BARBARIAN II: THE DUNGEON OF DRAX (GX4000)
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Publisher: Palace Software.
Developer: Palace Software. Released: 1990. Genre: Roaming hack 'n' slash. Other versions: AMI; AST; C64; SPC; MSX. Posted 24th January 2013. By Chris Weatherley © 2013 |
It may come as a revelation to the modern gamer, but the tried and tested mixture of sex and violence used to entice teenage lads into buying a video game is not a recent concept. Way back in 1987, Palace Software employed the services of the popular Page 3 pin-up Maria Whittaker to pose semi-naked on the cover of Barbarian: The Ultimate Warrior, a Bronze Age themed slash ‘em up that achieved moderate success. In 1989, these somewhat contentious marketing tactics were repeated with Barbarian II: The Dungeon of Drax. With an overly muscled Michael Van Wijk in his pre-Wolf days also gracing the packaging, both titles became more famous for their art work than the game itself. Yet another CPC to console port, this time with zero differences, Barbarian II is an amusing little jaunt that is inoffensive on the eye and provides some light-hearted 8-bit savagery amongst some infuriating gameplay issues that impede it.
You play as the titular primitive, embarking on a journey into the lair of the evil Drax. This story is a continuation from the first Barbarian, whereas your quest was to rescue the Princess Mariana. Playing as either the Barbarian or the Princess, you are tasked to find a way through a maze of caves and corridors, slaying any beasties that get in your way so you can vanquish the malevolent wizard once and for all. It’s fairly simple stuff, but finding the correct path, avoiding some devilish obstacles and killing the monsters en-route is no mean feat. Presented in a non-scrolling flick screen manner, it can get confusing from time to time remembering which cave you entered or which direction you took. This is the crux of the gameplay, but fighting those baddies is also fundamental. Spread over only four levels, with the last merely two end-of-game boss fights, it’s not a long game, but due to the exploration and variance of foes, it can seem more enduring than it actually is.
You play as the titular primitive, embarking on a journey into the lair of the evil Drax. This story is a continuation from the first Barbarian, whereas your quest was to rescue the Princess Mariana. Playing as either the Barbarian or the Princess, you are tasked to find a way through a maze of caves and corridors, slaying any beasties that get in your way so you can vanquish the malevolent wizard once and for all. It’s fairly simple stuff, but finding the correct path, avoiding some devilish obstacles and killing the monsters en-route is no mean feat. Presented in a non-scrolling flick screen manner, it can get confusing from time to time remembering which cave you entered or which direction you took. This is the crux of the gameplay, but fighting those baddies is also fundamental. Spread over only four levels, with the last merely two end-of-game boss fights, it’s not a long game, but due to the exploration and variance of foes, it can seem more enduring than it actually is.
Acid trips ftw!
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The swingers party was just grand, until Barbarian unveiled his thong
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The use of a single screen at a time is a good aspect of B2, providing a puzzle element that creates a very tough challenge. The roster of fantasy monsters is also impressive; more than 20 different types with various attack patterns, so repetition is limited to a degree. This is not the case with the backdrops however. Although they are nicely drawn and stylised, with some neat background animation, they are awfully samey and sometimes undistinguishable from one another. This can be forgiven, as can be the rather unique control system. The main protagonist only has four attack manoeuvres, all activated with a combination of button press and D-pad direction. Regular moves are equally strange to perform. You press down to turn around, up to run and have no ability to jump on the spot. Whilst it seems this is a very restricted collection of moves, they are just about adequate to oblige the player, and even can be used together to make some satisfying combinations. This is helped by some excellent responsiveness and predominantly sharp collision detection; a nice surprise given the GX’s rather average controller. All this does take a short while to adjust too, as pixel-perfect positioning and execution of attacks are essential to defeat the game.
