Solomon's Key 2
A prequel to Solomon's Key with ice-based puzzle gameplay.
Solomon's Key 2, released as Fire 'n Ice in North America, is a puzzle video game for the Nintendo Entertainment System. It serves as a prequel to Tecmo's 1986 game Solomon's Key. The game was first released in Japan in January 1992, with North American and European releases following in March 1993.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Tecmo
- Director
- M. Akama
- Designer
- Michitaka Tsuruta
- Artist
- Green Peace
- Composer
- Ryuichi Nitta
- Platforms
- Nintendo Entertainment System
- Genre
- Puzzle
- Modes
- Single-player
Facts from the source article.
Gameplay
The story is set before Solomon's Key and is presented as a tale told by an elderly woman to her grandchildren. It takes place on Coolmint Island, an ice-covered island inhabited by winter fairies. The evil wizard Druidle sends flame monsters to melt the island, and the fairy queen summons the apprentice wizard Dana, granting him ice magic to extinguish the flames. In each stage, the player controls Dana and must put out all fires by sliding ice blocks into flames or dropping blocks on them from above. Dana can walk left and right, climb onto solid blocks that are one block tall and unobstructed, and push ice blocks that slide until they fall or hit a wall. His ice magic allows him to create or destroy ice blocks on the grid squares beneath him and to his left and right, similar to Lode Runner. An ice block placed horizontally next to a wall, pipe, jar, or another ice block will freeze to that surface. Later stages introduce pipes, which Dana can travel through, and jars. Dana can walk across normal jars, but a jar that contacts a flame begins to burn; he cannot walk across burning jars, and any ice created or entering the square above a burning jar is destroyed. The puzzles grow more complex as the game progresses. The main story contains 10 worlds with 10 stages each. The Japanese release includes a save battery, while English releases use a password system. Completing all 100 stages and defeating Druidle reveals a cheat code that unlocks a sound test and 50 bonus stages. A stage editor is included, but only the Japanese version allows saving created stages.
Reception
Reviewers at Electronic Gaming Monthly were divided on the game. One found the puzzles repetitive and uneventful, noting that while each puzzle was different, the core idea did not change. Another recommended it only for logic puzzle fans, stating that the game seemed typical of what the NES could handle. Other reviewers called it the best puzzle game in years, and while one felt the graphics were dated, they described the game as very thought-provoking, adding that planning 15 to 30 moves per stage was common in later levels.
More in Tecmo Games
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced