This is one of my favorite games on the Wii. The Swordplay is awesome and is the main reason you want to get this game. If you have Sports Resort and enjoy the swordplay part of it you will love Red Steel 2. It does have some drawbacks - Many doors as the next stage loads, infinite crates to bust open for cash, & cheesy (though somewhat humorous) voice acting. But the shear joy of working up a sweat as you swing your katana can't be beat and the added hidden strikes and sword powers make are fun, visually awesome and add to the strategic dimensions of the combat.

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I have hesitated to write a review because so many others have covered all the points but I thought that my particular gaming perspective might be helpful to some. I guess I am what many would call a casual gamer. I am 57-years old and I own a Nintendo DS, a Nintendo Wii and a PlayStation 3. I have severe arthritis in my right hand and have difficulty using the game controllers. The only games I play on the PS3 are driving games for which I have a driving wheel. Prior to Red Steel 2 my favorite Wii game was Tiger Woods 10. Swinging the Wii remote as a golf club is something my arthritis doesn't complain about.

I have always been intrigued by first-person shooters but, having tried a couple with the dual-joystick controllers, I knew that between my arthritis and my novice gaming abilities I was no match for the gameplay. Having had success with the Wii remote I held out hope for Red Steel 2. I was not disappointed.

The first time I played Red Steel 2 I became nauseous. I then spent a little time tuning the control system, reducing the camera sensitivity so that the world wasn't spinning around me, and have since had absolutely no problems.

I will not repeat all the positive things that other reviewers have already said. Suffice it to say that they are correct. I will however address a couple common criticisms. I continually hear that the storyline is weak and the gameplay repetitive. I have already confessed to being a casual gamer and I have no doubt that this affects how I view the game. I have not played five or 10 different first-person shooters so I am not growing tired of the genre. In fact, one of the true joys of Red Steel 2 is that I consider it the only first-person shooter currently on the market that I, with my limited abilities, can play. I am greatly appreciative of Ubisoft for allowing me this pleasure.

As to a weak storyline, I view this game much like a spaghetti western. It is an excuse to go around slashing and shooting things and blowing things up. I only need the lightest storyline to find my motivation. I am a member of a clan that has been decimated, from a city that has been overrun by vandals and I stand between good and evil. On top of that there is an attractive woman who needs my help. Heck, I don't need more motivation than that in real life. :-)

As for repetitive gameplay, again I have not played any first-person shooters so it doesn't strike me as repetitive at all. I am quite content to shoot and smash things and take on the countless Jackals that stand in my way. If this were my 10th shooter I might feel differently but it's not.

The only issue I have with the game currently, and this is not the game's fault but rather mine, is that after over 50 hours of gameplay I am still stuck in chapter 6. I have earned gold in a couple chapters under Challenge mode, hoping that more practice will make me a better match for the chaingunners that I have to face, but even playing on the easy difficulty level, when I face the first chaingunner in Rattlesnake Canyon, the outcome is the same time and time again; I die an inglorious death.

In this is perhaps my greatest recommendation of all. It is very possible I will never complete the game and yet I love it! Even if all I can do is replay the previous chapters I am more than content to do so. I am sorry that the game has not sold better for I fear this might prevent a sequel but I will hope for the best and continue to enjoy this game regardless.

Give Red Steel 2 a try. It may not be your kind of game but if it is I believe you will have found a true gem.

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There's a small learning curve to get adjusted to the fighting moves and how the camera locks work for the enemies.

However, once you get through that, the game becomes addicting as all heck. I would suggest that most players should just skip the beginner level - on this level the game is too easy and there isn't enough people to fight. But on the higher levels, a lot more fun.

The entire samurai-cowboy storyline is a little odd, and doesn't really do much for the game.

This isn't a one to one sword fighting game, but what is there works really well. This is the closest you can get at the moment to hacking and slashing your way through combat. Motion controls work well. Overall, I would rate this as one of the top games I have played on the Wii and would highly recommend it - the other games I enjoy are Bully, Okami, Zelda, Monster Hunter Tri, Resdient Evil 4, FIFA 10, and Tiger Woods 10.

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+ Great visual style

+ Great use of controls

+ Ease of picking up and learning

+ Level of depth in moves (more unlocked as you progress)

+ Awesome finishing moves!! ( One you stick a gun to a guys head and pull the trigger!!)

