Golden Axe II (Genesis)

This page details one or more prototype versions of Golden Axe II (Genesis).

The only known prototype of Golden Axe II. It is very similar to the final version, but all the text is different. The game is fully playable.

Leak date unknown, all the text is in engrish, likely a rough translation by a Japanese person at Sega. There are many minor graphical changes, also several bugs not in the final version are present.

• The main menu does not offer the two player option, player 2 must instead press the Start button, in the final version player 2 has no control at the menus.
• Level select is always turned on, it also goes up to 8 and 9. 8 gives a completely glitched level, 9 loads the duel screen but there's nothing there.
• All enemies use the same death sound.
• Two sound effects are missing, death sounds 34 and 35. 34 is old man death, and 35 is large wolf death. The menu does not have looping (Z to A) option either.
• If the Left+Right buttons on the D-Pad are pushed at the same time, the character walks to the right side of the screen at an extremely high velocity.
• The rideable dragon attacks can be spammed, in the final they are delayed.
• At the end of Dragon's Throat stage, you are given a single cerberus to fight. When he is killed, the boss music starts and you get another cerberus with the two lizards.
• The black skeletons have yet to be given a color palette.
• The vertical scroll speed during the intro sequence is slowed down in the final version.
• Only one demo sequence is found in the original, which starts at the beginning of the village. This is not in the final.
• Dark Guld does not spawn skeletons.

Visual Changes#

Prototype	Final

The ™ has been moved from next to the II to above the E, the menu selections were also moved down a line and to the right.

Prototype	Final

The options screen has yet to have the OPTIONS title added, and a numbered control layout.

Prototype	Final

All score screens are black as they've yet been given a color. The Duel screen gives the Normal mode difficulty instead of saying Duel, and the character has been moved down 4 pixels.

Prototype	Final

The PAUSE text was moved down 16 pixels to the center, the player also starts with 2 lives instead of 3, but in the final they can have 0 lives. Proto: 3, 2, 1, use continue. Final: 2, 1, 0, use continue.

Prototype	Final

The brightness of the ruins was toned down severely.

The final camera re-adjusts to the scenery, the prototype does not.

Prototype	Final

The skeleton corpses have changed.

Prototype	Final

The first group of enemies have changed, and the screen was moved.

Prototype	Final

The first gated enemy has been changed.

Prototype	Final

The credits are missing, placeholders ABCDEF are only there.

Prototype	Final

The ending sequence location has changed, likely to hide the dead body on the left.

Prototype	Final

The game over screen does not yet darken.

A minor graphical bug in the prototype causes the X to be shown in front of the screen transition between duels. In the final, the X is removed when the screen transition begins.

To do: Graphical changes of enemies, and backgrounds.