A preety good game.

User Rating: 7.8 | ActRaiser 2: Chinmoku e no Seisen SNES
By bob5o | Review Date:
The first Actraiser surprised many gamers with its state-of-the art presentation and its unique gameplay, so it's not entirely surprising that the 2nd one turned out to be a game with equal qualities and maybe even some better ones. The core action sequences have not changed that much but something that has changed a lot are the building levels. Well, I guess that I really can't say that they have changed that much cause they're nowhere to be found. It doesn't really matter to me because I never really liked them all that much; they just seemed too repetitive and dull when compared to the rest of the game. Nothing has really changed about the action sequences 'cept the fact that you're no longer the same old knight guy; this time around you have to control some huge, buff, mildly attractive guy...with wings. I kind of like this guy more than the one in the 1st Actraiser, I guess that it's because he has wings and because he seems like more of a hero than the other guy.



What's not heroic about the main character is the way that he controls. Well, actually, the only problematic thing about the controls is how he flies. Since this guy has wings, he has to fly but the problem with that is that you really can't control him that well when he's in the air. This can lead to several deaths that probably would've been avoidable had Enix chosen a better control scheme. Some boss fights are needlessly difficult because of this, thus limiting this game's appeal to weaker gamers. Even without the tough controls Actraiser 2 would certainly stand as one of the hardest games ever created. Some of the later levels, such as Gratis, are almost impossible to complete so you'll probably be playing through them about 50 times.



The first Actraiser featured some decent graphics at the time but Actraiser 2 features some fantastic graphics for its time. Everything is nicely drawn and each level has its own unique design. The monsters are well designed as well and feature some remarkable animation. The bosses stand out the most, thanks to the fact that they can reach epic scales and animate quite well. The only reason why I'm not scoring it a 10 is that while it does feature some of the most beautiful graphics ever seen on the SNES, it doesn't quite stand out that much when compared to graphically intense games like Super Mario RPG, Donkey Kong Country and Yoshi's Island. The audio portion of this game is truly remarkable and, in some ways, is better than the music in the first Actraiser. The sounds are pretty nice too; the famous sound that the hero makes when he attacks is still here in all its glory.



The biggest problem with Actraiser 2 is recommending it to people because while it is an incredibly impressive game with outstanding production values, it may be too hard and frustrating for most gamers. The difficulty isn't properly balanced: the bosses in the beginning are somewhat harder than the ones later in the game but the bosses in the later half of the game are located in incredibly difficult levels. I can only recommend this game to gamers who are up for a challenge and aren't going to give up because the bosses are really hard. So, in closing, Actraiser 2 stands as one of those games that should only be played by the most hardcore gamers.

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