Time Crisis II (PlayStation 2) review "Time Crisis 2 is a simple game, but sometimes that’s a good thing. I’m a simple man; I don’t always want to be bombarded with ridiculous amounts of options, puzzles, menus, and storylines that can’t be skipped. Sometimes, I just want to shoot first, ask questions later, like Vin Diesel does in many of his films. Sadly, there are few options out there for people like me, but Namco steps up to the plate and delivers with their lightgun titles, including Time Crisis 2. When you’re han..."

Time Crisis 2 is a simple game, but sometimes that’s a good thing. I’m a simple man; I don’t always want to be bombarded with ridiculous amounts of options, puzzles, menus, and storylines that can’t be skipped. Sometimes, I just want to shoot first, ask questions later, like Vin Diesel does in many of his films. Sadly, there are few options out there for people like me, but Namco steps up to the plate and delivers with their lightgun titles, including Time Crisis 2. When you’re hankering for some great action, Time Crisis 2 delivers on nearly every front, and leaves you yearning for more.

The storyline is unimportant and not necessary to follow the game, but for some reason I’m going to talk about it anyways. Basically, it involves a dastardly villain who owns a huge corporation that wants to send a nuclear satellite into space, much to the dismay of our two heroes, Agents Keith Martin and Robert Baxter. To add insult to injury, Christy Ryan, a fellow agent, was sent in to use her charming good looks to infiltrate the Neodyne Corporations headquarters only to get captured. It’s up to Keith and Robert to tag team the enemies and get the job done. Through the use of overacted cutscenes, you’ll meet up with ridiculous characters, like the very blatantly homosexual gentleman (complete with lisp AND pink tie) in the first area and the angry black man (he yells a lot) in the second area. None of these characters are ever properly introduced, but they certainly stay with you in your heart.

All that crap aside, Time Crisis 2 is all about fast and furious gun combat. Do not buy this game without a GunCon 2. It costs more, but trust me, the experience is made far better with the lightgun rather than without. You can play the game without it, but why bother? When it’s just a traditional controller, it’s much harder to aim and the immersion is lost. Plus, with the purchase of two guns, you further add to the game’s experience, because not only can another play get in on the action with you, but you can also play the game with duel weapons. And to think, so many idiots think that Halo 2 was the first game to offer duel weapons.

Unlike previous lightgun games that had you reload by shooting off screen, Time Crisis 2 takes a more tactical approach, as you now have to duck down behind objects in order to reload. Ducking allows you time to reload and to take a quick breath from the intense balls-to-the-wall action. However, you can’t crouch like a wussy the whole time, as you’re limited to forty seconds of action per sequence. If you can’t eliminate all your foes in that time period, it’s game over, and you’ll lose a bit of health. Death in Time Crisis 2 is thankfully much cheaper than in the arcade version because credits are earned through playing the game more, not through shoving quarters through the slot. Gone are the days of harassing pimply-faced employees to get the quarters you need.

Whether you’re shooting it out on a train or zipping along the crisp waters on a speed boat, dodging barrels that are rolling down a hill (Donkey Kong, eat your heart out) or blowing the crap out of a tank, each scene contains many memorable moments. Loveable enemies, such as the blue uniformed enemy, red uniformed enemy (much more accurate than the blue uniformed chap), and the white uniformed enemy (a deadly foe) stand in your way at every turn, but go down easily. A random yellow enemy sneaks along in the background, netting you with bonus points if you manage to pick him off. There are even ninja lumberjacks, who try to slice and dice you like an onion on a late-night infomercial with their quick moves. Score proves to be rather insignificant, as it makes no real effect on the game other than providing an “I kicked your ass” jab to your friend.

Since the main arcade game takes a duo of seasoned veterans less than twenty minutes to complete, Time Crisis 2 comes with a plethora of mini-games that extend the shelf life of the title. Some of these mini-games play like ass (by some, I mean only one), like one that has you shooting at small clay targets in the sky, but unfortunately the GunCons really aren’t accurate enough to hit their target, and most of the time you miss your target. In about twenty tries, I only hit the targets once, though I imagine if you shoved the gun real close to the screen you’d probably hit them just fine. This mode is thankfully complimented with the outstanding Crisis Mission, which requires quicker shooting and ducking than that which is found in the main mode. Ammo, health and time are carefully rationed in this mode, creating a challenge but at the same time remaining fun and exciting because of the frantic, nerve-racking pace.

Time Crisis 2 looks much better than its arcade counterpart, putting the final nail in the arcade version’s coffin. The increased polygon count really makes the characters look crisper, while other advanced terms that I can’t explain help make the game look really pretty. Most of the music sounds like a direct copying of opening theme to The Rock (a fine Jerry Bruckheimer film), but that’s a good thing since the opening score is quite powerful. Sadly, most of the time you can’t hear the music because the bangs and blams from your guns overwhelm it.

Time Crisis 2 is a slam-bang action ride that never lets you off the edge of your seat. Now, if generic movie review clichés haven't yet convinced you to check out this game, take this to heart: I’ve been playing this game for almost six months now (sorry the review is so late), so my accuracy with guns has increased. I can probably hit a moving target by now, even someone running away from me after I knock on their door brandishing weapons, asking if they bought the game yet. So go buy it or someone might come knocking. It might not have the greatest storyline, but its fun to play and it’s quite addictive. Though not quite as rip-roaring as Time Crisis 3, Time Crisis 2 is sure to please.

(Seriously though, I will never shoot you. Please do not shoot people, it hurts, and from what I understand, a lot.)

Community review by asherdeus (January 23, 2005) A bio for this contributor is currently unavailable, but check back soon to see if that changes. If you are the author of this review, you can update your bio from the Settings page.