<s>
known	O
as	O
Mystical	B-Application
Ninja	I-Application
2	I-Application
Starring	I-Application
Goemon	I-Application
in	O
Europe	O
,	O
is	O
a	O
video	O
game	O
developed	O
and	O
released	O
by	O
Konami	O
for	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Operating_System
64	I-Operating_System
on	O
December	O
23	O
,	O
1998	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
the	O
third	O
game	O
in	O
the	O
Goemon	O
series	O
released	O
in	O
North	O
America	O
and	O
Europe	O
,	O
following	O
Mystical	B-Application
Ninja	I-Application
Starring	I-Application
Goemon	I-Application
,	O
released	O
two	O
years	O
earlier	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Each	O
world	O
is	O
designed	O
with	O
Japanese	O
styles	O
and	O
themes	O
,	O
and	O
Goemon	B-Application
's	I-Application
Great	I-Application
Adventure	I-Application
continues	O
the	O
series	O
 '	O
tradition	O
of	O
offbeat	O
,	O
surreal	O
humor	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Reminiscent	O
of	O
older	O
,	O
16-bit	B-Device
games	O
,	O
the	O
side-scrolling	O
system	O
was	O
lauded	O
by	O
reviewers	O
,	O
who	O
also	O
praised	O
the	O
two-player	O
cooperative	O
mode	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Reviewers	O
have	O
considered	O
it	O
the	O
best	O
side-scroller	O
for	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Operating_System
64	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Goemon	B-Application
's	I-Application
Great	I-Application
Adventure	I-Application
is	O
a	O
side	O
scrolling	O
platform	O
game	O
in	O
which	O
players	O
navigate	O
stages	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Gameplay	O
in	O
Great	O
Adventure	O
more	O
closely	O
resembles	O
that	O
of	O
the	O
Ganbare	B-Device
Goemon	I-Device
series	O
 '	O
Super	B-Application
Famicom	I-Application
entries	O
,	O
and	O
abandons	O
the	O
free-roaming	O
style	O
of	O
Mystical	B-Application
Ninja	I-Application
Starring	I-Application
Goemon	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
movement	O
is	O
restricted	O
along	O
a	O
two-dimensional	O
plane	O
,	O
the	O
stages	O
are	O
rendered	O
in	O
three	O
dimensions	O
and	O
frequently	O
wind	O
along	O
the	O
z	O
coordinate	O
—	O
earning	O
the	O
game	O
a	O
2.5D	O
status	O
similar	O
to	O
Yoshi	B-Application
's	I-Application
Story	I-Application
,	O
Klonoa	B-Application
:	I-Application
Door	I-Application
To	I-Application
Phantomile	I-Application
,	O
and	O
the	O
Super	B-Application
Smash	I-Application
Bros	I-Application
.	I-Application
series	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Though	O
the	O
game	O
is	O
linear	O
like	O
its	O
16-bit	B-Device
predecessors	O
,	O
certain	O
non-linear	O
elements	O
exist	O
—	O
such	O
as	O
a	O
secret	O
village	O
and	O
multiple	O
paths	O
through	O
a	O
world	O
map	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Goemon	B-Application
's	I-Application
Great	I-Application
Adventure	I-Application
takes	O
place	O
in	O
a	O
fantastical	O
version	O
of	O
Edo	O
period	O
Japan	O
,	O
featuring	O
forests	O
,	O
mountains	O
,	O
dwellings	O
,	O
and	O
underworlds	O
designed	O
with	O
Japanese	O
themes	O
and	O
a	O
touch	O
of	O
science	O
fiction	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Goemon	B-Application
's	I-Application
Great	I-Application
Adventure	I-Application
features	O
a	O
system	O
of	O
day	O
and	O
night	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Every	O
two	O
to	O
three	O
minutes	O
,	O
a	O
meter	O
in	O
the	O
information	O
bar	O
will	O
slowly	O
turn	O
to	O
evening	O
or	O
morning	O
;	O
the	O
sky	O
in	O
a	O
stage	O
's	O
background	O
will	O
similarly	O
emulate	O
the	O
hues	O
of	O
a	O
sunset	B-Application
or	O
a	O
sunrise	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
protagonist	O
of	O
Goemon	B-Application
's	I-Application
Great	I-Application
Adventure	I-Application
