Games Ex has beaten in 2016:
92. Lost Kingdoms II|GameCube|2003|action-RPG|7h 1m|8/10
A young woman with a mysterious past must use her sacred rune stone to uncover her history and save a kingdom. To do so, she will need to recruit the aid of hundreds of different monsters fused into cards. Yes, Lost Kingdoms II continues the action-RPG/dungeon crawler/collectable card game hybridization of its predecessor. While the learning curve may be higher than typical games of this genre due to the CCG aspect, the strategic advantage and variety of battle tactics is worth the effort. Lost Kingdoms II, like Lost Kingdoms before it, is a very unique experience and a joy. Figuring out which monsters to summon, and in which combinations, is a fun game in and of itself.
Lost Kingdoms II's key evolution over the first Lost Kingdoms, is that battles now happen on the main map, rather than on a separate battle screen. This keeps the pace more fluid, and aids in immersion. It also means the player can run away from battles now if need be, lowering the difficulty significantly. Lost Kingdoms II is overall a far easier game than the original Lost Kingdoms, but it's no less fun or interesting despite the decreased challenge. Actually after you beat the game, the Proving Grounds area opens up. The Proving Grounds is a huge dungeon that is focused on being far more difficult than the main game. So you can find your challenge fix there.
Graphics have improved marginally, but cutscenes and voice acting improved dramatically. However, the OST is a step down from the first Lost Kingdoms, as is the loss of atmospheric dread. Lost Kingdoms II is simply a more cheery, less moody experience than the original. Lost Kingdoms II does however boost up the puzzle aspect, utilizing key cards for solving those in entertaining ways. One of the most interesting additions is the ability to morph in actual monsters yourself, and use the monster's ability to access areas you previously could not before.
FromSoftware crafted addictive and compelling adventures in both Lost Kingdoms. These are short plays for their genre, and would be an excellent experience played back to back. If you're looking for overwrought exposition, cheesy melodrama, and padded length, you won't find that stuff in Lost Kingdoms II. The focus here is on actual gameplay and interactivity. Thus RPG lovers with a GameCube would be foolish to pass up Lost Kingdoms II, as well as its predecessor. If you want a fast paced dungeon crawler with a collectable cards twist, you'll find yourself gleefully lost in this kingdom in no time.
Luckily the partners will revive you and each other pretty well, but it was still pretty silly.
I still love Quartet to this day though. It's such a great co-op game. I love the music and all the weird little aliens. Honestly I think the SMS version trumps the arcade version.
