Legendary Axe 2
Reviewed by Michael LoCascio
The Legendary Axe was always one of my favorite games, and I
still remember the intense anticipation that I felt as I
awaited its sequel. Axe II was met with mixed reviews, and
to be honest, it isn't quite as good as the original.
Nonetheless, it's a worthwhile and challenging adventure
game, one that can provide countless hours of hack-and-slash
entertainment.
The game play in Axe II closely resembles that of the
original: slice up every enemy that you come across during
the game's seven stages, while at the same time remembering
to pick up as many power-up items as you possibly can along
the way. But while Axe II may be similar to the first game
as far as its controls and action elements go, the
respective plots have absolutely nothing to do with each
other. This game was released in Japan as a completely
separate entity; it wasn't until it was brought over to the
states that it was dubbed the sequel to Legendary Axe (NEC
basically pulled the same stunt with the Axe games as
Nintendo pulled with Super Mario Bros. 2).
In any event, Axe II focuses on the sibling rivalry that has
developed between two princes. When the great King Brace of
the 'Ancient Kingdom' passed away, two of his sons laid
claim to the throne. Well, the bad son won, and now evil has
spread across the kingdom. You assume the role of Prince
Sirius, the good son, and your goal is to take back the
throne from your evil brother Zach.
Ironically, your main weapon in this game is a sword, not an
axe. You can attain an axe at various points in the game,
but it's not quite so legendary this time around: while the
axe packs a wallop, it's a slow weapon with very poor range.
On the other hand, you can also acquire a sickle and chain,
which has great range but is relatively weak. I stuck with
the sword or the sickle throughout the entire game; the axe
is too slow and clumsy to be of much use.
The graphics in Axe II are solid: while many of the
backgrounds are dark and bland, the characters are large and
well designed. The music contains a great deal of variety (I
remember a friend of mine telling me that the track that
plays during level three reminded him of a Megadeth song).
All in all, while the graphics in Axe II don't come close to
the beautiful visuals displayed in the original, the music
in this sequel can more than hold its own.
The main complaint that was aimed towards Axe II was that
many of the levels are simply too tedious and frustrating.
Stages two, four and six seem to be the main culprits in
this respect: all of them require you to complete many
series of jumps as you travel upwards towards the level
bosses. The game controls quite well, but there are always
instances in which you can't help but be hit by an enemy
that awaits you on a higher ledge. More often than not, you
will be sent plummeting down towards the beginning of the
stage and forced to begin your climb all over again. Adding
to the frustration is that each stage has a time limit; I
have no idea why they decided to include this in the game,
but it's sure to cost you a life every now and then as you
attempt to complete the aforementioned levels.
While it may seem like this review has a negative overtone,
Legendary Axe II is a great game that just doesn't quite
live up to the high standards that were set for it. As noted
above, the controls and music in this game are top-notch,
and the huge bosses that appear in certain levels are sure
to impress. I would recommend anyone to judge the game on
its own merits; I have a hunch that most people would be
pleasantly surprised by the results.
Overall: 8 out of 10
OR
Debt Help - Free Credit Report - Mortgages - Loans - Cheap Flights 