Jade Cocoon 2

"A beautiful game with humor thrown in"

When I first heard of this game, I was total gung-ho. But then, I saw the review of it on IGN. So, naturally I was a little skeptic on whether I should buy it or not. Well, after completing Final Fantasy 10, I really needed another RPG badly. So, I gave this game a second thought. I looked at some reviews here on GameFAQs and saw that they, as opposed to IGN, gave this game a high score. So, that did it, I decided to spend $50 on this game rather then having to face RPG withdrawal. Well, what I’m trying to say in my own confusing way is, don’t trust IGN’s reviews, come here. This game rocks!

Graphics – 10
One of the things that really turned me onto this game is that its developed by Ubi Soft who, in my book, are always known for having the best graphics around. And this game is no exception. These graphics are great. Everything from the character drawing to the environments. Everything is nicely done with unique coloring. It runs at a super-smooth frame rate and it takes place in a full 3D world. It has great visual effects such as when you teleport from one area to another and when cast spells during battles.

Sound – 10
The background music fits the moods of this game nicely. This game has something that seems to be catching on, voice acting. I’m shocked. Almost everyone you talk to in this game has a voice. Some are very unique and sound like just grunts and babble crammed together, others sound like a teenager from The Simpsons (high pitched, squeaky voice). One odd thing about this game is the choice of battle music. It sounds like a combination between a base drum and a swarm of bees humming. It sounds really good and doesn’t deter the game one bit, in fact, I think it adds to the game.

Story – 8
Well, this story, although interesting, does not captivate me as much as some games. But right now I’m not too far into the game so this section doesn’t really mean anything

Characters – 10
How come in every RPG the characters are young? The main character in Jade Cocoon 2 has got to be around 13-15 I swear. Later on in the game you get to find eggs which hatch into monsters known as “divine beasts”. And you’ll get to use these guys in your party (up to 9 in your active party). You also got everyone that you meet along your journey. And some people are truly weird.

Concept – 10
Well, I’m fairly new to this game, so I may not know a lot about the strategy behind this game, but that’s what FAQs are for. From what I gather, your main objective as a beast hunter is to collect various divine beasts. You do this by gathering eggs and hatching them. Then you can use them in your party. At the beginning of the game, you get a beast amulet which allows you to control divine beasts, but it also regulates how many divine beasts you have in your party. There are test that you can participate in that allow you to advance your beast amulet and will allow you to add one more divine beast to your active party. There are also things known as seed beasts. If you defeat these, you can merge your divine beast with the cocoon you get after the battle and they can gain new abilities.

Control – 10
The controls of this game seem to be the standard for any PS and PS2 RPG which I personally think are pretty great just as they are. They even follow the exact same standard as Final Fantasy 10 (which is nice being I spent over 100 hours on that game just before playing this one). One thing I love though is you can rotate your camera by pressing R1/L1. Also, in battles, you rotate your team of monsters by either using R1/L1 or simply pressing the analog stick left or right.

Replay – 9
Well, it’s got me coming back for more, that’s all I can say. I haven’t beaten the game yet so I really can’t give this game an accurate score here.

Overall – 10
This game is a must for any RPG fan. Also for anyone who just likes those games where all you do is raise monsters then battle them (you know who you are).

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 01/31/02, Updated 01/31/02