Written by JM Nuqui
Game Title: Toukiden 2
Genre: Action
Developer: Omega Force
Publisher: Koei Tecmo
Toukiden 2 is a sequel to 2013's Toukiden: Age of Demons (which has an updated version called Toukiden Kiwami) Tecmo Koei's first attempt on Hunting Games Genre. This time introduces an open-world hunting experience where you can hunt demons anywhere in Toukiden world instead of mission based system.
I really enjoyed the first Toukiden to the point that I don't want to play the expansion Toukiden: Kiwami anymore lol. I used to play ad hoc multiplayer with random people here in the Philippines. We boost other people and hunt together. The mechanics is pretty much the same as Monster Hunter or any hunting game. Well I kept on saying Hunting games which people may not familiar with but it is a sub-genre of adventure game which involves not just killing a monster but you need to specifically destroy their parts which is used to forge weapons and armors. The type or attribute of weapons and armors you'd get is based on the monster you've defeated. So you really need to hunt various monster in game and it involves hunting. What I like about Toukiden is it uses the engine of Dynasty Warriors. The art is also inspired by that game.
This game, like God Eater and Freedom Wars which are popular hunting games for the PSVITA, has a pretty deep story telling. You don't just hunt and hunt. A lot of effort has been given to the story and you'll see lots of cutscenes and dialogues here. What I don’t like though for the English version, is that while venturing the overworld, there were moments when your teammates were speaking in Japanese without the subtitles. I don’t know if they were speaking something related to the story because they speak on a language I don't understand. Nevertheless, the story telling for this game shines.
The character customization for this game is superb, I was able to create a character that really looks like me. You can customize almost everything on your face and has tons of hairstyles to choose from. Will not really matter in game once you've worn armors but you can remove the headgear sprite so you can see the characters’ head if you prefer that.
There are tons’ weapons to choose from. For me, you just need to master a long range and a close-range weapon. There are two new weapons in game, The Sword and Shield and Chain Whip. I tried using the new Sword and Shied but I prefer to use the Gauntlet for close range for its boxing style action while the bow for those flying and quick enemies. The Bow is also great for targeting specific monster spots. There's a repository of trainings in game to let you master the mechanics of the game from weapons to various play styles. A new feature called Demon Hand is introduced to the game which lets you grab a specific part of an enemy from a distance then attack that part.
The open world is one of the highlights of this game. There are quests that can be triggered just by jumping to battle with other NPC slayers. There are also NPC's outside that would ask you to kill a particular Oni or even hunt items. The world is huge and divided to different ages. What to not like is that it's easy to get lost with the surroundings. It's like a jungle of obstacles and the place is pretty cramped. Unlike other open world that is spacious. It felt more of a big dungeon rather than a big wide world you can breathe in.
Collecting Mitamas is one of the games unique features. Mitamas are souls of the dead based on various Japanese and Western heroes and famous folks. You get them from big Oni's you’ve defeated then you can equip those Mitamas depending on you play style. Some are for those who like attacking, some for defense, some for buffs and some for quickly absorbing the parts of the enemies which could be troublesome if you play alone as some Oni regenerates part quickly.
The AI in game are smart. They attack and destroy Oni parts a lot and act fast in absorbing those. They are quick to revive you in case you pass out too. Which is good but the game might get too easy for those who wants a bit of challenge. You can get 3 people to come with you during missions and you can add one more by helping a slayer in battle so that gives you 4 comrades. I usually help a slayer to aid me with hunting.
There's a tower where you can fight Oni's rather than hunt them overworld. That Dungeon consists of multiple floors with sometimes multiples Oni's inside. This is helpful if your hunting for specific items but repetitive and gets tiring after a while.
<Bug Alert>
There's also an unknown bug which closes the game for some reason when starting a mission in command center. Good thing that the game saves automatically after each and after a mission. There's also a time when no Oni will appear during a mission which good thing there's a quit option to restart the mission on HQ.
Is it worth playing for the PS4? I'd say no. The game though is a lot prettier on PS4 than the Vita version, is better played on the handheld with friends around you of course. There's an online feature which you can play with friends though but still, the fun on hunting games is playing it with friends side by side. It's easier to hunt stuff and will definitely enjoy it. Sadly, for me the Vita version feels like a PC game in its lowest graphics. I wish Sony will release a Vita 2 so Devs can bump the quality of games like this.
Pros:
- Great Open-World hunting experience
- Lots of Oni's
- Action Packed gameplay
- Lots of Tutorials for beginners
- Great story and cinematics
Cons:
- Some obvious bugs ruin momentum
- The world is not spacious.
- Repetitive
- Lack of depth for pro hunters
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