Adventure Island II

Breaking Free from Wonder Boy's Shadow

Adventure Island II arrived on the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1991, developed by Now Production and published by Hudson Soft. As the second entry in the franchise for the NES, it carried the weight of following a debut that had been, in essence, a re-skin of Sega's Wonder Boy. The sequel marked a decisive turning point: it was an entirely original work, a creative leap that set the tone for most subsequent titles in the Adventure Island line.

Rather than borrowing another publisher's formula, the team built something with its own identity, its own characters, and its own mechanical philosophy. The game also found a second life on portable hardware. In 1992, a Game Boy version hit shelves, carrying the Japanese title Takahashi Meijin no Bouken Jima II domestically while appearing simply as Adventure Island in Western markets. This dual-platform presence helped cement the series as a recognizable Hudson Soft property, one that could travel across Nintendo's ecosystem and build a loyal following on both home and handheld systems.

The Dinosaur Companion System

The most celebrated innovation in Adventure Island II is its roster of four rideable dinosaurs, each unlocked by collecting a specific playing-card suit hidden inside an egg. The blue camptosaurus, summoned by the heart card, wields a tail attack and can walk across ice without slipping. The red camptosaurus, tied to the spade, breathes fire and can traverse lava pools for a limited distance. The pteranodon, called forth by the clover, soars above obstacles and can drop stones onto enemies below.

Finally, the elasmosaurus, bound to the diamond, is the only companion that survives underwater stages and boosts Higgins' swimming speed. Before each stage, the player selects which rescued friend to bring, making the inventory system a genuine tactical choice. This replaced the earlier game's simpler progression where a second stone hammer simply upgraded Higgins to fireball-throwing mode; here, extra hammers are stored as reserved items instead.

The result is a companion system that rewards exploration and gives each playthrough a distinct flavor depending on which dinosaur the player carries into danger.

A Tighter, More Punishing Structure

While the core rules mirror the original Adventure Island, the sequel restructured its stage design around brevity and consequence. The checkpoint system was entirely removed: die mid-stage and you restart from the very beginning. To compensate, individual stages are noticeably shorter than their predecessors, and the player is allowed to backtrack within a stage up to a certain point. Hidden eggs, revealed by a distinctive sound when struck, contain keys that unlock bonus zones, item rooms, or shortcuts to the next island.

New stage types—underwater levels and vertical-scrolling sections—add variety to the traversal. Skateboards, once carried across stages, now expire at the end of the level. At each stage's conclusion, the player picks one of ten spinning eggs for a point bonus. Perhaps most notably, bosses are mobile: defeat one and it relocates to a different area, forcing the player to clear an additional stage before re-engaging. This dynamic keeps the tension alive and prevents the boss fight from feeling like a static, isolated event.

Beyond the Cartridge

Adventure Island II's cultural footprint extends well beyond its NES cartridge. Allgame editor Skyler Miller singled out the sequel as a clear improvement over the first game, specifically praising its upgraded graphics, the inclusion of a map screen, and—most importantly—the four dinosaur buddies, each with a unique special ability. The game also crossed over into print media, appearing as a featured title in Cyber Boy, a manga by Nagai Noriaki that ran in Coro Coro Comic and was published by Shogakukan between 1991 and 1993.

This placement in a popular manga series introduced the game's characters and world to a broader audience of young readers who might never have picked up an NES. The physical packaging itself was a small piece of art history, with cover artwork illustrated by Shelley L. Hunter, lending the box a distinctive visual identity that stood out on store shelves. Together, these touchpoints—critical acclaim, manga crossover, and striking cover design—helped Adventure Island II establish a recognizable brand identity that outlived its initial release window.