The game has a lot of charm and the story is still fun, plus it's great to see Arle after the first game. That said, the game is a grindfest. Where the first game (or at least at the TurboGrafx version) had a lot of more logical puzzles where the player was the one challenged, this game challenges Arle's level (you are gatekept by a recurring boss every 2 dungeon levels or so). So you'll have to grind. A lot. On top of that, the final boss requires even extra grinding. Oh, and don't forget to enjoy Wall Hell!

With all it's problems, I enjoyed the game and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoyed the first one, but be aware of it's flaws.

For anyone grinding for the final boss and wondering how long do they have to grind, spoilers ahead.
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I leveled up until The Banshee Trio was the only enemy who still dropped XP (1 full sphere)