Lost Kingdoms II GameCube

The sequel to the GameCube's first role-playing game once again has players protecting the land of Argwyll from nefarious forces. While a new heroine has agreed to take up the charge, 200 years after the events chronicled in the original Lost Kingdoms, she still wields the same power as her predecessor, Katia: the ability to summon monsters from a deck of magical cards. Lost Kingdoms II increases the number of worlds to 26 and brings the total number of collectible cards to 200, half of which are completely new.

Battles still take place in real time as players conjure up the creatures needed to defeat the enemy, but the lead character, Tara Grimface, can also transform into a creature to attack, solve puzzles, or smash through obstacles. Each level offers a variety of cards to collect, which earn experience points for both the lead character and summoned monster when used in battle. Card shops allow Tara to buy or sell additional cards, upgrade existing ones, or duplicate certain types. The five card types include weapon, summons, independent, helper, and transform, with the final two exclusive to this sequel.

Transform cards let Tara turn into such creatures as a hell hound, stone golem, birdman, and more, while helper cards conjure creatures to help revive health, boost stats, or create traps for enemy creatures to walk into. As in games like Pokémon, players can capture powerful monsters and add them to their collection by finishing off weakened creatures with the capture card. Up to 30 cards can be arranged into a single deck, with players able to edit their deck each time they acquire new cards. As players gradually build their collection into a powerful deck, they can compete in separate battle arenas against a friend in Versus Mode. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide