Last Blade II takes place in the years after the Bakumatsu and involves the progression of the swordsman into the new Meiji era. The SNK original characters from the Last Blade are present, with four additional new characters, not including the three secret characters... nineteen in all for the home system, and eighteen for the arcade.

Kaede gains the power of the Blue Dragon and becomes Seiryu in the original Last Blade. In this sequel, you play fully as Seiryu, with enhanced moves. The Lively Dragon Lance is a beautiful addition, with the new air projectile. Along with his brother, Minakata Moriya (the child of God), and sister, Yuki (the Vanquished Virgin), he must now face the fact that the Master of the Phoenix, Kagami Shinnosuke, in defeating their master, Kouryu (Master of the Red Dragon), has made him open to the corruptive power of Hades. He has returned from the Abyss as a messenger of Hades, with immense destructive power.

The other characters have their own reasons for pursuing the evil of the Abyss. Kanzaki Juzoh chases the little fun-seeker, Akari Ichijo; she has her paper doll Hagure Hitogata. The Guardian with the mark of the Tiger, Naoe Shigen, has emerged, protecting his daughter Kotetsu, and aiming to get rid of his former comrade. Kagami Shinnosuke has realised the potential of humans, and has come to help his friend dissolve the wicked influence of Hades. The Shinzengumi has their most prolific fighter, Washizuka Keiichiro, in the fracas, with their leader, Sanada Kojiroh. Amano Hyo helps his friend Hibiki Takane with her quest, to prove herself a fighter worthy of her father's memory. The madman Shikyoh has been scorched, and now goes by the name Mukuro. Lee Rekka wishes to spread the Flames of Justice, while Zantetsu still practices the untimate art, using his blade to slay the wicked, and protect the weak. All this while Old Man Genbu no Okina watches his students and friends, and knowing the future, takes a stance in this battle. Hades' real messenger, Setsuna, comes to destroy the pretender, and slaughter the Virgin.

There are vast improvements over the original Last Blade here. The deflection and counter technique can now be used in a variety of ways: for a quick recovery from some knockdowns, for deflecting air, ground and low attacks, and to break some link and desperation combos. No more spoiler throws... you have to use kick+deflect for a grab. Nice button... that deflect button (unlike in Samurai Shodown 4, where you have to use additional stick movement).

Different systems are now represented by the sword type you use. Three are available, the third being a secret because of its power. That is, Power, Speed/Skill, and EX. With the power bar, the new moves include the Sublime Slash ("super cancel") and an unblockable power up. Many secret moves exist here (you can actually knock a weapon out of your enemies' hands!). With the speed bar, new moves include the Furious Fandango (an automated link combo), and the Strike to the Moon. The damage is weakened, but multi-strikes are enabled, with the power of some special moves being reduced (e.g. with Moriya, the Glancing Blade Moonlight w/A does not knock you in the air; adds to combo ability). The EX bar involves all the power moves except the power up (includes the Sublime S, however), has reduced sword effects ONLY (specials are more powerful), can link as the speed bar, has the Fandango, and has the "to the moon" strike.

The gameplay is strictly two-dimensional, but the effects are astounding. Flashing and lightning speed graphics are a real killer. Fighting is always on a one on one basis, with the game level deciding whether you win or lose. The home version lets you practice, choose a stage for a versus battle, or use the time attack (rocks!). In the arcade, you can also get the time attack, as in the original TLB, where you try to beat as many players as possible in a 90-second (usually) time limit.

Characters are well-designed, with flowing animation, and full voices (mostly in Japanese, however). The stages are superbly designed, with numerous active objects which the Neo Geo is famous for (Note: not actually interactive). Some minor graphic glitches are present in a few stages, but this hardly takes away from the overall effect. The "music" accompanying each stage does not stand out; it is designed to enhance the various atmospheres, so you can concentrate on the fighting ("ambience" is promoted). For example, when tackling Shigen, you hear the noise of the waterfall, which does not disturb the atmosphere as a raging guitar would. Flames are rampant in Mukuro's scene, so you hear the roaring fire.

The most noticable depreciation in quality is the change in AI of the computer controlled player w/difficulty. On level-8, all the characters (except Moriya, Amano and Kojiroh) have definite patterns which makes them easy to defeat with any character. The most powerful character, Setsuna, is among the slowest, and many characters only excel in a specific sword mode (e.g. Speed Shigen Sucks). The super desperation moves are all spectacular, with Setsuna's "mirror of the soul" and Kouryu's "lance from the gate" each involving long animation sequences. Kanji characters frequently light up the background, and the sfx just always gets the job done. Any anime fan will love this (even the intro. is superb).

Check it out at your local arcade, or contact the nearest distributor of Neo Geo products. A highly recommended 2D fighting game. Note: The original is also available on Sony's PSX.

Review done by LChrysler for EmulaZone exclusively. No part of this compilation may be duplicated in ANY form without permission from the Zone. Layout copied from the SNES BOF2 review by RpgRealm.