a massive leap forward from it's predecessor in more or less every conceivable way.
panzer dragoon's idea was to take the limitations of it's format, a rail shooter, and use them as strengths. these games have a fixed length, so why not tune the soundtrack exactly to the environment? these games have to shock and dazzle the player, so why not use those environments to their full potential? these games have to be snappy with little time wasted, so why not make the player soak in every bit of lore and detail while they're playing? panzer dragoon wasn't excellent at all these things, but it was a very solid proof of concept (and a very fun game!).
zwei feels like that proof of concept really got a chance to shine on it's own. the environmental storytelling is amped up, with there being plenty of times the game just allows you to more or less stop and take a break to soak everything in. the spectacle is absolutely absurd as well; whereas panzer dragoon heavily relied on sprites and somewhat generic looking bugs and animals, zwei's art design focuses much more on making the polygonal creatures look that way by design rather than by limitation. this more unique art design is complimented by the increased prominence of the ancients and their bioengineered weaponry in the plot.
speaking of the plot, like the first game, it's very implicit and focused more on creating an atmosphere than a traditional story, but unlike the first game, there is genuine character here. instead of being just some guy whose body is hijacked by a dragon rider, your character has trained this dragon out of pity for it's misshapen form, and is on a quest for revenge against the ominous ship that destroyed his home. a revenge story isn't really anything too special for video games in general, but it does provide a narrative with which the gameplay can work in tandem. typically in a rail/arcade shooter, the destruction your character wreaks almost makes you feel villainous. why am i destroying villages and blowing up everything in my path in afterburner, for instance? in contrast, it makes logical sense here that the hyper-aggressive gameplay style established in the first game would be the way your character reacts, and the downbeat desolate tone of the environments makes your character's rampage feel like a speck of dust amidst a world that has experienced far worse than this.
when it comes to gamefeel, zwei is a big improvement as well. your dragon feels far more maneuverable and the game feels far more readable. i never felt that the visual noise made it too difficult to see or aim, and i felt more incentivized to dodge and maneuver than i ever did in PD1. the new berserk mechanic is a good way to help struggling players by offering an extended screenwipe, but it thankfully doesn't trivialize bosses and offers a good degree of strategy to it's use. the multishot gun is a very positive change that my thumbs greatly appreciated, and it no longer feels like homing shots are the best option against all quick enemies. the game as a whole is definitely more forgiving and easier than PD1, but much of that difficulty decrease feels as though it comes down to the game being designed in a way that feels more fair and less chaotic. I had a much lower accuracy rating on all of the levels compared to PD1, as well, so i imagine if you're a score-focused player this overall difficulty decrease wouldn't stop you from feeling incentivized to return.
panzer dragoon's idea was to take the limitations of it's format, a rail shooter, and use them as strengths. these games have a fixed length, so why not tune the soundtrack exactly to the environment? these games have to shock and dazzle the player, so why not use those environments to their full potential? these games have to be snappy with little time wasted, so why not make the player soak in every bit of lore and detail while they're playing? panzer dragoon wasn't excellent at all these things, but it was a very solid proof of concept (and a very fun game!).
zwei feels like that proof of concept really got a chance to shine on it's own. the environmental storytelling is amped up, with there being plenty of times the game just allows you to more or less stop and take a break to soak everything in. the spectacle is absolutely absurd as well; whereas panzer dragoon heavily relied on sprites and somewhat generic looking bugs and animals, zwei's art design focuses much more on making the polygonal creatures look that way by design rather than by limitation. this more unique art design is complimented by the increased prominence of the ancients and their bioengineered weaponry in the plot.
speaking of the plot, like the first game, it's very implicit and focused more on creating an atmosphere than a traditional story, but unlike the first game, there is genuine character here. instead of being just some guy whose body is hijacked by a dragon rider, your character has trained this dragon out of pity for it's misshapen form, and is on a quest for revenge against the ominous ship that destroyed his home. a revenge story isn't really anything too special for video games in general, but it does provide a narrative with which the gameplay can work in tandem. typically in a rail/arcade shooter, the destruction your character wreaks almost makes you feel villainous. why am i destroying villages and blowing up everything in my path in afterburner, for instance? in contrast, it makes logical sense here that the hyper-aggressive gameplay style established in the first game would be the way your character reacts, and the downbeat desolate tone of the environments makes your character's rampage feel like a speck of dust amidst a world that has experienced far worse than this.
when it comes to gamefeel, zwei is a big improvement as well. your dragon feels far more maneuverable and the game feels far more readable. i never felt that the visual noise made it too difficult to see or aim, and i felt more incentivized to dodge and maneuver than i ever did in PD1. the new berserk mechanic is a good way to help struggling players by offering an extended screenwipe, but it thankfully doesn't trivialize bosses and offers a good degree of strategy to it's use. the multishot gun is a very positive change that my thumbs greatly appreciated, and it no longer feels like homing shots are the best option against all quick enemies. the game as a whole is definitely more forgiving and easier than PD1, but much of that difficulty decrease feels as though it comes down to the game being designed in a way that feels more fair and less chaotic. I had a much lower accuracy rating on all of the levels compared to PD1, as well, so i imagine if you're a score-focused player this overall difficulty decrease wouldn't stop you from feeling incentivized to return.