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Klonoa 2: Lunatea's Veil
PlayStation 2
Staying True to the Formula
4/5 stars
"Klonoa 2: Lunatea's Veil" is the direct sequel to "Klonoa: Door to Phantomile." Direct sequels can be something of a mixed bag. Fans complain when anything changes, critics complain when nothing changes. It can be difficult to balance the amount of new and returning aspects to make a game that appeals to everyone. So, how does "Klonoa 2" fare?
Presentation
"Klonoa 2" improves on the original game's presentation in every way. The polygonal 3D backdrops and bosses return, but all of the sprite-based graphics have been replaced with cell-shaded polygonal models. Despite my love of old-school sprites, the new character models are an obvious upgrade. Whereas the original "Klonoa" had severe pixilation on character sprites, "Klonoa 2" has smooth, beautifully-animated characters that even look good up-close. Due to this improvement in the graphics engine, pre-rendered FMV cutscenes are completely gone, replaced by cutscenes generated by the in-game graphics engine.
Audio has likewise been upgraded. The noticeable fuzzy quality I experienced in the original "Klonoa" is completely gone. The quality of the composition is comparable to the first game, with a few more tracks that are really catchy. The fictional language of the Klonoa universe returns, only this time with a few more dialects. My personal favorite voice is that of the cat-like Tat, who makes many cute meowing sounds while mocking Klonoa and calling him a pervert.
Story
The narrative of "Klonoa 2: Lunatea's Veil" picks up where "Klonoa: Door to Phantomile" ends. Klonoa finds himself adrift in a sea of dreams with an ethereal voice calling for help. After nearly being kidnapped by air pirates, Klonoa washes up on shore and is rescued by Lolo, a monkey-like priestess, and her disturbing mole-dog-thing companion, Popka. After a bit of exposition, Klonoa learns that an ominous 5th Bell has appeared in the world of Lunatea and the only way to prevent it from ringing and bringing catastrophe is to travel around the world and ring the other four non-ominous Bells. Lolo replaces the MIA Huepow as the power source for Klonoa's magic ring and the adventure begins. Like the original "Klonoa," the story is significantly darker and weightier than the appearance of the cute characters would indicate. Also like the first game, it contains a fairly major plot twist at the end. Throughout the story, Klonoa and company have recurring encounters with the air pirates from the opening sequence, Leona and Tat. Leona is the same species as Lolo, except with a deep tan. Tat is a strange, harlequin-colored cat-thing who can split into two halves. These two characters provide most of the story's conflict and, in the case of Tat, the comic relief as well.
Gameplay
"Klonoa 2: Lunatea's Veil" plays virtually identically to "Klonoa: Door to Phantomile." I like to see gameplay refinements take place among sequels. There is little-to-no refinement to be found here. Klonoa still moves on a 2D plane through 3D levels, with numerous perspective changes throughout. He still runs at the same speed and, frustratingly, still jumps the exact same height no matter how long the jump button is held. He still has his midair flailing to gain hangtime at the expense of forward momentum, and he still has the ability to inflate enemies for use as projectiles or double-jump platforms. The only new gameplay aspects introduced in "Klonoa 2: Lunatea's Veil" are the occasional hoverboarding levels, the fact that Klonoa now loses an entire heart when hit instead of half a heart, and a bonus jump provided by Popka if a second controller is plugged-into the console.
The Popka jump is actually a great new feature, as it allows the player to save Klonoa at the last minute if he misses a tricky jump or bypass certain sections that require bringing an enemy from far away to perform a double-jump. Unfortunately, it is a SECRET feature that I only discovered by reading the Codes and Cheats section of GameFAQs (my copy of the game didn't come with a manual, so it may be mentioned in there—I have no way of checking). The increased damage per hit affects the challenge of levels very little, but makes boss battles significantly tougher, as Klonoa can only take three hits instead of six.
The hoverboarding levels are a bit of a mixed blessing. They are nice in that they add a bit of variety to otherwise-uniform 2D platforming gameplay. At the same time, they can be frustrating because they 'autoscroll,' meaning that if a player misses an item or some gems, the only way to go back is to die and restart at the last checkpoint. These hoverboarding levels are the only fully 3D segments of the game. They take place from a third-person perspective, usually with the camera behind Klonoa, but sometimes with the camera in front of him. There are also two bosses that must be fought on the hoverboard.
Also like the original "Klonoa," "Klonoa 2" has a relatively uneven difficulty. The early levels are typically easy, but the later levels feature some incredibly tricky platforming segments that can lead to instant death by bottomless pit. Thankfully, one of the largest flaws of the original "Klonoa," the inability to revisit completed levels, was removed. "Klonoa 2" features a full world map, and Klonoa can travel to and revisit any previous level to look for collectables and, more importantly, gather extra lives.
Overall
"Klonoa 2: Lunatea's Veil" is not a step up from the original "Klonoa: Door to Phantomile." It is a step sideways. However, since it is significantly easier to find on the shelves of used game stores than the original, players will need to spend much less of their hard-earned cash to experience an adventure in the world of Klonoa. The improvements in this sequel are minor, and the formula remains completely untouched.
I recommend "Klonoa 2: Lunatea's Veil" to anyone who liked "Klonoa: Door to Phantomile" and wants more of the same, or to anyone who likes old-school 2D platformers, but doesn't want to spend the ridiculous amounts of money that "Klonoa: Door to Phantomile" is currently commanding on ebay.
Presentation: 4.5/5
Story: 4/5
Gameplay: 3.5/5
Overall (not an average): 4/5
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