Thunder Force II

n/a

NTSC-U/PAL
NTSC-J

Thunder Force II

System(s): Sega Mega Drive, Nintendo Switch Online

Publisher:

Technosoft (Japan)

Sega of America (US)

Sega Enterprises, Ltd. (EU)

Sega Corporation

Developer: Technosoft

Distributor:

Kanal 10 (SE rental) (older)

Hent Gruppen (SE rental) (newer)

Tec Toy (BR)

Samsung (KR)

Original system(s): X68000

Sound driver: T.S vx.xx (Technosoft)

Genre: Shooting^[1]^[2]^[3]

Number of players: 1

Release	Date	RRP	Code
JP	1989-06-15^[2]	¥6,800 (7,004)6,800e^[4]	T-18013
US	1989-08-14		1000
EU	1990-11^[5]		1000
BX	199x
FR	1990	369F369^[8]
UK	1990-10	£34.9934.99^[6]^[7]	1000
SE	199x
SE (Rental)	199x
AU	199x
CA	199x
BR	199x
KR	199x		GM4010JG
UK	19xx	£?	?

JP ▼	2021-12-17^[9]	SUBsub
US ▼	2021-12-16^[10]	SUBsub
EU ▼	2021-12-17^[11]	SUBsub
UK ▼	2021-12-17^[12]	SUBsub
AU ▼	2021-12-17^[13]	SUBsub

Non-Sega versions
<img alt="X68000" src="https://retrocdn.net/images/thumb/1/1f/Logo-sharpx68000.png/16px-Logo-sharpx68000.png" decoding="async" width="16" height="16" srcset="https://retrocdn.net/images/thumb/1/1f/Logo-sharpx68000.png/24px-Logo-sharpx68000.png 1.5x, https://retrocdn.net/images/1/1f/Logo-sharpx68000.png 2x" />

Thunder Force II is a 1988 shoot-'em-up developed by Technosoft for the X68000, and the second installment in their Thunder Force series. The following year, it was ported to the Sega Mega Drive as Thunder Force II MD (サンダーフォースII ＭＤ), and this version was released worldwide as simply Thunder Force II. It was the first third party Sega Mega Drive game.

Story

Fire LEO-02 Exceliza

After the events of the first Thunder Force, the defeated ORN Empire decide to attack the Galaxy Federation again. The ORN Empire creates a powerful new battleship, the Plealos, which they use to destroy the planet Reda and take the planet Nepura as their own. Eventually, the Galaxy Federation learns that ORN houses Plealos deep below Nebula's surface when not in use, and they set out to destroy Plealos with a new version of the powerful "Fire LEO" fighter craft, the Fire LEO-02 Exceliza.

Gameplay

The game is a shoot-'em-up whose levels are split into two gameplay styles: top-view and side-view stages. Top-view stages are the free-roaming, overhead stages from the original Thunder Force. The screen constantly scrolls in the direction that the ship is facing. The objective is to locate and destroy the cores of four enemy bases. Side-view stages play like a traditional side-scrolling shooter; the screen constantly scrolls to the right. The entire stage does not fit on the screen, so moving up and down reveals more of it. This would become the only format in subsequent entries of the series. Each level begins with a top-view stage, then progresses to a side-view stage, which concludes with a boss encounter. The final stage solely uses the top view.

The Exceliza is moved in any direction using the D-pad. It shoots with , which can be held for continuous fire. It is equipped with multiple weapons, which can be cycled left with and right with . The player starts with two weapons and can acquire more by collecting items. The top-view and the side-view stages have different sets of weapons. The player can also equip up to two Claw add-ons, which are small pods that revolve around the ship. The Claws block weak incoming bullets and provide extra firepower by firing single, normal shots.

The Exceliza is destroyed in one hit from an enemy or an obstacle. Losing a life also loses any acquired weapons and Claws. The player gains an extra life at 20,000 points and then every 50,000 points after that.

By pressing + START on the title screen, the player will enter Configuration Mode, where they can change various settings such as difficulty and starting lives, or listen to the music and sound effects.

