Viewtiful Joe 2

"Better than the original? Not quite."

Out of the two, I'd have to say that this game lacks what the original had. The game isn't bad, though, and does have some good points. The newest feature is being able to be Joe and Silvia, which you'd think would up it's value. Well, no. It really doesn't. Being Silvia is nice, but she can't use Mach Speed, and she can't do combos because instead of punching she has guns. While her long-range is excellent, that's about it. She can jump slightly higher than Joe, but like I said, that's about it. Also, she cannot use Mach Speed ever. That's right, no Mach Speed. Instead, she has Replay, in my opinion the worst of the VFX powers.

Game Play: 7
I have to say, Viewtiful Joe is one of the most exciting, fun to play game series out there. Zoom, Mach Speed, and Slow makes the game very fun whether you're good at it or not. Like I said before, Replay is not a great power. The level designs are fun, and most of the bosses are really cool.

Story: 8
Always unique and interesting, this Viewtiful Joe game is no exception. Your job is to collect the Oscars so that you can save Captain Blue. It will keep you playing this game for hours.

Graphics: 8
The graphics are nice. Not really different from the first, but that's O.K. Everyone loves Viewtiful Joe's look.

Sound: 9
The voices in the first were good, and this game is no different. Joe's voice never ceases to amuse me, and the other voices make it all the more cool. The music is sweet, with some very fitting songs. Overall sound is very nice, although the lip-syncing could be better.

Replay Value: 3
Okay, this is where they went terribly wrong: NO GOOD UNLOCK-ABLES!!! There is a reel select mode after you beat the game, but since there's no good unlock-ables who would want to play it over again? You can unlock all of the 37 Chambers, and if you beat them, you can unlock something good. HOWEVER, the Chambers are all incredibly hard and if you find yourself trying to beat them, maybe it's time to head out to the nearest game store and buy a new game. :)

Overall, this is a sweet game, but the first is better. If it came down to it, while the first one is a bit harder, it is much more fun and has some really awesome unlockables. To buy or not? If you have a choice between this and the original, buy the original. It's worth it, trust me.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 12/14/05