No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle

(Ubisoft for Wii)
By Mike Delano

It’s hard to think of a game from the past few years that was bursting with as much energy as No More Heroes. At its core, it was a Wii Remote-waggling brawler featuring an assassin with a lightsaber (er, beam katana) who pummels enemies into explosions of blood and coins. If that wasn’t cool enough, it had the best bosses and boss battles outside of a Metal Gear Solid game, a painfully cool art style, and hilariously mundane jobs (minigames) you had to complete to advance up the ranks of the elite assassins. So, the second that protagonist Travis Touchdown fires up his katana and screams “Fuck you!” as he carves up opponents in the opening level of the sequel, you figure you’re ready to experience a continuation of the gaming equivalent of Never Mind The Bollocks. For the most part, you’re right. Nearly all of the new bosses are as good those in the first game, from a football player who transforms into a giant mech to a psycho cosmonaut to a co-ed with a deadly flute. The levels are also better designed and more expansive, and the four different katana variations add some spice to the combat. No More Heroes 2 falls just short of the heights of its predecessor because its ambition is more to refine than expand the craziness of the first game, and the new 8-bit minigames, while utterly charming, aren’t a completely satisfying replacement for the open world map. Neither of these two minor qualms, though, should keep you from experiencing what is one of the absolute best games on the Wii.
(www.ubisoft.com)