Ironsword: Wizards & Warriors II (also known as Wizards and Warriors II: Ironsword) is a platforming action-adventure video game for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) developed by UK-based company Zippo Games, a subsidiary of Rare. The game was published by Acclaim and released in North America in December 1989 and in Europe on March 27, 1991. It is the sequel to Rare's 1987 title Wizards & Warriors. In Ironsword, the player controls the knight warrior Kuros as he ventures in the land of Sindarin. He must defeat the evil wizard Malkil, who has assumed the elemental forms of Earth, Wind, Fire, and Water. Kuros must collect the parts of and assemble the legendary "IronSword" in order to defeat Malkil, who resides at the top of IceFire Mountain.
Ironsword: Wizards & Warriors II was developed by Zippo Games' founder Ste Pickford and was the first game that he developed for the NES. Steve Hughes also assisted in development, while Rare's video game composer David Wise did the music and sound. Pickford wanted to expand on the previous Wizards & Warriors game. Having experience with developing computer games, Pickford used various animation and graphics techniques to show off the NES's graphical capabilities. In addition, Acclaim hired Italian male model Fabio Lanzoni to pose as Kuros on the game's cover.
The game was fairly well-received, selling 500,000 copies in North America and 50,000 copies in Europe. Various video game magazines praised Ironsword for its size, graphics and sound, detailed characters and bosses, and gameplay. Other reviews criticized its lack of originality as compared to other games that were released at the time. The game led Zippo Games to develop additional games for Rare on the NES such as Solar Jetman: Hunt for the Golden Warpship and Wizards & Warriors III: Kuros: Visions of Power. Ironsword won "Game Player's NES Excellence Award" from Game Players magazine as one of the better NES titles of 1990.
Gameplay
Ironsword: Wizards & Warriors II is a platforming video game in which the player controls the renowned warrior Kuros as he explores the land of Sindarin to defeat the evil wizard Malkil. This time, Malkil has taken the form of the four "Elementals", based on the classical Greek elements – Earth, Wind, Fire, and Water – to stop Kuros in his quest. The objective is to assemble the legendary "IronSword" the only weapon that can defeat Malkil and defeat the evil wizard who lies at the peak of IceFire Mountain. In the game, players can move Kuros left or right, or make him crouch with the control pad; the buttons allow Kuros to jump, to use his sword or a magic spell to defeat enemies, to access the "Magic Spell Screen", or to pause the game. Kuros has a life meter that decreases every time he sustains damage from an enemy or a dangerous projectile, or if he falls for too long a distance. Along the way, players can collect chicken and brew to replenish Kuros's life meter. Kuros loses a life when his life meter runs out, and the game ends when he loses all his lives. However, players may continue and restart the game where they left off up to two times. The continue feature would normally be disabled after the player had completed the earth domain, but due to an in-game bug, the player actually loses the continue function immediately upon merely setting foot in the domain.
Ironsword: Wizards & Warriors II consists of four levels called "domains," each named after the four elementals. In each domain, Kuros must find a golden artifact that belongs to the domain's "Animal King" and return it to him. Upon doing so, the path to the second part of the domain will appear. In the second part, Kuros must find the magic spell necessary to defeat the boss – the domain's Elemental. Without the spell, it is impossible to damage the boss, or even remain in the room with him. Once the elemental in each stage has been destroyed, Kuros obtains a piece of the IronSword, which is needed for the final battle on Icefire Mountain. Throughout the game, players must collect items, spells, and money to progress. Money helps buy magic spells, more powerful weapons, shields, helmets, keys to open locked treasure chests, and additional food. Treasure chests located throughout the game can contain one of the following items: Additional money, magic spells, or weapon and armor upgrades. In each domain, players can visit inns where they can buy food, keys, or items; they may also participate in a "Bonus chance" game where they may gamble their money to see which cup a bouncing skull will fall into.