Mega Man Star Force 2: Zerker x Saurian

""What tribe are you from, Chad?"*"

*Carlos Mencia quote (yes, I take it many of you won't take this seriously now)

Mega Man Star Force 2: As good as they say or disappointing? It's a little bit of both. The story takes off with Geo Stelar again, except now in two months there was somehow a large rise in technology. I'm serious, in the first hour or two of the game, they introduce all of this new technology that wasn't in the first game. Anyway, in the beginning Geo finds a commercial ship crashed and helps the owner put it back together. It just HAPPENS that this guy is some big shot film producer and it HAPPENS that he invites Geo and his friends to go to the movies. It just HAPPENS that there a new antagonist shows up and takes one of Geo's friends. Geo defeats the foe as Mega Man, and the story unfolds.

Gameplay: 10/10

I see the gameplay in Star Force 2 as a major improvement from the first one. As Mega Man you're not always on Wave Roads but now walking in the real world. The battlefield has been redesigned to even look like a Wave Road. There is less tacky us of the touch screen in this game too. Also, I really like the Tribe On forms and the ability to fuse forms. Oh, and they brought back secret bosses!

Sound: 8/10

Don't get me wrong, I liked the music and sound effects (especially the Humor Buster's noise), but I had one problem with it. Capcom didn't sign an agreement with Geo's English voice actor as they did with his seiyu (sp?) for the Japanese version. I would have like to hear Geo say, "Tribe on, Saurian!", or, "Genocide Blazer!". I honestly expected the voice acting concept to be kept.

Graphics: 10/10

The first game had good graphics for a DS game, and this carries on the tradition. The 3D renders of bosses are accurate and detailed, right down to small details such as a smiley face on Dark Phantom's hat.

Storyline: 5/10

Give me a drum roll, because this is my biggest complaint. I loved the story to the first Star Force, and how it was so well put together. This game disappointed me. At first, I thought it was a decent plot. However, the antagonists' intentions remain unclear throughout most of the game, and it turned out to be something very stupid. The repeating formula was worse than in the first one, because now the same antagonist appears about 7 million times. And it's truly painful to see how they incorporate things like Tribe affiliation into the story (as it was to hear about Beast form in Battle Network), because that whole idea was just nonsensical. As my last storyline complaint, it ended too abruptly. You spend about half of the story looking for Geo's friends, and as soon as you come back it's, "Mwahaha, I'm taking over the world", just like that. Plus you couldn't even be pulsed out in the final area where Geo confronts the antagonists.

Wi-Fi: 7/10

I suppose it's not really Capcom's fault that the online is dreadful as much as it is the players'. Many people on Wi-Fi use Wave Command Cards to start as Tribe King (wicked powerful form) and get any Giga Cards they want. I'm serious, a guy killed me using three Giga Cards in a row (which he shouldn't have had). Then there are disconnectors. Several people will disconnect on you and just get a Mr. Resetti speech from Legendary Master Shin. He supposedly threatens to take your cards, but I heard he doesn't even take them. And I hate getting the Mr. Resetti speech when I'm forced to disconnect because some guy leaves me waiting for 5 minutes on the Custom Menu at the beginning of the match.

Replay: 6/10

I guess to be fair you could always go back for Wi-Fi battles. After getting all of the secrets in Saurian version, I don't think I could sit through the story again to play Zerker.

The verdict:

This game was disappointing to me, but perhaps some might like it. It's hard to get past the less-than-pleasing storyline for the good gameplay, so that's something to consider. I recommend playing the first game before this if you want a fun gaming experience.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 07/12/08

Game Release: Mega Man Star Force 2: Zerker x Saurian (US, 06/24/08)