Dark Cloud 2 (1 Viewer)

[JoshF]

Gets a 9.0 from both Gamespot and IGN.

link

Anyone else picking this one up? Looks to be a good one.

 

[paul h]

Wow, both sites completely agree on a review ... that must be a 1st

Definitely on my must buy list.

"Dark Cloud 2 is an aesthetic masterpiece. While the first game looked merely decent for its time, the visual improvements made by the new game are staggering. Dark Cloud 2 features some of the best use of cel shading yet, on the PlayStation 2 or anywhere else. All the game's characters and enemies make full use of the effect, but its application is subtle enough that it never blatantly leaps out at you--rather, it produces the intended effect, which is simply to make the game's people and monsters look like characters in a cartoon."

"Dark Cloud 2 is simply a class act all the way. Every element of the game, from the georama system to the weapon upgrading to the interaction with a large cast of characters, displays a polish and attention to quality that you find only in real classics. Level-5 and Sony should both be commended for turning a fair-to-middling old game into what will now be a series to watch with great interest. Dark Cloud 2 could very well be the PlayStation 2's Zelda, and it will appeal to fans of the action RPG genre for a long time to come."

 

[JoshF]

Yup. I hope all the doorknobs buyin' up the Dragon Ball and movie license games don't miss out on a real good one here. Again.

 

[paul h]

Agreed, i read that DBZ has sold 1.9m copies ...

 

[Scott_W]

I grabbed this the other day. Its probably the most impressive looking PS2 title I've seen. The cel-shaded graphics look great. Voice acting is really well done, and the main character is likeable, not the typical whiney lead RPG character.

Gameplay consists of going through randomly generated dungeons (that look great), enhancing your weapons, inventing new objects and weapons by combining photographs, and building a town in the past to help your future (or something similar, haven't gotten there yet).

Combat is Zelda like, and very challenging so far. I've died a few times in the opening dungeon sequence. You can save between each dungeon floor, so its not to frustrating.

The weapon upgrade system is great. Your weapons gain levels, not your character. As your weapon increases, you can add to its effects, and slowly evolve it using items you find in dungeons. You also get a tank like robot to use, and upgrade into various fun shapes.

So far, I'm nothing but impressed. Great graphics, innovative weapon system and gameplay, and fun story. Its getting great reviews. I never played the first Dark Cloud, but DC 2 looks far and away better. Its a lot better then .hack, which I just finished. At $40, DC 2 almost feels like a steal at this point.

 

[JoshF]

Scott: Thanks for the comments. This game looks great. I'll be picking it up for the weekend. I'll skip .hack for now, since I still have to play through several other games.

 

[GlenHaag]

I enjoyed Dark Cloud, the first one, for the PS2 when I was playing it.

I've just bought so many games recently that I wouldn't have the time to touch it for months.

I'll pick it up eventually though. It looks and sounds great.

Glen

 

[paul h]

Any chance of you guys posting your own review?

 

[Joseph Young]

Here are some initial impressions of Dark Cloud 2...

(Note: While I have not finished the first Dark Cloud, I have played it extensively enough to have a good reference point.)

Visually arresting. The art design in the game is very similar to Skies of Arcadia, what-with the whole Jules Verne/turn of the century motifs, with a few mechs, gadgets, and machine guns thrown in for good measure.

Bottom line is, for those of you who didn't mind the somewhat routine, repetitive nature of 'dungeon crawl, build your town, more dungeon crawl, build more town,' you will be pleasantly surprised and bowled over by the sheer variety injected into this formula for the sequel.

The cel shading is top-notch, solid, and colorful. There are evil, scary top-hat sporting clowns and just some wildly inventive character design in general. I look forward to making more of a dent in the game, but here is my bottom-line recommendation:

Make sure you know what to expect from the Dark Cloud formula, and understand that the sequel is not a radical departure from this formula, it has just been infused with a lot more variety. And the graphics are really, really stunning. But if you are looking for the a Xenosaga or Final Fantasy-esque game, this may not be what you want.

Overall, a very enthusiastic . This is exactly what a sequel is all about.

Joseph

 

[Scott_W]

I wasn't able to spend to much time this weekend, but the game almost feels overwhelming. Dark Cloud 2 is the first game in years that has me leaning towards buying the strategy guide.

