Let’s start with the story shall we? Pirates are ruling the open seas, but the kingdom of Varuna remains prosperous. Under the guidance of a wise king, and his two master swordsmen, all seems well. That is until the two swordsmen, Ratcliffe and Jeehan, mysteriously vanish. The evil Baron Diaz seizes the opportunity and combines forces with the pirates, along with the former palace wizard, Mephisto, to jail the king and replace him with a wooden puppet. Yes, I said a wooden puppet, which none of the townspeople seem to notice. The king’s daughter, Alexia, senses that something is wrong and goes out to find the famed pirate hunter, Flint, who is also the hero of the game. After finding out about the connection between the pirates and the baron, the two adventurers set out to try and stop the evil regime. What unfolds is a pretty light-hearted tale, filled with various plot twists and fairly interesting dialogue. The use of real-time cutscenes and some very impressive voice work help move the story along. It’s a shame that Flint had to be a silent hero since his character really could have benefitted from an actual personality. I didn’t really feel too attached to any of the characters during the course of the adventure. In addition to the voices, the translation is actually very well done, with no real grammatical errors to be found. Activision did a great job of localizing the game and the story is actually very interesting, but takes a while to get off the ground.

On the visual end, Alundra 2 is fairly solid. Although the characters aren’t all that detailed, they fit the style of the game like they’re supposed to. Environments are filled with vibrant colours, although the textures are pretty plain. Lighting looks nice in dungeons, but it’s nothing to write home about. The one thing that really impressed me about the graphics is the spectacular explosion that follows every major boss death. Particle effects look great, and the giant, chaotic “BOOM!” really makes your victories all the more satisfying. Graphics wise, Alundra 2 is what we’ve come to expect from the Playstation, which isn’t a bad thing at all.

The music in the game is very well composed, but is hardly memorable. Most of the pieces fit their environments perfectly and actually add to the atmosphere. Dungeon themes are eerie, as they should be, and the one town theme is very relaxing, as it should be. There’s even a nice musical number in the middle of the game, which is a welcome addition at that particular point in the adventure. Music has always been a key component of any good RPG, and Alundra 2 is no different. While you won’t exactly be humming the music to yourself after you turn the game off, the soundtrack is well composed and serves its purpose.

You won’t be playing Alundra 2 for the graphics or music though; it’s the gameplay that’s important here. This is where the game is a mixed bag. On the one hand, the controls are pretty loose and the camera can be just plain bad. On the other hand, there are some very well designed dungeons in the game, and a few of the puzzles can get pretty tricky. Even with the good dungeon layouts though, the game just isn’t as fun to play because of the loose controls and bad camera. Many times I would jump too far over a platform, or run into an enemy, not due to my own fault, but the fault of the game. Also, where’s the full analog support? I shouldn’t have to tap R2 just to run. Still, the controls can be learned over extensive playing time, and the camera does become a little more tolerable the more you play.

On the subject of the camera, you’re basically given 3 views. An up close view, a 3/4 view, and an overhead view. The up close view is completely useless since your viewing distance is very restricted, so you’ll be relying on the 3/4 and overhead views for the majority of the game. It all depends on the situation, since some puzzles are a lot easier to figure out depending on your perspective. The real problem with the camera lies in moving it around your character while on the fly. When running forward and panning the camera to the right for example, you’d expect the camera to follow directly behind you right? Wrong. In Alundra 2, it’s possible for you to be holding up on your analog and still be running left. This is extremely frustrating at first, but it becomes less and less of an issue as you progress through the game and learn to deal with the camera. During boss fights, you’re give a set view so that you can’t pan around or anything. This turned some of the boss battles into very frustrating affairs since I couldn’t always see my enemy. I’m sure these problems could have easily been fixed with a little more development time.

Like I stated above, Alundra 2 starts off very slow and this includes all facets of the game, even the combat system. The first few hours of play are very tedious, as you’re only able to slash your sword once. This turns the battles into an exercise in tedium, with the constant pattern of running in, hitting the enemy, running back, and then repeating the whole process again. If you’re patient enough to get through a few hours of this, then you’ll be rewarded. Eventually, you’re able to learn combo attacks, which are taught to you by none other than the master swordsman, Jeehan. In order to learn these combos, you must bring Jeehan puzzle pieces that are scattered all throughout the land. It works in multiples of six. First, you must find 6 pieces to learn a combo, then 12, etc. Eventually you’ll be slicing up your enemies in no time with devastating 4 hit combos. Plus, what game isn’t fun that lets you hack up farting blue squirrels? You’re also able to buy new equipment along your journey, which comes in very handy so you’ll want to stock up on as much gold as you can. In addition to standard weapons, you find magic elements along the way that give you the ability to use…magic. Once again, just be patient and you’ll find the game to be far more enjoyable as time goes on.

What RPG would be complete without mini-games? Alundra 2 packs them in spades, and a lot are actually very fun and a nice diversion from the main quest. The games you’ll want to be spending the most time on will probably be The Shooter and The Run. They’re basically twists on Pac-Man and Robotron, with the player controlling little flint. The Shooter is easily the most fun mini-game of the bunch, and I found myself constantly drawn to it. It’s extremely fast paced action and tons of fun, especially if you’re an old school shooter fan. In addition to these 2 mini-games, you’ll be controlling RC cars, playing darts, and even running down a long spiral path while avoiding obstacles and collecting items. A lot of these aren’t necessary to complete the quest, but dedicated players would be well advised to fine tune their skills at these games if they want to collect all of the rare items.

As for the length of the game, it clocks in between 25-30 hours, and that’s without collecting everything. If you’re the perfectionist type, then Alundra 2 could easily take you up to 35-40 hours. The game if fairly linear, using a mapping system that is very similar to the old SNES classic, Super Mario RPG. It’s not until near the very end of the game that you’re given full access to all parts of the map, so you can go around and do as you please. If you’re looking for more of a challenge, Activision has slapped on 2 difficulty settings for the North American release. The easy setting is the original Japanese version of the game, while the normal setting ups the power and HP of your enemies. It actually adds substantially to the challenge level, and you’ll find yourself quickly running out of healing items.

Another change that went into the domestic release is the addition of an all new intro. Whereas the Japanese intro was a long music video that involved the entire cast of characters from the game, the English version just sets up the backstory through a narrator. Yes, the game is pretty lacking in the presentation department, but that’s not what Alundra 2 is about to begin with.

Overall, the game is a flawed, yet enjoyable experience. Once you learn to deal with the problems of the camera and control, you’ll find that the game can be pretty fun. It’s not the second coming of Zelda or Secret of Mana, and it doesn’t try to be. It’s when you take the game at face value that you begin to appreciate the puzzles, dungeon designs, and the entertaining storyline. If you’re looking for a decent action/RPG to tide you over until something better comes along, then Alundra 2 is a fine choice. Just don’t expect to be blown away, and give it some time to grow on you.