is	O
Goemon	O
,	O
a	O
ninja	B-Application
with	O
blue	O
,	O
bushy	O
hair	O
who	O
wields	O
a	O
kiseru	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Idolizing	O
James	O
Dean	O
as	O
the	O
ultimate	O
ninja	B-Application
,	O
he	O
can	O
attack	O
enemies	O
with	O
a	O
decorative	O
paddle	O
,	O
a	O
magic	O
megaphone	O
that	O
causes	O
his	O
shouts	O
to	O
turn	O
to	O
stone	O
,	O
and	O
stomach	O
gas	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Yae	O
is	O
a	O
green-haired	O
female	O
ninja	B-Application
,	O
or	O
kunoichi	B-Application
,	O
wielding	O
a	O
Katana	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Finally	O
,	O
Sasuke	O
is	O
a	O
fast	O
mechanical	O
ninja	B-Application
who	O
has	O
upgradable	O
projectile	O
attacks	O
such	O
as	O
shuriken	O
and	O
bombs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
villains	O
of	O
Goemon	B-Application
's	I-Application
Great	I-Application
Adventure	I-Application
are	O
Bismaru	O
and	O
Dochuki	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bismaru	O
,	O
a	O
cross-dressing	O
nun	O
(	O
who	O
first	O
appeared	O
in	O
Ganbare	B-Device
Goemon	I-Device
3	O
)	O
,	O
steals	O
Wise	O
Man	O
's	O
resurrection	O
machine	O
to	O
revive	O
Dochuki	O
,	O
an	O
ancient	O
prince	O
of	O
the	O
underworld	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
in	O
previous	O
Ganbare	B-Device
Goemon	I-Device
games	O
,	O
the	O
plot	O
is	O
wacky	O
and	O
lighthearted	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Konami	O
heavily	O
promoted	O
the	O
Ganbare	B-Device
Goemon	I-Device
series	O
for	O
the	O
Christmas	O
season	O
of	O
1998	B-Application
,	O
as	O
three	O
games	O
were	O
due	O
to	O
be	O
Goemon	B-Application
's	I-Application
Great	I-Application
Adventure	I-Application
and	O
the	O
PlayStation	B-Device
release	O
Ganbare	B-Device
Goemon	I-Device
:	O
Kuru	O
Nara	O
Koi	O
!	O
</s>
<s>
Ayashige	O
Ikka	O
no	O
Kuroi	O
Kage	O
would	O
premiere	O
on	O
December	O
23	O
,	O
1998	B-Application
,	O
and	O
Ganbare	B-Application
Goemon	I-Application
:	I-Application
Tengu-tou	I-Application
no	I-Application
Gyakushuu	I-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
for	O
the	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
Color	I-Device
would	O
enter	O
the	O
market	O
on	O
January	O
14	O
,	O
1999	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Great	O
Adventure	O
and	O
its	O
PlayStation	B-Device
counterpart	O
were	O
both	O
shown	O
to	O
fans	O
at	O
the	O
1998	B-Application
Tokyo	O
Game	O
Show	O
,	O
where	O
children	O
flocked	O
to	O
play	O
them	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
News	O
of	O
an	O
English	O
translation	O
and	O
North	O
American	O
release	O
was	O
first	O
provided	O
by	O
a	O
Konami	O
employee	O
in	O
September	O
1998	B-Application
,	O
and	O
the	O
finished	O
game	O
appeared	O
at	O
the	O
1999	O
Electronic	O
Entertainment	O
Expo	O
,	O
though	O
without	O
the	O
theme	O
song	O
sequence	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
originally	O
slated	O
to	O
be	O
named	O
Mystical	O
Ninja	B-Application
:	O
Goemon	O
2	O
in	O
North	O
America	O
;	O
this	O
title	O
was	O
kept	O
in	O
some	O
form	O
for	O
the	O
PAL	O
release	O
,	O
entitled	O
Mystical	O
Ninja	B-Application
2	O
:	O
Starring	O
Goemon	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
To	O
generate	O
interest	O
and	O
incentive	O
for	O
the	O
North	O
American	O
release	O
,	O
Konami	O
included	O
$20	O
rebates	O
for	O
Goemon	B-Application
's	I-Application
Great	I-Application
Adventure	I-Application
or	O
Castlevania	B-Application
64	I-Application
in	O
copies	O
of	O
Hybrid	B-Application
Heaven	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Goemon	B-Application
's	I-Application
Great	I-Application
Adventure	I-Application
continues	O
its	O
predecessor	B-Application
's	O
musical	O
style	O
by	O
integrating	O
modern	O
synthesizers	O
