![image.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/dlstudios/iJoLXMGE-image.png)


Having played through this again recently, I figured it was a game worth talking about. For those who were not around during the good ole days of the SNES, this was a bit of a golden age for the Turn-Based RPG. It turned out a lot of games that are considered all-time classics, and among them, Lufia 2 is one of my favorites. Sadly it's a franchise that started to fall by the wayside after this installment due to a lot of behind-the-scenes stuff that I don't have too much info on. Needless to say, there were a few smaller Lufia games made for portable systems after this, but none of them had the same impact.

You play as Maxim the Monster Hunter, a warrior who is told he has the power to stand up to the Sinestrals, basically the gods of the land. After being told this by Iris, he sets off after the red light that appeared in the sky. Most segments of the game act as little stories, not all directly connecting to the main plot. This is where the game can lose you a little bit with how often you end up involved in these unrelated tangents like dealing with a couple of thieves who badly attempt to steal a crown. That said they aren't that big of a distraction, and they can be well crafted and entertaining. The aforementioned thieves are pretty funny, and the Dankirk Ruby Jewel segments show off some interesting sides to Maxim that you may not have otherwise seen, so even if the plot itself doesn't go forward many of them add to the overall feel of the story.

![Lufia II  Rise of the Sinistrals U006.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/dlstudios/9TkefRWk-Lufia20II20-20Rise20of20the20Sinistrals20U006.png)

It does take a while before the story starts to get interesting, and that is after the Tower of Gades. This is something you will rarely see me say about a video game, but this becomes one of the best love stories in all of gaming. Ignoring Tia early on (I know her part was there to show what kind of man Maxim is, but I think the game does a fantastic job of this without her, so she's a bit of dead weight to the story I feel), the build of the relation between Maxim and Selen feels very natural. The game also knows how to balance the focus on the love story and the focus on the tyrannical super-beings threatening the world. It's really interesting to see an actual family become a thing throughout the game and to see Maxim's motivations start to change as time goes on.

It's rare, but I will do articles titled 'Aspect Analysis' where I dive into one thing about a game I think is worth diving into. There are very minor spoilers here, and it is an older article of mine, but here is a post I did that drives home how well-characterized Maxim is.

https://peakd.com/gaming/@dlstudios/aspect-analysis-lufia-2-and-the-funeral-at-agurio

That out of the way, aside from a fantastic ending, the story is fairly straightforward. A lot of it is pretty standard fare for the time, with the above things I mentioned making it a very memorable story.


![Lufia II  Rise of the Sinistrals U010.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/dlstudios/EsiECkpl-Lufia20II20-20Rise20of20the20Sinistrals20U010.png)


What sells this game as a classic are two things, the first being the IP system used in battles. As you take damage you build IP, which can, in turn, be used to activate abilities on your equipment. Where this get's interesting is you need to think about what gear to wear not just because of its stats, but abilities. Guy, for example, I keep with the Camu armor long after you get it despite some far better armor stat-wise being available. Its IP ability heals the entire party by 25% of his max HP, including your Capsule Monster (I'll get into that later), which isn't target-able with items or spells. Despite the game not including any kind of class system or party changing, this adds a fair bit of customization to most of the game. Come games end there isn't a lot to choose between though, but it does keep a lot of the game fun.

The other aspect that stands out is the puzzles. SNES era RPGs all had the occasional puzzle and gimmicks to the dungeons, but they were never really a focus. Lufia pretty much abandons any kind of 'sensible design' to its dungeons in favor of just making a lot of really fun to solve puzzles. With a variety of tools at your disposal (Bombs, Arrows, Hookshot, I am just now realizing these are basically all Zelda Items for the first time in my life as I write this sentence) you have probably the best puzzles in any RPG game. Even the monsters in the dungeon fights trigger when you come in contact, all act as a sort of puzzle on their own. They only move when you move, so you need to think about how to best advance through each area (Or just murder everything in your path if you want, that's an option too.) No matter how much time goes between my play of this game, there are still three puzzles that have etched themselves in my memory. The color blocks from an early dungeon, the first time as a kid I was ever really frustrated at trying to solve a puzzle, the door behind a wall in the lighthouse, and that godforsaken growing vine puzzle.


![Lufia II  Rise of the Sinistrals U011.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/dlstudios/fYBpvloE-Lufia20II20-20Rise20of20the20Sinistrals20U011.png)

![Lufia II  Rise of the Sinistrals U005.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/dlstudios/rBGfWAbG-Lufia20II20-20Rise20of20the20Sinistrals20U005.png)

![Lufia II  Rise of the Sinistrals U007.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/dlstudios/ZMPLmbyX-Lufia20II20-20Rise20of20the20Sinistrals20U007.png)






That's not all the game has to offer, the aforementioned Capsule Monsters are a lot of fun to play around with. They act as an AI-controlled fifth party member, and they are the only party slot you can change through the game. They don't have a big impact on your playstyle though. Based on the guts of the selected monster, after they take so much damage they retreat (Hence why something like the Camu armor is so fantastic, it keeps them in the fight longer against bosses who can normally take them out easily). They do offer a bit of variety, though because you have to feed them to evolve them, and they only level up while in your party, you're likely to just pick one and stick with it through the game rather than focus on more than one.

Everything else about the game and how it controls is pretty standard for a JRPG. Turn-based combat, HP and MP system, a pretty linear story path, and a few other interesting aspects like the Ancient Dungeon for some fun side content to do, you end up with a truly fantastic game and a franchise that deserved more than it ended up getting. If you can, definitely check this one out.