Zone of the Enders: the 2nd Runner (my impressions)
Having played the game extensively over the weekend, I thought it's about time to write down some impressions I've gathered so far:
presentation…
The first thing one is bound to notice is the excellent presentation of the game. Just like in Metal Gear Solid SOL, very nicely done intro and a stylish yet simple menu that screams for more. While watching the long intro and having to abort it due to the fear of catching some spoilers, I then started the game on the normal difficulty setting.
gameplay…
Having played the first part, it wasn’t hard to get into the game which really hasn’t changed much in controls or gameplay mechanics. The first two fights were a blast, though I quickly realized that my skills need some serious practise. Great to see that Konami has kept the training “learning mode†stuff – made it easy for me to get back into the moves.
graphics / sound…
Let me start with saying that I am absolutely blown away by the graphics. Truly amazing. I haven’t completed the game yet (I’m at the end of level 3), but having seen quite a few bits of the game, the train bit was probably the most insane experience yet. The sense of speed is amazing and all those particles. Wow. Image quality is as good as it gets – have not seen any visible aliasing of any sort, though I admit I really haven’t searched for them either. Framerate rarely drops if ever. The only instances I can think of, is when you have a couple of those yellow beams on screen that the framerate seems to take a hitch. Even during the most intense battles with up to hundreds of enemies on screen, firing those multiple rockets off doesn’t hit the framerate. Even if it does, so little that it’s bearably noticeable. I’ve played a bit with the engine and thought to have found something quite interesting. Somehow it always seemed that the own ship stayed constant, while the effects being on some other layer dropped frames. It’s strange to explain, especially the occurrence of loosing frames in the first place seems to be so minor in the first place to begin with. Oh, and I love the cell shaded look, something I wasn’t too sure about when I viewing the very first screens.
The music is also very good and suits the game fine. Puts you in a state of pure adrenalin which, well, I guess is just the right thing while playing this game.
finally…
Well to finish this off, I must say that I am really impressed by the game. I still haven’t completed it and am about 4 hours through the game being now at the end of level 3. I’m playing on normal, so it’s quite challenging and I am already looking forward to playing through a second time on hard. I hope the game will feature some replay value – I remember the first one didn’t have one, for me anyway. The story is okay, nothing spectacular, but I wasn’t expecting that anyway. It’s good enough by any means: keeps you going and isn’t an annoyance by any means. I’m also glad to see that the story so far has opened a few things, like for example what happened with the characters from part 1.
Another thing, I didn't read the previous replies yet in fear of spoilers. I'll be back when I finished the game, which should be sometime this week depending on how often I get a chance to play it!
EDIT:
Forgot one thing:
things I hate about this game...
Well, my hands hurt.
Enough said, heh!!! 8)
