Developer: KCET Publisher: Konami Released: December 22, 1993 Genre: Action
Legend of the Mystical Ninja was one of the best early SNES game. In my opinion it is also one of the best in the system’s library. Although it was not the first game in the series it was the first to reach the US and introduced us to its wacky world. Sadly it was not the hit that it deserved to be which meant the rest of the world missed out on all of its brilliant sequels. Ganbare Goemon 2: Kiteretsu Shogun Magginesu is a fantastic game that every action fan needs in their library. We missed out on a true gem.
Goemon and Ebisumaru decide to go on a nice vacation after rescuing Princess Yuki. But not long after embarking on their trip Sasuke informs them that Japan is under attack from the western general McGuinness and his bunny army. The good general wants to take over the country and impart a little western culture whether the people like it or not. Now our trio of heroes must save the country once again.
Both Goemon and Ebisumaru return as playable characters and in addition to the clockwork ninja Sasuke. The differences between all three are more pronounced this time around. Goemon is well rounded and has the longest reach with his pipe. Ebisumaru is slower than everyone else but is the strongest. His fan isn’t as long as Goemon’s pipe but his projectiles can rebound off walls. Sasuke is notably the fastest; you can absolutely blitz through the toughest platforming segments with him. His lacking strength makes boss battles longer however. Unfortunately you can’t switch characters mid-game which would have been really cool.
Ganbare Goemon 2 takes a page out of Super Mario World and adapts a world map system. The game is still broken up into separate areas but it does change the overall structure somewhat. Each area has a number of levels on the map as well as the familiar towns from the original game. Unlike its predecessor you can replay levels at any time. This is key as not every level is available right away. Just as in Nintendo’s title certain levels have multiple exits. While it is not necessary to visit every level in each area some of the game’s best need to be unlocked first.
Towns in Ganbare Goemon 2 are pretty much the same as before. You can rest at an inn, buy protective items and play various minigames to earn gold. Gold is a lot easier to come by and outside of two or three relatively cheap items is never mandatory. The abundance of gold makes using it as a weapon more viable this time around. There are an insane number of minigames with some like the level from Xexex being a real treat. Just like its predecessor it is easy to spend hours playing around, especially because the games are so fun.
The stages in Ganbare Goemon 2 are not as long as the first game. That ends up being its greatest strength as there are more levels overall. This enables the game to exhibit a greater degree of variety and Konami have really gone to town placing our heroes in nutty situations. The Goemon series has always had a warped sense of humor and this one ramps it up. You have mecha sumo battles, a kabuki palace, and even a shadow puppet boss fight. The bunny men are ridiculous and can’t be taken seriously at first. But when they return in giant mecha it gets serious. Nearly every level has a number of different vehicles that are just as strange. The sumo suit is exactly what the name suggests. There is even a mouse car and fish vehicle as well. But that isn’t even the weirdest one of all…
Goemon Impact makes its debut here and it is a truly worthwhile addition to the series. What might seem to be a lame gimmick is actually an essential and fun addition to the game. Before most battles you control Goemon Impact as he smashes through the countryside to build energy for the incoming fight. The boss battles themselves are a first person version of Punchout and extremely fun. Each boss has numerous moves that you must counter by blocking or counterattacking. These get pretty difficult as you often have to break them apart first to make them vulnerable. It is the epitome of pattern based gaming and truly adds to the game. I freely admit that I thought Goemon Impact would be a worthless addition to check a box. I am glad I was proven wrong.
The difficulty is almost tuned near perfect. You don’t have as long a life bar but can still take a hefty amount of punishment. If you buy armor and rice buns in town you can survive even longer. Most enemies are pushovers and most of your deaths will come from the at times tricky platforming. Boss battles are challenging while being intuitive. The easy difficulty does make the game breeze by but overall this is a decently lengthy game. Even though I feel Goemon 2 is the perfect length you still won’t want it to end.
In Closing
What a game. Ganbare Goemon 2: Kiteretsu Shogun Magginesu is a phenomenal game that excels in every category, from production values to gameplay. Konami knocked it out of the park with this one and it deserves more praise. I waited decades to play this in English and it was worth the wait. Buy this game people.
