recover the Golden Axe.

Reception

Upon release, opinion was split over whether the game was superior to the original. Many critics felt the game was a rehash of the original, citing very similar hack and slash gameplay and little improvement over the first game. Another criticism was that it was easier to beat than the original (setting the game to hard mode restores the challenge). Others felt that the graphics were a major improvement, utilizing some clever FX in later levels and although the music was well written and catchy, the extremely poor sound effects took away from the atmosphere. Overall most felt that the game's small changes made it a more refined and enjoyable experience despite the lack of any real character or technique improvements.

Recently, the game has been made available on the compilation for Playstation 2 and PlayStation Portable known in the U.S. as Sega Genesis Collection and in Europe as Sega Mega Drive Collection, along with many other Genesis/Mega Drive titles (including both Mega Drive/Genesis prequel and sequel). On June 11, 2007 the title was added to the Wii Virtual Console. Its also available on GameTap.

References

External links

• Golden Axe II guide at StrategyWiki