River City Girls 2

River City Girls 2 does everything that I wanted it to and a little bit more. Needless to say, if you enjoyed the original then you'll love this as well so those looking for more silly beat 'em up fun will have a blast with Misako and Kyoko in their latest wacky adventure.

River City Girls 2 beefs up its decades-old beat-'em-up formula with RPG elements, witty humor, and dense combat options.

It’s safe to say that if you were a fan of River City Girls, you’re going to love River City Girls 2. But with that, there’s nothing here that is likely to draw in new fans. It’s very much an incremental improvement and expansion of the first. There are more characters, more moves, more locations, more… everything. And with the series’ typically strong presentation, those who get absorbed in the adventure on offer here will have an absolute blast whether they play alone or in co-op.

River City Girls 2 is pretty much everything you'd expect from a sequel: more enemies, more allies, more moves, more areas to explore, and more everything. It doesn't veer too far away from any of the original's design choices, and the result is a comfortable, if safe, sequel. The boss fights feel a little less tightly designed than they did in the first game, but it's a small complaint at best, and there's still plenty to enjoy here. If you enjoy quirky comedy with a fighting game twist, River City Girls 2 has a lot to enjoy. It's also way too cool to body-slam folks as a muscular, super-cool version of one of gaming's most famous damsels in distress.

A significant evolution compared to its predecessor, that unfortunately still suffers from some obtuse design choices and a slight lack of polish when it comes to fighting mechanics. Still, a very fun experience, recommended for any fan of the genre.

River City Girls 2 is mostly a refinement of the first game, and there’s honestly nothing wrong with that. While there are new characters and stories to enjoy, the core combat and gameplay remain relatively identical. However, some of the quest glitches and the game’s high price point hurt it at launch, making it a tough sell to purchase at full price for what amounts to a ten-hour experience. Even so, River City Girls 2 is a fun game to knock out over a weekend, especially with a good friend, and I hope Wayforward Technologies considers giving Misako, Kyoko, and friends another whacky adventure in the future.

Choppy performance aside, while there’s nothing particularly revolutionary here it’s hard to lament a lack of meaningful changes when beating up bad guys still feels this good. [Issue#24, p.75]

If you love the first game then you should probably wait for updates and a price drop before picking up River City Girls 2. And if you never played the original game before - check it out first.