Uploaded September 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
The Goonies II, developed and published by Konami and released for the NES in 1987, is an unusually ambitious licensed action-adventure game. Rather than simply recreating scenes from the 1985 movie, it expands on Konami's earlier Goonies games and sends Mikey into a huge interconnected hideout after the Fratellis kidnap the other six Goonies — along with, for reasons never adequately explained, a mermaid named Annie.
Rating: 7.5/10
The basic side-scrolling action will immediately feel familiar to anyone who has played other early Konami NES games. Mikey runs and jumps through caves, buildings, icy passages and underwater areas while fighting enemies with his trusty yo-yo. Additional weapons such as boomerangs, bombs, Molotov cocktails and a slingshot gradually expand your options, while equipment upgrades improve Mikey's movement and allow access to previously unreachable locations.
What makes The Goonies II special is its structure. There are no conventional stages. Instead, the entire game is built around a large interconnected world divided between the front and back sides of the map. Doors link the two halves through first-person rooms, creating something closer to Metroid or Zelda II than a traditional platformer.
These first-person sections are also where the game becomes particularly unusual. Mikey can examine rooms, talk to characters, use items and hit walls with his fist or hammer to uncover hidden passages. Important equipment, warp points and the kidnapped Goonies are often hidden inside these areas. It's a fascinating combination of platform game and menu-driven adventure that was remarkably ambitious for 1987.
Navigation is the biggest challenge. Many areas resemble one another, routes frequently cross between the front and back maps, and doors don't always lead where you might expect. Trying to remember everything without taking notes can quickly become overwhelming. Drawing a simple map — or at least keeping track of important doors — makes the experience dramatically easier.
The game also has a reputation for being extremely cryptic, although that criticism is sometimes overstated. There are certainly moments where hitting an ordinary-looking wall or experimenting with commands feels arbitrary, but NPCs provide more useful information than they initially appear to. If you pay attention to clues and systematically search rooms, most of the adventure can be completed without blindly guessing everything.
Combat is generally enjoyable, although constantly respawning enemies can become irritating while backtracking. Mikey can survive several hits, weapons are plentiful, and the difficulty is relatively forgiving compared with many NES games of the period. A password system also allows you to continue your progress rather than completing the entire adventure in one sitting.
The presentation holds up well for such an early NES release. Environments are colorful and varied, character sprites have plenty of personality, and the game has a wonderfully strange sense of humor. Characters such as the confused Eskimo and some of the Goonies' desperate radio messages add an eccentric charm that fits the license surprisingly well.
The soundtrack is even better. Konami's musicians produced some excellent early NES music, and the recurring 8-bit arrangement of Cyndi Lauper's "The Goonies 'R' Good Enough" gives the game an instantly recognizable identity.
The Goonies II isn't as immediately accessible as Konami's simpler action games, and its maze-like structure can frustrate players who aren't prepared to explore carefully. But that's also what makes it interesting. Its combination of platforming, adventure-game interaction, equipment progression and interconnected exploration feels remarkably forward-thinking.
It may not be one of the absolute best action-adventures on the NES, but it is one of the more distinctive. Once its map and unusual logic start to make sense, The Goonies II becomes an absorbing exploration game and an important early step toward the style of design that would eventually become known as Metroidvania.
The Goonies II, developed and published by Konami and released for the NES in 1987, is an unusually ambitious licensed action-adventure game. Rather than simply recreating scenes from the 1985 movie, it expands on Konami's earlier Goonies games and sends Mikey into a huge interconnected hideout after the Fratellis kidnap the other six Goonies — along with, for reasons never adequately explained, a mermaid named Annie.
Rating: 7.5/10
The basic side-scrolling action will immediately feel familiar to anyone who has played other early Konami NES games. Mikey runs and jumps through caves, buildings, icy passages and underwater areas while fighting enemies with his trusty yo-yo. Additional weapons such as boomerangs, bombs, Molotov cocktails and a slingshot gradually expand your options, while equipment upgrades improve Mikey's movement and allow access to previously unreachable locations.
What makes The Goonies II special is its structure. There are no conventional stages. Instead, the entire game is built around a large interconnected world divided between the front and back sides of the map. Doors link the two halves through first-person rooms, creating something closer to Metroid or Zelda II than a traditional platformer.
These first-person sections are also where the game becomes particularly unusual. Mikey can examine rooms, talk to characters, use items and hit walls with his fist or hammer to uncover hidden passages. Important equipment, warp points and the kidnapped Goonies are often hidden inside these areas. It's a fascinating combination of platform game and menu-driven adventure that was remarkably ambitious for 1987.
Navigation is the biggest challenge. Many areas resemble one another, routes frequently cross between the front and back maps, and doors don't always lead where you might expect. Trying to remember everything without taking notes can quickly become overwhelming. Drawing a simple map — or at least keeping track of important doors — makes the experience dramatically easier.
The game also has a reputation for being extremely cryptic, although that criticism is sometimes overstated. There are certainly moments where hitting an ordinary-looking wall or experimenting with commands feels arbitrary, but NPCs provide more useful information than they initially appear to. If you pay attention to clues and systematically search rooms, most of the adventure can be completed without blindly guessing everything.
Combat is generally enjoyable, although constantly respawning enemies can become irritating while backtracking. Mikey can survive several hits, weapons are plentiful, and the difficulty is relatively forgiving compared with many NES games of the period. A password system also allows you to continue your progress rather than completing the entire adventure in one sitting.
The presentation holds up well for such an early NES release. Environments are colorful and varied, character sprites have plenty of personality, and the game has a wonderfully strange sense of humor. Characters such as the confused Eskimo and some of the Goonies' desperate radio messages add an eccentric charm that fits the license surprisingly well.
The soundtrack is even better. Konami's musicians produced some excellent early NES music, and the recurring 8-bit arrangement of Cyndi Lauper's "The Goonies 'R' Good Enough" gives the game an instantly recognizable identity.
The Goonies II isn't as immediately accessible as Konami's simpler action games, and its maze-like structure can frustrate players who aren't prepared to explore carefully. But that's also what makes it interesting. Its combination of platforming, adventure-game interaction, equipment progression and interconnected exploration feels remarkably forward-thinking.
It may not be one of the absolute best action-adventures on the NES, but it is one of the more distinctive. Once its map and unusual logic start to make sense, The Goonies II becomes an absorbing exploration game and an important early step toward the style of design that would eventually become known as Metroidvania.
