What happens when you take a good game and then just make more of it while also expanding on the combat AND ironing out the flaws? You get a fucking awesome sequel.
The game kicks off after the events of Zero 1, and you're greeted by such a banger off the rip in one of the best intro sections in any Megaman title.
Not long after, you get to the new Resistance base and you're greeted by one of my favorite characters of all time, motherfucking ELPIZO!! Boasting an awesome design and interesting motivations, he is such a good icon that represents how Zero differs from both the X and OG series. Of course you also reunite with Ciel and then you're thrown right back into the classic mission-style stages of Megaman Zero.
One thing I do like about how the stages are set up in Zero 2 compared to Zero 1 is that you're given the portrait of the boss you're going to fight, which does kind of go back to the series' select the robot master roots. Granted, I still like the idea that there's much more motivation for defeating each Robot Master beyond "they're being controlled by Dr. Wily!" or "they've gone Maverick!". In Zero, you're given reasons like "we need to secure the factory for supplies!" or "we have to shut down their information systems!", it really sells the idea that you're an underground rebellion trying to take down Neo-Arcadia.
I think I should mention the two new weapons.
Firstly, you've got the Chain Rod. It acts as a sort of grappling hook that can also act as a longer-range melee option. In my opinion, this is the better of the two additions; it is SO much fun experimenting where you can go. I would often climb cliffs and find Cyber-elves, which felt like the game congratulating me for exploring. Always nice when a game rewards you for exploring.
Next, you have the Shield Boomerang. This one felt a little less exciting. You can hold it out and it acts as a """shield""", and if you charge it, you can throw it. Notice how I said """shield"""? Well, that's because it RARELY works as a shield. Most projectiles you want to actually shield just go right through it and hit you anyway. It feels like the game is punishing you for using it, which is weird. I only found ONE portion of the game where it was useful, which is a massive shame.
With the addition of new weapons, we also got the addition of new suits and EX moves.
The new suits alter some of your stats like attack, defense, and speed; they're neat and are generally just nice additions (but I only used them for cosmetic purposes rather than for their benefits LMAO).
EX moves on the other hand are great. A lot of them feel like great additions to Zero's moveset (my favorite being the rising slash I got from the Phoenix boss). I think the one big downside to these is that you have to have an A rank when you kill the boss, and I think that's really punishing because it factors speed into the ranking system; meaning that you're punished for taking your time exploring the map and you're locked out of getting the EX move. Granted, you can use one of the A- Cyber-elves, but there's more stages than Cyber-elves and you're bound to miss some on a first playthrough.
Overall? The game is just an improvement of Megaman Zero, an already great game! Seriously, the stage design feels so much more open and dynamic, the elemental chips do a lot more in this game, and can I mention the music? Seriously, for being on the GBA, this is awesome!
Colorblindness Rating: A
Same as the first game, all's good in this game.
I wanted to make a comment on how the charging can be a little odd, but it's less of a color thing and more of a feel thing, especially since weapon upgrades make charging faster and there's also Cyber-elves that make charging faster.
The game kicks off after the events of Zero 1, and you're greeted by such a banger off the rip in one of the best intro sections in any Megaman title.
Not long after, you get to the new Resistance base and you're greeted by one of my favorite characters of all time, motherfucking ELPIZO!! Boasting an awesome design and interesting motivations, he is such a good icon that represents how Zero differs from both the X and OG series. Of course you also reunite with Ciel and then you're thrown right back into the classic mission-style stages of Megaman Zero.
One thing I do like about how the stages are set up in Zero 2 compared to Zero 1 is that you're given the portrait of the boss you're going to fight, which does kind of go back to the series' select the robot master roots. Granted, I still like the idea that there's much more motivation for defeating each Robot Master beyond "they're being controlled by Dr. Wily!" or "they've gone Maverick!". In Zero, you're given reasons like "we need to secure the factory for supplies!" or "we have to shut down their information systems!", it really sells the idea that you're an underground rebellion trying to take down Neo-Arcadia.
I think I should mention the two new weapons.
Firstly, you've got the Chain Rod. It acts as a sort of grappling hook that can also act as a longer-range melee option. In my opinion, this is the better of the two additions; it is SO much fun experimenting where you can go. I would often climb cliffs and find Cyber-elves, which felt like the game congratulating me for exploring. Always nice when a game rewards you for exploring.
Next, you have the Shield Boomerang. This one felt a little less exciting. You can hold it out and it acts as a """shield""", and if you charge it, you can throw it. Notice how I said """shield"""? Well, that's because it RARELY works as a shield. Most projectiles you want to actually shield just go right through it and hit you anyway. It feels like the game is punishing you for using it, which is weird. I only found ONE portion of the game where it was useful, which is a massive shame.
With the addition of new weapons, we also got the addition of new suits and EX moves.
The new suits alter some of your stats like attack, defense, and speed; they're neat and are generally just nice additions (but I only used them for cosmetic purposes rather than for their benefits LMAO).
EX moves on the other hand are great. A lot of them feel like great additions to Zero's moveset (my favorite being the rising slash I got from the Phoenix boss). I think the one big downside to these is that you have to have an A rank when you kill the boss, and I think that's really punishing because it factors speed into the ranking system; meaning that you're punished for taking your time exploring the map and you're locked out of getting the EX move. Granted, you can use one of the A- Cyber-elves, but there's more stages than Cyber-elves and you're bound to miss some on a first playthrough.
Overall? The game is just an improvement of Megaman Zero, an already great game! Seriously, the stage design feels so much more open and dynamic, the elemental chips do a lot more in this game, and can I mention the music? Seriously, for being on the GBA, this is awesome!
Colorblindness Rating: A
Same as the first game, all's good in this game.
I wanted to make a comment on how the charging can be a little odd, but it's less of a color thing and more of a feel thing, especially since weapon upgrades make charging faster and there's also Cyber-elves that make charging faster.