Izuna 2: The Unemployed Ninja Returns
If you weren’t a PC gamer in the 70s or 80s, then you might not be familiar with a certain genre-defining title known as Rogue. But games known as roguelikes are making a bit of a comeback in recent years, and Atlus has thrown its hat into the ring with multiple entries in the genre. The one we’re discussing here, Izuna 2: The Unemployed Ninja Returns, follows in the footsteps of many predecessors, bringing with it a lot of traditional roguelike gameplay and adding a touch or two of its own. What results is a pretty decent experience that’s worth a look if you enjoy these types of games.
Obviously, Izuna 2 is a sequel. I never played the original game (also on the DS), but quickly discovered that it’s not necessary to know anything about the first installment in order to enjoy this one. The story follows Izuna, a self-described beautiful and charming ninja who still hasn’t found a steady job. At the beginning of the game, Izuna and her best friend Shino are attend a wedding in the fishing village of Suirei. But events soon unfold that spur Shino to search out her long lost sister, Shizune. Izuna and her rag-tag band of similarly unemployed ninjas set out to find the girl, and meet with much adventure along the way.
The cutscenes are basically 16-bit RPG style, using the sprite-based game engine to tell the story. There’s also a surprising amount of voiceover, but since they speak in Japanese, you probably won’t benefit a whole lot from it. In any case, one of the best aspects of this game is introduced right off the bat – it’s full to the brim with humor, as the characters make jokes (both intentional and unintentional) constantly. (As the story progresses, you’ll see more and more breast-related humor, which is a bit of a disappointment since the other jokes are much funnier.)
As far as gameplay goes, it’s pretty standard roguelike fare. Each level is a turn-based dungeon, where every move you make allows each monster in the dungeon to make a move as well. This isn’t an action game – it moves at whatever pace you set for it. Strategy is the watchword. Your basic goal on each floor of the dungeon is to pick up items and make it to the next flight of stairs until you reach the boss battle. Fighting monsters along the way adds to your experience, and you become more powerful as you level up. As with any roguelike, the dungeon is randomly generated each time you enter. The layout, items, and monster placement are never the same twice, which gives the game a lot of replay value (people still play the original Rogue to this day).
Izuna’s party actually consists of a number of characters, some of whom come and go during the course of the story. (I found this particularly annoying after I’d spent a few hours leveling up a character who left with no warning.) When you enter a dungeon, you can choose two characters to use within. If your first character choice succumbs to the monsters, the second acts as a sort of extra life – another unusual move for this type of game. But if the second dies, you’ll have to start back at the beginning. As long as both are alive, you can release a powerful tag team attack whenever your tag meter maxes out. The type of attack depends on the combination of characters you selected, and some are more effective than (or have different effects from) others. The tag team move can get you out of some serious pinches, so use it wisely!
When you die in a dungeon, you’ll lose all your money and items and be returned to the nearest town. Unlike most roguelikes, however, Izuna 2 doesn’t add insult to injury by sending your character back to level 1. The forgiving nature of the death mechanic makes this particular title a great introduction to these types of games. It does make the game a little easier, but you’ll still find yourself challenged, especially toward the end. As another frustration-reducing measure, each town also has a storehouse that will store items and money for you. Everything in the storehouse is preserved when you die, and you can claim it at any time by returning to any storehouse – not just the one you dropped your stuff at.
One of the most useful features is the ability to tinker with your weapons by finding talismans and sticking them to your gear. Some talismans increase your attack or defense, while others allow you to attack a monster twice in a single turn, or to send your weapon to the storehouse when you die instead of losing it forever. You can progress a fair way through the game without using any of these improvements – especially if you spend some time grinding levels – but the difficulty of later dungeons will necessitate turning to talismans eventually.
Once you complete the main story, thereby “finishing” the game, you’ll unlock a new quest with new dungeons that change up the rules a bit. This was a great way for Atlus to increase the replay factor even more, as roguelike fans tend to be some of the most dedicated. In addition, your roster balloons to an enormous size at this point, giving you more characters to level up as well as some new tag team moves.
Ultimately, Izuna 2 is a great addition to the long line of roguelike games. The best aspects are the story and the weapon tinkering, and because of the random element, you will never run out of content. The challenge of roguelikes in general makes them hardcore-targeted, and this title doesn’t disappoint. You’ll be truly annoyed, however, if one of your strongest characters decides to leave Izuna’s party in the middle of the story, requiring you to go back and level up a different one. Also, since there is no online component, it doesn’t quite reach the appeal of its DS-based competitor, Shiren the Wanderer. Even so, it’s a great buy for any fan of the genre.
| Graphics | 7.0 | Very simple, but serviceable. Sprite-based art is complemented by hand-drawn portraits during character dialog, and some full screen hand-drawn pictures from time to time. |
|---|---|---|
| Sound | 6.1 | The music is pretty generic Japanese-ified fluff, but it’s better than average. The voice acting is a cool addition, even if you can’t understand what they’re saying. |
| Experience | 7.6 | The humor never lets up, but the breast jokes get old. Surprise is always around the corner, and the story entertains from beginning to end. |
| Lasting Value | 8.3 | You’ll tire of the gameplay before you run out of content. And if you enjoy roguelikes, you probably won’t tire of the gameplay anytime soon. |
| Overall: 7.4 (Not an average) | ||
