Death Jr. II: Root of Evil

"A solid follow up"

As most people know I really enjoyed the first Death JR game. It was the reason I wanted a PSP and I thought it met all of my expectations. I was surprised when a sequel was announced but DJ had gotten bad press and I thought the sales were down. I guess not. So, does this sequel fix all of the problems from the original or does it just create more? Read on!

DJ is on a field trip to find a cocoon with his demented little pals. He and Pandora fight over one and end up busting it open. An angry green chick comes out and oh boy is she annoyed. She then runs around trapping people and gathering their soul energy to become even more evil. So now DJ and pals set out to find out who she is and how to stop her. The story is a bit campier this time around and it really fit the game well. DJ now talks and there is a lot more voice acting and development this time around. I really enjoyed what this game had to offer and it was great that Death was finally in it.

Graphic wise I don't think Death JR 2 is as solid in the design aspect but everything looks good. I never questioned what something was and a lot of the stuff looks nicely detailed. Enemies look good and there is a nice variety of them so I never felt like I was seeing the same enemy type over and over until the last stage but it seemed to have every enemy in it. The CGI scenes look very nice and are long. I also liked the cartoonish pictures during in game text, just added a bit of charm to the entire package.

I didn't notice this at first but DJ now talks in this game. I know it's silly but I didn't notice until Pandora made a comment about it. DJ's voice isn't what I expected and everyone else sounds a bit different but it's not bad. Some of the voices actually fit. Sound effects wise the game is fine. Nothing really stuck out so that's a plus but I was never wowed either. The music is actually pretty good this time around as well. Makes me wish they did a CD again. It isn't epic or anything but it fit the game nicely and the mood of the levels as well.

Death JR didn't have the world's best control and while DJ2 really tries to fix some of the problems I found it to be on par in the end. Moving and attacks and pulling off combos is very easy. Even changing weapons is easy and what's nice is that you don't rely on your guns as much this time around. You can but you won't need to. However, the camera does become a problem at times. It's a little stiff in movement and while you don't always need to move it, there were times where I needed to and once or twice I died because of the camera. It's just hard to do a camera is works with the controls of the psp. Not terrible but it can come off as a bit lacking.

The original Death JR had a hub or sorts and you had to travel to each different area. This allowed more variety in the levels and the levels felt more open. This time around the game works more along the lines of a hand holding adventure. You go from stage to stage. This works fine and while some stages are short, some are really long as well. It just felt that the stages were a bit more linear and it made finding the secrets a bit easier this time around. I also have to admit that some of the originals levels are still in my head while only a few this time around are worth remembering (The Mall and Graveyard were great this time around).

Something new this time around is the ability to play as Pandora. She's a bit quicker but in the end a bit weaker as well. She plays pretty much the same. Whip like weapon instead of a scythe. So it's a nice change of things but I never really gave her much time. She's never forced or anything so that's nice. Nothing else is new really.

This game is way more about plat forming so that's why the camera causes problems. It's actually a much nicer mix of action and plat forming. The weapons aren't as cool this time around but are still solid. Hidden in levels are parts. Collect all the parts to a weapon and you can use the yellow orbs you collect to buy the new weapons. I found that the dual pistols and shotgun kept me happy the entire game but the C4 hamsters are back so that's good.

The game took me about 5-6 hours to get everything unlocked. Yes, that is kind of short but this is my favorite genre and I do tend to breeze through them quickly. While I hear people say the weapon parts are hard to find, I only missed a few on my first run through of the levels (3 total) and the ones I missed were very easy to spot except one but I saw it right away and oddly enough, the ones I missed were close to the start of the levels. Not saying it's super easy but if you just stop and look around you'll find them with ease.

Is Death JR 2 a must own game? Well, for the PSP it is. It's a solid platformers and the action can be intense at times. The boss fights aren't as hard this time around which I thought was a bit disappointing but oh well. It's a decent length and provides a good challenge. It might not be as tight of a package as Daxter but it's very close. It's on par with the first one but I think it depends on what your gaming style is as to which you'll enjoy more. Fans of the first should love this one though.

Story - 8/10
Graphics - 8/10
Sound - 8/10
Control - 7/10
Game Play - 8/10
Replay Value - 6/10

Final Score - 8/10

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/10/07