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Ahhh, Sicari, the first game was definitely something special. For a Super Mario World Hack, it was unique, having two characters you could freely switch between each with different abilities, and the story of the young reformed assassin attempting to stop one of the old gods in order to atone for her own past was a cool one in my opinion. How does the second game hold up? Not quite as solid, I'm afraid, but it's still a good game you need to check out!

GAMEPLAY: The last time, I had said that Sicari Remastered had left me feeling like I was playing a game similar but very different from SMW. This didn't change that feeling...rather, if anything, it only further established that thought with slightly more fleshed out gameplay. You still have the option of playing Sicari or K-16 like before with the same advantages and disadvantages as then...except Sicari and K-16 can both dash at a fairly decent speed, but not as fast as Sicari could herself in the first game. Also, Sicari now is capable of slashing enemies with a short sword or knife, giving her more offensive options instead of requiring a Power Cell in order to have offensive power outside of the standard "jump on enemy heads". Instead, the Power Cell allows her to launch a spread of fireballs forward in addition to the knife swing, further increasing her offensive strength. This was a GREAT addition, and I loved being able to fight back more since I often found myself using Sicari more. Also, there's more levels allowing you to play the witch Anna, which is a fun change up from the usual.

WORLD: Normally I do a review of the world because new worlds are what we're after, right? We want to explore somewhere new. Sicari gives us 40 brand new levels to check out, about as much as the first game. Unfortunately, however, the story has them all spread out throughout time, so there's not different cohesive "lands" to explore as they are simply Paradia at various points in time. The loss in a cohesive world with established lands is a slight set-back for me, but it's not a major downer.

STORY: This is actually the part that begins losing me, and I find myself less thrilled by this game compared to the first. The first game felt like Sicari's road to redemption by trying to stop the goddess Niscura from destroying Paradia, learning more about herself in the process. This game...Sicari feels like she's rather a young anime girl to be adopted by a mother and off on another adventure...maybe I'm misunderstanding that bit, but she felt less like the badass I had come to respect from the first game. The story also feels...somewhat convoluted and trying a bit too hard to establish so many things with all the different levels in different points of time, followed by the ending levels that explain the main villain's motivations. The slight twist to the ending and the stinger about K-16...I dunno, I just wasn't feeling it or the same sense of excitement I had felt about exploring Paradia and Sicari's story in the first one. I am curious about K-16, but the sudden stinger out of nowhere just felt like sequel bait and little more. Good, honest effort went into this game's story, I do believe that, but it just wasn't my cup of tea. I felt that it was trying to do too much and left so many loose threads that obviously will have to be tied up in further sequels, and it just didn't satisfy me with how they were handled. Good effort, but needs a bit more work.

FUN: All the story bit aside, this was a very fun game, and I stuck with it all through to the end as well as making sure I completed the bonus levels and the final world. These games have been a treat to play, and I do truly feel like I'm on a grand adventure with a badass sister duo...even if one IS a robot, lol. Sicari's snark and K-16's devotion to 'Cari makes for great characters, and I honestly love them both. I will say that I wasn't as thrilled with the sudden profanity from Sicari, as I felt the first game was just fine without any of it, so the sudden drop of damns and f-bombs from Sicari herself felt out of place, though thankfully it wasn't very often. Still, it's a fun game and with fun levels and fun bosses, though the final boss battle is a long, grueling slog...

MY RATING: 8.25/10

Sicari has by this point become my new favorite SMW hack. I like the characters, I like the style, I definitely LOVE the sprite work and music which are two of the absolute best aspects of this series (Event Horizon's music from this game was my favorite level music). Brink of Time just tried to do far too much in a more confined game, and I lost the feeling of wonder and respect for some of the world and its characters when it comes across as sequel bait. It's nitpicky things, nothing substantial to kill the game's rep, I don't think, I simply liked Remastered's journey so much better. Will I play Sicari 3 when it drops though? You better believe I will! I think a more clearer story and less reliance on unresolved story threads would make future sequels even better. Yukivee clearly has the talent to make amazing work happen, so I'll simply look forward to game 3!

Finally, after playing the awesome Sicari 1 which I consider the best Super Mario World hack to date, I was waiting patiently for the sequel, and boy, the sequel doesn't disappoint either, top-notch stuff here I tell you.

Sicari 1 and Sicari 2 are the best Super Mario World hacks around, period, and if you don't believe me, give them a try, I bet you won't be disappointed. Everything changed and it feels like a completely new game, with an interesting story with pretty cool cutscenes, new characters, and new powerups, and each character with their strength and weakness, it doesn't feel like a Mario game at all, kudos to the author for these fantastic hacks!

10/10