Review of D-2 (Sega Dreamcast)

[mykel77]

i loved D2. has one of the coolest atmospheres in gaming, very lonely and somber yet scary. i played it when it came out and was very pleased. gamers who played this more recently might not like it. but for old timers like myself, i still loved it. maybe with everything going digital, i will get to play it again someday

[noideac]

I think of this game more as an interactive visual novel than a game since the gameplay is sort of dull, but the graphics, story, and sound are all great.

[TheDabeavis]

@noideac You should look at D, it's barely a game at all. Rather an FMV adventure game.

[smileifulovemebaby]

Dude, you have like the best taste in games! Seriously, I love this game. I love Beyond Good & Evil! I love Killer7! I love... basically everything.

[drunkensailor112]

the reason random battles still occur while on snowmobile is because without them you would become too weak for the bosses, it's all about leveling up. look at skies of arcadia where you can fly above the clouds and you don't encounter battles anymore... wel guess what>?? because of that feature I could never beat the final boss in that game as I was too weak.

[TheronInc]

@drunkensailor112 Well, that's your own fault then. There's enough room for grinding aside from vehicles, there's no reason to break the driving experience every five seconds for annoying battle encounters. In D-2, you have more than enough opportunities to reach a higher level, even before the final boss.

[wondiefive]

It's crazy how the characters in D2 are like an alternate version of the 1s in Enemy Zero. As odd as D2 looks tho, I would still cop it just out of curiousity. The whole mutated monsters in the cold is reminiscent of John Carpenter's The Thing. 1 of my favorite movies.

[TheronInc]

That's true, although the suspense never lives up to John Carpenter's The Thing (the movie, not the game). On the other hand, D-2 has a surprisingly well-done ending that makes a lot more sense then the rest of the game.^^

[dogeymon83]

Nice review!! I absolutely love this game, but seriously, what is the number 2 in the title for?? This game has absolutely nothing to do with the original D.

Why didn't they just give it a separate title, like they did with Enemy Zero?

[TheronInc]

D-2 is the sequel to D, but at the same time it's not...

The first and original version of D-2 was in line with the first game, but it was scrapped and replaced by the snowy adventure in the Canadian mountains that we know today.

[dogeymon83]

Yeah, I know. I used to subscribe to Gameplayers Magazine in the States here (which later became Ultra Gameplayers Magazine, for some reason). And they had a preview of D2 with screenshots that looked like Laura's daughter was the main character this time.

As well as the idea being different, it was said to be a game coming for the Panasonic M2 console, which was supposed to succeed the 3DO.

[ihearduliekgoatse]

another nice review, man.

I agree with the comments below though, the horror genre is pretty dead at the moment. I hope that changes soon though.

[TheronInc]

Hey man, thanks for your continuous support! =)

Yeah, the lack of good horror games is quite annoying. I was desperately hoping for Fatal Frame 4 to be released outside of Japan, but sadly that never happened. I have to say that Fatal Frame is one of my favorite series in the genre.

[ihearduliekgoatse]

no problem :)

I'd love to see a Western release for Fatal Frame 4 too. I doubt it will happen though :(

[TheronInc]

To my recollection, there was somebody working on an inofficial translation patch for the Japanese version of Fatal Frame 4, but sadly it's been a while since there were any updates about that. *_*

[ihearduliekgoatse]

Ah, well I hope it gets completed soon. I know translating an entire game is a lot of work.

[TheronInc]

Hey, just wanted to let you know that the English translation patch for Fatal Frame is out by now! This is so awesome! =D

More info here:

bit. ly/ 56gpXj

[ihearduliekgoatse]

Looks awesome! thanks for letting me know, man. I'll definately check it out. =)

[TheronInc]

Do you have a Wii?

To me, this is one of those rare moments when I wish I had one.^^

[ihearduliekgoatse]

I don't but I plan on getting one soon. There aren't a lot of games I want one for but this is definately one of them.

[TheronInc]

I think I'll wait for the next price drop before I get one, mostly because the peripherals are so expensive. Btw, it's a shame that Metroid Prime Trilogy is no longer being produced. That's just another sign that traditional games hardly stand a chance on that system.

[ihearduliekgoatse]

I'll probably wait for a price drop too. It's sad that traditional games are gradually being phased out on the wii. Luckily though I still have more than enough games I haven't finished to last me a long time along with others I'm anticipating/haven't played yet. =)

[LinkinParkHotspur]

Man, I have so many memories of playing this game like 8 years ago. Unfortunately, I rented it from blockbuster and I had problems with the 4th disc so I never ended up beating the game. I was probably an hour from beating it and the disc just wouldn't load. I'm going to think about buying the game and replaying it again and beating it this time. This was definitely one of my favorite games on Dreamcast though.

[TheronInc]

Sure, why not? =D

It isn't that expensive nowadays, as it's just not as popular as all the other horror titles out there, so chances are you can get it for a reasonable price and finally find out what happens on disc 4.^^

[LinkinParkHotspur]

Yea, not only that, but I also think it's better than most horror titles nowadays. Or at least what's left of the genre, lol. I just need to buy a memory card also since I lost my old ones.

[TheronInc]

I agree with you, the genre is going downhill these days, once great franchises get dumbed down to bland shooting games, while others are simply not as engaging as older titles.

Hm...strangely enough, you just gave me an idea for another video. XD

[LinkinParkHotspur]

Another video idea? Woot. I was also hoping that Fatal Frame 4 would make it to the United States or elsewhere, even though I don't have a Wii. You're absolutely right though. Alone In The Dark, Silent Hill, Resident Evil, and plenty of other once great series are now blending in with the rest of the third person action shooter games. The horror elements have been reduced and so has the emphasis on environments and exploration. It's sad to see.

[TheronInc]

Yeah, I feel like making a buyer's guide for the Dreamcast. It surely has been done before, but I can think of few interesting things that I haven't mentioned in my previous videos yet.^^

Well, the current gen is becoming more and more underwhelming if you ask me. There are still blockbuster titles every now and then, usually by the end of every year, but aside of that there are way too many (uninspired) shooters and overpriced DLCs. *_*

[dde12321]

so what do you think, is D 1 on the saturn the best or is it D-2

[TheronInc]

Good question! =D

I'd say D-2, because it not only features gameplay elements reminiscent of D, but it's also less limited than the previous game, as you can freely explore the Canadian mountains and go hunting.

There's one more game starring Laura from the D series, called Enemy Zero. Developed by WARP for the Saturn, it features FMV similar to D, although it's set in a different universe. I think I'll review it as well once I get it.^^