Rolan's Curse II

Rolan's Curse II continues the first installment of Athena's action RPG, again casting the player as Prince Rolan, this time facing a new threat plaguing the kingdom just when the first danger seemed to have been decisively dealt with. Compared to the first game, the sequel brings an expanded world map, more enemy types and a more elaborate system of spells and items, giving the character a wider range of ways to deal with opponents. The basic framework stays the same – real-time sword combat from a top-down view, gathering experience, and gradually upgrading gear by buying from towns and villages scattered across the game world.

Visually, the game benefits from the experience Athena gained on the previous title, offering somewhat more elaborate environments and battles against bigger enemies and tougher bosses. The level design leads the player through a series of interconnected areas, with progress often requiring a specific item or spell to overcome an obstacle, pushing the game closer to the adventure genre than pure action. The sound design remains modest but functional, with melodies underscoring the story's fantasy tone and changing according to the environment the player is currently passing through.

The Rolan's Curse sequel remains just as overlooked today as the first game, even though it offers a more mature and expansive experience with a more elaborate item and spell system. For fans of Game Boy action RPGs it represents a logical continuation, and together with the first game it forms a cohesive, if little-remembered, pair of titles that show how varied the console's early library was even outside its big names and famous brands. Together, the two games offer several dozen hours of honest portable adventuring that holds its own against comparable rival titles of the era and offers a complete story arc from the first encounter with the curse to its definitive resolution.