Play It:
For the Arcade; Saturn; PC; Dreamcast (as part of the Sega Smash Pack); and PS2 (as part of Virtua Cop Rebirth. However there's no US release.)



Story:
One year after Rage and Smarty took down the EVL corporation put the leaders Boss Kong, King, and Vise in prison (funny, I thought I shot them full of holes), an extensive investigation was launched. The Virtua City Bank has apparently been laundering money to the syndicate. Janet Marshall has transferred here to find her partner's (Nick Anderson) killers. She works with the Virtua Cops on this case. The Virtua Cops know that Virtua City is in danger...

Taken from the manual. Just a backdrop to go shoot stuff, and doesn't really tie into the game at all (though there's no reason it couldn't.) Although the guy designing the manual gets mad props. To quote: "Your mission is to take down the criminals. This is done by shooting them." This never fails to bring a smile to my face whenever I read it.



Graphics:
Like it's predecessor, outdated. But it was good back in the day. However, I can't tell if those green vehicles are SUV's or station wagons. The DC and PS2 versions feature updated graphics. Haven't played Rebirth, but I have seen the Dreamcast's updated graphics, and they're a bit mixed. The environments look much better, but the characters seem uglier, well to me at least.



Sound:
The music is all good, as it's done by Yu Suzuki, the godly composer who also did Streets of Rage and Shinobi. Not as good as the mighty Tommy Tallerico, then again, I don't think anyone will ever unseat Tommy. However, the music is a bit more generic here, whereas part 1 had a 70's vibe. Oh well, I still like it better than part 1. Sound effects have been done better, with a wide array of sounds whenever something gets broken. Still has that repeated death groan and gunshot problem which is so prevalent in shooters. Again, the voices are corny and usually muffled. I still don't know what the third boss says. The generic gunmen now also have speech, although all they ever say is "Hey!", which can get kind of annoying by the 56th time. Usually, only the extras actually speak, so this can be useful.

The DC version is about the same; not surprising since it was CD quality anyway. The sound effects are the exact same, but are TOO DAMN LOUD. Ambient noise completely drowns out the music in some places. On the plus side, voice-overs are no longer muffled and are much clearer.



Difficulty:
I'll just plagiarize my last review... Fully customizable. Adjust difficulty settings (Easy, Medium, or Hard), life allowances (1-9), and continues (none-9, plus free play when you unlock it). Also, you can now disable the need to reload (blasphemy!) or allow yourself to bust out special weapons at any time. Want to need mad skills? Want to let your younger brother effortlessly walk through the game on his first try? You can set it for whatever you want.

Although I should point out this game is much harder than part 1, and Time Crisis in general. Just to put things in perspective here, I'm not sure I can beat it on Hard consistently. Hey, I didn't want to just blaze through the game in a day, so I jacked up the difficulty. I suggest you do too.



Enjoyment:
Rock solid, just like the first. Remember when I said it needed more destruction? Well, they gave us more! One complaint I have is that the manual says that you can shoot nearby items to either blow them up or have them fall on unsuspecting bad guys. Well, the former is true, but I have yet to find something else to take someone out. Pity, as there are plenty of signs that can be shot down. Also, I should mention that this game also fulfills a personal shooting fantasy of mine; having a shootout in the middle of a CAR CHASE! Okay, so many other games have chases, but this one was done the best. Bring in a friend or double gun it for maximum enjoyment.



Replay Value:
Not much. Each level (except the last) has a choice of routes to take at one point, but that's it. They can all be seen in 2 playthroughs though.





Rant Session (spoilers):
My main gripe with the game is the fact that guns can't shoot through anything, except the Magnum. And I mean anything. Even windows and glass can shield a guy from a shot. Nothing says firepower like a gun that can't fire a bullet with enough force to pass through a damn bottle. This problem didn't exist in part 1, so why does it exist now? Even Lethal Enforcers had the programming to have bullets go through windows.

In the alternate intro, Smarty runs down a hall and kicks open a door to reveal a group of terrorists with automatic weapons. Naturally, they open fire and Smarty ducks for cover. He then RUNS INTO THE ROOM AND FIRES A WARNING SHOT. He doesn't even wait for them to stop firing. I guess it serves the 'tough guy/top cop' image, but yeah right. Isn't he supposed to be the calm one?

The plot makes no real sense. I've already pointed out how the manual's backdrop doesn't actually tie into the game unless you use your imagination, and levels don't have any segue into one another. You stop a jewelry heist, rescue the mayor, and then intercept terrorists in their base under the city. Now, with a little creativity, I could guess that maybe the robbery was a diversion so that the mayor could be kidnapped while police were preoccupied. But I'm not sure how the mayor fits into the grand scheme which involves a blimp loaded with explosives. Yeah, that's right. A MOTHERFUCKING BLIMP BOMB. How did they ever get their hands on such deadly pre-WWII technology? With it, they plan to bomb... something. I don't know; that's never revealed. I don't even know how we stopped it. It was taking off at the end of level 3, then it was already destroyed when level 4 began. How climatic.

Suddenly, Joe Fang (remember him? He was the boss of VC1) reappears! Surprise! That is, if this sentence from the manual didn't tip you off:

"Joe Fang was believed to have been killed in a helicopter crash, although no body was recovered."

Oh gee, I wonder if he could still somehow be alive? Granted, I had already spoiled this for myself, but I would have known this as soon as I saw that sentence. Maybe they could have said along the lines of: "Joe Fang's helicopter was shot down. They couldn't even find his body among what was left of the helicopter..." There, that's less obvious. Then there's the song named "Revenge Of Fang" in the sound test so if you don't have a manual you can still have a chance to be spoiled.

Also, what is up with having 3 playable characters when only 2 can play at once? The Dreamcast version allows you to choose by inserting the gun/controller into different sockets (Player 1 is Rage, 2 is Smarty, and 3 is Janet), but the Saturn does not. You really can't choose unless you have a controller (press the upper 3 buttons on the Saturn controller while selecting your level.) Otherwise, you have a fucked up method which I have uncovered. If you play by yourself as 1P, and you pick Beginner or Expert first, you are Rage. If you picked Normal, you are Smarty. If you are player 2, you will be Janet if you pick the Beginner or Expert first. If you play with 2 players, and play Beginner or Expert first, 1P is Rage while 2P is Janet, unless you pick Normal first, in which case 1P is Rage and 2P is Smarty. Still following me? No? I'm not surprised! I wonder if its like this in the arcade...

I just have to point out the Justice Shot description: "Awarded for hitting a criminal in his gunarm, putting him out of commission, but leaving hope for rehabilitation." Oh, there's nothing wrong with it, I just find it hilarious. Mad props.





Bottom Line:
A sequel done right! No innovation, just perfection. Possibly my personal all-time favorite shooter. Sorry TC...

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