Review #676: 64 Memories - Chameleon Twist 2

 Any game that tells me I'm perfect deserves bonus points.

 Part I: The Flashback
 Now begins my 'unfulfilled dreams' saga on the Nintendo 64 memories, a 4-game epic comprised of sequels to games I loved but never got to play, starting with Chameleon Twist 2. While I learned last year that Chameleon Twist definitely wasn't as good as I remembered, it was still a very precious game from my childhood, so I knew that I would eventually get around playing the sequel, a game that eluded me for years. I knew it existed. I read reviews. I wanted this game, but I never ever saw it up for sale or rental. Today is reckoning day.

 Part II: The Review
 It's good, it's really good. For a while I was arguing with myself about which game was better, either this one or the first one, but that's because nostalgia kept getting in the way. Basic gameplay is the same as the first game, but it has been expanded upon. Just like before, you'll use your long reptilian tongue to eat-and-spit enemies, vault yourself up into the air or use it as a grappling hook over chasms. What's you new, is that now you can spin on a horizontal axis as well as a vertical one, plus, now you can stick your tongue towards pretty much any wall, and, after your Chameleon follows his tongue and hits the wall, press the A button to walljump. It adds an entirely new dimension to the platforming, making for fun new obstacles as well as new last-ditch efforts to save yourself from a bottomless pit. There's also a parachute, used with the Z button, to slow down your descent.

 Part of the problem with the first game was that it had a great idea, but didn't make the most of it. While this game is six stages short, it has a bigger emphasis on the platforming. There are plenty of new challenges to beat, and the game can get moderately difficult on the last stage. Rarely does it feel unfair, as even the toughest platforming challenges feel doable with the tools you are given. I'll admit, however, that there were a few quirks with the engines, sometimes my Chameleon would slide off a few surfaces that didn't seem so steep as to not allow me more leeway into running against it. The fourth level's boss also felt rather tough, I never really did learn how to avoid his arms, but I managed to brute-force my way through.

 Remember the collectible crowns from the first game? And how they did pretty much nothing? Now there are two collectibles, Coins and Carrots. There's one Carrot per level, and they unlock a few silly minigames like bowling. Coins, however, are used to unlock costumes. Each Chameleon has his and her own six costumes, which is really neat. Collecting all twenty Coins in a stage not only rewards you with a costume, it'll also display a message saying 'You are Perfect', which, in my opinion, is a much better reward. On the other hand, the american version of the game gave characters new, more 'realistic' character models which are just hideous. If you can, just get the Japanese version, it's not like dialogue is important in this game, and you'll get the original, round-headed chameleons.

 As for a few gripes, the camera is still a bit wonky, you can't turn it but shift it left or right, which is weird to say the least. If the first game has one thing over this one, besides the character designs, is that levels were more aesthetically pleasing. The jungle felt like a jungle, the chocolate factory felt like a factory. In this game, levels are made up of platforms floating over simple, colorful background images. Mind you, this game favors platforming over everything else, and these stages have much better obstacles than the ones in the first game, but they are cruder in design, a bit too basic for my taste. You could swap any level's textures and it wouldn't matter since it's just platforms floating over static images. The first game had both enclosed spaces as well as more open areas, which make stages actually feel like places instead of, well, game obstacles. There's also new power-ups you can pick up, but soon you'll wonder why bother since they could also be power-downs, it's entirely random. There's nothing worse than getting a temporary speed-down nerf just when a falling-platform challenge awaits you, or getting your tongue shortened just as you need to fault over poles. It's such a weird addition.

 As a whole, I can say that Chameleon Twist 2 is a great sequel to a bland game. This time around the developers knew what they had and they chose to build upon it. The platforming is quite fun, although a couple more stages wouldn't have hurt. On the other hand, it sucks that we get the ugly redesigns, but getting a Japanese cart to run on an American console isn't too hard. I'll admit that the first game had better stage-layouts, but there's no denying that these levels are better designs from a gameplay standpoint.
 7.0 out of 10