Played Co-op. Not the improvement on the first game I was hoping for. RCG1, while not nearly some kind of original or inventive masterpiece, at least was still charming to me when it first got released. But I still had some issues with it, mostly relating to combat. And with the increased pricetag of RCG2, I was hoping for a much improved game, but that did not end up being the case. The novelty has worn off and I actually had a worse experience with this game than I had with RCG1.
Besides a few balancing adjustments (for example, not losing half your money upon death), there aren't any new additions to the game that added any value to my experience. Mostly it comes down to me that for a beat-em-up, the combat is just not good.
While there is a tiny bit more variety in the enemy AI compared to the first, you still approach and deal with every enemy the exact same way. You can just punch-punch-heavy any enemy and it will knock them down without any risk. Don't face them during their wake-up animation, and just stand below or behind them and do the combo again. Outside of bosses I never changed my playstyle, because this simple combo will just always work.
Bosses are the most significant downgrade compared to the first game. They love wasting your time with overly long attacks/animations where you avoid their attacks and can't hit them. After you've beaten the second boss, the game never gets any more difficult. Even the final boss we beat on our first try, and I was sure another phase was about to happen but instead the credits started scrolling by.
And there are a few more other issues i have, including:
- Basic movement has inertia.
- Throws are useless. You can only do them when enemies are dizzy, and they don't give i-frames.
- Enemies feel like they take much longer to kill compared to most other beat-em-up or belt scroller. And since they aren't really a threat it mostly ends up being boring.
- Enemies will just walk into your attacks, instead of trying to actually break your combo.
I'll keep it at that for the beat-em-up part of my review. They've expanded the RPG side some more. The map feels like it's a lot bigger, and more interconnected. With new sidequests and NPCs that will help you fight in exchange for some money. I ended up never using these much, since they weren't neccisary, but it does add more charm to the game.
The presentation for the game is mostly on par with RCG1. I prefer the OST of the original, but the sprites and other visuals are still pretty nice. Personally I wish the artstyle was more consistent across gameplay and UI, but I understand this is now the 'modern' look people have come to expect from retro-inspired indie games.
The writing is really not my cup of tea. The humor they're trying to go for feels really predictable, cliché and obnoxious. And the main characters feel like they're more settling in their own stereotype than they were in RCG1. Kyoko is now just an complete idiot in this game, and Misako is significantly more hot-headed.
Having said of all that, the new additions like new playable characters, minigames, and some sidequests don't really do it for me. The moment-to-moment experience is just too dull. It's not like if they made RCG3 with more content, and RCG4 with even more content, that eventually I'd give it a 5 star rating. It's not like I'd ever consider some boring Ubisoft sandbox to be a 5/5 because it has a lot of content™. And same here.
Besides a few balancing adjustments (for example, not losing half your money upon death), there aren't any new additions to the game that added any value to my experience. Mostly it comes down to me that for a beat-em-up, the combat is just not good.
While there is a tiny bit more variety in the enemy AI compared to the first, you still approach and deal with every enemy the exact same way. You can just punch-punch-heavy any enemy and it will knock them down without any risk. Don't face them during their wake-up animation, and just stand below or behind them and do the combo again. Outside of bosses I never changed my playstyle, because this simple combo will just always work.
Bosses are the most significant downgrade compared to the first game. They love wasting your time with overly long attacks/animations where you avoid their attacks and can't hit them. After you've beaten the second boss, the game never gets any more difficult. Even the final boss we beat on our first try, and I was sure another phase was about to happen but instead the credits started scrolling by.
And there are a few more other issues i have, including:
- Basic movement has inertia.
- Throws are useless. You can only do them when enemies are dizzy, and they don't give i-frames.
- Enemies feel like they take much longer to kill compared to most other beat-em-up or belt scroller. And since they aren't really a threat it mostly ends up being boring.
- Enemies will just walk into your attacks, instead of trying to actually break your combo.
I'll keep it at that for the beat-em-up part of my review. They've expanded the RPG side some more. The map feels like it's a lot bigger, and more interconnected. With new sidequests and NPCs that will help you fight in exchange for some money. I ended up never using these much, since they weren't neccisary, but it does add more charm to the game.
The presentation for the game is mostly on par with RCG1. I prefer the OST of the original, but the sprites and other visuals are still pretty nice. Personally I wish the artstyle was more consistent across gameplay and UI, but I understand this is now the 'modern' look people have come to expect from retro-inspired indie games.
The writing is really not my cup of tea. The humor they're trying to go for feels really predictable, cliché and obnoxious. And the main characters feel like they're more settling in their own stereotype than they were in RCG1. Kyoko is now just an complete idiot in this game, and Misako is significantly more hot-headed.
Having said of all that, the new additions like new playable characters, minigames, and some sidequests don't really do it for me. The moment-to-moment experience is just too dull. It's not like if they made RCG3 with more content, and RCG4 with even more content, that eventually I'd give it a 5 star rating. It's not like I'd ever consider some boring Ubisoft sandbox to be a 5/5 because it has a lot of content™. And same here.