Definitely the superior game with the name "Sparkster". The jetpack mechanic is more in line with how it originally worked and the adorable opossum also seems to have gotten his sword slash projectile back for good. There's also some really solid visual FX going on as soon as stage 1 with the reflective water and stones transforming into wolf soldiers.
For the first three quarters, the game also captures a sense of speed quite unlike any other super Nintendo game with how fast you can zip through levels. In addition to the jetpack boost, Sparkster also has a sort of roll dodge which can help players stay airborne even after the boost is over.
There are some caveats though. The back half of the game is kind of bad. Stage 7 kicks off with a semi decent vertical shmup section (remember...it's Konami. Surprisingly there are no fire snakes to contend with) but ends in the worst mech fight out of the entire series. It's an RNG fest through and through...if you don't believe me watch a speedrun. Even they manage to get killed here from time to time and to this day I don't think there's a proper strategy.
Stage 8 isn't as bad, but it does have a lot of slower/pace breaking sections. That big mode 7 missile you have to duck under at the start is pretty cool the first time you see it...but not the tenth. The final boss (at least on normal) also seems to be pretty rng heavy, but at least he won't just spam a bunch of crap that you can barely avoid if at all.
You can only access Stage 9 by playing on hard (kind of an idiotic and pretentious design choice). It's a straight shot followed by an ironically easy "true" final battle, but at least it has an actual pattern.
At the end of the day, neither sequel is really as good as the original game which is lightning in a bottle. Still, if you're willing to forgive that the last couple stages were probably rushed to meet a deadline, there's a great time to be had here.
For the first three quarters, the game also captures a sense of speed quite unlike any other super Nintendo game with how fast you can zip through levels. In addition to the jetpack boost, Sparkster also has a sort of roll dodge which can help players stay airborne even after the boost is over.
There are some caveats though. The back half of the game is kind of bad. Stage 7 kicks off with a semi decent vertical shmup section (remember...it's Konami. Surprisingly there are no fire snakes to contend with) but ends in the worst mech fight out of the entire series. It's an RNG fest through and through...if you don't believe me watch a speedrun. Even they manage to get killed here from time to time and to this day I don't think there's a proper strategy.
Stage 8 isn't as bad, but it does have a lot of slower/pace breaking sections. That big mode 7 missile you have to duck under at the start is pretty cool the first time you see it...but not the tenth. The final boss (at least on normal) also seems to be pretty rng heavy, but at least he won't just spam a bunch of crap that you can barely avoid if at all.
You can only access Stage 9 by playing on hard (kind of an idiotic and pretentious design choice). It's a straight shot followed by an ironically easy "true" final battle, but at least it has an actual pattern.
At the end of the day, neither sequel is really as good as the original game which is lightning in a bottle. Still, if you're willing to forgive that the last couple stages were probably rushed to meet a deadline, there's a great time to be had here.