"About the same as the first game..."

As I stated in my review of the first game, I really like the anime and I'm a fan of Square titles anyway. Now, I had heard this game was so much better than the first so I waited for a price drop anyway and grabbed it for $15. Well, I must say that I don't think its worth that price and it isn't a horrible game. Just not anything special.

Unlike the first game, this one starts off exactly like the anime. Game is split up into 7 chapters, each having their own connecting story elements. The first chapter is almost 100% like the first episode of the anime. 2nd chapter felt random and weird and by the end you find it out was pointless and makes no sense with the plot. The third is part anime episode and then it changes and kicks the games own plot into gear. From there on the game has its own plot and ends where the first game started. Yes, it sounds kind of confusing but it really isn't. Fans of the anime will enjoy this for the little fan services it does for them.

Graphic wise this game is better but yet worse than the original. Now, the original game has a cartoonish polygon look. This sequel is cell shaded and during cut scenes it looks good but during the actual game is looks poor. Character faces are kind of blurry ect. I must say Square took time with the actual anime scenes as they aren't grainy like in the first game and are actually really crisp.

The game uses music from the anime which is a major plus to me. Voices are provided by the American cast and its top notch. Sound effects aren't anything special.

Control is much better this time around. It's easy to get Al to do things. Using your alchemy on objects is much easier as well. However, jumping is terrible and I can't understand why they made it seem almost like you jump in slow-mo but stutter sat the same time. It's pretty rough and hard to land on your walls. Of course you're not really supposed to use them that way but it told me I could so it isn't my fault for the issues there.

Game play is a lot like the first but yet it's drastically different. Now bear with me as I do sometimes have trouble explaining everything. Full Metal Alchemist 2 (FMA2 for now on) is pretty much a beat'em up title in the vain of The Warriors or Streets of Rage. Now, the game is split into 7 chapters. Some are long, some are short. It all depends on the cut scenes and I must be honest, this game has a ton of cut scenes. You go from scene to scene beating up random guys, solving mild puzzles like a wind maze or kill 4 big monsters and get the 4 stone pieces. Nothing too hard here and there is almost no exploring in the scenes, just a straight and narrow path. Except near the end, it opens up a bit more.

The game truly lacks a variety of enemies. I'd say 10 or so different types. Way less than the first title. These guys are really dumb now too. They will pretty much stand there and let you beat them. If you don't do your combos correctly they will fall after the third hit and you'll need to wait for them to stand back up because it's hard to hit someone who's lying down. Bosses provide more challenge but come off as cheap when compared to the normal enemies. Oh but Al's AI is much better in this game but it's still rather dumb and just stands there a lot.

The more guys you beat up, the more EXP you gain. When you gain a level you get X amount of bonus points. You use these to up the stats you want. The problem is that Edward and Al share the points but not the usage. Up one but not the other. And it seemed to me that only Edward got the bonus points.

Now, the main focus of the first title was the coolness of using alchemy on everything to turn it into a weapon. Yeah, that's all gone. You gain 3 different weapons that you can use alchemy to bring forth at any time. Some items can be changed as well but not nearly as many as the first game. Also gone are 99% of the plat forming parts and the game is much shorter.

I'm not sure if I'm forgetting anything in the game play department but lets talk about the replay value. No two player which would have been a smart idea... The only replay is to fight the bosses again to get the different grades tog et the different items. Upon beating the game you open up a new game + of sorts and this allows you to find pictures in the game and unlock them to be viewed at any time. A decent addition but nothing special.

So, it's a decent rental for fans of the anime but I must say that Square has removed the stuff that made the first good and fixed a few problems from the first game. The games are pretty much on par with each other but if I had to choose which I'd replay I'd say the first one only because it was longer and did a better job with the game play. FMA 2 does have a slightly better combo system.

Story - 6/10
Graphics - 6/10
Sound - 8/10
Control - 7/10
Game Play - 4/10
Replay Value - 2/10

Final Score - 5/10

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 04/18/06