Weapons

Top View

	Twin Shot
	Fires two streams of bullets straight ahead.
	Back Fire
	Shoots one stream of bullets ahead and the other behind the Exceliza.
	Laser
	Replaces the Twin Shot with a more powerful (but narrower) laser beam.
	Wide Shot
	Replaces the Back Fire with large plasma balls that shoot ahead and at 45-degree angles.
	Five Wave
	Shoots waves ahead in a formation of five positions, covering a large area.
	Destroy
	Shoots three streams of small plasma balls ahead.
	Clash
	Fires ring-shaped projectiles forward in a revolving pattern.
	Hunter
	Shoots plasma balls that seek targets.

Side View

	Twin Shot
	Fires two streams of bullets straight ahead.
	Back Fire
	Shoots one stream of bullets ahead and the other behind the Exceliza.
	Laser
	Replaces the Twin Shot with long laser beams that pierce through enemies and walls.
	Mega Flash
	Shoots circular projectiles in three streams forwards (straight ahead and at 45-degree angles) and two streams backwards (at 30-degree angles), which are less powerful but cover a large area.
	Wave Shot
	Shoots waves ahead in a tall pattern, which can pass through walls.
	Side Blaster
	Shoots waves directly above and below the Exceliza.
	Nova
	Fires ring-shaped projectiles in three directions in the direction opposite to the last direction moved.
	Hunter
	Shoots plasma balls that seek targets.

Items

	Claw
	Equips a Claw, a pod that orbits the Exceliza and provides support fire and protects it from damage. The Exceliza can have up to two Claws at a time.
	Roll
	Boosts the power of the Claw, doubling its rotational speed for a duration. It has no effect if the player does not have a Claw.
	Breaker
	Surrounds the Exceliza in a force field that renders it invulnerable to damage for a duration. The Breaker turns red before it deactivates.
	1-Up
	Awards the player with an extra life.

Top-View

	Laser
	Acquires the Laser weapon.
	Wide Shot
	Acquires the Wide Shot weapon.
	Five Wave
	Acquires the Five Wave weapon.
	Destroy
	Acquires the Destroy weapon.
	Clash
	Acquires the Clash weapon.
	Hunter
	Acquires the Hunter weapon.

Side-View

	Laser
	Acquires the Laser weapon.
	Mega Flash
	Acquires the Mega Flash weapon.
	Wave Shot
	Acquires the Wave Shot weapon.
	Side Blaster
	Acquires the Side Blaster weapon.
	Nova
	Acquires the Nova weapon.
	Hunter
	Acquires the Hunter weapon.

Levels

	The Planet Nebula

	The Underground City

	Deeper Inside the Planet

	Ancient Ruins

	The Ultra Combat Weapon Fortress Plealos

History

Release

Thunder Force II MD was released as the first third party game for the Mega Drive in Japan.

The Swedish version shown below has an interesting story behind it. The distributor in the Nordic countries was Playmix/BRIO, famous for its classic wooden toys and unharmful playthings. This is the first and probably last time they used censorship on a game. The missiles on this early game's front were considered too violent and the picture was replaced by the ship from the Japanese version instead. After they mixed it together, they simple photographed it and printed it on Fujicolor paper (can be seen on the back of the inlay). This version is therefore fairly common in Sweden.

Production credits

Program: Izumi Fukuda, Takashi Iwanaga, Haruhiko Otsuka
Graphics & Design: Osamu Tsujikawa
Stage Design: Takashi Iwanaga
Music Compose: Tomomi Ohtani
Sound Effects: Naosuke Arai
Wording: Kazue Matsuoka, Kikuo Tamichi, Fumio Sugano
Special Thanks To: Soichiro Hikichi, Kazuhiro Imamura

Source:

In-game credits^[14]

Cover artist (US/EU): Marc Ericksen

Source:

Uncredited

Magazine articles

Main article: Thunder Force II/Magazine articles.

