An advancement on the previous title which stays true to the core mechanics of the series.
Before continuing much with this review it may be good to point out this is a review based upon my first impressions of the game, this means I have been able to notice the differences between Ac!d 1 and 2 but have little knowledge of the storyline (good if you were worried about spoilers). From the start the storyline does not appear to pick up from where the last game left off, meaning that this would be a game that is easily accessible for first timers to the series. The game also starts out with some very basic training levels to show you the ropes.
The card system has had a minor overhaul since the first game too. The game still keeps the same two types of weapons cards, character cards and equip action cards but also has some new additions. Linkage cards are cards that are automatically used when a weapon card that is compatible is used. These will boost your attack or hit % and make your attacks more powerful, this will however drawn your hand and deck very quickly as you can use all 6 cards in your hand at once. Ac!d 2 also sees the addition of trap cards which are placed on the floor and are activated when a character stands on them, similar to claymore mines. These will either power you up or cause your enemies all kinds of troubles. Some of the cards from the previous game have also been altered/improved/leveled so that the card collection has a good balanced feel to it.
Some of the old gameplay tactics have been improved too. When in the last game you would have to stop your movement using your current card in order for a door to open, in this installment you can simple walk straight through without having to use multiple cards. This also goes for crawling, now you can walk upto a laser grid, go into the prone position, crawl under and then stand up all using the same card, provided it has the required move value of course. This speeds up the action in the game somewhat and stops your movement being very stop and go.
There is also a new mode added to the game, Arena mode. In this mode you can fight some familiar faces from the previous games in the MGS series. This starts off as a difficult task with the basic deck that you start off with in the game, but once you upgrade your cards and rebuild your deck you will find this gets easier with time. Along with this mode the classic story mode returns which now has more extra missions after you have cleared the main objective on that stage. This allows you to rack up more points faster than you could before so you can afford some good cards and fast.
Ac!d 2 also offers some great graphics for the PSP. Although they are not the gritty, realistic graphics that MGS fans will be used to they are very stylish. The small cut scenes from previous MGS games (these happen when a character card is used) look just as good on the PSP as they did on their original consoles. The Solid Eye 3D viewer also works well in short bursts, but using it to play the game would get tiring and pretty difficult after a while. However, when used in the theater section they videos come off very well and although not being a true 3D experience you do get a good concept of levels.
In my opinion this game offers something unique from other games, especially those in the MGS series. I can, however, understand why this game may not be for some people. I do advise though that anyone with a PSP trys this game at least once before they make up there mind as you may be presently surprised. Although this may not be the game that makes the system and is a game that does not follow the rest of the MGS series closely it does offer a great gaming experience that will keep you busy for a decent amount of time.