Soul Hackers 2 was another fun ride through the SMT franchise. Far from being a very memorable experience and it does go on for a bit longer than it should, but I think it managed to do well what it sets out to do.
One thing that is immediately clear in SH2 is how they tried to inject a lot of style over substance. And, hey, don't get me wrong, there's still a lot of gameplay to be had here. Just not the most diverse, because "stylin' it" worked, for the most part. It's probably the least atmospheric and immersive SMT game I've played, but still manages to convey a nice Tokyo-like city in a near-future. They don't show much, but I really liked what is there to see and discover.
That's why, of course, graphics, art style and soundtrack played a great part in my enjoyment of this world. I like the direction they went with its looks, character and demon design is top-notch as usual and the OST is great! Unfortunately, there are not a lot of tracks in the game, but the ones present are pretty cool.
The story could've been better, however and that's what hurts it the most.
It's solid, but gets fairly boring towards the end. Which is a shame given how well it starts and how charming the main characters and villains are. Writing is to blame here. The concept and plot are interesting, but dialogues are ghastly. Conversations are redundant (borderline useless at times), motivations are questionable, characters NEVER shut up even DURING combat and there's a twist near the end that made no sense to me.
This aspect alone could've ruined SH2 for me because it's also quite time consuming (I clocked around 60 hours). Still, its classic SMT gameplay works so well! There's not a lot of praise to be said about the press turn system that I already haven't before, so I'll just say that this is one of the most accessible ways to get into it. Even more so than SMT V. Especially due to the Sabbaths, which were a fun strategic addition. It's also fairly forgiving, while challenging. Bullshit moments are still the, just, well... I got used to it by this point.
Two things I wish I could change from this game, however, were the Axis and Requests. Requests are ok, but they get stale due to lack of variety and lukewarm rewards. Axis dungeons are just obnoxious. It starts off pretty cool, as it looks and sounds very ominous, can be a bit challenging and you find out more about the main characters. But BY GOD, DID IT NEED TO HAVE 5 FLOORS OF THE SAME FUCKING THING? Wasted potential, I guess.
And I think that's it for Soul Hackers 2. Honestly, there's not a lot more to it. It's another fun SMT spin. Just not a remarkable one. But I feel like it's a good entry point to the franchise, even though it doesn't pack the best it has to offer.
One thing that is immediately clear in SH2 is how they tried to inject a lot of style over substance. And, hey, don't get me wrong, there's still a lot of gameplay to be had here. Just not the most diverse, because "stylin' it" worked, for the most part. It's probably the least atmospheric and immersive SMT game I've played, but still manages to convey a nice Tokyo-like city in a near-future. They don't show much, but I really liked what is there to see and discover.
That's why, of course, graphics, art style and soundtrack played a great part in my enjoyment of this world. I like the direction they went with its looks, character and demon design is top-notch as usual and the OST is great! Unfortunately, there are not a lot of tracks in the game, but the ones present are pretty cool.
The story could've been better, however and that's what hurts it the most.
It's solid, but gets fairly boring towards the end. Which is a shame given how well it starts and how charming the main characters and villains are. Writing is to blame here. The concept and plot are interesting, but dialogues are ghastly. Conversations are redundant (borderline useless at times), motivations are questionable, characters NEVER shut up even DURING combat and there's a twist near the end that made no sense to me.
This aspect alone could've ruined SH2 for me because it's also quite time consuming (I clocked around 60 hours). Still, its classic SMT gameplay works so well! There's not a lot of praise to be said about the press turn system that I already haven't before, so I'll just say that this is one of the most accessible ways to get into it. Even more so than SMT V. Especially due to the Sabbaths, which were a fun strategic addition. It's also fairly forgiving, while challenging. Bullshit moments are still the, just, well... I got used to it by this point.
Two things I wish I could change from this game, however, were the Axis and Requests. Requests are ok, but they get stale due to lack of variety and lukewarm rewards. Axis dungeons are just obnoxious. It starts off pretty cool, as it looks and sounds very ominous, can be a bit challenging and you find out more about the main characters. But BY GOD, DID IT NEED TO HAVE 5 FLOORS OF THE SAME FUCKING THING? Wasted potential, I guess.
And I think that's it for Soul Hackers 2. Honestly, there's not a lot more to it. It's another fun SMT spin. Just not a remarkable one. But I feel like it's a good entry point to the franchise, even though it doesn't pack the best it has to offer.