and	O
traditional	O
Japanese	O
instruments	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
features	O
two	O
musical	O
numbers	O
:	O
"	O
SMILE	O
AGAIN	O
"	O
,	O
a	O
rock	O
theme	O
song	O
,	O
and	O
"	O
DOUBLE	O
IMPACT	O
"	O
,	O
an	O
updated	O
version	O
of	O
"	O
I	O
Am	O
Impact	O
"	O
from	O
Mystical	B-Application
Ninja	I-Application
Starring	I-Application
Goemon	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Yet	O
another	O
spoke	O
on	O
the	O
style	O
of	O
Ganbare	B-Device
Goemon	I-Device
music	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
few	O
songs	O
from	O
earlier	O
titles	O
appear	O
,	O
including	O
Bismaru	O
's	O
theme	O
and	O
the	O
ending	O
music	O
introduced	O
in	O
Ganbare	B-Device
Goemon	I-Device
Kirakira	O
Dōchū	O
:	O
Boku	O
ga	O
Dancer	O
ni	O
Natta	O
Wake	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
composer	O
who	O
grew	O
up	O
as	O
a	O
fan	O
of	O
Konami	O
's	O
game	O
integrated	O
rhythms	O
reminiscent	O
of	O
beatmania	B-Application
's	O
catalogue	O
in	O
a	O
few	O
songs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Goemon	B-Application
's	I-Application
Great	I-Application
Adventure	I-Application
sold	O
over	O
160,000	O
copies	O
worldwide	O
and	O
received	O
favorable	O
reviews	O
,	O
earning	O
an	O
8	O
out	O
of	O
10	O
at	O
IGN	O
,	O
an	O
A	O
at	O
1UP.com,	O
a	O
3.5	O
out	O
of	O
5	O
at	O
GamePro	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
metascore	O
of	O
80%	O
at	O
GameRankings	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Critics	O
enjoyed	O
the	O
"	O
simple	O
,	O
yet	O
enjoyable	O
platform	O
gameplay	O
"	O
,	O
specifically	O
citing	O
Castlevania	B-Application
overtones	O
and	O
fresh	O
,	O
varied	O
level	O
design	O
as	O
strong	O
points	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Nintendo	O
noted	O
that	O
the	O
game	O
looks	O
"	O
more	O
realistic	O
than	O
any	O
16-bit	B-Device
platformer	O
,	O
but	O
...	O
plays	O
just	O
like	O
one	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
presence	O
of	O
a	O
cooperative	O
mode	O
for	O
two	O
players	O
was	O
considered	O
a	O
huge	O
improvement	O
over	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
predecessor	B-Application
,	O
and	O
brought	O
back	O
memories	O
of	O
"	O
classic	O
Nintendo	O
and	O
Konami	O
sidescrollers.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
camera	O
issues	O
found	O
in	O
Mystical	B-Application
Ninja	I-Application
Starring	I-Application
Goemon	I-Application
were	O
solved	O
by	O
the	O
switch	O
to	O
the	O
side-scrolling	O
genre	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
good	O
thing	O
,	O
too	O
,	O
as	O
Goemon	B-Application
's	I-Application
Great	I-Application
Adventure	I-Application
quickly	O
becomes	O
challenging	O
...	O
</s>
<s>
Schneider	O
also	O
singled	O
out	O
the	O
Underworld	O
dungeon	O
's	O
theme	O
for	O
praise	O
,	O
remarking	O
that	O
it	O
suited	O
the	O
Castlevania	B-Application
style	O
of	O
the	O
stage	O
well	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
sound	O
effects	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
mirrored	O
ones	O
used	O
in	O
16-bit	B-Device
Ganbare	B-Device
Goemon	I-Device
games	O
,	O
although	O
increased	O
in	O
sampling	O
rate	O
and	O
variety	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
IGN	O
's	O
Schneider	O
remarked	O
that	O
Goemon	B-Application
's	I-Application
Great	I-Application
Adventure	I-Application
would	O
have	O
benefitted	O
from	O
more	O
role-playing	O
game	O
elements	O
as	O
exemplified	O
in	O
Ganbare	B-Device
Goemon	I-Device
3	O
:	O
Shishijūrokubē	O
no	O
Karakuri	O
Manji	O
Gatame	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
also	O
regretted	O
that	O
the	O
miniature	O
games	O
(	O
Gradius	B-Application
,	O
among	O
others	O
)	O
found	O
in	O
earlier	O
games	O
were	O
absent	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Jason	O
