Thanks to Hamada for helping with edits.
Bandai Namco’s venerable Klonoa series started strong, spawning two mainline games, several spin-offs, and a few crossovers. But it sadly never attained a level of commercial success the publisher found satisfactory, falling into hibernation after the original game’s 2008 Wii remake (which itself broke a six-year hiatus). Yet Klonoa’s fans persevered, their love never wavering. That Wii side scroller introduced me to the franchise, and later I downloaded the first game, Klonoa: Door of Phantomile, and two Game Boy Advance spin-offs. And the series has recently been given another lease on life through Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series, a remastered collection containing both core outings. And with it, I could finally try Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil…
The King of Sorrow, seen near the end of the 2022 Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil remaster (Image: Bandai Namco)
I enjoyed both iterations of Door of Phantomile, especially the 1997 PlayStation original. Phantomile’s a rich place! You might not guess it by looking at its cover, but its cast is compelling and Klonoa experiences a memorable coming of age story. For years I had wondered how, exactly, the game’s direct sequel would fair, if its story and themes would complement or clash with Phantomile’s. Thankfully, I left satisfied.
The King of Sorrow’s History
Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil deals with the Dream Traveler traversing another troubled dream realm, Lunatea. It opens with a surreal sequence where a silhouetted figure calls out to Klonoa, asking for help. Our discombobulated hero then erupts out of Lunatea’s ocean during a harsh thunderstorm. A couple of ominous figures monitor the situation while two friendly natives, Lolo and Popka, assist him. Afterwards, the heroes visit local sage Baguji, who explains that a looming darkness is threatening Lunatea, hence Klonoa’s sudden summoning. The merry mammal agrees to gather the elements and use them to seal away this threat, but little does he know that the mastermind behind everything, the King of Sorrow, is watching him…
So, what’re my thoughts on the King of Sorrow?
I knew a few details about the King of Sorrow before starting Lunatea’s Veil: he’s its true main antagonist, was behind some (all?) of its events, and isn’t really evil. Honestly, that just made me more curious to see what the depressed dude’s deal is. (Image: Bandai Namco)
Klonoa: Door of Phantomile is bittersweet. Kid hero Klonoa ultimately saves the day, but his grandpa was murdered halfway through the game and it ends with him getting violently torn away from his home—wait, Phantomile wasn’t even his home! Klonoa’s memories of living there were fabricated by his friend and partner, Huepow. That sweet old man whose death we mourned wasn’t even Klonoa’s grandad! Where other platformers usually have threadbare, throwaway plots, Klonoa’s was, by design, something more. Door’s initial saccharine sheen eases players in before unleashing its deceptively sharp fangs. It’s a wonderful title I actively wish I got to experience as a kid.
Where do you take the budding Dream Traveler afterwards, though? A weaker development team would follow up Door by simply bringing Klonoa back to Phantomile, letting him reunite with his buddies. Thankfully, Bandai Namco and developer Klonoa Works were braver than that: Lunatea is completely divorced from Phantomile. Klonoa never gets the heartwarming reunion he deserves, but instead helps and bonds with a new community of weirdos. Once his job’s done, he’ll leave, just like last time (the fact Klonoa does reunite with old companions in his side adventures cheapens them; they’re still fun to play but are narratively toothless). Now, Lunatea’s Veil never outright spoils its predecessor, which is fair; not everyone who plays it will have went through Phantomile. But its memories linger and inform Klonoa 2.
Baguji’s base acts as a nexus point on the map, tying the first four Kingdoms together. By the way, he’s actually an apparition made by the King, who secretly guides Klonoa. (Image: Bandai Namco)
Anyway, our heroic trio travels across each Kingdom while trying to stay a step ahead of arrogant pirate Leorina, who also seeks the elements. It’s an emotional journey—literally, as every element is named after one, and the respective Kingdoms they’re assigned to embody that emotion (interestingly, the development team “settled on four Kingdoms for Lunatea, and then created matching characters” for them). La-Lakoosha is home to Lunatea’s religion, the priestesses of whom Lolo trains under and Leorina defected; this is where the Bell of Tranquility resides. Joilant, the Bell of Joy’s joint, is a cheeky carnival where Klonoa basically plays a round of tag with one of Leorina’s flunkies. Afterwards, our leads visit the war-torn Kingdom of Volk to ring the Bell of Discord. This is where the tension starts ramping up, owing in large part to its hostile, fiery culture and the actual, deadly fires ravaging the place. Finally, there’s the snowy mountains and shady funhouses of Mira-Mira, which shelter a bevy of antisocial folks and the Bell of Indecision.
One of the big twists is the existence of a fifth Kingdom, Hyuponia. Its theme is sorrow, thematically tying the game together. And its nature is foreshadowed from the get-go: that stormy, rocky opening stage is called the Sea of Tears. Both of Veil’s leading ladies, Lolo and Leorina, are depressed, too. Lolo aspires to become a priestess and achieves the position! …But only through Klonoa’s merits, not hers. In fact, the guilt-ridden girl’s colleagues mercilessly mocked her for her failings and she joined Klonoa as a quick, easy means of proving them wrong. And Leorina’s pursuit of power ultimately causes her to become corrupted by sorrow, but Klonoa purifies her, she apologies, and they head off to Hyuponia.
Bosses in Lunatea’s Veil usually have two phases, with the second often involving some sort of transformation. Overall, they look more theatrical and grandiose than Door’s roster, even if they’re less challenging. The drop in difficulty is deliberate, however. (Image: Bandai Namco)
By this point, the map screen has dramatically changed: the ocean’s receded, revealing a path to Hyuponia surrounded by a black chasm. Upon entering the region, Klonoa and co. run through the Kingdom of Sorrow stage, a desolate dump of a city. Everything’s lifeless and dangerous, something the harsh, amber sky accentuates brilliantly (it kinda reminds me of when my home state was enveloped in smoke last year from the horrific Canadian wildfires). Then Klonoa rides his hoverboard down the Forgotten Path, a dark descent towards Lunatea’s underworld. Wherever we’re going, it’s an uninhabited place lost to time.
