Rick Dangerous II

Overview

The second in the Rick Dangerous series, Rick Dangerous 2 continues the tradition of comedy puzzle platforming and instant death traps with invisible triggers. This game ditches the Indiana Jones motif in the opening scenes opting instead for a Flash Gordon inspired character designs and settings. Released in 1989, it was developed by Core Design and published by MicroStyle. It was favourably by critics of the time.

Gameplay

Rick Dangerous 2 follows the same gameplay mechanics of its predecessor, with some minor tweaks to Rick's abilities and the overall structure of the levels. The most notable change to the game is that the player can now choose to tackle any of the four levels in any order they choose, opening up a fifth and final level once the other four have been completed (however the levels must be completed in order if the player wishes to see the endgame movie). Like the first game, each of the levels have their own distinct themes and enemies. Various references are made throughout the game to the game's final boss, known only as "The Fat Guy," leading to a more cohesive storyline (however marginal) than the first game.

Rick's stick, pistol and dynamite have been replaced with a ray gun, a punch and bombs. While the first two changes are purely cosmetic in keeping with the overall tonal shift in the game, the bombs can now be slid as well as merely placed opening up new puzzle situations in the levels.

Levels

• Hyde Park, Earth: Continuing on from the final scenes of the first Rick Dangerous, London is besieged by aliens. Rick heads to Hyde Park, the landing site of the strange alien craft.
• Ice Caverns of Freezia: Rick seizes control of the strange alien craft, heading to the mysterious planet Barf and the Fat Guy's Headquarters. However the Fat Guy was never particularly generous with fuel, causing Rick to crash land over the desolate ice kingdom of Freezia.
• Forest of Vegetablia: Rick attempts to teleport directly to the Fat Guy's headquarters from Freezia, but instead ends up deep in the forests of Vegetablia. This level is unique in that it is essentially a giant maze, with multiple paths to the end.
• Atomic Mud Mines: In order to reach the Fat Guy's Headquarters, Rick must first pass through the Atomic Mud Mines.
• The Fat Guy's Headquarters: The final level, complete with a boss fight with the Fat Guy whom the player has been chasing for the majority of the game.

Ending

The game closes on a cliffhanger with the Fat Guy escaping through a teleporter and Rick following him with the caption "What will Rick do next?" No sequel was ever made, despite this game alluding to one.