"Lufia 2:Rise of the Sinistrals"

Graphics
Well for it's time, not too great, but they did the job. When compared to the original Lufia it's a big step up. Towns all look the same, maybe some with more water then others. Many castles have the same kinda look. The tower graphics are used a bit too much. Characters all look pretty good, in battles enemies are well drawn but lack any actual movement. (Their picture shakes around a bit, that's it)

Sound
Good music, however without too many tracks, there are a lot of repeated songs. The cave dungeon and tower theme are used all too much. Boss battles and regular battles both have great music. Sound effects are pretty good, for an SNES.

Story
One of the highpoints. The game has a great story, and a love story also. (The last thing I expected happened not even halfway through the game)The game serves as a prequel to Lufia. If you haven't played either Lufia game and want to. I suggest this one first, as the first Lufia gives away the main ending to Lufia 2. Having the ending as a surprise, makes it a lot more enjoyable. The story is about Maxim, a monster hunter who has to travel to a cave, along the way he meets a mysterious girl who tells him his destiny is to fight. So Maxim takes off on a journey along the way meeting many characters, some stay while others go. (Once again if you played the first lufia you know who the four characters that stay are.)Maxim is one of the best hero's I've seen, and it's nice to have a non-kid, non-cold hero.

Gameplay
Basic turn based battles. You have the Hp, Mp and IP gauge. Ip is a new feature that allows you to use special attacks depending on what weapons or armor you have. One weapon might be stronger all around but have no IP attack. Therefore it's better to get the one with an IP attack. This adds some thinking to purchasing weapons an armor instead of buying the strongest thing possible. Magic is bought also, so in otherwords you have a lot of money to collect. Dungeons are all well thought out with many puzzles. Along the way you'll collect tools to use in the dungeons. You'll get bombs, hammer, hookshots and more. That's about it.

Replay Value
There's quite a few reasons to replay this game. Secrets are all over, the casino, dragon eggs. If you find all 4 sets of 8 dragon eggs you can get wishes from the egg dragon. Also after beating the game once you can play again on retry, which doubles all exp and money gained, making the game a lot easier. Beat it again and you'll get the gift mode. This mode allows you to enter the Ancient Cave. A 99 floored, randomly generated, dungeon with no saves. You'll be playing for hours. Great replay value all around.

Difficulty (Med-Hard)
Battle wise the game is medium-hard. Regular battles can be tough, but boss battles can be a Nightmare. Take the spider boss you fight to get the Ruby Apple. Enemies can put status effects on you by just attacking, a very annoying feature for you. Puzzles are also kinda hard, some are very easy and you can figure them out instantly. Others are quite hard, a couple way out there. Luckily signs are posted to help you along

Buy or Rent?
First off if you hate puzzle games or RPG's then don't buy it. If you hate puzzle games and like RPG's try to find it for rent. Some stores still carry SNES games. If you like both then by all means buy it, I think you'll be satisfied.

MY Score: 9/10

Reviewed by: STARSCOP33