Lost Planet 2 Review

Capcom's Lost Planet: Extreme Condition was a pretty decent action game, although much of the gameplay felt repetitive and there were several performance issues if I remember correctly. All in all, Capcom never really did polish the game properly and as a result the game failed to live up to the competition at the time. A lot of these drawbacks were supposedly going to be eliminated in the sequel, while the franchise was to get an elaborate multiplayer mode, in addition to a co-op flavored story mode.

Perhaps what many gamers still may not realize is that this game is tied to its co-op gameplay mechanics, putting the single-player experience very much aside. Don't misunderstand. If you really wish to try the game in solo play, you may do so, except each mission requires you to go through all the tasks either with friends or AI-controlled troops (i.e. friendly bots).

The light, so pretty... AARRGGH!

Fucking flashbangs!

For what it's worth, Lost Planet 2 has an even more perplexing storyline than what we remember from its predecessor. There's a war going on between several factions and you're right in the middle of it... - the end. Just kidding. But even if I wanted to explain this, I just can't because the narrative didn't hold my interest for one second. Hm, possibly due to the fact that it's almost completely absent. There are practically no appealing characters whatsoever and you'll find little to immerse you into the setting.

Checking out the main campaign in single-player mode was my first move. There are plenty of reasons why I regretted doing that. First of all, it's clear that the developer didn't consider the possibility of people actually going for solo play on this one. Most of the missions, boss encounters and battle situations were created with co-operative gameplay in mind. In fact, almost every boss fight is nearly impossible to beat without human-controlled teammates at your side. Bots range from completely disoriented to out-and-out brainless, which ruins the experience lock, stock and barrel. Adding to general dissatisfaction, the game hurls you into a cesspool of bugs and issues, making things even more complicated and frustrating.

By some miracle, I actually managed to defeat quite a lot of bosses on my own, either by sheer luck or by the often inadvertent assistance from friendly AI-operated troops. At this point, I was seriously fed up and decide to jump into co-op.

The online co-op is appeared to be a different story. The game started to be quite enjoyable. Gathering three companions, I started playing the main campaign with new-found enthusiasm. Combat situations were a lot more entertaining this time around and I started to appreciate the variety of maps and levels that were on offer. In competitive multiplayer, getting into King of the Hill, Deathmatch and other modes extended my time with the game, as the fun factor began increasing gradually. Players are probably going to welcome the rich pre-match options, such as detailed character customization, including different costumes, weapons, etc. So, it's obvious enough that it's best to try this one out in co-op (be it online or offline).