The first game with a shiny new coat of juiciness. Real score - 8.8
This game is nearly the same as it's predecessor, but with a better overall entertainment value. This time, Joe isn't alone. He's got his girlfriend Sylvia on his side to ruin his cool style.
Here's the gyst. You and Sylvia must save movieland from the evil somethings by collecting the shiny somethings ( there are 7 ) to defeat the super evil someone. As you can see, there isn't much to say about the story. Regular plot twists along the way, but nothing too surprising or integral to the story save for the finale, which explains everything in a serious way. Throughout the whole game you will never get bored of the game's style and special vibe. The game keeps you occupied with several beautiful levels ( as beautiful as they can be for the unique cel shaded graphic style ) different kinds of challenges and enemies each with their own strengths and weaknesses, and a fast rate of play that keeps the game moving in a smooth way. Since this is a sidescrolling game, now you get an in depth explanation of the combat system below.
You can play as both Joe and Sylvia this time. You can switch between them on the fly, and even use varying levels of attacks while doing so. Both characters work generally the same way, but both characters have some differences that make either character better for a given situation. Joe can kick, jump and punch while Sylvia can kick, jump, and shoot. Furthermore, Joe has a speed up power while Sylvia has a repeat power. Both characters have slow down and zoom in powers. All the powers have different effects on enemies and the environment. Powers can effect enemies in simple ways. Speed up for example, will rapidly move and attack foes, causing several of Joe to fly all over the screen and attack while bursting Joe into fire, in effect making his enemies start on fire. Slowdown with do more damage and send enemies flying and zoom in will intimidate enemies into stopping whatever they were doing and allow Joe to use another set of special attacks. Powers can effect the environment as well however. Slowdown will cause a rocket's jet to build up more power or make water overflow higher than it would regularly. Likewise, speed up will make the opposite happen, causing a jet to lose power instead of gain it. Sylvia's repeat move will make anything she did happen 3 times. So, hitting an enemy will make them get hit 3 times. You need to pay attention though, as powers can also hurt you. The repeat power can make you take 3 times damage if you use it after getting hit and slowdown while on fire will cause you to take more damage. The VFX bar recharges, so you don't need to be too stingy with you powers, but if you run out, you will transform back into a normal person, which is a serious disadvantage. The combat is smooth, fun, and tries to make you be as creative and cool as possible, making the game even more fun.
Using "Viewtifuls" acquired in combat, you can buy new moves and items after each level. You can choose to buy health, lives, or throwing weapons or spend on attacks like Red Hot Kick and Air Joe/Sylvia. You can even choose to improve your powers and VFX charger ( the thing that shows and charges how much energy you have to use powers. You get more viewtifuls at the end of every mission for doing well in levels. After beating a difficulty, you unlock another. There are a decent amoun tof difficulties, so hardcore players will still have a lot of gameplay left over. If you're feeling zesty enough for a serious challenge, you can try the mode called 36 Chambers. These are a series of single challenges that will make even the best players reconsidering the skill and how to beat the level.
The graphics and sound are basically the same as the first. The graphics are cel shaded. In case you don't know what that is, it means the game looks like characters and environments were drawn, made 3D, and shaded in. As a result, the game has it's own graphic style from the usual type that simply tries to make it look as good as possible. Nothing to say about the sound. The music is exciting, the voice acting is a overly cliched ( Sylvia says some of the dumbest things you will hear. It's a serious killjoy ) and enemies make little thwok noises when they get punched. Nothing special on this topic.
The game has huge replay value. It's short, fun, creative and different from most other games, and has several difficulties and the 36 chambers mode. That said, casual and hardcore players alike will be playing this game for a long time.
In the end, Viewtiful Joe 2 is a great game. It's very different and scores well across the board. 8.8 out of 10.