Promotional material

Print advert in (JP) #1990-02: "February 1990" (1990-01-08)

Print advert in Computer Games (GR) #3: "Ioúnios 1990" (1990-xx-xx)

Print advert in (JP) #1990-09: "September 1990" (1990-08-XX)

Print advert in (UK) #37: "October 1990" (1990-09-xx)
also published in:

(UK) #107: "October 1990" (1990-09-16)^[15]

Print advert in (JP) #1990-11: "November 1990" (1990-10-XX)

Print advert in (UK) #111: "February 1991" (1991-01-16)

Print advert in (SE) #1993-03: "3/93" (1993-05-13)

Artwork

Physical scans

Mega-Tech version

Mega-Tech,
Cover

Mega Drive version

Sega Retro Average

Publication

Version

Score

(RU)

60

^[16]

(UK)

PAL

93

^[17]

(JP)

NTSC-J

70

^[18]

(UK)

90

^[19]

(UK)

81

^[20]

(UK)

81

^[21]

(FR)

90

^[22]

(UK)

PAL

87

^[23]

(RU)

30

^[24]

(UK)

80

^[25]

(US)

NTSC-U

78

^[26]

(UK)

76

^[27]

(JP)

NTSC-J

70

^[28]

(UK)

85

^[29]

(FR)

74

^[30]

(UK)

PAL

82

^[31]

(JP)

NTSC-J

81

^[32]

(UK)

81

^[33]

(UK)

82

^[34]

(UK)

81

^[35]

(AU)

85

^[36]

(FR)

58

^[8]

(DE)

71

^[37]

(UK)

PAL

75

^[38]

(UK)

86

^[39]

(UK)

PAL

81

^[40]

(JP)

NTSC-J

70

^[41]

(FR)

60

^[42]

(RU)

80

^[43]

(UK)

93

^[44]

	77
Based on 30 reviews

Thunder Force II

Mega Drive, JP
Cover
Cart Manual

Mega Drive, US
Cover
Cart Manual

Mega Drive, EU
Cover
Cart Manual PCB

Mega Drive, BX^†
Cover

Mega Drive, SE
Cover

Mega Drive, SE (rental; Kanal 10; SE cover)
Cover

Mega Drive, SE (rental; Kanal 10; EU cover)
Cover

Mega Drive, SE (rental; Hent)
Cover

Mega Drive, AU
Cover

Mega Drive, AU (alt)
Cover

Mega Drive, BR
Cover
Cart

Mega Drive, CA
Cover

Mega Drive, KR
Cover
Cart

Technical information

Main article: Thunder Force II/Technical information.

References

↑ File:ThunderForce2 MD JP Box.jpg
↑ ^2.0 ^2.1 https://sega.jp/history/hard/megadrive/software_l.html (Wayback Machine: 2020-07-02 23:21)
↑ File:ThunderForceII MD KR Box.jpg
↑ Beep! MegaDrive, "February 1990" (JP; 1990-01-08), page 115
↑ Mean Machines, "October 1990" (UK; 1990-09-xx), page 88
↑ Raze, "September 1991" (UK; 1991-07-25), page 76
↑ ACE, "October 1990" (UK; 1990-09-xx), page 51
↑ ^8.0 ^8.1 Player One, "Octobre 1990" (FR; 1990-xx-xx), page 57
↑ https://topics.nintendo.co.jp/article/f75139e8-8413-450e-9369-eba602eb0510 (archive.today)
↑ @NintendoAmerica on Twitter (archive.today)
↑ @NintendoEurope on Twitter (archive.today)
↑ @NintendoUK on Twitter (archive.today)
↑ @NintendoAUNZ on Twitter (archive.today)
↑ File:Thunder Force II MD credits.pdf
↑ Computer & Video Games, "October 1990" (UK; 1990-09-16), page 122
↑ 1700 igr dlya Sega, "" (RU; 2001-xx-xx), page 242
↑ ACE, "November 1989" (UK; 1989-10-xx), page 144
↑ Beep! MegaDrive, "February 1990" (JP; 1990-01-08), page 72
↑ Complete Guide to Consoles, "" (UK; 1989-10-16), page 77
↑ Complete Guide to Consoles, "Volume IV" (UK; 1990-11-xx), page 37
↑ The Complete Guide to Sega, "" (UK; 1991-05-xx), page 50
↑ Consoles +, "Tilt Hors-Serie" (FR; 1991-07-xx), page 36
↑ Console XS, "June/July 1992" (UK; 1992-04-23), page 135
↑ Cool Gamer, "9" (RU; 2002-10-13), page 224
↑ Computer & Video Games, "September 1989" (UK; 1989-08-16), page 102
↑ Electronic Gaming Monthly, "November 1989" (US; 1989-xx-xx), page 13
↑ Mean Machines: The Essential Sega Guide, "" (UK; 1993-11-18), page 107
↑ Famitsu, "" (JP; 1989-xx-xx), page 1
↑ Game Mania, "May 1993" (UK; 1993-xx-xx), page 80
↑ Joystick, "Juin 1990" (FR; 1990-05-xx), page 82
↑ Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming, "January 1993" (UK; 199x-xx-xx), page 95
↑ Mega Drive Fan, "November 1989" (JP; 1989-10-07), page 49
↑ MegaTech, "Xmas 1991" (UK; 1991-12-06), page 81
↑ Mean Machines, "October 1990" (UK; 1990-09-xx), page 86
↑ Mean Machines Sega, "October 1992" (UK; 1992-09-xx), page 142
↑ Megazone, "October/November 1991" (AU; 1991-xx-xx), page 30
↑ Power Play, "1/90" (DE; 1989-12-15), page 86
↑ Sega Power, "October 1991" (UK; 1991-09-05), page 54
↑ Sega Pro, "April 1992" (UK; 1992-03-19), page 30
↑ Sega Pro, "April 1993" (UK; 1993-03-11), page 68
↑ Sega Saturn Magazine, "September 1995" (JP; 1995-08-08), page 86
↑ Tilt, "Septembre 1990" (FR; 1990-0x-xx), page 100
↑ Tricks 16 bit, "Tricks Sega Gold 800 igr" (RU; 1998-03-20), page 27
↑ Zero, "February 1990" (UK; 19xx-xx-xx), page 82

