[Hilo Oficial] Shank 2 -IGN: uno de los mejores juegos de acción de los últimos tiempos-

EA’s announced it’ll release Shank 2 on PSN and XBLA from February 8. The Klei action sequel, which will set you back 800 MS points or € 9.99, continues the story of Shank from the first game. A new survival mode willl also be included to allow a friend, either online or split-screen, to co-op with you.

This is a side-scrolling action-adventure game in which players assume the role of a man (Shank) on a quest for redemption in his hometown. Players use pistols, shotguns, explosives, and a variety of melee weapons (e.g., pipes, sledgehammers, machetes, chainsaws) to kill enemy soldiers and boss characters. Though depicted in a “cartoony” art style, many attacks trigger over-the-top acts of violence: slitting enemies’ throats; impaling them on weapons; shoving live grenades into their mouths. Battles are highlighted by frantic screams, exaggerated splashes of bright red blood, and corpses that litter the ground. Cutscenes depict intense acts of violence: characters getting stabbed in the eye; dismembered or decapitated close-up; slashed open, causing intestines to spill out. Some female characters are dressed in revealing outfits; one close-up shot depicts characters’ jiggling breasts. In one cutscene, a character mentions an army that has taken over the drug-smuggling practices of nearby cartels. The words “f**k” and “sh*t” can be heard in the dialogue.

Shank 2 is a lot nastier than I was expecting. That's the good kind of nasty ... the kind that makes you think, "I am so freaking glad I did that move." Anyone who has an odd attraction to exaggerated cartoon violence should probably keep an eye on this game, because its overemphasized gore had me giggling childishly quite a few times.

For those who aren't familiar with the original game, Shank 2 stars the blade-wielding brute named ... well, Shank, who shoots and stabs his way through a series of well-illustrated environments. With a variety of slick moves, deadly weapons, and the much-welcomed Survival Mode, Shank 2 looks like it could be well worth the download.



Shank 2 (PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360)
Developer: Klei Entertainment
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Release: Q1 2012 

While the world of digital downloads may be fairly crowded with hack 'n' slash games of the 2D variety, it's not difficult to spot the talent and effort that has been put into games like Shank 2.

Drawing first blood

The first thing I have to point out is that this game looks great. The color scheme lends itself wonderfully to what looks like its Southeast Asia-inspired setting. Enemies pop out from the background well, and even elemental effects like fire and smoke are graphically pleasing.

One thing that really stood out to me was the animation. In this age of 3D realism and motion capture, the idiosyncratic qualities of 2D animation have been lost with the times; even sprite animation, while still used to this day, is seen as somewhat novel. Shank 2 features countless examples of well-done animation fundamentals with exaggerated poses, squashing and stretching, and great secondary and tertiary actions within run cycles and attack animations.

I have an animation degree -- however, I'm terrible at 2D animation -- so I can better appreciate the skill involved to produce a game that looks like Shank 2. Nonetheless, any gamer that can step outside the perspective of his/her own limitations should be able to admire how fluid this game's art is.



The thrill of the kill

As stated before: Shank 2 is humorously violent. The carnage isn't presented in a tongue-in-cheek sort of way, but rather with such unapologetic brutality that it ironically gains a bit of class in the process. It's just humbling to shove a baseball bat into someone's mouth and then stomp on it ... like watching the birth of a baby giraffe.

Every weapon provided in Shank 2 features its own blood-laden counter attack, which influences the desire to try them all. When an enemy swung his machete at me only to have his neck slashed open by Shank's crude blades, the result was a crimson mess that forced a smirk across my face.

As if that wasn't gratifying enough, once I got the chainsaw ... holy sh*t. Shank proceeded to jam it into attacker's mouths, and I proceeded to laugh out loud. Am I a messed up person, or is there something to shoving weapons into people's mouths? It's like some ultimate insult. Next stop: a nuclear bomb.

I didn't get to try out every weapon, unfortunately, but Shank 2 presented a variety of savage kills to satiate the sick f*ck inside of me. Certain stages even provided trap doors, which dropped enemies into some sort of grinder apparatus -- and then carried the bloody mess through its compilation of cogs and gears. All I could think was, "Yes, I agree with that result."



A natural selection

It seems like it's becoming standard to have a mode in action games where waves of enemies come at you. I usually skip over these modes because they've always seemed like filler to me, but Shank 2's Survival Mode was actually somewhat enjoyable.

