TF01 3,ZOOL 2 4,by Gremlin ZOOL 2, Gremlin, £29.99 Developed by The Warp Factory Ratings: Graphics - 8/10 Sound - 8/10 Playability - 9/10 Lastability - 8/10 Innovation - 3/10 Overall - 84% Sven Harvey ------------- So Zool was the best platformer available, but does the sequel live up to it? Well as with the first game you CAN have both music and sound effects (contrary to what some magazines have said), a choice of difficulty level. Plus now there is a two player mode where the two players alternate in playing the game. There are now two characters, Zool and his girlfriend Zooz which have their own advantages and disadvantages. The game is very similar to the first with the addition of bonus levels in a breakout form using Zools dog Zoon as the bat! The graphics are more toned down than in the first game and thus enemy and bullet sprites are easier to see making the game more playable. However the main character sprites don't seem as convincing with Zool himself being a lot less chunky and 'ard looking than in the first game. The first world on the CD32 version did not appear in the other version and it is easy to see why because the level is just helping to pad out the CD. It is laborious, tedious and pointless. Paper Plains is no introduction to the game, it doesn't even have an end of world guardian! However the second world, Swan Lake is much better and more fun to play, as is Bulberry Hill and the rest of the levels. But it just doesn't come together as well as the first game and to be honest I have now gone back to playing the original Zool because it simply is more fun. The graphics in Zool 2 are great the sound and music isn't quite as good as Zool but it just doesn't grab you and pull you in. In the end I just couldn't be bothered to play it when I could be playing Zool or Kid Chaos. My advice is try before you buy, you may prefer it to Zool and Kid Chaos... but I doubt it. Graphics - 9/10 Sound - 8/10 Playability - 9/10 Lastability - 7/10 Innovation - 3/10 Overall - 83% Bill Bakayi ------------- There comes a time in everyone's life when something will come along that will change your outlook on life forever (well maybe not forever, at least for a little while). This is one guy you just can't get away from. Who am I talking about, well, it can only be a ZOOL, well ZOOL 2 to be precise. This is the next re-incarnation of the Ninja from the Nth Dimension who is constantly under attack from the forces of the evil Krool. One of the main differences between Zool and Zool 2 is that in Zool 2 the player can choose to play either the GREAT!!!??? Zool or his female companion Zooz. Although I don't have the floppy disk version, the CD32 version seems to be a straight conversion from floppy with just an introductory animation stuck on at the beginning of the game and a small animation between some of the levels. The game contains seven massive worlds to complete with each world divided into sub-levels. The objective being to collect as many points as possible, that's not strictly true, if don't get 99% score for each level you've had it. If you do get 99% on any level you can proceed to the exit and carry on to the next level. Each level has been fiendishly designed, so getting around each level isn't as easy as it first appears. If you haven't got any patience to 'keep having a another go' then stay away, (the adage 'if at first you don't succeed, try, try, try, try, try again' certainly rings true in this case) but then again no-one said that completing Zool 2 was going to be easy, far from it. I bought Zool 2 for a tenner about three months ago and I've only managed to get to the forth world, but I enjoyed every minute of it. It's the sort of game where you say to yourself just one more game and before you know it, its way past your bedtime!!! There is a selection of nine audio tracks on the CD, with each world having a unique track although you have the option of having either music or sound effects while playing, or you could have both or neither. The difficulty option has three settings, EASY, MEDIUM, HARD, this will effect the amount of time you have to complete each world and the number of lives you have. Zool 2 now has the added feature of a two player mode. No you can't both play at the same time (bit of a shame really, it would have been nice) but you play alternatively, each player can play the same or each of the characters. There are loads of bonuses around if you are prepared to look for them, some are easier to find than others. The bonuses are concealed in strong boxes identifiable by the Chupa Chups logo, you can break them open with a ninja head butt to collect whatever goodies may be hidden in them. Amongst the bonuses are a Smart Bomb, when you decide to use it, all the nasties that are on the screen at the time explode (HASTA LA VISTA BABY). The Two zool bonus splits Zool into Ying and Yang, this has the effect of two Zools on the screen, which makes it easier to get around although in some situations it is not always desirable. The Shield makes our hero invincible for a period of time (more like a few seconds). The time Bonus can sometimes prove invaluable, this can sometimes be the difference to success or failure so never give up the opportunity to get those extra seconds. 1UP gives you an extra life, and there are a generous spread of these in the first couple of worlds although some of them are rather cunningly hidden. The Super Shot Bonus allows you to shoot a swirling spinning missile which in most cases will destroy anything that gets in the way. The Chupa Chups Bonus will restore our hero back to full health. If you are lucky enough to find three Zoons, these are indicated with the word 'BONUS' underneath then you will be transported to a bonus level which resembles BREAK-OUT, the object being to collect the capsules that are freed when the ball(s) hit some of the bricks. The section gets tricky very quickly, blink at the wrong moment and you've had it. One other bonus that is useful are the bonus hearts, these available when some of the badies have been killed, a little heart with wings will start to float upwards, if Zool can grab one of these, his health will be restored by one point. Now all the essentials out of the way, how does the game play I hear you all scream, well, in the main it plays very nicely indeed. One little qualm I have which is mainly down to the processor speed (or lack of it) rather than the actual game itself, when you are collecting all the millions of points you need to go onto the next level, the screen will sometimes get little crowded and will therefore become slightly jerky. This in no way detracts from the gameplay which is very smooth. The game is played using the joypad (how ingenious I hear you all shout), to move Zool or Zooz in a particular direction use the (yes, you've guessed it) D-Pad. The Green button is used to fire and the Red to jump. After a few minutes of initially loading the game and having a couple practice games, you become quite accustomed to the controls. The CD has been well put together with minimal CD access during the actual gameplay, only between levels. There are over 100mb of graphics and animations on the CD with the remainder of the CD being taken up by nine audio tracks - Good value for money. Overall, I'd like to say that if you enjoy playing platform games, then forget Sonic the Hedgehog, for Super Mario and go for the Ninja from the Nth Dimension, he'll blow all the competition away in style. Graphics - 7/10 Sound - 8/10 Playability - 9/10 Lastability - 8/10 Overall - 85%