+ Highly polished overall package - Near Nintendo quality

+ Very gratifying when executing moves

- not 1 to 1 controls (not a huge deal)

- no multiplayer (not a deal breaker as the single player experience is really good)

- bad voice acting

BUY THIS GAME!!!

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This game not only delivers on all fronts it promised, but it is quite simply one of the funnest games i've ever come across. I just received this game today, and I havn't been able to hardly stop playing. If you have yet to purchase this game, because you are unsure it will deliver. Stop wasting time and run out and purchase this game asap for Wii. You won't be dissapointed!

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After riding the wii hype machine and plunking in 100's of dollars in wii and accessories and thoroughly disillusioned with pathetic wiggle-controls and lack of mature games (other than RE4) I took one final chance with wii motion plus and Red Steel 2.

This game is so good that, its ironic that I have to say shame on Nintendo for missing out on many golden opportunities to live up to the expectations and for being so delayed in bringing out a game like this one.

Having said that, this is a very intense game as it pulls you in with the fairly accurate controls. You need to get used to using the pointer to steer the camera and be very careful not to smash your TV as you get too engrossed with the realistic fights !

But the big flaw I see is with the ever annoying nunchuk whose cord limits the game play where the controller often gets tangled up.

But it gives a hint of where the games are going, only to be executed much better with advanced controllers like PS3 Move.

------ Update: 4/19/2010----------

After playing more, I can say this is a very addictive and satisfying game in spite of not so perfect control. However I ran into a few bugs already. A couple of times, after an intense battle, my character gets stuck in this mode where he is moving forward or backward all the time even without me pressing the analog stick on nunchuck. I had to shut down Wii both times to get him out of it.

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The differences between Red Steel 2 and the original Red Steel are so striking that it's not really worth comparing them apart from the fact that both feature guns and sword fighting. The graphics, music, gameplay, controls, etc. have all been improved in Red Steel 2, and the setting/story is completely different. I figure the only reason they kept the name Red Steel is because they wanted to make up for the first game and give Red Steel a good name. Although I am one of the few that enjoyed Red Steel, Red Steel 2 is an infintely better game.

Most importantly the controls for sword fighting have been vastly improved. Whatever angle you swing is the angle your sword slashes on screen. To do the most damage you have to swing in wide strokes instead of short flicks of the wrist (so no waggling here). There are a number of different combo attacks you can learn for your sword, and even a few for your gun. You automatically lock on to enemies which keeps the camera from causing any problems. You can cancel the lock on or switch between enemies as needed as well.

There are four guns in the game to my knowledge and I have three of them so far--the revolver you start with, a double-barreled shot gun, and a tommygun. You can spend money (earned from completing missions, killing enemies, and destroying random objects) to upgrade the attack power of your sword and different parameters of your guns, as well as upgrades to your health, defense, etc. The sword is actually useful enough that you never need to use your guns (although I like to mix things up especially when enemies are far away). Even if your enemies are shooting at you, you can simply guard and block their bullets.

Red Steel 2 features some great music that mixes Western and Oriental styles. It never gets old and really compliments the game well. I'm not sure they could have done a better job on the music. The voice acting is excellent as well. I'm really impressed with the quality of the accents and overall effort put into the voices of the characters.

The graphics are simply beautiful. The cel-shaded look effectively brings the environment to life while maintaining a serious tone. UbiSoft was wise to use this graphical style because it makes the best use of the Wii's graphical capabilities. We have been given a product that rights the wrongs of the past in the best ways possible. If you have even been considering this game, but have been worried that it won't live up to the hype, then you need to pick it up ASAP. Just don't forget that you need the Wii Motion Plus for this game.

Gameplay--9/10

Controls--9/10

Graphics--10/10

Music--9/10

Replay Value--8/10 (There are three difficulty levels and there are challenges you can unlock [which I have yet to] which should add some extra replay value)

Overall--9/10

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I rank Red Steel 2 up there with Star Wars Force Unleashed which was my second favorite Wii game after RE4. It does start to get repetitive toward the end with some of the battles and bashing everything in sight to make money. Overall I loved it.

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I use to play my PS3 more than I did my Wii but ever since I got Red Steel 2 I haven't been able to put my Wii Down!

