Playability:
Remember that this game is primarily
marketed for the younger audience (it just has to be!) and to those
relatively new to the whole RPG video game scene. Even so, Chocobo's
Dungeon 2 still has the basic elements of Squaresoft RPG games.
 Throughout
the adventure Chocobo will meet new allies, encounter evil monsters, and
find what he seeks most… He is armed with a wicked kick for
stomping enemies, saddles for defensive hits, claws for offensive
strikes, and some awesome magic spells (what would a Squaresoft game be
without magic?). Items are scattered about, black market traders appear
in the most unlikely place, unidentified object are just begging to be
discovered, and other things will be used to aid in the adventure.
The magic consists of fire, thunder, aero, blizzard, quake, and drain
and a nice feature is the fact that the equipment can be combined to
make better weapons, armor, etc. You are also able to buy items that
will be critical in supporting the adventure.
 The
random dungeon generator is a neat idea. So if your character gets wiped
out and you start from your save point, forget about what was there last
time because everything will be different again. The battle modes are
somewhat similar to Zelda's game play. You can strike the enemy with
physical attacks but you can also use magic and items for additional
support. The object of each level is to find the stairway (or elevator)
to advance (or descend) to the next level.
The overall challenge in the game would be rated easy to medium as the
battles are pretty straightforward and the course of action when moving
from various parts on the map is linear in nature. The most challenge
comes from the bosses. A word of advice is to be fully stocked with
magic and recovery items for the boss battles because they can kick some
serious ass. Also if you get killed, it is better to start from a save
point than continuing. At least this way you won't lose precious items
and magic that was collected before your big battle!
 There
is also a rather weakly implemented two-player mode that allows a friend
to join you on your journeys. Unfortunately the second player doesn't
really have any control of the character except during fights. The
player can't pick up items or explore very far from the main character
or they will end up off the screen. Still, it's an option that is there
for when you get a friend stopping over and you want to do a little
tow-player RPG action.
So, for the younger crowd and novices Chocobo Dungeon 2 will give the
players a nice basic foundation for the more advanced RPG games that are
now becoming incredibly popular. If there was ever a game to get your
feet wet with it is this one. Interestingly, I believe it also plants
some seeds for future Final Fantasy games.
Game
Options:
This is a 1 disk game for 1 or 2
Players. It is compatible with the standard (digital) joypad and the
analog stick controls of the dual shock joypad. Games can be saved via
memory card (1 block per save). |
