Space Channel 5: Part 2

Another challenging and fun to play game that has been included in Sega’s Dreamcast collection is Space Channel 5: Part 2. Although launched back in 2002, the game shouldn’t be mistaken for something outdated and fairly simple to play.

In fact, those of you that haven’t tried out the first adventure will probably find the second part to be somewhat of a challenge. Sega has indeed chosen wisely when they’ve added Space Channel 5: Part 2 to the Dreamcast collection and you’ll realize that as soon as you start playing.

Don’t worry; the game has been rated “Teen”, thus making it safe for children twelve and above. Space Channel 5: Part 2 will prove to be an effective tool into keeping them engaged and entertained at the same time.

Story

Ulala seems to have stumbled into another world domination plot that she feels compelled to foil once more. This time around, the Morolians (a strange race of dancing aliens) show up from nowhere and start forcing people to get jiggy with it, against their will.

Dispatched on the scene by the TV network, Ulala must now fight the bad guys by winning dance face-offs and gun shoot-offs, while at the same time reaching for the highest television ratings.

Saving one innocent life after another, Ulala finds herself performing tango moves and even boogieing on disco beats that ultimately lead to rescuing president Peace himself from the terrible leafy clutches of an evil giant plant.

As dramatic as the story sounds, it’s probably wise to focus more on the gameplay and leave aside how and why you have to dance. All you have to do is get as comfortably as you can in your chair because the dance patterns you’ll have to reproduce will wind your brain up more than any puzzle game you’ve ever played.

Of course, there’s also the matter of Ulala being dressed up with a cute short skirt and pigtails that will certainly diminish the concentration skills of any teenage boy.

Gameplay

The entire gameplay experience is focused on you having to dance-off and shoot-off your enemies by repeating everything they do and also listening to the instructions they provide. Maneuvering the funky space reporter becomes a matter of carefully timing your moves by using the controller direction keys (Up, Down, Left, Right.)

The A and B buttons on the controller also have their own functions. For instance, pressing A will get Ulala to shout “Chu!” and pressing B will get her to shout “Huh!” The same two buttons perform different actions when you’re engaged in a guitar face-off mini-game, but the trick is to figure this out on the go and get swept off by the rhythm of the music.

For all intents and purposes, Space Channel 5: Part 2 is more about testing your ability to follow a beat and a musical pattern rather than giving you an immersive story and rich gameplay experience. Some of you might find the difficulty level a bit troubling at first, but trust me when I say that you’ll get the hang of it.

If you ask me, the game is very different from what most of you are used to and the violence-free gameplay is defiantly kid-friendly. The only thing aggressive about it are probably some dance moves that, frankly, I couldn’t perform if my skin depended on it. For this reason alone, children of all ages will have a swell time controlling Ulala and defeating bad guys, on the dance floor.

At the end of each chapter you’ll have to defeat a final boss and, at the same time, you’ll have to make sure that you have enough television ratings so that you can afford making a couple of mistakes. The higher the ratings, the more stars you’ll be awarded. In case you slip up and forget a pattern, you won’t have to instantly start over.

On second thought, after you’ve exhausted all the stars, you will have to start from the last checkpoint. This can be a bit frustrating at first, but, shortly after, you’ll realize that the more you replay a level, the faster you’ll learn new patterns, thus effectively increasing your rating.

I have to say that after playing for a couple of hours, you’ll never forget which is left and which is right. It’s like having a drill sergeant by your side at all times, telling you to press left, right, up and down. I would even go so far as to you’ll even dream about dance moves and controller keys while your fast asleep at night.

Audio and Video

Space Channel 5: Part 2 is neither an exploration game nor a fighting game. The 3D graphics and dynamic environments are only there to serve a purpose, which is to make the game as real as possible and entertain you. The colorful disco outfits and the dynamic dance moves are pretty well-held together by the overall presentation and the way the characters flamboyantly act out their parts.

Space Channel 5: Part 2 is definitely fun and, considering that the video technology is almost a decade old, you don’t really feel the need for any improvements. With no obvious clunchy graphics or buggy textures, most of the animations are smooth and uneventful.

Sega has a knack for pulling off poorly acted dialogues, but at least Space Channel 5: Part 2 compensates by having a really upbeat soundtrack that will get you fidgeting as you play the game. I’ve even found it hard to sit down and I had to get up from the chair and stretch my legs with a couple of well-deserved dance moves.

It’s doubtful that you’ll get annoyed by any of the background tracks and you probably won’t notice that even if most of the tracks follow the same acoustics, they’re quite different.

Conclusion

Space Channel 5: Part 2 is an experience that you won’t soon forget and it’s probably because it’s like no other rhythm game out there. While you obviously have to match moves and synchronize patterns, you also get to explore a colorful and futuristic world with a rich 3D background setting.

I figure that for a game of its type, both children and grownups will have a lot of fun playing it. Forget about the fact that it doesn’t have cutting-edge graphics and simply give it a chance.

Space Channel 5: Part 2

key review info