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This is the rarest of beasts. Where most games take one aspect and turn it into THE best way to play the game, this game takes 2 elements and makes them both great fun or use in battle. Swords and guns. Whichever you choose to use most, or an even split between the two, you will have an amazing time doing it. Games don't give us enough choices sometimes, games like this go a long way in keeping games interesting and keeping them from getting stale. Bored with sword play? Whip out the pistol and blast away. Tired of gun fighting? Skewer your enemies. The choice is yours. Whichever you choose to do, have fun!

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I suppose I may be one of the few people who really enjoyed the first Red Steel game. I simply felt that as an intro title to go with the Wii it was a fair game with an "okay" storline. That said; Red Steel 2 easily tops the first game in story, gameplay, controls, and art work.

The amount of accuracy portrayed in the game trailers and featurettes have been slightly embelished. Some of the movements I saw them do in those vids I haven't been able to do as well. But those very small bits don't negate the fact that the controls are still insanely close to 1:1. The voice acting is.....pretty good. There's definitley been better (FFXII & Uncharted 2) and definitley worse (FFX & Red Steel 1). The voice they gave the hero though is undeneiably badass and its only too bad that he's a man of few words.

Without too many spoilers, your character (instantly a step up from the first game's Scott Monroe) awakens to find that his home city has been taken over by a group of bandits called "The Jackles". As the the quintessential lone hero, its up to him (thusly you) to clean up the town.

Techinically the entire game could be played out and beaten with just using the sword. But the gun fights that you get into are just way too much fun. The moment I saw the long barreled revolver I was instantly in love with it and use that gun more often than any of my more powerful guns.

Bottom line: Red Steel 2, in my opinion, easily lives up to the hype of being a sword weilding game that feels very natural. Its incredibly fun and addicting and no doubt will spawn more Red Steel games in the future.

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If you're in-the-know when it comes to video games, you probably know that the original Red Steel was a horrible flop of a game that actually took off from the ground but landed in a horrible crash. Well, Red Steel 2 should probably have a different name, because there is barely ANYTHING similar between this game and the game that came before it. The only thing kept from the original is the sword + revolver gameplay.

Red Steel 2 is about a member of a clan who was banished for a certain number of years. When he comes back, he finds that the village where his sword+gun wielding clan had once lived had been turned into a ghost town over-run by bandits. The storyline takes this simple starting and turns it into a great adventure that soon turns into a clan war, with the Hero being the only one left of his clan.

The Hero is supposed to represent the kick-butt guy inside all of us, and through precise motion control that has never been felt in a video game, through flawless first-person-shooter game mechanics, and through a 10 hour compelling storyline that'll keep any gamer playing, Red Steel 2 takes you on an adventure to that part of you that fights off the army that opposes you.

Young players, or even young viewers, be warned that this game can look quite violent. Looking on isn't so bad as actually playing: doing the motion control and stabbing the villain, which makes it feel as if you REALLY have done it. The first time I did it I was kind of shocked and slightly disgusted at myself that I had actually done it, but then I realized it was all just a game.

Outstanding game, outstanding controls and game-mechanics, good story, and OUTSTANDING GRAPHICS (lookers on could mistake it for an XBOX 360 game), makes this a five star game for any 14-year-old or older gamer's shelf.

Your friend in gaming,

CPU12

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Controls are awesome, anyone who claims that this game is just "waggle" is not playing it correctly. The ability to string together moves is perfect and really creates a first person sword-fighting like no other.

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Between work and family, I have very little time to game and so the game has to be worth the candle. Wii is the only console game I've played and finding cool games that play well has been a challenge (NB: Tomb Raider Wii sucks). Red Steel 2 has awesome comic book graphics, fantastic Wiimote swordlay, and really good handling. This game automates (touch-button) the jumping and climbing (so you don't have to keep running around to try again), keeping gameplay moving apace as you spend your time instead exploring and smashing things and walking into (and out of!) ambushes from bad guys. The battles are exciting; my heart is racing and after a while I'm breaking sweat. As a relatively inexperienced gamer, I also appreciate that the special moves involve only a few control elements(unlike Force Unleashed, where I was able to master only about 3 of the 34521432 special moves) and are wicked wicked cool. The Eagle, which you learn at the end of the first level or so, has you launching an enemy into the air, whereupon you can leap after him and smack his tucchus back down to earth with only a couple of easy moves. Good times! The action is great, the pacing is great, the graphics are cool, the controls are uncomplicated. Highly highly recommended.

