Saiyuki World 2: Tenjokai no Majin
"Saiyūki World 2: Tenjōkai no Majin" is an action platformer, akin to many games at the time. The protagonist is Sun Wukong, the King Monkey, one of the most popular characters in the Chinese culture. After completing the first stage, the player can play the other six in any order. Each of the stages revolve around elements, such as fire and water. After each stage, the player gains a new weapon, much like in the original Mega Man series, which was extremely popular at the time. The game was released with thematic and graphical changes as "Whomp 'Em" for North American audiences. "Saiyūki World 2: Tenjōkai no Majin" (as well as Whomp 'Em) and the prior Saiyuki World (which was an adaptation of Wonder Boy in Monster Land) are based on the Journey to the West novel.
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This game does have a similar system to the Rockman series where beating a boss gives you a new ability. It's sadly very hit and miss, I couldn't even figure out what the web one did until rewatching the Famidaily episode on this game. The game's final stage is also pretty brutal compared to the rest of the game and is easily the low point with some of its awful level design. Even the music overall isn't good. This game is seen as a hidden gem for the console but I'm not sure how much I'd agree with that. It's good but I don't think it's anything amazing especially with that awful last stage. Maybe you would enjoy it. This game would come out in the west as Whomp 'Em where the first thing I heard about it was someone saying it was offensive. So I guess play this version idk.