Visually the Evolution 2 looks very similar to the first. One nice addition is being able to change the camera from the 3/4th view to behind the character. The game's engine, while not quite first generation, isn't ground breaking either. The characters are nice, cutesy, colorful, Japanese based, polygon models. The backdrops are detailed, but vary only slightly throughout the game. When you see the first floor of a dungeon, expect to see the same textures all the way through the dungeon. This makes the game rather boring at times, especially in the dungeons that reach the 15 + floor mark. Other nice graphical touches are the creatures are once again designed nicely, and differ greatly making each dungeon seem somewhat fresh. The special effects are on the bland side, not giving a player enough dazzle to want to see them. I've actually seen better FX in PSX titles.

Sound is the games brightest feature. Providing Japanese voice acting, to keep the story true to form, fantastic orchestrated score, and better than average sound effects. Some might be turned off by the Japanese voiceovers (which are supported by English text), but I found it appealing, as I love anime and prefer to watch them with subtitles. I've even had someone criticize this point saying the game was rushed, so they settled for Japanese voice acting. This may or may not be true, but UBI Soft lets you know this fact on the back of the box. If you don't like subtitled games, this will probably be a big turn off for you.

What can I say about the game play? Control is precise, menus are very interactive, and performing a move, attack, or spell is easy as pie. The game performs like many turn based RPG's you may have played in the past, and may really appeal to beginners. The rest of us are still waiting for a real RPG on the Dreamcast.While it may seem to be a better than average RPG on the surface, the game falls very short in the depth department. Like I stated earlier, the game is only 15 hours on average. Wonder why it's so short? No exploration factor whatsoever! You are given only one town in which to buy items, talk to the townspeople, and gather information. This makes the game not only very Linear (pun intended), but not incredibly fun. The game goes though a simple set of: jester, story, dungeon, boss, collect info for next dungeon adventure, and repeat. I really don't mind the idea of a dungeon crawl, but limiting me to one destination is rather tiresome. Hopefully if another Evolution becomes a reality, I they will have the decency to change locations and give a lengthy adventure to boot. As this game was a "Far Off Promise" of a real RPG. Of course, there is always Grandia 2.

If you need an RPG fix and only own a Dreamcast, then Evolution will settle your cravings like a house salad. Just waiting on Sega and it's 3rd party crew to serve up the main course. I just hope when served, it goes down well.