Dark Cloud 2

"Nothing Dark about this sequel!"

I used to love playing the first Dark Cloud. It was my first Play Station 2 game and it was incredible. I got this game wondering whether the sequel would be just as good or would it be a bust like so many sequels are. I am glad to say it passed all of my expectations by far. It was like the older version and then it had some new, exciting features added. Dark Cloud 2 is now one of my favorite games I have ever played and I have played a lot of different, good games. In my book, the Dark Cloud series ranks up there with the all time great series such as Zelda, Final Fantasy, and Pokemon. This game is truely a digital masterpiece. It was incredible from start to finish. I enjoyed every moment of it, which was a lot of time, and I am sure you will enjoy it too. I think Dark Cloud 2 is almost as close to perfection as a video game can come. Almost everything about the game from the story and game play to the graphics and sounds are flawless. This game is extremely fun and insanely addictive. Once you start, you will not want to stop playing. I know I have played for hours upon hours at a time and enjoyed every second of it. You sort of get lost in the wild adventure of this game. Some of the systems are new and creative. They took some systems from the first Dark Cloud and added much, much more. I don't think this is just your standard role playing game. This game is definitely something new and special in its own way. It has a good feel to it that can not be duplicated by some of those regular and in my opinion easy games. So enjoy as I tell you what I love about each aspect of this game, hopefully by the end you will want to find and play this incredible game.

The story is phenomenal. It has a good theme and constantly keeps you guessing with new twists along the way. What makes any story good? The characters, that's what. Look at some of the greatest novels and games of all time and they all have fun, interesting characters such as Lord of the Rinds with Frodo and Gandalf, or Final Fantasy 7 with Cloud and Sephiroth. This game is no different. It has a huge cast of entertaining characters. All of them have unique personalities that will make you fall in love with them. Some of the main characters are Max and Monica. Max is a handy inventor that dreams one day he will see his mother again. He lives a peaceful life that is thrown into turmoil one faithful night. Monica is a girl from the future who quickly becomes close friends with Max on thier journey. the flow of the story through the chapters is really good. It is interesting and make you wonder what will happen next. The writers of this story did an incredible job. The story is detailed and almost all of the characters are used to fill the many roles of the story. So get ready to enjoy a truely classic storyline. too bad you can not eat popcorn and play at the same time.

The game play is extremely good. The battle system is okay. It is pretty much your standard run around and slash or hammer the bad guys. You can lock on to the enemy to make it easier to keep sight of them and block whenever they attack. Your magic or gun are extremely useful long range weapons whenever you are in the dungeons. Some of the boss battles are unique and make you use your head but other than that you should not have much trouble as long as you stock up on healing supplies. You can fight as Max or Monica. You can use a large fighting robot when ever you are Max and can transform into various powerful monsters when ever you are Monica. You can also recruit various characters to come along with you. These characters are some of the locals from town and are willing to lend a hand if you will help them first. These characters do various things from giving you a little bonus experience whenever you defeat monsters to giving you some healing items from time to time. You can only use one extra character at a time so pick wisely and make sure they will help you out with the specific dungeon you are on. In addition to leveling up your characters, you can also level up your weapons. You need to go down the right path of weapons and make the strongest possible. A huge part of the game is Georama. It is setting up the new towns. It is awesome. You get various things from Geostones in the dungeons. The Geostones are kind of like the Atla from the first Dark Cloud. You need to set up the towns so that they are perfect. You get to customize the towns a lot more in this game than the first one. You can make different fences go on different houses and you can paint the roof and houses various colors. Another addition is that you get to choose who lives in what house. You get to select people that you have recruited to live in different house all across the world. make your towns unique while still filling the requirements of making the town perfect. This is one of the fun parts of the game so have some fun with it.

Now onto the graphics and the music. The graphics are actually pretty good. The characters are cartoony but still look pretty good. There are tons of uniquely drawn characters in the game. Most of the bad guys are also unique and well done. There are also some incredible scenes int the game. Beautiful oceans, rocky cliffs, and a homely village are all drawn to perfection. The music is also pretty good. It is pretty much your standard role playing game music. The voice acting is decent if only the mouth moved at the right time.

And now to tell you about my favorite part of the game. It is so good I decided to make a whole section dedicated to it. The side quests and mini games are a huge part of this game. This is what I can spend hours doing. There is a unique system you use to fish. You get to catch tons of fish. You can do contests like trying to see who can catch the fish that weighs the most which earns you a prize. You can also breed fish together. You breed for fast fish and race them in contests for prizes. This is entertaining because you need to figure out the right fish and tactic for the job. There is also a unique and crazy game that is like Dark Cloud's version of golf. You can play it in the dungeons after you have cleared a floor of its monsters. These mini games are the funnest on any game that I have ever played.

So there it is a game I believe rivals some of the all time great games. A perfect 10 in my book. Hope you will find this game some where if you don't already own it. The game has been an amazing experience for me. If I had to describe Dark Cloud 2 in one word it would be adventure. That is what this game is just one, huge adventure. So hop aboard the train and let's get started.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 05/05/08

Game Release: Dark Cloud 2 (US, 02/17/03)