In the more traditional point-and-click part of the adventure, non-minigame puzzles are almost entirely inventory based, most involving either giving items to other characters or using them on scenery hotspots. You’ll perform such tasks as taking recipe ingredients from a shop (mixing the recipe is a minigame, mind you), searching out incongruous objects on an airship to fix holes in the balloon, and setting numerous things on fire with your trusty lighter.

Fortunately, there have been some attempts to improve operation over the first game. The pick-up cursor makes an animated grabbing motion that is quite distinct from the inanimate default cursor, making it much easier to spot when you are pointing at a collectible item. Also, there is a bright and clearly discernible glow when you place your cursor over items you can interact with. Any object with the potential for interaction always creates this response, even when actual interaction is impossible at that time, with Diamon simply commenting on the item in question in the meantime. This does not entirely do away with pixel hunts, as some hotspots and items are small and difficult to spot against the detailed backgrounds. There are also occasions where lining up the cursor proves troublesome, such as trying to retrieve a small lock-pick from the door of a car, as both the lock-pick and the car are interactive objects. In a welcome new feature, double-clicking on anything will cause Diamon to run instead of walk, making getting around relatively easy.

The first game was fully voiced, but in what might be considered a step backwards, Eye of the Dragon largely restricts voices only to the infrequent cutscenes. Given the quality of the voice work in the brief segments it appears, however, I would say this is a wise choice. With the exception of Diamon himself, the performances are almost uniformly poor. Then again, this decision will leave players relying on the subtitles, and these prove to be as badly translated as before. The garbled grammar of such phrases as “Our chances grows up” and “Supposing an aircraft would fell in it” might just have been acceptable for some of the foreign characters. However, this continues throughout all the text, including the abundant dialogue of the undeniably English Diamon Jones. This is made worse by the painful and forced attempts at humour, exemplified in such “comic” character names as navigator Forgotto Whatadoo and injured pilot Imareadi Todiee. As a comic adventure this game largely falls flat, the unintentional mangling of English giving me far more laughs than any of the intended jokes.

There is music throughout the game which generally fits the scene, such as oriental overtones in the opening Shanghai section. Whilst not grating, I didn’t find this overly inspiring either, mostly having the feel of background elevator music. Some sound effects are also in evidence, with Diamon’s footsteps sounding as he walks and wind rushing past the airship when it’s aloft. Occasional incongruities crop up even here, however, with the hammer-struck bell in the pawnshop giving the sound of a rotary ringer.

The one section in which the first game excelled, the graphics, is fortunately also carried over into the sequel. From the seedy dockside bar at the start of the game through the luxury cabins of an airship and on to the ruined grandeur of the Lost City and beyond, there is beautiful detail on show. The environments are filled with furniture and decoration appropriate to each setting, like finely patterned carpets and luxury seating on the airship, in stark contrast to the tumbled stone-work and strange carvings of the Lost City. The only downside to this detail is that it makes smaller interactive items difficult to spot, especially since many of these are in places you wouldn’t expect to look..

All scenes come with background animation, including idle animations for Diamon and non-player character alike. A Shanghai policeman fruitlessly tries to rid himself of a pesky fly and a less-than-bright henchman constantly fiddles with his outsized machine gun. The character animations are well-performed, and interacting with the environment is fully animated. In fact, the physical humour works better than the written humour, with Diamon’s struggle to find a comfortable way to sit at a floor-level table being a highlight. It’s also nice that the mini-portraits that appear next to the character dialogue mimic actual character positioning, with the portrait’s head pointing in the same direction when the character is looking down or to the side.

Ultimately the best I can really say about Diamon Jones: Eye of the Dragon is that it appears to be a step in the right direction. Some of the problems arising in the first game have been addressed, but not nearly enough to make this a game I can readily recommend. The poor translation is a constant annoyance that faces the player throughout their journey, and the minigames are all too often badly designed exercises in boredom or frustration. Similarly, I was left uninspired by the minimal plot and never really felt any pressing desire to help Diamon succeed in his quest for glory. It does have its moments during the six or so hours of play time, so if you have nothing better to play, it might be worth a look at its downloadable budget price, but most are better off leaving it buried like the ancient treasures its protagonist seeks.