Red Steel carries a lot of stigma. The pre-launch hype penned the Wii launch title as something it wasn’t and in hindsight, had no chance of living up to. Once it had been given the once over from reviewers and gamers alike, the scars were already too deep for some. Red Steel was a commercial success because of its launch title status but failed to deliver on the promise of ambitious gameplay which appeared impossible with the limitations of a standard Wii remote.

 

Although most gamers seem unprepared to give Red Steel a second chance, the title’s recent complete makeover and motion plus addition may just lure a few more gamers back for one more try. On the surface, the changes certainly appear to be a huge leap in the right direction.

 

Red Steel 2 drops everything it's original did in favor of a fresh start.

 

The most jarring and positive impression is how different Red Steel 2 is. The name might appear on the start screen but very little remains of its older brother. There are a couple of traits that remain; the bare bones of the sword and gun action and the near-futuristic locations for example, but even these elements have been changed and improved. What you have now is the Red Steel that gamers wanted to play when the Wii launched three years ago.

 

Taking the role of lazily-titled Swordsman, you awake in a sizzle hot desert outside of the game’s Wild West metropolis. Hands tied together and chained to a motorbike, our adventure began at a hundred miles an hour as we were dragged across the desert, through fires and around the urban outskirts of town.

 

 

This short tour allowed us to experience the game’s new visual representations. Dropping the original’s visuals for a cel-shaded face lift isn’t exactly new or groundbreaking (it’s a style we’ve seen in Ubisoft’s XIII and more recently in Gearbox’s shooter powerhouse Borderlands) so excuse us if the effect had less than an astounding effect. Despite the lack of an innovative graphic approach, the town did blend Wild West and Japanese cultures perfectly. The streets were dusty and mostly deserted, and the colors were washed out and contrasted brilliantly against the glaring neon signs, advertisement bill boards and street corner vending machines.

 

As we were being dragged around like a rag doll on parade the fire slowly consumed the rope binding our hands together and soon it was time to get a little revenge of our own. With one single shot we send our driver sky high in an explosion and made a quick escape.