WELCO METOT HENEX TLEVEL - Lethal Enforcers II: Gun Fighters

Publisher: Konami Developer: Konami Release: 1994

Two years after the first Lethal Enforcers lit up the arcades Konami revisited the formula. This time, though, rather than a contemporary setting, Lethal Enforcers II took place in the old west. After all, shooting bad guys in Nikes and ski masks is fun and all, but who among us hasn't imagined ourselves slingin' a six shooter on the streets of some old west mining town?

Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

Oddly enough when it came time for the inevitable home port of the sequel, it ultimately only ended up on the Genesis and Sega CD consoles. A SNES port was in the works, but was canceled before it could be released. What's even weirder is that the Genesis cartridge version was never released in Japan, only the Mega CD port.

Lethal Enforcers II is basically an upgrade from the first game. You have more interesting special weapons here (everything from dual pistols all the way up to a cannon!) and much more interesting enemy variety. The whole cast is still a bunch of dudes jumping out and trying to shoot you (along with a female outlaw), but a lot of them are in motion this time around. There's one particularly irritating enemy that likes to just walk across the scene shooting every few steps. The first few times you meet him he's a total pain in the ass.

The presentation features great content but suffers from the limited colour pallette on the system even more so than its predecessor. I love the old west setting – in particular the stagecoach area which is filled with enemies on horses swarming the coach you're trying to protect. But the visuals are so washed out and muddy that it gets a bit hard to look at after a while.

Likewise, the sound...yikes. Each scene goes on for a pretty lengthy period of time, and you'll hear the same three or four threats and boasts over a dozen times each. “You couldn't hit the broad side of a barn” is one of the worst, and it's said so much that it's extremely annoying.

Finally, the bosses. These guys are just like the ones found in the first game – bullet-sponges with projectiles you have to shoot down regularly. But they just take SO LONG to beat.

Lethal Enforcers II was a good game, but despite it being better in just about every way the first game holds a higher place in my heart.

For some reason Konami didn't bundle the Justifier this time around, and like it's predecessor, Lethal Enforcers II was not compatible with any other light gun. Oh, and they didn't sell the standalone Justifier gun in stores.

They did, however, bundle the light gun with the Japanese Mega CD version.

Just a weird release all around.