Panzer Dragoon II Zwei (1996)

Preliminary: I'm usually not a big fan of post-70s/80s shooters and rail gun shooters, especially for consoles. But the use of scale in this so far has been interesting. Even though the polygonal 3d is potentially "groundbreaking" I have to admit, PC games looked better even years before this and something looks messy about this. That beign said, this has a nostalgic Look with the way things bend and warp at the edge of screens etc.

Regardless, even if this only gets a 3 star or whatever, this deserves recognition for the scale. I am not sure how to explain it but the way some of the environment and enemies are so large, sort of like what that game Colossus or w/e got praised for years later. That's a neat touch. Otherwise this is kinda boring due to the rail aspect, but I am enjoying this first level since they ease us in.

I especially like the scale (and the music) of Episode 2.

Jeez how many hits do these things take at the end of Episode 2?! Ohhh that wasn't the boss. Great lol I have like one hit left. A lot of thisr eminds me of the N Gin boss or whatever in Crash 3 :-p

Look: 8/10 Beautiful, but a bit standard by this point. And kinda ugly in some aspects. But the scale was awesome.

Sound: 8/10

Play: 7.5/10 This held up better than I expected, but just not my genre.

Feel: 7.5/10

Attachment: 7/10 Maybe return to a playthrough video of it, but doubt I would replay it. Or any game of this genre tbh. Still, really neat especially for fans of this genre, and especially the scale aspect I keep mentioning.

Overall: 7.6/10

I am pretty impressed with the developers' ability to get such a nice result out of an obviously limited piece of hardware in the Saturn. The game has some really strong art direction and music, and manages to fit a ton of action on screen at any given time, including distant targets.

The biggest limitation is the controls, where movement and aiming are of course both stuck on the D-pad, but at least this game has relatively limited movement as a rail shooter. That definitely does not mean it's simple or easy, however, thanks to some really tough and chaotic boss and enemy wave design. And... yeah the camera can get pretty bad, too, but not game-ruining.

I've only played the first Panzer Dragoon in the form of its 2020 remake, but compared to that, the sequel felt significantly harder. At times, it is unclear if it's even possible to dodge or stop certain attacks, but in any case it's usually pretty tough in the boss fights. Adding some pain factor, particularly in those boss fights, is the punishing lack of checkpointing as you're thrown back to the start of the level every time you die.

With that challenge though comes a few really fun and memorable encounters. The first couple bosses are just excellent, really dynamic, balanced fights with some exciting visuals. After that, there are a couple I wasn't as fond of, but then the final boss brings it back up and has a really cool 2nd phase. Those bosses represent the most notable setpieces, but there are other cool moments within the levels as well. Overall it has a pretty nice atmosphere and feel, aided by the improved story over the original and nice variety of locales.

There is not much content here, like in the first game, and it is definitely padded out by the aforementioned punishing checkpointing and difficulty. Regardless, I think it is worth a play. I emulated the game and found that to be one of the biggest challenges of all, as it was extremely unstable for me. I think if you can get Beetle working on Retroarch that'll probably work better than the Kronos/Yabause emulator I was using—and of course, if you can get ahold of the actual game or wait for the remake, it should be worthwhile.

Like a Christmas miracle, this sequel beats the odds and excels past its predecessor in every single way.

Certain creatures, when mutated, were killed off in a village. Not being able to murder the little tadpole/dolphin puppy, a young man named Lundi keeps one of them and it becomes a dragon. After Imperial ships destroy Lundi's village, the dragon lets out its true power and the journey begins.

The first big apparent improvement is the graphics. Zwei looks gorgeous compared to its predecessor - the jungles, the snowfields, the canyons; even the tunnels cribbed from the first game look so much better and smoother. There's even a breathtaking skyship level that games like Sin and Punishment must've been inspired from. Bosses and enemies are no longer pixelated junk, forming massive and beautiful dragons, fish, and mecha. The endboss is a sight to behold. Music is also amped up, resembling some work that Squaresoft might do in one of their Final Fantasies. It fits the setting rather well and is quite the listen.

The mechanics are the same as before - 360 turning for the dragon, locking on with a laser or rapid fire, and moving while facing front. The reticle is also much smoother, allowing for an easier control of combat. However, a special berserk laser can be unlocked with filling up a power meter by killing enemies over time, and the dragon can evolve into higher forms with higher power and lock-on capabilities. By keeping the shot ratio high, clearing the level, and taking alternate routes, the dragon can become stronger and even unlock the final boss with enough points. It demands not just replayability, but practice and skill.

Panzer Dragoon Zwei has a more heartwarming story (even if it still gets incomprehensible), better graphics, better music, better controls, added mechanics, alternate routes, and some hidden bits if the player fulfills certain conditions. It's quite the full package for a rail shooter!