Thunder Force II

Music: (2022)

Thunder Force games for Sega systems / developed by Sega
	Thunder Force II (1989) \| Thunder Force III (1990) \| Thunder Force IV / Lightening Force: Quest for the Darkstar (1992)
	Thunder Force AC (1990)
	Thunder Force: Gold Pack 1 (1996) \| Thunder Force: Gold Pack 2 (1996) \| Thunder Force V (1997)
	Thunder Force VI (2008)
	Sega Ages Thunder Force IV (2018) \| Sega Ages Thunder Force AC (2020)
Thunder Force related media
	(1997) \| (2008) \| (2019) \| (2020) \| (2021) \| (2022)

[:File:ThunderForce2_MD_JP_Box.jpg_p-1] File:ThunderForce2 MD JP Box.jpg

[https:.2F.2Fweb.archive.org.2Fweb.2F20200702232146.2Fhttps:.2F.2Fsega.jp.2Fhistory.2Fhard.2Fmegadrive.2Fsoftware_l.html-2] 2.0 ^2.1 https://sega.jp/history/hard/megadrive/software_l.html (Wayback Machine: 2020-07-02 23:21)

[:File:ThunderForceII_MD_KR_Box.jpg_p-3] File:ThunderForceII MD KR Box.jpg

[:File:BeepMD_JP_1990-02.pdf_p115-4] Beep! MegaDrive, "February 1990" (JP; 1990-01-08), page 115

[:File:MeanMachines_UK_01.pdf_p88-5] Mean Machines, "October 1990" (UK; 1990-09-xx), page 88

[:File:Raze_UK_11.pdf_p76-6] Raze, "September 1991" (UK; 1991-07-25), page 76

[:File:ACE_UK_37.pdf_p51-7] ACE, "October 1990" (UK; 1990-09-xx), page 51

[:File:PlayerOne_FR_002.pdf_p57-8] 8.0 ^8.1 Player One, "Octobre 1990" (FR; 1990-xx-xx), page 57

[https:.2F.2Farchive.md.2F4u5Th-9] ttps://topics.nintendo.co.jp/article/f75139e8-8413-450e-9369-eba602eb0510 (archive.today)

[https:.2F.2Farchive.ph.2F2EXZ3-10] @NintendoAmerica on Twitter (archive.today)

[https:.2F.2Farchive.md.2FMY83i-11] @NintendoEurope on Twitter (archive.today)

[https:.2F.2Farchive.md.2FCRf0I-12] @NintendoUK on Twitter (archive.today)

[https:.2F.2Farchive.md.2FpSlxj-13] @NintendoAUNZ on Twitter (archive.today)

[:File:Thunder_Force_II_MD_credits.pdf_p-14] File:Thunder Force II MD credits.pdf

[:File:CVG_UK_107.pdf_p122-15] Computer & Video Games, "October 1990" (UK; 1990-09-16), page 122