Players start off by choosing a variety of Shank skins, each with its own unique set of attributes and weapons. Those who prefer brute force can choose the Shank skin that's high in strength, and comes equipped with a sledge hammer and sawed-off shotgun. I'm a gun person, myself, so I chose the model with high ranged skill and dual pistols. This particular skin was also black and had an afro, which I found peculiar. I can sense a great and inappropriate racist joke in here, somewhere.

The gameplay -- which can be enjoyed with a friend -- consists of timed waves of enemies that attack players, as they move between two different levels of platforms. The catch, though, is that enemy bombers will arrive at times to plant explosives on stockpiles of munitions, which players must protect at all costs.

The combination of fighting for your life and protecting objectives adds a nice degree of tension to the experience; this is especially true when large bosses make appearances. Thankfully, the game provides a currency system for you to buy health, finite specialty weapons, turrets, and even war boars (yes, you read that correctly). Another handy tool is the familiar trap door at the center of the stage. Just be wary of your partner before using it. I fell into the damned thing on more than one occasion.



You don't just turn it off

Shank 2 is shaping up to be a pretty addictive game. Once I witnessed the satisfying effect of a counter attack, I wanted to see more. Unfortunately, my time with the game was limited, so now I must wait for its release like everyone else. Here's hoping the whole experience is just as fun as the short amount of time I spent playing it.

I was sold on the original Shank in about 30 seconds; from seeing the main character linking combos, moving like an acrobat, and grinning in his half-cute/half-sadistically violent yet incredibly clean art style. As long as the developers didn't mess anything big up, the game was going to be fun. And they didn't, and it was.
Having just finished Shank 2, going back to the original feels like playing a prototype of the same game -- it's a bit slower, a few of the buttons are mapped differently, and the art is less detailed, but it's essentially the same thing. To a certain degree, that's expected -- such a comparison would be true for many titles after their sequels release. But in Shank's case the similarities stand out because it feels like the developers took another chance to get things right instead of moving on to big new ideas -- in an attempt to make a better version of the same game. And they did, and it is.



The flipside of that, of course, is that Shank 2 doesn't take a lot of risks or offer a lot of surprises. I suppose it depends how you look at it.

Some would say adding a Survival mode, where two players fend off enemy waves for as long as they can last, feels like something new (at least for Shank). I say it feels like a fixed version of the original's co-op campaign, with the camera permanently zoomed out and tiered platforms so players don't crowd each other.

Some would say adding a new female playable character, who you control for a short portion of the campaign, feels like something new. I say it's one way the developers fixed the original's repetition problem.

Some would say having an original story feels like something new, or at least something that gets the game out of "remake" territory. I say Shank's stories are mostly about wrapping one-liners in pretty artwork, so they don't resonate and feel pretty identical game-to-game.

Wherever you fall on the polish vs. innovation debate, all the polish put into Shank 2 worked wonders. The most noticeable difference is that the controls feel lighter and smoother -- you move more quickly, the developers replaced the block/parry button with an evade roll that keeps you in motion more often and less bogged down by enemies, and your attack animations don't last as long as they used to either. I also love how the combat is challenging in groups, but then easy one-on-one -- providing a nice breather for you to show off on the last enemy in any given room.

Initially I was worried because the developers put evading on the right analog stick ("God of War-style") instead of one of the triggers or bumpers ("Bayonetta-style") so you have to move your thumb from the face buttons to the analog stick every time you want to dodge, but as I played I realized this makes a bigger difference in a 3D game where precision on the analog stick matters a lot more, so it's not a huge issue in a 2D game here.

If you look hard you can find minor things to pick apart -- like how Shank 2 sets you up as this crazy-stylish killing machine who can blend melee combos into gunshots then catch enemies in midair and pound them into the ground, but who can't reach two pixels above his head to attack while jumping or grab a turret without standing in the exact proper position.

But really, the combat and visuals -- which are what Shank has always been about -- have taken big steps forward to the point that I'm not sure the original Shank even needs to exist at this point. Except for historical value, perhaps.

This is a smooth brawler with gorgeous spectacle, and its dedication to nailing its second chance makes it one of the best action games in recent memory.

pasnake escribió:Una duda, el 1 salió en ingles o español? es qe tengo ya el 2 y solo está en ingles, es decir, los 2 estan en inglés?

gracias