On the surface, God Eater 2: Rage Burst has all the makings of a good, strong JRPG. An action packed fun-to-watch intro, stereotypical characters, fast and stylish combat, it appealed to me without a doubt. It’s Namco Bandai’s latest export, making its way to the west in grand fashion.
After digging deeper into God Eater 2: Rage Burst though, I realised fairly quickly that this ain’t no JRPG. No. It’s more of a hunting game akin to the now super famous Monster Hunter franchise. Unfortunately though, the similarities end right there.
A plague of monsters known as “Aragami” terrorise the land of Far East Branch, and it’s up to you as a blue-eyed (or any colour eyed) new recruit of the special force called Blood to tackle this problem. The story starts off strong as you’re quickly introduced to some flamboyant characters. The ditsy, scantily clad Nana with her love for sandwiches and the naive and juvenile Romeo are clear highlights as they take your side right through. There are also stereotypical tropes such as the level-headed leader Julius, moody, straight talking Gil, and Dr. Leah who has an eerie, calm vibe to her even in the most stressful of situations. The story thins out as the game progresses, with most of speech speech ending up being a flurry of military jargon and some of the eccentric cast losing their flair. It also doesn’t help that God Eater 2, being a PS Vita to PS4 port, sounds awful thanks to poor quality audio. Characters sound like they are speaking over the radio, which seems lazy considering the fine job made with the graphical upgrade.
God Eater 2: Rage Burst plays like a typical action RPG. You control your created character, navigating various battlefields looking for and fighting the Aragami threat. Walking, sprinting, and jumping is easy as any partners you may have stuck by your side follow suit without question. Although the Aragami threatens the world outside your base, the world of which the cast speak of often feels claustrophobically small. Outdoor environments carry nothing to make them feel like anything more than a stage to fight on. No unique features such as water, shrubbery, or crumbling rock surfaces, and invisible walls destroy any personality that the environments were supposed to have, making it clear that this port belongs to a smaller, less powerful machine rather than a hulking behemoth that is the PS4.
Combat is God Eater 2’s saving grace. It’s quick and fun thanks to your changeable and trusty tool, the God Arc. This weapon can be used as a melee weapon for some up close ass kicking by unleashing some flashy looking combos, or at the press of a button it can transform into a long range weapon for raining death on foes to gain the early advantage. The poor guidance doesn’t show you the ropes very well as I had to pretty much work out the more advanced abilities myself. I was unaware I could change my bullet type from freeze and fire bullets to electricity, and I was also initially unaware of how to unleash my Blood Art attacks which are much stronger versions of a standard attack. I was shown, however, the Devour attack. This attack releases an otherworldly mandible from your God Arc that grabs your enemies to do damage and also steal materials for crafting. Devour can also be used on downed foes to steal materials before they disintegrate and vanish. Now, the biggest downside to the combat is the lack of a lock-on feature. Although long range shots home in on enemies from afar, up close combat can be a pain against quicker Aragami becoming a game of cat and mouse. Fortunately though, Aragami come in some impressive sizes ranging from small to giant grotesque and mythical type beasts.
I have to praise the companion AI. Not once did I have to protect any of them as they can all hold their own in battle. Maybe a bit too well. I could have easily stood aside and let Nana whoop ass with her huge hammer. She won’t die. Even on hard missions.
Speaking of missions, they are ranked by the difficulty which alters the monsters’ strengths and numbers. Harder missions require some serious skill with the blocking and dodging manoeuvres. It’s a welcome change of pace, and if you want an extra challenge, then Rage Burst specific missions are available which are set aside from the main campaign. Online play is fun with friends. Taking on Aragami together allows you to use teamwork to work out strategy absent with AI companions.
Crafting materials found in missions can be used for either creating new weapons or upgrading your current load out. Abandoned God Arcs which are found post-mission have special attributes which you can add to your own. These systems add an RPG element to God Eater 2 which really gives off a sense of progression, and it’s needed for when the Aragami become really tough.
All in all, God Eater 2: Rage Burst is fun. The fast paced, variable combat system is the saving grace to its flat story and bland level design. The interesting cast and progression system through its crafting kept me playing but only for a while.
Developer: Shift
Publisher: Bandai Namco
Platforms: PS4, PS Vita, PC
Release Date: 30th August 2016