I did a search for this game and didnt see any threads posted about it, though it has been out for a while (on import) so apologies if its been discussed before.
Picked up my copy several days ago and have so far put in 5.5 hours. Its a generally enjoyable experience and now plays a little more like Dynasty Warriors than its predecessor.
Like all Dynasty Warriors games on the PS2 the graphics are a little rough in places. The first thing I noticed was that floor textures seemed a bit wobbily in places (not that you notice during the battles) and the game has a darker overall palette than the Xbox game.
However, it has a good draw-distance and no sign of enemies suddenly fading in 2-feet in front of you, even when you are battiling a huge (and I do mean HUGE) swarm of insects.
The game runs purely in PAL 50, and just like Dynasty Warriors its fullscreen with no slowdown. Only slight problem is some jaggies and slight texture 'shimmering'.
No Widescreen - Boo!
Combat: Its recieved a major overhaul since CS1 and now sticks a lot closer to the Dynasty Warriors formula, only with several additions. I'll go through them and compare them with the closest DW counterpart (I figure the DW fans will be the ones most interested in CS2).
NeoPsyonics (Similar to Mousou).
Like Mousou in DW, you charge up Neopsyonics (NP) just by fighting, and once its full you can unleash the HP attack by hitting 'circle' for a powerfull attack.
However, you can select from different types of NP powers, like a NP blast which does damage to anything neerby, or a NP shield which allows you to run through a swarm of enemies damaging anything that touches you, or NP healing which... uhh.. heals you.
Time slow (like nothing else seen in DW).
Dont worry, this isnt yet another 'Bullet-time' effect.
Yor NP guage is split into 3 segments. You can only use the NP power once all 3 are charged, however, you can use up one segment to slow down time which, in turn, opens up different attacks. While in 'slow time' you can stand still and fire for a two-gun attack, or hit slash to teleport in front of the nearest enemy and hit it. You can also activate 'slow-time' by racking up a combo of 50+ hits.
Slow-time gained by a 50+ combo lasts 3 seconds, Slow-time activated by the NP guage lasts 5 seconds.
Overhead and Overdrive attacks (Like DW Charge attacks).
Overdrive attacks basically involve hitting fire straight after using a slash attack. The attack is different depending on wether it was chained on after the 1st - 4th attack. These attacks range from a single gunshot, to your character doing a 360 spin while spraying bullets everywhere.
Overhead attacks are the most like DW charge attacks, only they are activated by pressing the movement stick in the opposite direction while hitting the melle attack. This can be a bit annoying as it means you cant change your attack direction quickly. Try and attack someting thats behind you and you just end up doing an overhead attack - grr.
All overhead attacks are singe powerfull blade attacks (though not all over them go over your head), and like in DW, they vary depending on which regular attack they were chained on after. Some are just a single strong hit that stuns the enemy, others send huge groups flying up into the air in slow-motion - perfect for juggling or just clearing large crowds.
Right, I'm gonna stop there because I'm begining to get the nasty feeling that no-one gives a toss about this game, or that its been discussed months ago and I'm more than a little bit late to the party.............
Picked up my copy several days ago and have so far put in 5.5 hours. Its a generally enjoyable experience and now plays a little more like Dynasty Warriors than its predecessor.
Like all Dynasty Warriors games on the PS2 the graphics are a little rough in places. The first thing I noticed was that floor textures seemed a bit wobbily in places (not that you notice during the battles) and the game has a darker overall palette than the Xbox game.
However, it has a good draw-distance and no sign of enemies suddenly fading in 2-feet in front of you, even when you are battiling a huge (and I do mean HUGE) swarm of insects.
The game runs purely in PAL 50, and just like Dynasty Warriors its fullscreen with no slowdown. Only slight problem is some jaggies and slight texture 'shimmering'.
No Widescreen - Boo!
Combat: Its recieved a major overhaul since CS1 and now sticks a lot closer to the Dynasty Warriors formula, only with several additions. I'll go through them and compare them with the closest DW counterpart (I figure the DW fans will be the ones most interested in CS2).
NeoPsyonics (Similar to Mousou).
Like Mousou in DW, you charge up Neopsyonics (NP) just by fighting, and once its full you can unleash the HP attack by hitting 'circle' for a powerfull attack.
However, you can select from different types of NP powers, like a NP blast which does damage to anything neerby, or a NP shield which allows you to run through a swarm of enemies damaging anything that touches you, or NP healing which... uhh.. heals you.
Time slow (like nothing else seen in DW).
Dont worry, this isnt yet another 'Bullet-time' effect.
Yor NP guage is split into 3 segments. You can only use the NP power once all 3 are charged, however, you can use up one segment to slow down time which, in turn, opens up different attacks. While in 'slow time' you can stand still and fire for a two-gun attack, or hit slash to teleport in front of the nearest enemy and hit it. You can also activate 'slow-time' by racking up a combo of 50+ hits.
Slow-time gained by a 50+ combo lasts 3 seconds, Slow-time activated by the NP guage lasts 5 seconds.
Overhead and Overdrive attacks (Like DW Charge attacks).
Overdrive attacks basically involve hitting fire straight after using a slash attack. The attack is different depending on wether it was chained on after the 1st - 4th attack. These attacks range from a single gunshot, to your character doing a 360 spin while spraying bullets everywhere.
Overhead attacks are the most like DW charge attacks, only they are activated by pressing the movement stick in the opposite direction while hitting the melle attack. This can be a bit annoying as it means you cant change your attack direction quickly. Try and attack someting thats behind you and you just end up doing an overhead attack - grr.
All overhead attacks are singe powerfull blade attacks (though not all over them go over your head), and like in DW, they vary depending on which regular attack they were chained on after. Some are just a single strong hit that stuns the enemy, others send huge groups flying up into the air in slow-motion - perfect for juggling or just clearing large crowds.
Right, I'm gonna stop there because I'm begining to get the nasty feeling that no-one gives a toss about this game, or that its been discussed months ago and I'm more than a little bit late to the party.............
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