In the game are four other hidden playable characters: a Tengu called Tengy, a scarecrow simply called Scarecrow, a mole called Digger, and an automaton called Ottobot. That's disappointing actually, but I'm not going to let that one tiny detail affect my overall thoughts towards Pocky & Rocky 2.Īll right, before most stages you get to choose who your companion will be, whether it be veteran Rocky, a shuriken-throwing Little Ninja, and strong and bulky Bomber Bob. In here, however, the title feels a little like false advertising, in that the first player is always Pocky but the second character in theory does not necessarily always have to be Rocky. What was great about the first game's title was that it said just enough you either got to take control of Pocky or Rocky, or if you had two players you would be Pocky and Rocky. Okay, so Pocky is exclusively delegated to being the main playable character, while the companions join you in-game whether they be CPU-controlled or controlled with the second controller. Steaming hot location filled with fire enemies Okay, cool! =D Already this is sounding like a good Pocky & Rocky sequel, so let's see what else is in sto. The first stage is actually optional since it's a training stage, but you have the option to skip it if you feel confident enough. You can still collect enough power-ups to augment the potency of your projectiles, and now press the A button to temporarily become your companion (press A again for reversion), and you can throw said companion (R shoulder button) towards an enemy or boss in order to amass a big amount of damage towards them (in which the companion uses their super attacks which last for a certain amount of seconds). However, there are new capabilities you can use that compensate for those. Gone from the last iteration are the ability to slide and the ability to cast magic to defeat a large slew of enemies in the same screen. The main characters can still fire an endless supply of projectiles as they move in any of the eight directions, and any time they have to deflect projectiles they can still do so by repeatedly tapping the B button (Pocky uses her staff to do so). The gameplay has been left mostly intact since the last game. Oh, but they didn't just make a sequel, they made some substantial changes in the process so without further ado, let's talk about Pocky & Rocky 2, the least known of the two titles.
Unlike said competition, it didn't really get well-known by a lot of gamers at the time but despite that, Natsume figured that perhaps a sequel wouldn't be a bad idea, which we all got in 1994 (and for some reason it was released in Europe by Ocean).
=) Some gamers compare it to Konami's vastly overrated (in my opinion) The Legend of the Mystical Ninja, which is understandable considering some of both titles' similar themes, cultural settings, and levels of quirkiness. Pocky & Rocky's strengths were its charm, its intuitive gameplay, its surprisingly arcade-like quality, its difficulty which gradually increased the farther you progressed, two very likable and endearing main characters, a good amount of atmosphere, its nonstop quirkiness, a great sense of fun, and a really good soundtrack. The original Pocky & Rocky, which itself was a sequel to Taito's arcade game KiKi KaiKai ( Knight Boy), was an obscure shoot'em up on foot in a Japanese setting that has since gotten a bit of a cult following since its release, and honestly I think it's a bit of an underrated game.
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