Emerald Mine II is an Boulder Dash variant with no gameplay changes compared to its predecessor, except for the new level editor. The player's goal is to collect diamonds surrounded by dirt. When walking over a dirt spot, it is cleared and a stone above it will fall down - with unhealthy results if the player or a monster is hit by it.
The need to plan ahead and find out the required steps to reach the diamonds gives the game a puzzle-solving character. Besides the about hundred levels in single-player, there are additional levels for two players.