 The change in combat systems was not the only difference between Barbarian II and its predecessor that influenced reviewers ' opinions about the sequel . The first Barbarian game was enjoyed by reviewers for providing exciting head @-@ to @-@ head action between two players . Barbarian II abandoned this , setting up an <unk> experience for the single player . Jim Douglas , reviewing for Sinclair User , doubted that players who were looking for quick action would appreciate plotting a path through the maze to reach the final goal . Your Sinclair 's Marcus <unk> felt the two genres — slash ' em up and arcade adventure — were " fundamentally incompatible " , agreeing with Douglas that the maze was a distraction . Crash 's reviewers , however , felt the combination of genres made the game interesting . James Price wrote in Amiga Force that the <unk> element and <unk> number of enemies made Barbarian II a far better game than the first , while The Games Machine 's staff said the expanded menagerie of <unk> adequately made up for a reduction in combat moves . 