One thing I always did admire with both the Amstrad and Spectrum machines were the large sprites and commendable animation demonstrated in many of their titles, particularly with brawlers and slashers. It’s fair to say that this is Barbarian II’s strongpoint. Moderately defined and a tad blocky in appearance, the princess more noticeably; the sprites are large, bold and animated to a high standard. They move with a pragmatic flow and composure, and are a joy to behold within the 8-bit environment – truly excellent animation. The monsters are another highlight; most are vividly drawn and original, all with different battle strategies and have fine animation themselves. The accompanying dark comedy of the graphics adds the final touch to some pretty snazzy visuals; a well-timed axe will lop the head off a Neanderthal or slice the heart out of an Ogre. On the flipside, you could have your head bitten clean off by Saurian Beast, who then gleefully swallows it mocking your headless torso. These little touches add fun and fantasy to the game without being too grisly, but it tends to all be a bit slow-paced. The SFX are limited and there could’ve been a lot more put in, but the effects that are included provide just enough to assist the graphics humour and also place in a throwaway slapstick element. The sound of falling down a hole is hilariously cartoon-like, as are the laughing taunts of some of the larger beasties. It’s a shame there is next to no BGM save for a short, single-toned introductory riff played at the beginning of each level, because the in-game effects for the most part are rather good.
One thing I always did admire with both the Amstrad and Spectrum machines were the large sprites and commendable animation demonstrated in many of their titles, particularly with brawlers and slashers. It’s fair to say that this is Barbarian II’s strongpoint. Moderately defined and a tad blocky in appearance, the princess more noticeably; the sprites are large, bold and animated to a high standard. They move with a pragmatic flow and composure, and are a joy to behold within the 8-bit environment – truly excellent animation. The monsters are another highlight; most are vividly drawn and original, all with different battle strategies and have fine animation themselves. The accompanying dark comedy of the graphics adds the final touch to some pretty snazzy visuals; a well-timed axe will lop the head off a Neanderthal or slice the heart out of an Ogre. On the flipside, you could have your head bitten clean off by Saurian Beast, who then gleefully swallows it mocking your headless torso. These little touches add fun and fantasy to the game without being too grisly, but it tends to all be a bit slow-paced. The SFX are limited and there could’ve been a lot more put in, but the effects that are included provide just enough to assist the graphics humour and also place in a throwaway slapstick element. The sound of falling down a hole is hilariously cartoon-like, as are the laughing taunts of some of the larger beasties. It’s a shame there is next to no BGM save for a short, single-toned introductory riff played at the beginning of each level, because the in-game effects for the most part are rather good.
Don't lose your head! Mwha. I know, I know, too easy.
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Barbarian reacts badly to being overlooked for Golden Axe in favour of dwarf
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Beneath these high points however are some issues which bring the overall playability down to borderline mediocrity. It’s not a surprise that it’s a tricky challenge to complete, but this is due to the frequent and downright unfair situations you can, and will, find yourself in. Some enemies have a habit of constantly hitting you once you have been knocked down, this makes getting up impossible, you’ll suffer multiple hits that you can do nothing about. Even more annoying, on the times where you have to jump a hole to progress, an adversary will appear on the other side and wait there. No matter what you do, they just don’t move. Any attempt to jump will result in you getting pushed instantly into the chasm. The only way to bypass this is to commit suicide by voluntarily walking into the hole in the hope that you will respawn on the other side. This can result in unnecessarily lost lives. These unmanageable issues eventually beat you into submission and you throw the controller away in disgust, vowing never to play again.
Regardless of the absence of enhancements from the CPC original, Barbarian II looks good and plays well, with some top class animation and a generally well-set locale, but the primary problem of iniquitous enemy behaviour frustrates you too much to persevere with the game till the bitter end. Even a tiny half-chance to make that jump or escape a corner without getting killed would be beneficial and put more interest into the game, as would a little more pace, movements and variation to the backgrounds. These factors can be a somewhat debatable one, some argue this is just ‘sour grapes’ but my stance on this is resolute. Barbarian II is yet another example of an okay but half-cocked GX4000 title which could have been a great deal better (see Amiga version!).
Regardless of the absence of enhancements from the CPC original, Barbarian II looks good and plays well, with some top class animation and a generally well-set locale, but the primary problem of iniquitous enemy behaviour frustrates you too much to persevere with the game till the bitter end. Even a tiny half-chance to make that jump or escape a corner without getting killed would be beneficial and put more interest into the game, as would a little more pace, movements and variation to the backgrounds. These factors can be a somewhat debatable one, some argue this is just ‘sour grapes’ but my stance on this is resolute. Barbarian II is yet another example of an okay but half-cocked GX4000 title which could have been a great deal better (see Amiga version!).
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VERDICT
Visual: 8/10
Audio: 5/10 Gameplay: 7/10 Longevity: 5/10 OVERALL: 7/10 |