Viewtiful Joe 2

Viewtiful Joe 2 tells the story of an Evil Black Emperor who is all about world domination, being the hero that he is Joe has the task of traveling through MovieWorld – a substantially larger universe than MovieLand – to kick this fellows ass, fix any plot twists, restore peace, and repeat (come on, you know you want Viewtiful Joe 3).

Wait...Movieland? You don't know what I'm talking about? Your Viewtiful Joe knowledge is limited? Ah - Then let me fill you in on who Joe is and what he's all about...

Joe

Joe loves hero movies down to his very core, and it’s hero movies that got Joe and his girlfriend Silvia into this whole adventure in the first place. At the beginning of the original Viewtiful Joe, Joe became so engrossed in the film he was watching that he failed to realize Silvia get abducted when the film - and the evil enemies starring in it – came to life. Thankfully the star of the film and Joe’s idol Captain Blue came to life along with the film and passed his hero powers down to ordinary Joe. He lay down the 411 on Joe’s newly aquired super powers, christened his lifetime fan “Viewtiful Joe”, then sent him on a quest through MovieLand – the world in which he was bound to until he rescued Silvia and restored peace. Joe was very successful in doing just that but his success doesn’t last long.

Enter Viewtiful Joe 2 - Where Joe ventures into MovieWorld to kick this Black Emperor's ass. Joe isn’t the only hero venturing into movieworld this time. Managing to get her hands on a V-Watch, his girlfriend Silvia will be playing the role of the hero as well, fighting right alongside Joe.

Silvia

Not just a sidekick, Silvia plays a vital role by offering a new visual FX move; Replay. By replaying Silvia's last action you can deal three times the amount of damage, or if you're not careful, recieve three times the amount of damage. This also works with the game environment, for example; pressing the record button Silvia can drop a box onto a platform that requires 3 times the weight. Hit the replay button to drop 3 more boxes on top, making a previously unreachable area accessible.

Silvia, along with Joe, can also make use of two other VFX powers. Slow gives you the power to slow down time making it possible to deflect bullets, deal out twice the damage, and slow down the environment to her advantage.

Silvia also carries two power guns making her a deadly long-range weapon. Slowing down time and shooting will create larger energy blasts.

In addition to slow and replay, there is also mach speed and zoom.

Mach speed can only be used by Joe and is basically a super fast forward button Joe uses to deal out damage to enemies still attacking at normal pace. Friction will eventually turn Joe into Fire Joe, setting his enemies ablaze.

Zoom brings the action up close and freezes enemies as they witness super powerful special attacks. When zoomed in Joe can do spinning attacks and Silvia can do machine gun punches.

The visual effects are what made the original Joe far from your cookie cutter beat em' up. The sequal will offer more of the same chaotic gameplay with new VFX moves, and an added character. Joe and Silvia can't be on the screen together but alternating between the two makes for strategic fun.

Life will get viewtiful for gamers when Viewtiful Joe 2 ships this November. Look for a review shortly after.