You know, there aren't enough giant, mechanical scorpions in games. And something that Wanako hopes to change with Assault Heroes 2, which has at least one mechanical scorpion in it, in keeping with a similar theme from Assault Heroes 1.
In fact, giant mechancial insects in general aren't really used enough in video games. The giant Scarab crafts in Halo 3 were LIKE insects, but not nearly insect-y enough, in my opinion. So....I think it's time that we, as gamers, start demanding more mechanical insects in our games. And if insects aren't quite your thing? Well...they've got that covered too..



Giant mechanical aquatic creatures.

Yeah.

You know you want it. Are there any giant metal fish in Grand Theft Auto IV?

Didn't think so.

But, back to the game, Assault Heroes 2 is, as you might expect, more of the same from AH1. You drive around in a well-armed buggy laying waste to the hideous evil bad people of Ice/Jungle/Rocky Land Place and making sure they don't get any clever ideas, like taking over the universe, by jamming rockets down their throats.

This scorched earth policy worked well for the United Government of Whatever in the first game, so why not stick with what works?
The core gameplay remains the same, with a few little wrinkles to give it some extra oomph. Probably the most noticeable little thing is that, now, when you're on foot outside of your vehicle (whether from your own fault or not) you can now tap the A button to do a little rolling dodge, which is great since your walking speed here (and in the original) just isn't fast enough to avoid being pummeled with explosives.
The game has nearly twice as many levels as the first one, which means you'll be busy for awhile with this one, and some of the new goals, bonuses, and achievements will last hardcore players for some time.
If I really had any gripe with the game, simple actioneer though it is, it's that the new feature of being able to occasionally get into different vehicles isn't nearly as cool as it could have been. Some of the enemy ships give you short lived bonuses like stronger firepower, but, in many cases using the enemy vehicles is a downgrade from your normal buggy and just getting them usually puts you square in harm's way.

But, that's a pretty minor complaint considering how fun and crazy the games. It's just wall-to-wall action with little pretense at being very deep or telling much of a story, and that's really how it should be with Assault Heroes.
If you're an action/shooter fan, you should seriously consider slapping down some of those hard-earned MS Points on it.
And incase you missed it: GIANT MECHANICAL FISH.


PS - I am aware that the Darius series is the resident Lord and Master of the giant mechanical fish genre, but it's been, what, almost 10 years since we had a Darius game? WHAT GIVES TAITO?