Pros:
-The game foregoes the traditional Monster Hunter style approach for the open world
-Single-player is quite enjoyable as the story is much deeper than the previous entries
-Online cooperative is the highlight of the game thanks to the more difficult missions
-Carrying over characters is quite nice for those wanting to keep their character
Cons:
–Private lobbies don’t allow for player invites at this time
-Online does have minor syncing issues for players
Monster Hunter style games are a big deal for fans around the world. They love the challenge of fighting something bigger, meaner, and much stronger than they. It’s a fascination that has caused titles such as Freedom Wars, Monster Hunter, Soul Sacrifice, and now Toukiden 2 to flourish in the current day. They are a unique type of game that fans don’t just love, but enjoy. They are a type of title that approaches action-hunting games in an entirely unique and enjoyable way.
Among these titles comes the most unique approach to this genre – Toukiden 2 by famed Dynasty Warriors developer Omega Force. Published by Koei Tecmo the game expands upon the style of games that the company publishes. Luckily for them, the game works quite well in doing so, and pulls once more from their unique take on the historical roots of Japan.
In Toukiden 2 players will take on the role of a slayer. These slayers are summoned to defend Japan from the unique threat of Oni, a type of creature which seeks to consume the world around them, and plunge our world into darkness. As the story gets underway, players find their character hurled through time into a period where their village has fallen, and their comrades have perished among the ashes.
With players becoming placed in a time-period not much after their introduction, they are encouraged to enjoy an entirely creative cast of characters. One of them being quite astonishing for his short stature and for the fact his little body harnesses a soul within it that was ripped away from its human-host due to an Oni. Once in this new location players will find themselves slightly familiar with the location. This is due to the fact that Omega Force took some of the best elements to the first game, Toukiden: Kiwami, and improved upon them. Stepping out from the house, players will notice a few things right off the back.
In front of them is the ever-so-friendly blacksmith who is always willing to craft new weapons, armor, and provide upgrades for those said pieces of gear. Off to the right of him is a new vendor whom offers unique scavenging, something which the Tenko did in previous entries. To his left players will find the vendor who sells items that can be used for upgrading gear, for the cooking vendor, and even small nicks and knacks to keep around.
Not far off down the road, players will find the counter where they can take on minor operations, which act much as they did in the first game. These quests, as you can imagine, lock players into a specified goal they have to complete. Doing so can offer up unique rewards for players to enjoy, while also giving them a way to show off their prowess as a slayer in multiplayer. Past the desk clerk, players can find the open world to explore. This portion of the game is something you will become quite familiar with for the extent of seven chapters.
But these seven chapters aren’t where the game shines the brightest by any means. The games true capabilities shines within its cooperative play, which players can jump into right from the start, but will find some restrictions in play based on their single-player campaign. The cooperative will take players back to the Toukiden: Kiwami formula. In this ‘formula’ players will find themselves selecting single missions to partake in. Some of them vary in what players will do. The missions range from taking out specified targets such as the horrific Manhunter to the small time Goblins, which serve as fillers, but provide players with an immersion since they are protecting the village.
Unlike the games core campaign where players can wander out into the open-world and hunt down these Oni. The cooperative play, as stated, segregates the game away from its open world adventure. Players will be thrust into specified regions they will move around in. While the open-world could quite easily serve a larger-scale purpose to the game, it does work quite well, and serves its purpose quite well. This is indeed due to the fact that players, during specific missions, will get to visit large-scale regions from within the single player.
Thankfully Toukiden 2 shows that Omega Force knew they had room to grow, to expand, and to help push their title forward. Doing so they’ve introduced a new salvo of enemies for players to fight back against. Some of them, such as the Petros, offer terrifying experiences due to their agility, and capabilities in battle. Let alone are the new creatures terrifying, such as the games take on the mythical siren, the game drives the balancing between difficulty and enjoyment quite well. While offering varying difficulties, the game always keeps a well toned balance for players to enjoy, and never once will make them question how hard something can get until they are comfortable with the hunts.
Toukiden 2 – PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, and PlayStation 3
Developer: Omega Force
Publisher: Koei Tecmo
Cost: $59.99 | $39.99
Release Date: Available Now
These new additions show that Koei Tecmo and Omega Force have listened to the fans. In doing so they have created a title that offers multiple different genres all in one. Their formula works and it is one that the masses can take on without feeling as if they are playing another Monster Hunter clone. Thankfully their approach leaves plenty of room for the addition of DLC and new optional hunts in the games bright future.
Our review is based upon a retail version of the game given to us by the games publisher. The Review was done on a PlayStation 4 Pro and a PlayStation Vita. For information about our ethics policy please click here.
Final Score: 8 out of 10
About the Writer:
Dustin is our native console gamer, PlayStation and Nintendo reviewer who has an appetite for anything that crosses the boarders from across the big pond. His interest in JRPG’s, Anime, Handheld Gaming, and Pizza is insatiable. His elitist attitude gives him direction, want, and a need for the hardest difficulties in games, which is fun to watch, and hilarity at its finest. You can find him over on Twitter, Google+, and or you can find him on PSN with RaivynLyken.