Like its predecessor, Hiōden 2 is a mixture of RPG and real-time strategy. The player commands one or more teams at the same time. The battles are mostly automatic, with preparation having more weight that the actual commands during battles. There is an option to "stop the clock" and adjust the strategy. Most of the gameplay involves exploring the maze-like isometric location with the player's teams, fighting enemies on the way, gathering treasure, and solving (mostly very simple) puzzles to advance to the next area. RPG element comes in form of character levels. The windows-based interface from the previous game returns, with slight adjustments (point-and-click navigation through the main area instead of clicking on arrow keys; more comfortable menu with items displayed next to the character's portrait, etc.). Less