White Knight Chronicles II

 PlayStation 3
Metascore
60

Mixed or average reviews - based on 45 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 45
  2. Mixed: 28 out of 45
  3. Negative: 7 out of 45
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  1. Play UK
    Jul 19, 2011
    49
    Feels more like an expansion than a genuine innovation. [Issue#207, p.92]
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  2. Game Over Online
    Oct 3, 2011
    45
    If you're curious about trying out a hybrid JRPG/MMORPG, then try the first one out even though it's included here since it'll cost you a lot less and has a far easier learning curve for newcomers.
  3. Edge Magazine
    Jul 14, 2011
    40
    What Level-5 has created is a Frankenstein's monster. It's half singleplayer and half multiplayer, and both of them are half good: a compromise that leaves much of this game feeling soulless. To give WKC2 its due, it certainly improves on the original. But in trying to fix a poor template rather than start anew, it was probably doomed from the beginning.
  5. RPGamer
    Jul 6, 2011
    40
    Perhaps White Knight Chronicles II can be best considered a very large expansion of the first game.
  6. PSM3 Magazine UK
    Jul 3, 2011
    38
    Clunky, poorly animated, mostly unexplained, dreadfully written, utterly bland and archaic. [Aug 2011, p.92]
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  7. Game Informer
    Oct 7, 2011
    35
    Where the game falls depressingly short is in Level-5 ignoring the many valid criticisms of the first game and churning out a cookie-cutter sequel that is even more of a rehash than the average yearly sports title or shooter franchise.
  8. Gameblog.fr
    Jul 1, 2011
    20
    If you were to find the perfect illustration of the downfall of Japanese RPGs, it would probably look like White Knight Chronicles II. Its combat system is wonky, trying to find the pieces of itself and finding only the player's weariness, its story and characters are so tasteless that one might wonder if we're still in 2011, and finally, its shameless recycling of maps and stuff from the first one doesn't do it any good. Only the multiplayer manages to linger on in our thoughts, baring a little esteem, but it's definitely not enough to dive into this tiresome adventure. Please don't fail on ninokuni like you ailed on this one, level-5, please.

Awards & Rankings

67
#67 Most Discussed PS3 Game of 2011
37
#37 Most Shared PS3 Game of 2011

User Reviews

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User Score
7.2

Mixed or average reviews- based on 77 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 45 out of 77
  2. Mixed: 17 out of 77
  3. Negative: 15 out of 77
  1. JPoppaWUSC
    Sep 15, 2011
    9
    I am getting sick of hearing games get qualified as "JRPG" or "Western Developed" or "Old-School." Role-playing elements exist in every genreI am getting sick of hearing games get qualified as "JRPG" or "Western Developed" or "Old-School." Role-playing elements exist in every genre now, from third-person action games to first-person shooters. Coming from someone who has been devoted to role-playing for more than 25 years of video gaming, I still love to see companies try new things, but too often critics categorize games and belittle their finer points by forcing them into unecessary stereotypes. Japanese programmers often have a hand in developing Western titles, and likewise, American and European programmers are often brought in to assist on Eastern projects to make a game more appealing to the international market. Too much synergy and genre crossover occur in today's gaming market to call anything old-school or refer to them by national origin.

    That being said, White Knight Chronicles II (along with the previous WKCs on PS3 and PSP) attempts to appeal to both Japanese and Western markets, with robust single-player and online multiplayer options that allow gamers to approach the game in whichever way they prefer. This effort does not succeed on all points - story sequences feel shallow and incoherent at times, with sub-par English voiceovers doing little to elevate the game's presentation, and MMO features sometimes feel tacked on. Still, the accomplishments that WKCII gets right serve as redeeming factors overall.

    For years, I have looked for an RPG that brought many existing features together under one title - character creation, open-world exploration, a full day-night cycle, dynamic weather systems, seasonal changes, player housing, town construction, solo and multiplayer features, social elements, and branching storylines. While Mass Effect and Dragon Age do all of this except multiplayer, and Persona 3&4 contain their unique and refreshing take on many of these systems, practically no other games come close to completing this wish list of role-playing features. White Knight Chronicles II does not successfully integrate all of them either, but as you explore the massive world the game offers, it becomes evident that (despite shortcomings) the creators acknowledged all of the desires of RPG gamers and tried to deliver.

    The graphics in WKCII are clean and at times gorgeous. Like the first game, GeoRama features allow you to build a custom town and recruit residents to improve its functionality, though the whole thing feels like a glorified online multiplayer lobby. Customization is extensive, from creating a player character and changing out equipment to creating your own combo attacks. Combat itself is improved over the first game, though it still needs work. Exploration is also well-rewarded, and the game world is fairly enormous. But my favorite tweek to the whole package is the day-night, weather, and seasonal changes. This is an immersive quality that is largely overlooked by developers (or simply left out for programming, budgeting, or deadline restraints), but seeing trees sway in the wind, hearing ambient noise, or having environmental shifts affect combat are really valuable for drawing a player into the game world. Also, since you often backtrack in RPGs, these environmental factors allow you to see familiar locales in unfamiliar states upon revisiting them, which adds to variety and replayability.

    Overall, WKCII is worth the purchase, and in case you haven't played the first game, it's included in the North American release, complete with tweeks from the sequel retrofitted into the original. You can even carry your stats and equipment from one game to the other, which the online players will most definitely appreciate. I'm not claiming that this is the answer to all of your RPG dreams, but it is another step in Level-5's quest to bring all of the best RPG features into a single game. That's not an easy pursuit, but it is a process that I want to be a part of... and a goal that makes me respect any developer who tries for it.    … Full Review »
  2. Lucaskeane
    Sep 13, 2011
    10
    this game is really GOOD!! if you liked the first game you will like this game too, the graphics are better the updates in the gameplaythis game is really GOOD!! if you liked the first game you will like this game too, the graphics are better the updates in the gameplay Definitely make correct the mistakes made in the first game,the same good amount of time of gameplay and do everything in the game,now you raise you guild rank level much more quickly and dont saty behind of others playing,new weapons( now the weapons dont have penallity on VIT =) everything really good i just think that they could have change the chances to get some hard iten...they still whit itens that have 1 percent drop..that could be frustate sometines..and the history still practicly the same...anyway it dont stop the game to be one of the best choices of JRPG if you have the one you MUST have this one… Full Review »
  3. JK23
    Sep 15, 2011
    10
    awesome jrpg i loved the first one n the second is even better online n offline if you love jrpgs def a must buy n must play and dnt getawesome jrpg i loved the first one n the second is even better online n offline if you love jrpgs def a must buy n must play and dnt get stupid this is a jrpg thru n thru it doesnt try to appeal to western audiences lke ff13 did if u love jrpg pick it up now… Full Review »
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