Posted in: Games, Review, Video Games | Tagged: Chara-Ani, Deciga, G.rev Ltd., game review, Senko no Ronde 2
What If Zangief Piloted A Jet: A Quick Review Of 'Senko No Ronde 2'
Senko no Ronde 2 is the North American upgraded version of Senko no Ronde Duo, which already came out in 2010 back in Korea and Japan. It took Deciga seven years to port the game over to the U.S. as a follow-up to the 2007 original back when it was published on the Xbox 360. The game meshes space shooter with a fighting game to get this weird hybrid of the two. You will take in two pilots to fight against two others with a health bar and a countdown clock, but doing more up close dogfighting inside your spacecraft.
Much like any fighting game you have an array of characters to choose from. Each has their own specific weapons and defensive capabilities that make them formidable in any fight, it's just a matter of how you end up using them. All your weapons can be changed out depending on what button you hit on the controller, as you race around the area to get close or far away with your fielding and attacks. You even have the ability to turn into a "boss" version of yourself where you become a giant fighter to take care of business, but it's a limited attack that you need to save for the end.
There is a story mode with a branching ladder, so when you complete one segment it will create new areas of the story for you to explore and get the highest ranking possible on. Keep in mind that winning isn't always the way to get where you need to go, and sometimes taking a loss will open new paths. The other option (aside from the obvious Vs. mode) is a score attack game where you play to get the highest score possible, which is fun but ends kind of tediously.
Senko no Ronde 2 is okay at best. It has a different dynamic to two different genres meshed into one, but it doesn't really capitalize on the possibilities and ultimately just feels like a dogfight in a small area. The story doesn't have much depth or interest, and beyond fighting against your friends, the novelty of it dies out pretty quickly. It's best if you want to just have some dumb shooter fun, but not much else.
