is a

hack and slash Hack and slash, also known as hack and slay (H&S or HnS) or slash 'em up, refers to a type of gameplay that emphasizes combat with melee-based weapons (such as swords or blades). They may also feature projectile-based weapons as well (such as ...

action role-playing video game developed and published by ADK exclusively for the Neo Geo CD in Japan on May 2, 1995. The sequel to the original '' Crossed Swords'', It is one of the few exclusive titles to be released for the console, as it was never officially released for either Neo Geo MVS (arcade) and

Neo Geo AES The , stylised as NEO•GEO and also written as NEOGEO, is a cartridge-based arcade system board and the fourth generation home video game console released on April 26, 1990 by Japanese game company SNK Corporation. It was the first system in ...

(home) platforms. Taking place several decades after the events of the original game, the story follows a crew of three adventurers on a journey across the kingdom of Belkana to slay the returning

demon A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in religion, occultism, literature, fiction, mythology, and folklore; as well as in media such as comics, video games, movies, ani ...

warlord Nausizz, whose

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

rises from

hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location in the afterlife in which evil souls are subjected to punitive suffering, most often through torture, as eternal punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hell ...

once again and his servants are threatening to conquer the land by bringing chaos and destruction with his reign.

Gameplay

: ''For further information about the gameplay, see:'' '' Gameplay of Crossed Swords'' ''Crossed Swords II'' is a hack and slash action role-playing game that is primarily played in a third-person perspective like its predecessor where players take control from either of the three warriors, each with their own unique advantages and disadvantages, on a quest to slay the returning demon warlord Nausizz who returns from the underworld after his previous defeat in order to conquer the kingdom of Belkana with his army of monstrous creatures across twelve acts in total. The sequel expands upon the original gameplay further by adding new elements and mechanics such as

experience point An experience point (often abbreviated as exp or XP) is a unit of measurement used in some tabletop role-playing games (RPGs) and role-playing video games to quantify a player character's life experience and progression through the game. Experi ...

s to increase the experience level of their respective

player character A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not control ...

, a new button dedicated for jumping and dashing, giving the players extra abilities and the ability to dodge incoming enemy attacks, among other abilities to master. After completing each act, players can buy recovery items and new magic attacks, as well as increasing their experience level, via a

shopkeeper A shopkeeper is a retail merchant or tradesman; one who owns or operates a small store or shop. Generally, shop employees are not shopkeepers, but are often incorrectly referred to as such. At larger companies, a shopkeeper is usually referred t ...

with the gold collected. If the players are killed in action, a limited number of continues to keep playing are present for use before the game is over. In addition to the regular campaign, there is a survival mode where an endless array of monsters with different levels of strengths must be fought against until the players are defeated.

Development and release

''Crossed Swords II'' was one of the few games designed specifically for the Neo Geo CD, rather than being a Neo Geo MVS/AES port and it was released exclusively in Japan on May 2, 1995. Although the game was not released in western regions, the game will display English text if played on non-Japanese consoles. Despite never receiving an official MVS/AES release, the game was unofficially

converted Conversion or convert may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * "Conversion" (''Doctor Who'' audio), an episode of the audio drama ''Cyberman'' * "Conversion" (''Stargate Atlantis''), an episode of the television series * "The Conversion" ...

to both platforms in 2015 by

homebrew Homebrewing mainly refers to small-scale, non-commercial manufacture of a drink, typically beer. Homebrew or home brew may also refer to: Computing * Homebrew Computer Club * Homebrew (package manager), for macOS and Linux * Homebrew (video game ...

developer Neobitz.

Notes

References

External links

''Crossed Swords II''
at

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''Crossed Swords II''
at Giant Bomb
''Crossed Swords II''
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Crossed Swords II 1995 video games Action role-playing video games ADK (company) games Beat 'em ups Cooperative video games Fantasy video games Fighting games First-person video games Hack and slash games Multiplayer and single-player video games Neo Geo games Neo Geo CD games Video games developed in Japan Video games scored by Hideki Yamamoto Video games scored by Hiroaki Shimizu Video games scored by Yuka Watanabe