Windjammers 2 Analysis – Xbox Zone

From the hand of Dotemu, a specialist in the recovery of time-lost sagas, comes to us Windbreaker 2. A game that promises hours of fun, impossible moves and all, seasoned with a touch of nostalgia. Nothing better this winter than getting drunk on this summer-like game that’s ready to give us a good time with Frisbee. Also remember that we have it at our disposal thanks to our Game Pass subscription.

Sequel to the classic Neo Geo

equip us brings nearly 30 years after its release, the sequel to the mythical windbreaker. It was an update of the mythical first video game: Pong. In it, a series of competitors sought to be the best with the disc or Frisbee by scoring points on the opponent’s wall. This was done with moves of all kinds and, on occasion, very powerful special moves in the purest anime style.

This game was originally released in 1994, created by the now defunct Data East. It was intended to bring a breath of fresh air to the Neo Geo catalog, populated, for the most part, by fighting games. It only came out on this legendary console and in the arcade many years later. It was in the aracde with extinguished flavors that this writer was able to play it for the first time. Although graphically the game was correct, to speak of the Neo Geo level, the sound caught his attention wherever the arcade cabinet was present. The legendary voices and sound effects caught the attention of all of us who wandered the halls looking for where to spend our weekly wages. Then the huge gameplay managed to trap you in this piece of furniture.

The summery and festive atmosphere, as well as the speed and fun of the game, dazzled us in the 90s of the last century and that is why Dotemu wanted to revitalize the saga, maintaining the same playable and graphic bases.

Updated and improved graphics and sounds in Windjammers 2

Obviously, one of the most important aspects when resuming a saga is updating it in terms of graphics. Dotemu opts for a formula, already characteristic of him, of giving the characters and the settings a cartoon-animated style. Of course, the original designs of the player sprites that appeared in the original game were kept, along with some of their animations and some of the storylines.

The new look and redesign of the game gives us a truly remarkable result. With more animation images, details and a much more colorful appearance than the original, Windbreaker 2 It manages to be a sequel that preserves the essence of the original but obviously improves on it. In addition, scenarios will be much richer in detail and audience. Added to all of this is a squad of players that retains competitors from the original, as well as new additions.

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Regarding the sound, all the voices have obviously been re-recorded to give them a clarity infinitely superior to that shown in the original game. Although at the time the cartridges dominated the world of video games and the sound compressions were much lower than today, they were already of excellent quality and, as we mentioned before, they attracted the watch out for that. The doubling of the voices in the different languages ​​according to the country of origin of each player suits him perfectly, they are of a quality more adapted to the current era.

The music also has a festive and summery tone that places us very well in the game. The sound effects of the game are also frankly good, standing out in the voices of the previously mentioned characters. The only “but” is the horrible sound that sounds at the end of each game when it adds up the points obtained according to our performance. It’s the sound of when you win, one of the players starts hitting the walls of the lane, but in the point distribution, it’s very inappropriate and almost annoying.

Excellent playability…

Another of the most notable aspects of the original installment was its maximum playability. Character controls and response are always perfect and very easy. In addition, the guys from Dotemu wanted to keep the retro style of the saga and we can use both the crossbar and the joystick to move the character.

Windbreaker 2 It brings us the same gameplay, but also with more characters and new game mechanics that expand the experience. Each character has their own strength and speed distribution and their own super attacks. To the classic moves and super moves of the first part, new moves are added.

These will be based on tennis/paddle. And it is that now we can jump, grab the frisbee and throw it against the dream (in the smash style of the aforementioned sports). We will also have a new blocking option that will allow us to return the blows directly, and even cushion them to make the “dead” frisbee fall on the other side (like the “drop shot” in tennis and paddle- tennis). Without a doubt, these additions are appreciated and expand the experience and complexity of the game, giving it more life.

… but limited game modes

The negative section includes the very rare game modes in online and offline modes. If we play offline, we can only choose between arcade and defeat the different rivals until you are the champion. The only thing that will make the game more varied will be the bonus phases, very fun and also reminiscent of the original from 1994. Next we have a right against, if you play with someone on the same console, but no more. It lacks another game mode that brings more variety and longevity to the game.

As far as online is concerned, you can only play quick or matched games. We would have appreciated the possibility of being able to play small tournaments, which would have made online play a little more varied. In this section, only note that there is cross-play with PC. However, and in the face of Game Pass, the trick of online games with friends is a nice incentive.

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Conclusions Windjammers 2

Windbreaker 2 is a graphic and sonic revision of the classic from which it is derived. Added to this are playable additions that further improve the matches and the dynamism of the game.

Despite this, it also carries the problems of the game it is based on, namely that it hardly has a variety of game modes, which reduces its duration and long-term interest, except for fans of the first Game.

All in all, we can say that it is a recommendable, fun, addictive and ideal game to play accompanied whether on the same console or online.. The game is a nice acquisition by Game Pass, since games against friends promise to be one of its big attractions.

What is clear is that it is thank Dotemu for bringing back sequels/remakes of games from decades past, since some were of a high level and deserved to be collected so that the younger players could try them.