Difficulty:

Very Easy

Time Spent:

10 to 20 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Mixed reactions"

No More Heroes 2 at first seems like the perfect sequel. No more driving around on a bike that's a pain in the butt to control, no more annoying mini-games, and combat has had some nice improvements. Unfortunately before long you realize that this game just doesn't have the depth of the first No More Heroes. While I do think that this game is overall better than the first, the combat aspect has been severely toned-down.

GAMEPLAY - Like I said, this game has some nice improvements over the first. Rather than riding around on a hard-to-control bike in an open world, you can now visit areas around Santa Destroy instantly. Mini-games are now more fun also, as most are knock-offs of old school Nintendo and Super Nintendo games. Even with fighting there are new beam katanas that present different ways of fighting, especially with the dual katanas. Unfortunately there are drawbacks here. Money is now much less useful. Even though you don't have to worry about raising money to progress the game, all you spend money on are a couple katanas, clothing, and raising your health and attack power. For the most part, raising money isn't something you invest a lot of time in, which is kind of nice since the game progresses that much faster. Unfortunately the combat of this game is much more rushed than in the first No More Heroes. Levels are shorter, enemies are easier, and bosses are noticeably easier and/or recycled from the first game (not to spoil too much). This was a bad decision on the part of the developers, as this game feels even shorter than the first with how much the combat has been stripped-down. - 7.5/10

STORY - Travis Touchdown returns after a long absence between the first game and this one. He is no longer the #1 assassin in the world, but once again begins his ascension to the top after his best friend is murdered by the #1 assassin. You begin at #50, but only end up having to fight in 12 or so missions, which is kind of a let-down. Not much of a story here compared to the first, if at all. There's a premise, but not much of a story to be told. - 6/10

GRAPHICS - The graphics are actually pretty impressive for a Wii game. They are improved a bit from the first game, and really have a nice style to them. I wouldn't say they're ultra-realistic or anything, but they are pleasing to the eye. - 8/10

SOUND - Pretty much everything here has been improved upon. The actors who do Travis and Sylvia's voices return here, and are as great as ever. Everything else is just improved from the first. Nothing outstanding though. - 8/10

LENGTH/REPLAY VALUE - Much like the first, this game is pretty short without much replay value unless you like playing on different difficulties. I would say that the mini-games here are much more enjoyable, but there are lots more things to unlock in the first game than there are here. Both games don't really do well in this category. - 6/10

BOTTOM LINE - No More Heroes 2 improved upon the first game, but while doing that it stripped down what makes these games fun; the combat. Being much easier and much more rare, combat won't feel like the most important aspect to this game. While it has improved in every other area, No More Heroes 2 really would have benefited from levels and bosses of the caliber of the first game. Hopefully with the third game coming out in a couple of months, the developers will take the best of both games and combine them into one. I have to say that I prefer the first game over this one, even though this one is much more polished. - 7/10