Leung	O
of	O
Nintendo	O
Power	O
wrote	O
,	O
"	O
finally	O
,	O
a	O
sidescroller	O
done	O
right	O
for	O
the	O
N64	B-Operating_System
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
IGN	O
summarized	O
,	O
"	O
two-player	O
co-op	O
,	O
2D	O
gameplay	O
with	O
3D	O
graphics	O
,	O
and	O
excellent	O
music	O
make	O
this	O
a	O
much	O
better	O
game	O
than	O
the	O
first	O
N64	B-Operating_System
Mystical	O
Ninja	B-Application
installment.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
GamePro	O
's	O
conclusion	O
was	O
less	O
favorable	O
,	O
stating	O
that	O
"	O
Goemon	B-Application
's	I-Application
Great	I-Application
Adventure	I-Application
is	O
a	O
bit	O
of	O
a	O
let	O
down	O
...	O
a	O
good	O
attempt	O
at	O
an	O
old-school	O
2D	O
platformer	O
,	O
but	O
...	O
falls	O
short	O
in	O
many	O
ways.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Next	O
Generation	O
reviewed	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Operating_System
64	I-Operating_System
version	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
rating	O
it	O
three	O
stars	O
out	O
of	O
five	O
,	O
and	O
stated	O
that	O
"	O
Goemon	B-Application
's	I-Application
Great	I-Application
Adventure	I-Application
emerges	O
as	O
a	O
much	O
better	O
game	O
than	O
its	O
predecessor	B-Application
-	O
and	O
,	O
like	O
the	O
Crash	O
Bandicoot	O
series	O
,	O
shows	O
that	O
not	O
every	O
game	O
needs	O
to	O
be	O
in	O
full	O
3D	O
to	O
be	O
fun.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
of	O
2012	O
,	O
Goemon	B-Application
's	I-Application
Great	I-Application
Adventure	I-Application
is	O
the	O
last	O
Ganbare	B-Device
Goemon	I-Device
game	O
to	O
date	O
that	O
has	O
been	O
translated	O
to	O
English	O
and	O
released	O
overseas	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
next	O
and	O
final	O
Goemon	O
game	O
for	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Operating_System
64	I-Operating_System
is	O
Goemon	B-Application
Mononoke	I-Application
Sugoroku	I-Application
,	O
released	O
exclusively	O
in	O
Japan	O
on	O
December	O
25	O
,	O
1999	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Konami	O
followed	O
with	O
Bouken	B-Application
Jidai	I-Application
Katsugeki	I-Application
Goemon	I-Application
,	O
a	O
game	O
for	O
the	O
PlayStation	B-Device
2	I-Device
released	O
on	O
December	O
21	O
,	O
2000	O
,	O
and	O
other	O
PlayStation	B-Device
games	O
in	O
2001	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
now-defunct	O
company	O
Working	O
Designs	O
attempted	O
to	O
bring	O
Bouken	O
Jidai	O
Katsugeki	O
to	O
English	O
audiences	O
as	O
Mystical	O
Ninja	B-Application
Goemon	O
beginning	O
in	O
May	O
,	O
2002	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Mystical	O
Ninja	B-Application
Goemon	O
remained	O
on	O
the	O
studio	O
's	O
release	O
list	O
until	O
its	O
closing	O
in	O
2005	O
;	O
it	O
is	O
rumored	O
that	O
Sony	O
canceled	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
release	O
due	O
to	O
subpar	O
graphics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
Goemon	O
ceased	O
to	O
appear	O
on	O
home	O
consoles	O
in	O
2001	O
,	O
Konami	O
continued	O
to	O
release	O
handheld	B-Application
games	I-Application
,	O
and	O
experimented	O
with	O
the	O
series	O
formula	O
by	O
revising	O
Goemon	O
's	O
appearance	O
,	O
using	O
futuristic	O
settings	O
,	O
and	O
employing	O
a	O
more	O
serious	O
tone	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
medieval	O
,	O
quirky	O
,	O
Japanese	O
themes	O
were	O
revived	O
on	O
June	O
23	O
,	O
2005	O
with	O
Ganbare	B-Application
Goemon	I-Application
:	I-Application
Tōkai	I-Application
Dōchū	I-Application
Ōedo	I-Application
Tengu	I-Application
ri	I-Application
Kaeshi	I-Application
no	I-Application
Maki	I-Application
for	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Device
DS	I-Device
.	O
</s>
