This Game, a late bloomer for the SNES, came out late when the system was being replaced by 32 Bit console, was the absolute best RPG ever. This game has it all! Interesting characters, hundreds of weapons, new innovations, Nintendo-pounding puzzles, great music, and the 16-Bit to the MAX story.

Taito's brainchild in development for over 5 years was finally released. Natsume picked up the game and released it in the U.S. That’s how it begins, with the Natsume screen. Then we see a castle, where a large man named Arek talks to the Sinistral Erim. He asks her if Sinistrals should rule the world.... Curiosity killed the cat.

Maxim is a humble monster fighter and his girlfriend Tia owns a shop. Maxim is surprised by the uproar of monsters. He later finds out his destiny is to kill the Sinistrals and bring peace to the World. Along with him, Guy the invincible, Artea, an Elf who's quest involves vengeance and who wields great fighting magic, Dekar, the strongest warrior in the world, Lexis, genius at work, and the magical lady, Magical Selan! Through combined efforts and the loss of many lives, 4 of these heroes will go against Daos - Sinistral of Terror.

This game takes place 100 years before the first Lufia. The game is just downright good. It has many new Innovations like : IP Attacks, much similar to the Final Fantasy Limit Breaks, and Capsule Creatures, that require more feeding then a Tomagachi. The Zelda like puzzles with arrows, and hookshots can be seen in this game, but these puzzles are much harder than anything you could find in any Zelda game. The game features a Casino, with more than 5 games including poker and slots. When you’re done with the game, there is an *Ancient Cave* where you can test your skills. Each time you enter this 100 floor dungeon, it changes and all your characters go back to level 1 equipped with only 10 potions. There are special treasures down there and more monsters than you can fight off. This extra part of the game can keep you busy for over twenty hours.

Lufia II's sound track is great. It’s everything Lufia had and more. The music matches the mood, and never leaves you bored. The graphics are very very good. The battle magic animations are pretty nice and all the enemies are detailed, some are even animated.

The game control is nice, and there is a lot of customizable things. Each weapons has its own special IP attack. There are lots of things to think about when equipping someone. The game is long and complex. There are MANY secrets to find such as 32 dragon eggs, all the capsule creatures, Iris treasures and Lexis labs.

My only complaints are that some of the puzzles are VERY difficult, I once spent an hour figuring one out. The game is much easier than Lufia I, but it’s still much harder than most other SNES RPG's. *Cough* *Final Fantasy 3* *Cough* They are some glitches and bad translations. The game is really funny, from bikini jokes, to exploding machines, and oddly remark about weirdoes.

No matter how hard you can try, I dare you to find a better game than Lufia II Rise of The Sinistrals, Taito once again shows that time, effort and story make a great RPG.