[16] 1700 igr dlya Sega, "" (RU; 2001-xx-xx), page 242

[:File:ACE_UK_26.pdf_p144-17] ACE, "November 1989" (UK; 1989-10-xx), page 144

[:File:BeepMD_JP_1990-02.pdf_p72-18] Beep! MegaDrive, "February 1990" (JP; 1990-01-08), page 72

[:File:CompleteGuideToConsoles_UK_01.pdf_p77-19] Complete Guide to Consoles, "" (UK; 1989-10-16), page 77

[:File:CGtC_UK_04.pdf_p37-20] Complete Guide to Consoles, "Volume IV" (UK; 1990-11-xx), page 37

[:File:TheCompleteGuideToSega_UK.pdf_p50-21] The Complete Guide to Sega, "" (UK; 1991-05-xx), page 50

[:File:ConsolesPlus_FR_000.pdf_p36-22] Consoles +, "Tilt Hors-Serie" (FR; 1991-07-xx), page 36

[:File:Console_XS_UK_01.pdf_p135-23] Console XS, "June/July 1992" (UK; 1992-04-23), page 135

[24] Cool Gamer, "9" (RU; 2002-10-13), page 224

[:File:CVG_UK_094.pdf_p102-25] Computer & Video Games, "September 1989" (UK; 1989-08-16), page 102

[:File:EGM_US_004.pdf_p13-26] Electronic Gaming Monthly, "November 1989" (US; 1989-xx-xx), page 13

[:File:MeanMachinesEssentialSegaGuide_Book_UK.pdf_p107-27] Mean Machines: The Essential Sega Guide, "" (UK; 1993-11-18), page 107

[28] Famitsu, "" (JP; 1989-xx-xx), page 1

[:File:GameMania_UK_05.pdf_p80-29] Game Mania, "May 1993" (UK; 1993-xx-xx), page 80

[:File:Joystick_FR_006.pdf_p82-30] Joystick, "Juin 1990" (FR; 1990-05-xx), page 82

[:File:MDAG_UK_05.pdf_p95-31] Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming, "January 1993" (UK; 199x-xx-xx), page 95

[:File:Mdfan_JP_1989-11.pdf_p49-32] Mega Drive Fan, "November 1989" (JP; 1989-10-07), page 49

[:File:MegaTech_UK_01.pdf_p81-33] MegaTech, "Xmas 1991" (UK; 1991-12-06), page 81

[:File:MeanMachines_UK_01.pdf_p86-34] Mean Machines, "October 1990" (UK; 1990-09-xx), page 86

[:File:MeanMachinesSega01UK.pdf_p142-35] Mean Machines Sega, "October 1992" (UK; 1992-09-xx), page 142

[:File:Megazone_AU_18.pdf_p30-36] Megazone, "October/November 1991" (AU; 1991-xx-xx), page 30

[:File:PowerPlay_DE_1990-01.pdf_p86-37] Power Play, "1/90" (DE; 1989-12-15), page 86

[:File:SegaPower_UK_23.pdf_p54-38] Sega Power, "October 1991" (UK; 1991-09-05), page 54

[:File:SegaPro_UK_06.pdf_p30-39] Sega Pro, "April 1992" (UK; 1992-03-19), page 30

[:File:SegaPro_UK_18.pdf_p68-40] Sega Pro, "April 1993" (UK; 1993-03-11), page 68

[:File:SSM_JP_19950901_1995-09.pdf_p86-41] Sega Saturn Magazine, "September 1995" (JP; 1995-08-08), page 86

[:File:Tilt_FR_081.pdf_p100-42] Tilt, "Septembre 1990" (FR; 1990-0x-xx), page 100

[43] Tricks 16 bit, "Tricks Sega Gold 800 igr" (RU; 1998-03-20), page 27

[:File:Zero_UK_04.pdf_p82-44] Zero, "February 1990" (UK; 19xx-xx-xx), page 82

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[44]

Thunder Force II

From Sega Retro

Contents

Story

Gameplay

Weapons

Top View

Side View

Items

Top-View

Side-View

Levels

History

Release

Production credits

Magazine articles

Promotional material

Artwork

Physical scans

Mega-Tech version

Mega Drive version

Technical information

References