There are so many parts to manage/do:

- Manage and upgrade your weapons. There are about 10 attributes for the weapons, and you have to build up select attributes to upgrade your weapon. You can only enhance so many attributes, as you are limited by synthesis points. Each weapon has branching upgrade paths, and its hard to determine what is better, beyond the attributes. I'm trying to have one fire based weapon, another wind one, etc. So far, its hard to tell what type of weapon works on what creature. Its challenging so far to make sure each of the two characters has everything up to date. I've also found that some of the resources needed to upgrade the weapons are scarce, at least when I need them, so I've replayed levels to get them.

- You can photograph a lot of items, and make inventions. I really haven't touched on this yet, so I have no idea what I've missed. Its challenging to photograph monsters while they are attacking you, especially the bosses.

- You then get to build a town, or towns, and recruit people to live in them. You then get to see the towns in the future and solve problems. There appears to be quite a few buildings/quests, and while I haven't played to much, its probably easy to screw up. You have to find materials to do this, which hasn't been a problem, but might.

- Fishing... Apparently there is a whole minigame related to fishing, fish raising, and racing.

- Combat... Each level has multiple goals to unlock medals (not sure what they are used for yet). A goal may be to beat the level in so much time, or only use a specific weapon. Each level also has hidden objectives. Combat is also challenging to a point. I've gotten better at it, but if you let down for a bit, you'll die. Enemies hit hard, so you really have to time the blocks. You can alternate between the 2 main characters in most levels, and Steve, your robot buddy (who is pretty cool I'll admit)

Sorry for the quick points, pretty busy so I had to cut it short. The game definitely has a lot to do, so its probably hard to get bored. I'm just a bit overwhelmed. I think you can even play a golf like game in some of the levels as well.

I still think it looks great, and the voice acting is well done. The story looks good as well, but a little generic. Its definitely a well spent $40 though, I'll get a lot of playtime out of it. I think I'm 8 hours in, and haven't touched parts of the game. Unlike .hack, which was a quick (but still fun) 14 hours.

 

[paul h]

Glowing review from Gaming Age too ...

http://www.gaming-age.com/cgi-bin/re...ame=darkcloud2

I bet this gets mostly overlooked in favour of Zelda, shame.

 

[paul h]

GamesDomain just gave it 5/5 ...

http://www.gamesdomain.com/playstati...k_Cloud_2.html

God only knows when it will be released here in the UK!

 

[dave_brogli]

I think the commercial for it is real sweet!

 

[Brian Kleinke]

How does it compare to Dark Cloud?

I'm in the last dungeon, but not played it much because it wants me to use a character I hate and never played much :frowning:

The comercial is a riot, and I figure I'll pick this up someday.

 

[Joseph Young]

Brian,

Let me guess: the guy with the staff? He was always my least favorite ally, only because his combo maneuver takes forever to play out and gives the enemy plenty of time to strike back. But I am in the process of leveling up the machine gun toting flying dude
in the first Dark Cloud. In fact, I refuse to play another second of the sequel until I giddy up and beat the first game, which I have logged a ridiculous amount of time on and not finished yet.

~j

 

[Brian Kleinke]

I don't recall if it was the staff buy or not... the guy in your spoiler is fun though

 

[Brian Kleinke]

I don't recall if it was the staff guy or not... the guy in your spoiler is fun though

 

[JoshF]

Just started playing this one today.

So far, I love it. I played the first one, and this one has a lot more variety. The graphics are also vastly superior.

I really like the weapon upgrade system this time around. Last time, it seemed a bit convoluted, but I was upgrading my stuff within minutes. The combat system is also superior.

The story is pretty cool, if not a bit generic as mentioned above - but then again, what isn't these days?

I'm very happy with this so far, and it only cost me $33.

This game just might make me put the new Zelda on hold for a couple weeks when I finally get it.

 

[JoshF]

Played all day yesterday.

One question, though - how in the WORLD does anyone play through this without some help from a walkthrough or strategy guide?

I did a little cursory reading at gamefaqs.com and found out that there's something I've been missing called "scoops." The game doesn't even tell you about these!

 

[Rob_Pierce]

I played the first one, and this one has a lot more variety.

Thank goodness. I played the first one for a few weeks, got to the last level, and was so bored that I never finished.

One question that I haven't seen addressed: Can your swords/weapons break in this game? That was a very annoying aspect of the first DC that added no value or strategy, just an annoying aspect to worry about.