Of course, The Lost Expedition wouldn’t be much of a sequel without introducing some new elements of its own. In addition to an inventory of tools, Harry has access to a library of special moves and attacks for both mobility and combat. Collecting passages from a dismembered Hero’s Handbook grants access to new maneuvers like the Rising Strike, an upwards kick that’s useful for vaulting to normally out-of-reach ledges and defeating creatures that fly above your head. Some of these pages are purchasable from a friendly shaman and some are completely optional, like the Taz-style Breakdance attack.

The control scheme and inventory items are difficult to describe separately because the design of the interface sets it apart from the standard platform game. The left joystick controls movement as usual, and the right stick controls not the camera, but Harry’s right hand. Pushing right will stretch his hand in that direction, and likewise pressing up will wave it above his head. This setup applies to each item in a slightly different way. For example, you lift the canteen up to drink and heal, and hold it below you when in the water to refill it. When scaling a glacier with the pickaxes, each analog stick is associated with one of Harry’s hands, and tapping the stick that corresponds to his free hand swings the pick in that direction, so the alternating movement of each control mimics the onscreen action of climbing the wall.

The world of The Lost Expedition boasts 40 areas in a number of distinct settings, from jungles and ruined temples to caverns and snowy mountains. Each region has a unique feel and flow to it. The native jungle is infested with sleeping howler monkeys and, accordingly, have a much greater emphasis on sneaking than the mountains, which require much more frequent use of tools to traverse thanks to the climate and topography. Anywhere you go, you can count on swinging on vines and ropes to avoid drops, but the heart of the jungle, the home of many dangling vines and toothy pit monsters, has much more of that action. As an added treat, Harry and Nicole change their outfits to match the scenery. The fur-lined bomber jackets that they don for colder weather look particularly nice.

The exploration aspect lies in collecting the idols hidden throughout the world to trade to a shaman for goodies. Most of the items for sale are treasure hunting tools, like notes on each area that display the number of hidden idols and Handbook pages for breaking into new rooms. If you ever want to extend your tiny health bar, this is the place to do it. At first, the upgrades for extra hits and a larger canteen are dirt cheap: two idols for the former and one for the latter. Both powerups get considerably more expensive over time, and to get the last point of vitality, you have to fork over nearly a quarter of the idols in the game at once. Buying stuff from the shop is also the only way to access the included Pitfall and Pitfall II: Lost Caverns emulators without a code. One is a free item and the other is a reward for buying the guy out.