Soldner-X 2: Final Prototype is a hybrid, hell bullet shooter that first appeared on Xbox 360 back in 2010. It provided a melding pot of moody galactic-style music, hell-based shooting, endless waves of enemy spacecraft, and imaginative alien worlds that felt like they were lifted from an arcade cabinet. Like any shooter, Soldner-X 2’s story is more of an atferthought, as the primary focus is on erraticating on-screen enemy spacecraft and collecting power ups to improve your ship’s arsenal.
As a military pilot shortly after the virus wars of 3104 AD, you are faced with saving humanity from extinction. The D’aarg – an aggressive, technologically advanced alien race – is conquering defenseless solar systems at an alarming rate. Humanity’s technology is not capable of fending off this new threat, and so a project begins to develop enhanced star fighters to take on this new enemy. The Soldner-X 2 defense is the fruit of humanity’s labor, and you have been chosen to pilot it.
The PS Vita version of Soldner-X 2 is a no-frills adaption of the original game; it doesn’t use the system’s Touch Screen or Back Panel technology. But what you’re left with is a high quality, arcade shooter that will make the palms of your hands sweat and your thumbs ache from constant use. From the very start, the game provides a choice of two fighters (a third one can be unlocked at a later time). The first fighter is Thor – a heavy starfighter with a bounce laser and scatter gun as its primary weapons. Thor is more streamline, but should only be used by veterans. It shoots much slower than its faster cousin, Mexxus II. Mexxus II, aptly named the ‘Bullfighter’, is much quicker at dispensing ammo. Its primary weapons are the bullet gun and magma cannon.
Both ships are similar and use the same joypad configuration. You can fire by pressing the X button and toggle between your weapons by pressing R1 or L1. When destroyed, enemy spacecraft will drop special power-ups that will strengthen your ship’s weapons. When collecting these power-ups, they will only level the weapon you are currently using, This adds an element of strategy to the gameplay. Once you decide which weapon best suits your needs, it’s important not to have it equipped when collecting different weapon upgrades; you will lose it.
No shooter would be complete without score bonuses. Soldner-X 2 is loaded with score bonus features such as score multipliers and large gold rings that drop from destroyed enemy spacecraft, to mention just a few. These items are plentiful throughout the game, so collecting them should be a main priority.
Unlike R-Type and its classic brethren, your spacecraft maintains a lengthy health bar. Since the action contains plenty of obstacles and intense boss battles, it makes sense for the developer to include this feature. Luckily, health power ups are available and randomly appear throughout each level. However, any shmup player worth their weight in salt will survive each level without ever needing any of the life-saving power-ups.
Your spacecraft’s arsenal can be upgraded. Some weapon upgrades include bullet enhancements, Chasers, and Shockwaves (i.e. bombs), among others. These all compliment the weapon system power upgrade mentioned earlier.
Each stage has a collection of hidden keys that can be collected to unlock different things; these can only be found on ships that glow yellow, It’s worthing noting that these ships are difficult to destroy, and they will sometimes box you into corners. Once enough of these keys are collected, additional features and stages will unlock.
As far as gameplay is concerned, Soldner-X 2 plays like a high caliber coin-op game. Everything is fast and smooth, while the action itself never seems to skip a beat. Even in later levels where the action switches to a vertical scroll, the camera follows slightly ahead of your ship, giving you advance warning of incoming enemies and walls. Even boss battles are full of adrenaline pumping fervor as they spray the screen with an endless array of bullets. During boss battles, you are given instructions on how to battle the enemy. The voice acting – while sparse in places – is done very well; it adds to the game’s intensity. In some instances, large arrows will appear on-screen, indicating where the boss will strike next.
Soldner-X 2: Final Prototype contains a brilliant mixture of 2D and 3D visuals. The backgrounds stand out with levels that contain shiny metal tunnels, alien forests, and underwater worlds. Imagination was not spared during the creation of these stages. The music is a collection of moody, galactic-style tunes that really set the mood for each stage, including boss encounters. Something has to be said for great music in a shooter; if it doesn’t capture the mood from the start, half of the experience is lost (I can’t stress this fact enough).
Overall, Soldner-X 2: Final Prototype is every bit as good as its predecessor. In fact, everything about this game makes it a classic. If you’re looking for a new shooter that is addicting, challenging, and fun to play, then eastasiasoft’s Soldner-X2: Final Prototype for PS Vita is the right game for you. Just remember to flex that trigger finger before embarking on the hellish journey that lies ahead; cramping is pretty much a guarantee.
Mike Pittaro
Platform: PSVita
Developer: eastasiasoft
Publisher: eastasiasoft
ESRB: E (Everyone)
Price: $12.99
