Blossom Tales II: The Minotaur Prince

 Switch
User Score
8.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 22 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 17 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 22
  3. Negative: 4 out of 22

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  1. judgementblade
    Nov 29, 2022
    7
    The first thing that immediately annoyed me seconds after I started it was that unlike in 1, your sword is now locked to B instead of A and I don't like it. Especially since you have to press B to talk to people but have to continue the text by pressing A. That is so unintuitive it hurts. Admittedly I also played 3D Zeldas which lock the sword to B too so it's not that much of a hassle toThe first thing that immediately annoyed me seconds after I started it was that unlike in 1, your sword is now locked to B instead of A and I don't like it. Especially since you have to press B to talk to people but have to continue the text by pressing A. That is so unintuitive it hurts. Admittedly I also played 3D Zeldas which lock the sword to B too so it's not that much of a hassle to get used to but this doesn't change the fact, that you still have to interact with B while continuing with A while 3D Zeldas have interaction and continuing on A while canceling with B.

    The stamina system wasn't changed much but now you get a dodge roll on X. Sadly, while you can get more stamina commonly used items seem to use percentage of stamina because I wasn't able to use them more often as the stamina bar increased and as it grows bigger, it takes longer to recharge.

    While deaths remain mostly pointless since every room is a checkpoint and you start from it's beginning it's just bad game design if you have invisible obstacles while swimming because of a water level mechanic. You also are defenseless while swimming and while you can use a swim boost, it doesn't help against homing projectiles that come from enemies that are often close to or even in the water.
    There are other unfair situations where you are defenseless because the environment doesn't allow you to attack like when climbing on vines towards a small plattform with enemies where the enemies can charge at you and block your way onto the plattform.

    It also is pointlessly annoying that there is no verticallity when using items. It might look like you can throw a bomb down from a ledge or a stair but it doesn't work. It will explode as if they were walls.

    Something they did improve is that now you can pick up items with your sword since in 1, it could happen often enough, that items landed on tiles that can't be walked on while right next to the player character.
    It also is better that falling in holes doesn't make you start at the room entrance but at the hole border.

    Unfortunately even progression puzzles became way to convoluted and complicated as soon as the second dungeon to still be fun. Thank god though they mostly got rid of the "Simon says" puzzles. I didn't find everything (because frankly the game is not good enough and some annoying mechanics discourage completion). And don't, please just don't put enemies on puzzles where you have to move around a lot, it's not challenging just annoying.

    While the enemy spam has been reduced, there still is an issue with tank-y bosses, even with double damage and bullet hell fights and now even regular enemies take way to much of a beating. Further in close quarter fights ground based attacks reached over pits, can hit you and you can't do **** about it because you lack movement space.

    Other issues include:
    1. You still can't reorder your inventory and the inventory isn't that good so you can't make it more comfortable to use. It would also help if you could get an item description as a reminder of it's functions but mainly for key items to recall what to do without the need to search and talk with related people again.
    2. Due the new crafting system and the limited number of bottles, money gets useless even earlier than in 1.
    3. The map is bad so it won't help you find something specific.
    4. Game 1 gave too many hearts at times and 2 now went wrong the other direction and gives too few hearts.
    5. When you transition between screens, chances are you run into an enemy you couldn't possible see and get knocked back to the previous screen or worse killed because you didn't have enough health to take that hit. Similarly you might end up stun-locked in tight areas because of that.
    6. The "choose your own adventure" part is utilized slightly more but still barely notable

    Still, it's a good game that improved some things to the first entry but made other things worse. It's still worth playing if you liked one and if you haven't played 1 it really won't detract much.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

88
#88 Best Switch Game of 2022
73
#73 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2022

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 12 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 12
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 12
  3. Negative: 0 out of 12
  1. Nintendo Force Magazine
    Nov 9, 2022
    90
    Blossom Tales II is absolutely brilliant. There's a ton of secrets to find, some great post-game content, and it's clearly been made with an abundance of love and care. The first game was great, and this one is even better. Blossom Tales II is not to be missed! [Issue #62 – November/December 2022, p. 20]
  2. NintendoWorldReport
    Sep 2, 2022
    75
    Blossom Tales 2 is certainly a fun and satisfying 2D Zelda-like, but it doesn’t impress in the same ways that the original did. The final dungeon is about 30 percent too long, and the minute-to-minute traversal of the map doesn’t have the pace to generate that “leave-no-stone-unturned” momentum. Fortunately, the dungeons are largely well designed, and the world and its inhabitants have their charm. If you love a good top-down Zelda game or enjoyed the first Blossom Tales, you’re likely to be happy with The Minotaur Prince. Just don’t go in expecting the reinvented wheel.
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  3. Nintendo Insider
    Sep 2, 2022
    80
    The worst thing I can say about Blossom Tales 2: The Minotaur Prince, is that there are very few of the developer’s own ideas in the entire game. On the flip side of that, you could argue that because it is taking its inspiration from one of the greatest franchises of all time – and does a good job of replicating it – the quality of the game is very high. At no point during my entire playthrough, did I want to stop playing or feel like I wanted the game to end. The adventure was fun from beginning to end.
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