In Alundra 2 you take on the role of Flint, a kid whose parents were killed by pirates who also happens to have a price on his own head. Together with A Bossy and Smart Alecky Cute Female Sidekick (tm), your goal is to defeat both your pirate enemies and a creepy wizard by the name of Mephisto who likes to jab normal, everyday animals with sardine can openers — this turns them into rabid androids. Gameplay is reminiscent of Zelda 64 in that it consists mainly of running around hacking monsters with swords and performing numerous annoying jumping puzzles. The action is broken up by some nicely created cut scenes (assuming you can forgive the awful voice acting), which serve to move the simplistic plot along.

One area where the game truly falters is with its camera system — during combat you’ll often find your view blocked by game objects that force you to spin the camera to a better angle. Unfortunately this can cause some severe disorientation, and you’ll probably get whacked a couple of times by your opponent while you try to adjust to the new game perspective. Also, the on–screen area shown is far too small — you have no clue as to what lies ahead just a few yards from your character. Combat itself is implemented well enough, but there’s nothing here that hasn’t been done to death in other games.

So what does Alundra 2 get you for your hard–earned money? A mediocre game with a mediocre combat system, and mediocre plot, and a less–than–mediocre camera system. Alundra is not really an AWFUL game, but Activision should be chided for its complete lack of innovation. Do yourself a favor and find something else to do with that 60 hours of free time you’ve got.

Overall Game Rating: C–

Activision website