Vectorman 2
Genesis
Nostalgia Factor:
The original Vectorman really helped prolong the lifespan of the Sega Genesis. It was 1995, and the 32-bit Saturn had already hit store shelves. I hadn't bought my Saturn yet, but personally I was ready to kiss the Genesis goodbye. Out with the old, in with the new, right?
But then along came Vectorman. I thought it looked so good, I asked for it for Christmas. The game blew me away and quickly became one of my favorite Genesis titles. It was such a hit that it spawned a sequel that came out almost exactly one year later.
By the time the sequel rolled around, I had finally purchased a Sega Saturn and was no longer buying games for the Genesis. I was still very interested in Vectorman 2, though. I rented it from Blockbuster Video and played it for a weekend before returning it and never playing it again for a very long time. Sadly, I didn't enjoy my time with the game. I had read reviews that it was better than the first one, but I did not think so. It was just more of the same, this time with an uninspiring story and frustrating enemies that appear out of nowhere and constantly cheap shot you. The graphics and presentation were still good, but the originality and the fun factor that came with the first game had completely vanished.
I wouldn't play it again until about 2008 or 2009 on the Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection for the PS3. Again, I didn't like it. How would I feel about it in 2023? Would it be three strikes, yer out for Vectorman 2?
Read on for my full breakdown.
Story:
I don't have Vectorman 2's instruction manual, so maybe I am missing something. Not much is explained in the game, unlike the first Vectorman - which had a decent if uninspiring story. I mean, at least it had something, which is more than can be said here.
In this game, Vectorman is doing his garbage cleanup job and flying around in space when his vessel is shot down by an unknown assailant. He crash lands back to the planet and fights a bunch of enemies, progressing through a series of levels until he beats an unidentified boss character that looks like a spider. And then the game ends.
Who is this boss character? Who shot Vectorman down? There is almost nothing narratively that explains why Vectorman is fighting and why he is where he is. Is there anything going on here, as far as its story goes?
Beats me.
Gameplay:
As much as I am harping on this game's story (or lack thereof), its plot doesn't really matter. Is it fun to play? That's all I care about. Unfortunately, it is not.
On the surface this looks just like the original game. Same look, same controls, same feel. It's the stage design and some questionable decisions the programmers made regarding enemy placement and behavior that are different.
Stage design is flat out weird. Some stages feel like the original game, but others don't fit at all. There are 22 stages in this game, and most of them can be beaten in a minute or two by just racing to the level exit. Other stages are big and labyrinthine and can be challenging to navigate. Like the forest stage, for example. You have to make your way through a large forest, jumping from branch to branch until you navigate your way to the end. There is knockback in this game, so you are going to constantly find yourself getting hit and knocked back down to the ground again. Then you have to start your slow ascent. This happened to me a LOT. Seriously, this stage was getting on my last nerve and it was only, what, the third stage of the game?
Another odd stage design involves the roller skating levels. You roller skate through what looks like an old abandoned office complex or something like that. You move too fast. Momentum carries you right into enemies. It's difficult to time your jumps. The levels are just a pain in the arse to play through. And what does this game decide to do? Give you three of these stages, randomly placed throughout the game. When you think you are done and can kiss these levels goodbye, here comes another one.
The game constantly finds itself caught between being too hard and too easy. One stage you'll race through and complete in a minute and a half, the next one you find yourself dying ten times. Some consistency would be nice.
Aside from the stage design, the enemies suck too. This game is filled, and I mean FILLED with what I call "gotcha" moments. Enemies pop up off the side of the screen without enough time to avoid them. You'll come across blind jumps where you don't know where you are going to land. Nine times out of ten, it'll be on an enemy, or between two of them. Bullets and projectiles hit you from seemingly nowhere. Flying enemies swoop in and hit you before you have time to react. When you kill them, they respawn and immediately come right back after you.
I'm all for a difficult platformer. I'm a big fan of Contra, Ninja Gaiden, Mega Man, etc. But I consider those games to be fair in their difficulty. When you lose a life, it is because you screwed up, not because the game came up with some new kind of way to pull a "gotcha!" on you when you were least expecting it. This game is one big gotcha.
Not to say it is a complete failure. I enjoyed some of the boss battles. I like the different enemy forms Vectorman can take. I liked the bonus stages. I liked exploring each stage and collecting as many items as I could. I like the levels where you have to "dig" your way out of the dirt. I especially liked the tank levels, and considered them to be a fun break from the normal action. They have a bit of a Moon Patrol vibe to them.
Unfortunately, none of these pluses are enough to change my mind on the game. Overall I still found it to be a frustrating and forgettable experience. I didn't like it when I first played it. I didn't like it in 2008. I didn't like it in 2023. Three strikes and you're out, indeed.
Graphics:
Without question, the graphics are the best thing Vectorman 2 has going for it. First thing I noticed were the lighting effects when Vectorman fires his weapon. It lights up the whole screen, which is good because some of the early levels can be a bit dark.
You'll notice a marked improvement in character animation. Vectorman moves smoother than ever. He is portrayed with greater detail. Most of the enemies look good too. Sometimes they get a little boring, like you are fighting the same thing over and over again.
But what really makes this game stand out are the terrific background environments. It's tough to fully appreciate in a still image, but the tornado effects in the screenshot above look really, really great. Very immersive and well animated. Other stages are beautiful in their own way, such as the lava stages and the forest stages. I did not like the roller skate levels. They look bland, and to make matters worse, the game reuses these backgrounds far too many times.
Sound:
Right away, the game gives you a blast of that classic Vectorman music from the first game. Immediately got me into the mood to play this game. Part of me thought in the back of my mind that they should have come up with a new theme song. But they didn't.
The game sounds just like the first one. Stage music is good and has that techno beat to it. I wouldn't say anything in particular stood out to me. I finished this game about five days ago and I can't think of one single original song from this game that stands out in my mind. Drawing a complete blank. I remember the soundtrack being good, though. Oh well.
The sound effects, on the other hand, are very memorable. The sound of firing your weapon, picking up items, the timer running out, etc. are all classic Vectorman. They sound terrific.
Overall:
If only we were grading this game on its audio and visual presentation, Vectorman 2 would do quite well. This is possibly the Genesis at the brink of its capabilities. You won't find very many games that look or sound better than this.
But the game isn't any fun. I'm sorry, but it's not. I play these games to have fun. All 450 reviews I've written so far have all boiled down to one thing: am I having fun playing this? Generally I am pretty easy to please. My last several reviews have all been in the A range. Even if the game isn't great, just give me an enjoyable time at the very least, and you get a B. I can't say Vectorman 2 is average. Definitely below that. But by how much?
Sadly, this game had a lot of potential. I love the first Vectorman. I'll post the link to my original review of that title below. But this game, even though it looks and plays like the first game, is nowhere near as good, unless you like getting cheap shotted left and right, no matter how cautiously you make your way through the game. I wanted to explore these big levels and collect things, but I felt that I had to constantly push forward because I was always under fire. You get hit a lot. You die a lot. I had some success just rushing to the level exit and not exploring, but where is the fun in that?
It all comes down to execution. This game almost had it. Almost. Fix some fundamental flaws, and I probably would have really liked this game. Unfortunately, we don't live in an alternate reality where this game is good. Three strikes, you're out. I have learned my lesson. I'm never playing Vectorman 2 again.
THE GRADE:
D
My review of the original
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