| Rating | +2 | Linearity | wide, segmented |
| Reasonability | sporadic | Connectivity | moderate |
| Difficulty | challenging | Relevance | strong |
| Interface | 3rd paned menu | Real-time | minor |
Once again, Simon finds himself transported across dimensions to a fantasy world, to the wizard Calypso's shop. This time, however, it was the evil wizard Sordid's work, looking for revenge after the results of the previous game, and unbeknownst to Simon and Calypso. The bulk of the game consists of Simon chasing after the magical ingredient necessary to get back home, until the Sordid conspiracy is revealed in the finale.
There's nothing serious about this game, so all the characters are just humourous obstacles and aides to Simon's quest. Similarly, the challenges are geared for humourous effect rather than sensibility. If the humour works for you, you won't mind the occasional demented challenge -- they're at least funny after the fact.
As in the first Simon, there are a lot of challenges. They are generally very nonlinear, especially in the opening area, but the game turns into a small sequence of short segments towards the finale.
The biggest problem I had, other than getting stuck on some of the sanity deficient challenges, was with a few instances of pixel hunting. The objects weren't excessively small, but they disappeared into the scenery and their hotspots were too small for a casual mouse sweep to detect.
The interface is otherwise good, similar to LucasArts' games of the time. The presentation is excellent, with top notch voice acting and good artistry.
Simon 2 is really just more of the same. That's good if you liked Simon 1.
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