Jets'n'Guns 2

 PC
Metascore
tbd

No score yet - based on 2 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 2
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 2
  3. Negative: 0 out of 2
  1. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Oct 7, 2020
    100
    Enjoyable space retro shooter crowned with excellent music and level design as well as perfect gameplay. Nothing groundbreaking but very nice to play. [Issue#305]
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  2. Ragequit.gr
    Aug 13, 2020
    90
    Only "mayhem" can describe what is going on in your screens at this intense side-scrolling bullet-storm. Countless combinations of weapons during loadouts, progressively tougher levels which are revisited up to difficulty 10 (this doesn't go to eleven), lots of mindless fun. An intense yet calming experience once you master it!

User Reviews

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User Score
8.4

Generally favorable reviews- based on 10 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
  1. Captain_Chaos
    Aug 13, 2020
    8
    Sixteen years is a long time to wait for a sequel. Was Jets n Guns 2 worth that wait? Some say no, but I'm happy we got a sequel at all to oneSixteen years is a long time to wait for a sequel. Was Jets n Guns 2 worth that wait? Some say no, but I'm happy we got a sequel at all to one of the finest PC shmups ever made. Almost everything that made the original great can be found here, with a number of quality of life improvements and even 2 player coop! Having purchased the first game three different times, you can imagine my excitement when I discovered the existence of the sequel.

    For those unfamiliar, the Jets n Guns games are side-scrolling shooters made in the vein of the lesser-known 90s DOS and Amiga shmups, with Tyrian, Project X and Walker cited as specific influences by the developer. I was also reminded of Raptor: Call of the Shadows. Like Tyrian or Raptor, the player's ship can withstand multiple hits and can be further fortified with various defensive upgrades as well as a wide variety of primary guns, missiles, bombs, and other gear. New to this game are activated abilities running of an "antimatter" mana bar, and gun-enhancing "GEM" devices that alter their combat behaviors, including one that allows you to aim one manually with the mouse, a la the 1996 platform shooter Abuse. Properly configured, your ship is the most dangerous thing in any level- at least until you get to higher difficulties. I don't know where Japanese shmups get the materials for their flimsy one-hit-death space fighters, but they ought to have a word with their supplier. The ships of Jets n Guns can take a licking and keep on ticking.

    One notable shortcoming of JnG2 is actually in the story. Also like Tyrian, the first Jets n Guns went out of its way to describe its rusted and zany future setting with comic strips and flavor text for every weapon and item. It told the story of a grizzled ex-Federal Space Hero called back from a working, mercenary retirement to find and stop the caddish, unfair attack of evil stellar bastard Xoxx from annihilating the universe, a feat he appeared to succeed in doing, at least until the amended events of the game's "Gold Edition" rerelease. The story of 2 is far thinner, told only through small mission briefing descriptions. This time, you are attempting to fight off an extradimensional invasion of evil "Necrodroids." There is no mention of the events of the first game or any of its characters, or even any indication of whether or not the Federal Hero of this story is the same person as the first. I couldn't help but find that rather disappointing, as I love it when there's some plot in my action games. At the very least, we have proof that our efforts to stop Xoxx were not in vain.

    JnG 2 is also extremely short in comparison to JnG Gold's mark of nearly 40 levels, though as before you can continuously loop through New Game Plus runs with ascending difficulty. This is also somewhat disappointing, but again, from the sounds of things the game almost didn't happen at all. If the game weren't so damn fun I'd be much more annoyed.

    And that's JnG 2's strong suite, as in the first. It's just pure, explosive fun action, with depth of gameplay coming from trying out the huge variety of weapons and upgrades. At least at the lower difficulties there is no apparent meta, and you are free to experiment as you wish, aided by the fact that the sell price of any item is equal to the purchase price, as in the first game, so you in essence have a pool of cash to redistribute as you see fit. A new addition to this game is a mission select screen. Where in the first game you played one mission after the next in sequence with no ability to replay levels outside of looping through new game plus, in this game you can select, play and replay missions at your leisure. On casual mode you keep any new cash earned through replays, while on normal mode only your highest score is counted, so you only get the cash difference between your previous and new top score, as in the first game. If playing on a coop profile, your total cash is shared between players, so you must strike a balance as to who gets what equipment. There is also a hardcore mode option, a la Diablo and its descendants: If you die, that's it: Profile over. Not my kind of thing, for sure.

    Aesthetically speaking, Jets n Guns 2 is every bit the sequel one could want. The player ship's default appearance is a bulky, dieselpunk-esque combination of a space fighter and a WW2 fighterplane, looking like something Mr. Torgue or 40k's Orks might have designed, and can now be customized with different parts and paintjobs, including the cockpit of the iconic R-Type fighter, as well as parts more closely resembling the titular craft of Raptor. Perhaps most importantly, chipmetal band Machiane Supremacy returned to once again score the game, complete with an updated mix of the first game's amazing shop menu music.

    I got JnG 2 when it was still in early access, bundled with JnG Gold at a very modest price. If you are a fan of shmups at all I strongly suggest you give it a try.    … Full Review »
  2. Sjalka
    Jul 26, 2020
    6
    Disappointing.

    I really liked Jets´n´guns (1) - its cheesy, over the top style, funny weapons and nice gameplay - perfect for a short burst    Disappointing.

    I really liked Jets´n´guns (1) - its cheesy, over the top style, funny weapons and nice gameplay - perfect for a short burst of letting off steam.

    This one though .. it has less charm. The carnage on screen is so much that it is almost impossible to dodge weaponfire because 70% of the screen is flashing bright white from an explosion. Yes, it is satisfying ... but less on the level of a PC shooter and more on the level of a mobile phone game.

    And while there is a lot more equipment to use most of it is completely pointless - which is not bad .. but it is also not really .. that funny to use some of the weirder guns.

    Is it a good value for the money? .. it was around 15$ or so on steam. while that is not much, the competition is quite big. I am not really disappointed that i spent money on it, i am disappointed because it feels like it could have been a lot more.    … Full Review »
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