Jazz Jackrabbit 2 - 1998 - 2D platformer - After saving planet Carrotus from the evil Devan Shell Jazz is ready to marry princess Eva Earlong and settle down as a prince. Y'know, living the good life and all that. Unfortunately, the wedding is crashed by Devan who steals the ever-precious 12-carrot ring (don't worry, it's just a pun though I'm sure a ring made of carrots would be just as plausible all things considered). Time to show that no good turtle what's what and get the ring back. Well, your would-be mother-in-law was so furious with this turn of events that she ordered Jazz to be locked up in the castle's dungeon so getting out will be the first item on your agenda.
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Seriously? Also, I wonder how that turtle made its way inside but I guess I shouldn't question rabbit royalty.
This time Jazz is joined by his brother Spaz. The two have different abilities and there are numerous spots in the levels that are only accessible to one of them. Jazz can do what's basically a shouryuken except it goes straight up in a purely vertical motion. While he's in the air you can press the jump button again to make him spin his ears like a helicopter and hover for a while before hitting the ground. Spaz commands a bona fide double jump that achieves more or less the same height as Jazz's special move does but is way more flexible when it comes to horizontal movement. The drawback here is that jumping does no damage while on the upward trajectory so certain pathways that require blocks to be forced through will remain inaccessible. He also has a flying kick that will remove pretty much anything that's in his way on a horizontal axis. It's fantastic when it comes to dealing with enemies as well making him the better choice if you want to cruise through levels a little easier.
There are a few things about this game that are perhaps somewhat unexpected in this genre. One is that you don't die in one hit. You get five hit points and you can replenish your health by eating carrots (of course it had to be carrots). Another one is that these spunky hares are packing heat! You get a whole arsenal of weapons. From your standard issue pea shooter that should be enough to dispatch most mooks with ease to bouncing bullets, rockets, homing missiles, freeze rays, flamethrowers and a few more just to round things off. Considering that most of the enemies are unarmed it's borderline unfair how much of an advantage you have but don't worry, the designers found a few ways to make sure that they're a proper pain in the neck.
The levels here are incredibly diverse not only in design but also in palettes used. You'll start off in the aforementioned castle dungeon but depending on how much you're willing to explore you'll be free in about 10 minutes or less. After that the themes vary wildly and often. You'll see a forest, a chemical lab, a beach, a town as well as some settings that are a touch more surreal than a game like this would warrant at first glance. Since the plot is pretty much non-existent there's no setting that isn't fair game here really.
There's also a plethora of secrets scattered around each level, usually by way of fake walls or hidden teleporters. You can find all sorts of things that will help you out during your adventure. Most often it will be treasures that will add to your score or 1ups but there are much more substantial upgrades to be found as well. Coins will allow you to buy your way to some of the most rewarding areas if you find enough of them and trade them in with a coin merchant.
There are other powerful upgrades such as an avian friend who will shoot at any and all foes, thus bolstering your firepower until you get hit. You can also find hoverboards or special carrots that will allow you to freely fly around the stage for a limited time. The real gamechangers, however, are super secret monitors. They're very similar in appearance and concept to the ones found in Sonic games of the time. Those can offer a temporary shield that will make you immune to any damage for about 30 seconds as well as change your shots to more powerful ones or *permanent* weapon upgrades so that you can make your enemies even more miserable. There are a few other funky upgrades you can find but I'll let you discover them on your own.
The fun doesn't stop there. Should you conquer the original levels or get bored with them you can always turn to the multiplayer. There are several head to head modes to pick here. There are things you might expect such as a race to the finish line but also modes that you would normally find in an FPS like deathmatch or capture the flag. The most interesting one in my opinion is the ability to play the single player campaign in co-op. All of these can be played online and, believe it or not, Jazz Jackrabbit 2 still has an online scene even if it is minuscule after all these years but more importantly, split screen is an option and it truly provides endless fun if you have a friend to play with you.
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You can combine forces. What's more, you're not bound by the need to be on the same screen at once like in so many other games.
And when not even that's enough you can make use of the Jazz Creation Station. JCS is a level editor that shipped with the game for free and it allows you to create levels, tilesets and scripts of your own. You can challenge yourself or your friends with creations that go beyond what the original levels have in store. Of course, that's not a necessity. There are many, many, many levels that the members of the Jazz community have created over the years and you can still find them online and give them a go.
I think you've seen enough screenshots to make up your mind about graphics on display here. What I'm unable to show you is how smooth and cartoony the animations are but trust me, the devs did not skimp out. Everything is fluid, perhaps to a fault at times. The music was composed by the ever-excellent Alexander Brandon. From what I understand he made the tracks here in MOD tracker format. This probably doesn't mean much to people who have no experience with the Amiga scene but all you really need to know is that it's very sample-heavy. A lot of it is electronica and the like but there's certainly room for some more rocking tunes for boss fights or more subdued tracks for underwater sections. Here, have a playlist:
The format may have been antiquated even by 1998 but you can't argue with the results. The man also worked on Tyrian, Unreal and Deus Ex among other things so if you've ever heard any music from one of those games you know your ears are in good hands.
