Enjoyable in some areas but monotonous for most
Shenmue II is a pretty standard adventure game that combines free-form exploring in a large city environment with elements of button-mashing fighting sequences. The game also features sequences, usually chase scenes, in which you have to press certain buttons on your controller that appear on your screen, in which you have just seconds to respond before you fail. For the most part, you'll be doing mostly exploring. Apart from the main quest, there is a lot to do in Hong Kong and plenty of mini-games and gambling activities to keep you busy and break up the monotony that tends to accompany the main story.
For the main story, the game gives you a little bit of a guide rail but it mostly forces you to look around in hopes of triggering a story-based event. You can either ask for directions from pedestrians and shopkeepers or visit a fortune teller that can give you hints on what you're trying to find. Unfortunately, sometimes these aren't too helpful. That said you'll feel yourself progressing as you crawl your way to recognition by Lishao Tao, who is a woman and head of the Martial Arts temple who reluctantly helps you on your quest to find Lan Di. As you progress, you'll learn from different martial arts masters about new button combinations to give you an edge on fighting. Unfortunately, the game leaves you on a major cliffhanger at the end and, since I'm writing this in 2009, there has been no announcement for a Shenmue III.
The game features a colorful cast of different characters you'll meet and many of them will assist you happily and for others, a bit reluctantly. For the most part, these characters don't take much of an active role in the gameplay but for cinematic sequences during the game. But they are valuable sources for information and some will help you earn money such as Joy, who will hook you up with an employer for a part-time job at the warehouses.
Money is rather second-nature in this game. Whereas you'll find yourself purchasing different things here and there, you'll find that, even though it helps, it really serves as a mundane reason to keep yourself distracted. With that said, there are plenty of distractions. From arcade games to gambling games to part-time jobs, you'll be keeping yourself busy as the quest slowly moves along. But there is a limit to how long you can do this as you need to complete the game before the next season (admittedly I do not recall how long) but it is more than enough time and you'd need to be incredibly slow in order for time to run out.
As for combat, the gameplay feels like Virtua Fighter with simple controls in which each of the four buttons on your controller can result in high kick, low kick, high punch, or low punch. They're fairly simple but they can be combined for powerful offensive or defensive maneuvers. But the fighting is fairly choppy and can feel a bit frustrating, especially since the camera angle can feel a bit awkward. Once you've mastered it, however, fighting in this game is fairly easy.
Given that this sequel is exclusively for the Xbox, expect the game to have mildly better graphics and a larger story than its Dreamcast predecessor. But the game can get boring if you're not patient and is not meant for fast-paced gamers. Overall, this is a moderate success to an underappreciated series (well, at least for an American audience as opposed to its more appreciative status in Japan). The game is worth an extended rental or borrowing or even buying used.