Alundra 2

Review

by Joe Ottoson

Alundra was known for two things: mind bending puzzles and a storyline weighted down with pathos. But this time around, since Activision did the port rather than Working Designs, Alundra 2 relies more on humor, a cartoonish cast, and less complex puzzles to fit well into the rather small action role-playing genre on the PlayStation.

Assume the role of an errant swordsman Flint as he battles the pirates he's been hunting for years. However, the government suddenly allied with the pirates, declared him a wanted criminal, and placed a large bounty on his head. Flint attracts the attention of the realm's princess after the king is replaced with a wooden puppet, and the two set about restoring the throne, freeing a legendary warrior, and performing other tasks (like scouting the toilets of the realm). For a story not far removed from a Saturday morning cartoon, it is rather entertaining.

Explore a polygonal world with a free camera like in Grandia. And while easy to use, you will find yourself frequently shifting the camera to keep your character in view in such cramped quarters. Since things obstructing the camera aren't removed from view, you'll find yourself staring at close-ups of background elements like grassy knolls, bricks, and metal. On the other hoof, the graphics are rendered in a clean anime style. The characters all look smooth and animate nicely, although talking animations are reminiscent of South Park. The in-game graphics are also used in the cut-scenes and Contrail managed some rather impressive transparency and lighting effects with minimum interruption. Things speed along nicely giving Alundra 2 some of the most cohesive and detailed building and land textures I've seen on a PlayStation game.

Adventure by exploring a variety of areas from the main overhead map, the first few acting more like tutorials than strict dungeons by dropping you navigation clues with all the subtly of an atomic bomb. Areas are packed with secrets you will be able to see but won't be able to access until later, so after you've obtained new powers and items, revisiting areas is a given. The enemy population tends to be on the sparse side, but given how hard they hit you, even on medium difficulty level, less is a blessing. Your character has a large arsenal of moves to help him though these areas so the action is rarely dull. Battles require you to tackle a variety of switch throwing, jumping, and visual puzzles.

The game also likes to challenge you with a rather unique boss every few levels or so. While the first forces you to hop fireballs and his large posterior, a cat creature employs a completely different combat perspective, along with vastly different patterns. And boss fights can be brutal until you get the patterns down, so players need to stay alert or they'll be continuing from their last save points, which are few and far between. Thankfully, the programmers must have realized that reliving numerous cut-scenes isn't desirable to most, so you can cancel cut-scenes by pressing start.

But what's a role-playing game without the proper musical score? Alundra 2 manages to keep its music well paced and in step with the theme of a given area. For example, inside a mechanical beast, you will hear a clockwork beat, and in a forest, you'll hear a soothing spring anthem. However, great sound doesn't stop with the music. Most of the cut scenes feature surprisingly well-acted voice acting, and while run of the mill offerings for an action RPG, the sound effects get the job done.

So, if you're feeling a little dashing, a little daring, and possibly courageous and caring, look to Alundra 2 for some stories to share with your faithful and friendly. But if you're a devout fan of Alundra however, you may want to tread lightly as Alundra 2 shares little in common.