Master Higgins' most fun adventure...
This game is your typical NES sidescroller with power ups and random baddies to fight along the way. You can pick up a throwing axe and use it as a weapon (none of this "limited ammo" we're obsessed with today), hop on a skateboard to glide through a stage, or even hop on the back of one of four dinosaur-like creatures, all of which have unique special abilities.
Controls are nice and tight, whether you're on foot, swimming, or on the back of your dino buddies. Like the Mario Bros. games, the physics allow you to use the speed at which you're running to your advantage. For example, you have to point the control pad in the opposite direction you're running in order to come to a screeching halt. That makes things a little difficult, considering you have a "replenishable timer" that encourages you to sail through a level as fast as possible. This can often lead to sometimes frustrating character deaths.
The graphics and music for this title are great. From the area map to the side-and-sometimes-up/down scrolling levels, everything is clear as the 8-bit system will allow. Sound effects seem a little cheap, but I never allow that sort of thing to take away from a gaming experience such as this.
While not the greatest NES title of them all, Adventure Island II is right up there among games I find undeservedly underrated.