Find Mii II
Find Mii II is functionally and aesthetically a very similar game to its predecessor, yet it has enough improvements to effectively replace the original. For comparison, the relationship between PAC-MAN and the far superior Ms. PAC-MAN comes to mind. Just like in the first game, your goal is to save a kidnapped monarch with the help of the Miis that you encounter via StreetPass. Miis can still attack and cast spells like before, but your options during combat have been greatly expanded, which is the only reason I was able to finish the game at all.
An excellent change for big parties of adventurers is the introduction of the "Team Up" mechanic. Adventurers wearing similar colors can now pair up to get a boost to their attack strength, and if they're wearing the same color, then they could also perform a boosted version of their spell instead. Since I always had a full team of ten Miis, I took advantage of this for nearly every encounter and I think it greatly boosted my efficiency. I also made sure to have a full bank of 300 Play Coins before every play session, and I wouldn't be writing this review yet if I hadn't.
Find Mii II introduces the Helper Hare and potions, both of which require dishing out Play Coins to utilize. Certain rooms will have environmental effects and some monsters will have magic shields, both of which require heroes of a specific color to eliminate, otherwise, the rest of your team will be rendered effectively useless. In situations like these, as long as you have cleared the room on your own at least once before, the Helper Hare will drop by and offer to call on the exact heroes you need to clear the obstacle. All you need to do is part with a few of your Play Coins. Knowing the frustration that comes with all of your heroes fleeing without getting even one attack in, I paid the Hare his fee every single time. Once the obstacle was cleared for me, I had a slick routine that relied heavily on the new potions.
With my potion-focused strategy, I was able to clear the entire Secret Quest with just two groups of heroes on multiple occasions. My first adventurer would order a power potion that increased the level of every Mii in the party by three for the duration of the fight. Then, I would have a paired-up team or two attack the monsters before my next hero ordered one or two vials of valor that would revitalize the worn-out team members and bring them back to fight again. In this way, even with mostly level-one heroes, I could clear close to a dozen stages in one session. All it would take is a little bit of patience.
Since NetPass was released, I think I completed Find Mii II's secret quest four times and the main quest three times. I'm pretty confident in saying that is more than I managed to do throughout all the other years of playing this game combined. The Mii Plaza hats are a neat completion reward, but the game is so repetitive that I didn't really have any fun doing it. With that being said, I remember enjoying my time when I first switched over to this from the original Find Mii, but the novelty of the new features wore off soon enough. I only finished the game now out of a sense of obligation. Find Mii II is cool on paper, with you essentially completing a mini RPG with the heroes all being people you met in real life. Unfortunately, it doesn't hold up nearly as well as some of the other StreetPass games do.
