FUGA: Melodies of Steel 2 Review

thesixthaxis.com:

FUGA 2 catches up with the children one year after the original as they return to a semblance of a normal life. With Gasco now free from Berman invasion, the children have parted ways, but are reunited in front of the colossal tank they piloted one year prior, the Taranis, which is now suddenly on a rampage across Gasco.

Allying themselves with the daughter of the President of Gasco, Vanilla, the remaining children take control of the other giant tank, the Tarascus, and with barely a thought spared, set off in pursuit of the renegade war machine and back into another war after barely surviving the last one. Throw in a little intrigue and some narrative threads that tie these games even tighter to the Little Tail Bronx canon, and FUGA 2 kicks off pretty damn well.

While you don’t have to play the original, thanks to a plot summary included on the main menu and solid character reintroductions, going into FUGA 2 knowing the children from the first game really adds impact to the story. I’d recommend playing FUGA before moving onto this game because of this.

From a gameplay perspective, little has changed with this sequel. It’s still part life sim and part turn-based strategy with a sprinkling of dungeon crawling thrown in alongside, however there are plenty of quality of life improvements that really boost it over it’s predecessor. The felineko’s share of the game is still found in the battles though, and will be where you spend most of your game time.

You’ll be piloting the tank along set paths, collecting items and engaging in combat with a variety of enemies. Each of the children represents one of three weapons: machine gun, grenade launcher and cannon. Of these, you can have three equipped at any one time with three others