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Marshall McGraw had a lot of trouble from the Black Hole Gang in the old days - they nearly caused an Indian war before he caught them and slapped them in jail. The Gang have now served their time and been released, and have kidnapped the daughter of the Indian chief, in another evil bid to start a war.

Once again it's McGraw's job to save the town of Kane, over four stages: the first involves riding your trusty steed alongside a train and shooting the bad guys; the second has McGraw shooting the Gang from their fort in order to rescue the Princess; the third shows him taming a bronco to be his new steed. At last he must escape the clutches of the Black Hole gang and ride off into the sunset... (cue melodramatic music)

The only memorable thing about the original Kane was the Impossible Mission animation of the main character, whereas the game itself was a ramshackle combination of simple riding or shooting games. Kane II arrives and, surprise surprise, the main character is identical, *but* we have riding and shooting *at the same time*! Woooooh! It's not abysmal, it's just that it doesn't really approach the standards required of a good budget program these days.

Kane was good for its time, but in mid-1988 Kane II just doesn't appeal in the same way. If you see this on the shelf, do yourself a favour - leave it there.

Kane II appears to me to have a marked similarity to its predecessor: obviously, sequels are meant to bear similarity to the original, but when a stage is virtually identical to one in the first game, as stage two is, then things are going a bit far.

This wouldn't be a problem if the sub-games in Kane II were playable, but instead they're a bunch of outdated ideas with poor graphics and sound. Kane may have been attractive in its day, but Kane II today certainly isn't.

Presentation 65%
The now standard Mastertronic Invader/Hubbard loader, but little else.

Graphics 45%
Only the "Impossible Mission" Agent 4125 sprite in stage two is of quality.

Sound 28%
Crude effects, grainy samples, and instantly annoying title music.

Hookability 65%
The first two stages' shooting gallery action provide a few outdated thrills.

Lastability 22%
The crude, old-fashioned gameplay is rapidly boring.

Overall 33%
Virtually the same as Kane, but slightly less appealing.