"Remember, Don't Shoot the Food!!!"

Gauntlet 2 is among the better, and ironically, the worst NES games. It seems that just when you start to like it, you hate it! Overall, it is a pretty average game, but you have to have a lot of patience to play this puzzling adventure game.

(((THE STORYLINE)))
You can have 1-4 players, and each player is a different character with different abilities: elf, warrior, wizard, thief. You go through all these different mazes and levels and for what??? I never figured out why I was doing this, but it really doesn't matter. Anyway, you're going through all these levels, finding keys, busting enemies to pieces, and escaping with the goods.

(((GRAPHICS))):5
Okay, the graphics weren't too bad, but they were very small and monochrome. All the different levels looked the same as far as background goes, except for the different patterns of mazes. As enemies moved, they became very blurred. Trust me, they could've been a lot worse. Be thankful!!

(((SOUND))):3
The sound, for lack of a better word, sucked. There really was no background music, and sound effects were very horrible. As enemies were beaten or created, wretched screeches occured, which made the game a bit annoying. The game tried to use voices for the ''narrator'', but they were very shotty and scratchy. Probably a good thing there wasn't music, but then again, they could've be some...couldn't there??

(((PLAY CONTROL))):7
The play control, on the other hand, wasn't too bad. Most of the time, characters moved with ease. Attacking and such was a bit awkward though. For the most part, it was okay.

(((CHALLENGE))):10
Here is where it gets very interesting. The challenge was a good factor for this game, as the challenge was because of the game, and not because of the bad mechanics, such as graphics or play control. Throngs and legions of enemies kept coming, and your life total continuously dropped. The only way to replenish it was with rare food, which the narrator reminded you, ''DON'T SHOOT THE FOOD!!!'' Throngs of different enemies and thousands of different ways to go through all the stages. In addition to the different ways to go, there were many stages too. This is definitely a challenging game, especially with only one person.

(((FUN))):7
This game was very fun, but it could be annoying at many times and usually you would get so ticked off at the game you would turn the NES off, making any chances you had at beating the game go away. However, if you just wanted to have fun destroying enemy after enemy, this is a great and fun game.

(((GAMEPLAY))):6
The mechanics of this game are unique in the sense that no other game has them except the other ''Gauntlet'' games. Half the time this game was your best friend, while other times you wanted it all to end. But hey, it's just a game, isn't it??

(((OVERALL))):6
Overall, this game isn't half bad. Challenging and fun, if you can avoid the wretched sound effects and ignore the mediocre graphics. You should definitely try this game once, but only if you can pick it up at a rather inexpensive price.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 08/15/00, Updated 08/15/00