But there’s more to the fifth Kingdom than meets the eye. It’s subtle, but echoes of Door ring throughout: Hyuponia’s name brings “Huepow” to mind, the Kingdom of Sorrow’s mournful music samples pertinent Phantomile tracks, and empty rocking chairs litter the background. That last detail is chilling, bringing Klonoa’s late, fake caretaker to mind. The Kingdom of Sorrow lives up to its name, especially if you’re familiar with the last game. I imagine Klonoa would agree.
Unlike last time, Klonoa knew from the start that Lunatea isn’t his home. But he still has a stake in this crusade… (Image: Bandai Namco)
We finally arrive at the King of Sorrow’s throne room. The camera pans from Klonoa’s feet to his and the tension that was building… dissipates somewhat once we get a clear look at his face. This moody monarch looks like he could start bawling at any moment! But there’s much more to the King’s veneer than his somber expressions. The most eye-catching thing is his striking resemblance to Klonoa: they’re anatomically similar right down to the fluffy, long ears. The King wears a gold collar reminiscent of Klonoa’s red one from Phantomile. Even the King’s large irises invoke Klonoa’s more cat-like Phantomile eyes. Bandai Namco staff have noted the visual parallels between the two, meaning they’re intentional.
Nevertheless, the King’s color scheme acts as a subtle reminder that he isn’t some pacifistic pushover. Alone, his teal fur evokes a sad, even sickly aura. But that’s contrasted harshly by his red eyes and the four red rings adorning his limbs (not to mention the Kingdom’s amber sky)—red’s a warning color in nature, after all! Another disconcerting detail is the King’s abnormally small pupils, which suggest he’s readying himself for a fight.
The King of Sorrow isn’t another Ghadius. Although both were isolated—in the King’s case, the people of Lunatea rejected sorrow in favor of being blindly happy—and sought revenge, he subconsciously wanted to reconnect with society. (Image: Bandai Namco)
If the King has one major shortcoming, it’s that his boss fight isn’t anything special. The first of two phases is a hoverboarding segment that starts and ends abruptly. Honestly, there isn’t much to it: dodge the spiky balls, grab the Moo mooks, and toss them at the King’s avatar. It’s not offensive, nor the most mechanically satisfying hoverboarding segment in the game; it’s merely an odd prelude.
After exiting that blue void and watching another cutscene, round two begins. It consists of kosher Klonoa gameplay: you circle the King, jump over hazards, and grab and toss stuff at his shield’s weak points. To be clear, the fight is fine. Nothing’s as visually impactful as Joka’s or Nahatomb’s demonic mutations, but such dramatic makeovers wouldn’t suit the King. A fairly subdued affair where you literally and metaphorically break him out of his shell does, though.
Surprisingly, the King of Sorrow’s voice actor went uncredited. His theme songs, however, sound contemplative, somber, and slightly regal and disconcerting. (Image: Bandai Namco)
Beaten, the King of Sorrow weakly grabs himself à la a despair-ridden teenager. Then, the final twist: he’s the mystery man who’s been calling out to Klonoa this whole time! You probably figured that out a while ago, but that’s beside the point. Anyway, Klonoa consoles the dying monarch while assuring him that his Kingdom will not be forgotten. The King weakly smiles. And those familiar with Door will understand why Klonoa is so empathetic—both fuzzballs are lonely, tragic figures. The Dream Traveller has suffered losses and is denied the luxury of a secure home or social circle; nobody but this outsider could liberate the King and accept his namesake element (which the King seemingly dissolves into).
Altogether, Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil isn’t as strong as Door of Phantomile. Where the second game recycles a few levels to pad out its runtime, every stage within the lean original offers something fresh. Lunatea’s Veil is also a smidge weaker in terms of its soundtrack. Still, these aren’t dealbreakers—it’s still a good time, one Klonoa fans should enjoy.
Klonoa’s furry foil appears in a flashback in the Klonoa: Dream Traveller of Noctis Sol comic, the now-defunct Famista Dream Match mobile game, and on some merch. The King has thankfully never properly been revived, which would undermine his arc. (Image: Bandai Namco)
But, thematically, Klonoa 2 is a perfect followup to Phantomile. They enrich each other, and Veil’s ending caps this off. Klonoa is forced to leave his new friends, but the now-seasoned explorer bravely does so on his own terms while reiterating some wisdom from Huepow. Lolo accepts her shortcomings, revokes her title, and vows to earn it again legitimately. A reformed Leorina is handling Hyuponia’s restructuring, and Lunatea’s denizens are now freely moving across all five Kingdoms. Even the King of Sorrow, seemingly reincarnated as a newborn, is smiling!
Every emotion is important. It’s okay to be unhappy sometimes, or to make mistakes. But repressing your sadness is unhealthy; only by accepting your emotions—all of them—can you be whole and grow. And there can be beauty in sorrow: Klonoa and Lolo embracing each other before his departure is a pure expression of love between two friends. Much like Klonoa: Door of Phantomile, I wish I experienced Lunatea’s Veil when I was little.
Congratulations, King of Sorrow! There is a place for you in this world.
A number of games explore human emotions, including Celeste and fellow dreamscape caper NiGHTS into Dreams. Klonoa: Door of Phantomile and Lunatea’s Veil proudly rest among their lofty ranks. (Image: Bandai Namco)
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