Warriors Orochi 2 follows the original in terms of concepts, adding a few new characters and a few updates to the play system, both of which increase longevity; the save from the first will also unlock a few things early to ease your first few goes.

For newcomers, this is a 3D 1 vs. many fighting game with RPG and strategy elements, where you pick a team of three weapon-wielding characters and run around a map killing people, rescuing people, riding horses, doing little missions that involve killing specific people, escorting people somewhere, or reaching a certain place in a time limit. It can be pretty fun! Every character is also based - albeit loosely at times! - on an east Asian deity or real person in east Asian history, which is part of why these games are so popular.

For anyone who follows KOEI's 'Warriors' games because of the loosely-based-on-truth scenarios and characters, be warned; this is a 'Dream Match', with mostly recycled 'Warriors' characters in a nonsense world with a nonsense plot, made up mostly of recycled stages from their origin games with a bit of lava added and most of the unique elements (cannons, forts, elephants, tigers etc) removed. It does mean more genericised gameplay, which can be disappointing when coming to it from Dynasty Warriors or Samurai Warriors, but it still holds its own.

GAMEPLAY
The features - new and old - are pretty much listed in the specs; I won't repeat them. They all make it a very big game, with lots to do, if at first a little tough if you don't know where to go first. It's easier than WO1, certainly; the starting roster features some good characters (Sakon, Tadakatsu, Dian Wei, Orochi...) that are easy to play. As usual you start out slow, and time is your worst enemy in a game where you're often forced to keep your pathetically weak (and often stupid) allies alive to prevent 'Game Over'. Allies are annoying, as they die too quick offscreen, but steal kills and generally get in the way when onscreen.

GRAPHICS
Downgraded a little to allow for more peons on the field, but still good. But there are problems; in large crowds, soldiers do at times disappear and reappear before your eyes, as the PS2 struggles with drawing 50 people at once. And, unfortunately, what you can't see, you very often cannot hit either. Expect enemies off-camera to be unaffected by your ranged attacks, despite being in range. Expect also - why, I don't know - collision detection to disappear just as a cut-scene kicks in, sometimes resetting enemy animation but never yours, leaving you hitting air and exposed. These are all 'Samurai Warriors' game engine problems, and WO2 uses a version of that engine rather than the 'Dynasty Warriors' one.

AUDIO
The voice direction and voice acting is at times poor, with characters like Sun Wukong and Keiji Maeda sounding more like Bill and Ted than legendary deities and heroes; it isn't anybody's fault really, as hours of dialogue costs dollars and rehearsal/actor variety will naturally suffer. The narrator's good though. The music is generally inoffensive rock/techno pieces, mostly recycled from other 'Warriors' games.

OVERALL
If you're a fan of 1 vs. many fighting games, you may love this... but the RPG/Strategy elements (levelling up, protecting allies, etc) may not be your thing, so try before you buy. While it is perhaps KOEI's most accessible/mainstream 'Warriors' game yet, hardcore fans may be disappointed, as there is very little 'truly new content' overall. If, like me, you see each game as a little more of a 'good same', you won't be disappointed.