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I wasn't really a fan of westerns as a kid. Well, that is until my brother made me watch A Few Dollars More. After that I loved them, the serious ones, and the sillier, campy funny ones. They're all so delicious. Unfortunately, I've never been a big fan of shooters both first and third as far as video game genres go, and nothing I've tried has really changed that, so sadly I haven't really been able to enjoy westerns in my games as all of them are shooters. I really like seeing the character I'm playing, the way they move, attack, run, and I don't really get that with first person games. That and shooting in general just doesn't particularly do it for me. Even in most movies I prefer hand to hand or sword combat, it just feels more dynamic and interesting to me, and it's no different for me in my video games. Well, that is until I saw some game play footage of Red Steel 2.

I hadn't heard of the original before this, as I didn't own a Wii at launch. But when I saw footage of a character that looks like Clint Eastwood meets Vash the Stampede meets Samurai Jack going through mobs using a combination of both swordplay and gun slinging, I was intrigued. Then I actually played it, and I was blown away. I just beat the game this morning, and I absolutely love it. I started on easy, go the hang of it then switched up to medium a little bit into the game. I plan to go back and beat it on Ninja.

As far as presentation goes, this is easily one of the most stylish games on the Wii, and one of if not the most graphically impressive. I'm biased about this however, as I love the Wild West, I love samurais, I love schizo tech, and I really love Cel Shading. The game has an absolutely killer sound track as well, with a love of really fast paced western themes. The story seems okay I guess, you play a nameless protagonist, returning to your hometown after being banished years before. You come to find it taken over by a gang called The Jackals, and their leader knocks you out and ties you to the back of his bike. While originally thought to be a random gang raid, it beginning to look as though this is more of a war against your clan. The voice acting is okay I guess. It's nothing to impressive or memorable, but nothing painful either. Kind of unrelated, but I bought the game bundled with the Wii+ as I didn't own one at the time of purchased, and I love the box it came with. I love boxes. There should be more of them.

A lot of people are going to complain about the fact that this game doesn't exactly have 1:1, but it just wouldn't work if it did. Most players aren't exactly expert swordsmen, so trying to make it an over realistic sword fighting simulator would be a waste of time. Making it 1:1 would completely ruin it as an action game. I absolutely love the combat system. I mean it. I love how involved and intuitive it is. Its fast paced, exhilarating, and fun. Its undoubtedly my favorite combat system to come out this generation and possibly ever. I really believe this is the next evolution in motion control, and a new gold standard for Wii action games.

That said, the game isn't perfect however. There are a few complaints but they are overshadowed by just how fun and unique the game is. My first complaint is how standard the missions themselves are, there needs to be more variety and uniqueness to go along with a game like this. This one annoys me, but its an out of combat thing. The game works because of the automatic mob targeting in combat, so you can swing your sword without your camera flying around all the place. This is not true when out of combat, so when you want to bash in crates that contain money, your camera swings around like an elastic flail and not all of the breakable objects have the option to Z target them. I've resorted to just using the spin attack to deal with crates, a button to fix the camera still outside of combat would have been nice, the "C" would have worked well, and then the "Check Objectives" menu could have just been included into the pause menu.

In addition, this game is absolutely 100% about the combat and showing what the Wiimotion+ can do. If you're expecting something particularly deep, you aren't really going to get it here either. That and while the environments look amazing, and the game also has a Metroid Prime feel to it, but the game world itself is very shallow. Most areas are corridors and moderately sized rooms with little variation in it. This game isn't particularly deep, but the combat in this game is unlike anything I've ever really seen. How involved you get with the sword fighting is really unique, and the way the special attacks are built are very intuitive and dare I say, revolutionary. So if you're getting this game, expect combat like you've never seen before in a video game. Its exhausting actually! I actually enjoy that aspect, it just feel so involved.

I would give this game a 8/10 ish or a 9/10, with 1 being bad and 5 being average. I already adore this game. It ripped the title of "My favorite 3rd party Wii title" right out of No More Heroes 2's hands, and this is coming from someone who isn't a fan of FPSs at all really.

TL:DR

Pros:

Absolutely amazing combat system.

Great visuals, music, and world.

Good challenge.

Cons:

World layout could be improved.

More mission variety.

Closing comments:

I adore Red Steel 2. Its an absolutely amazing game and could go down as the most improved sequel in video game history.

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