Lost Planet 2 Impressions

We were recently invited down to a secret location near London Bridge to attend a Lost Planet 2 preview event hosted by Capcom. At the event we got a chance to play some 8 v 8 competitive multi-player and 4 player co-op. Here is what we though of the upcoming game, expected in May 2010.

Competitive Multiplayer

The competitive multi-player session started out with team death match on a snow filled level and my first impression was that the game had changed very little with most of the mechanics from the first game returning in the sequel. I soon found some new features in the mechs that now have a melee ability, with some wielding light saber like swords to tear through enemies. Some larger mechs can carry multiple players as passengers and gunners for extra fire-power. The first match was soon over and we moved away from the snow to green jungle environment. The jungle map utilised scale well, offering tall buildings to take refuge in and wait for unsuspecting opponents.

The competitive multi-player has not been overhauled and it sticks firmly to its roots. The new inlusions add a new layer of depth but may not be enough to please critics of the last game. If you enjoyed the multi-player in the original Lost Planet then its a safe bet you will enjoy Lost Planet 2.

Co-op

Later in the day the four player co-operative campaign was available to play and we jumped right in.  It was evident from the start that two of us were together riding on a helicopter taking down several flying Akrid whereas the other two members of the GodisaGeek team were down on the ground. The split paths did not last too long and we eventually met on the snowy ground to take on a relatively large boss, I say relatively because the all the bosses in LP2 are large with some reaching gargantuan heights.

With the large Akrid dead the level was over and we were treated to a cinematic that revealed the snowy level was just a prologue and that we would be moving to greener pastures in the next level. The second level we played started with all four team members starting at the same location, the map did however branch off and we were allowed to explore the different paths at our own pace which I feel is a good design choice. We decided to split up with two members going down each patch before meeting up at a choke point. We entered what I can only describe as some sort of depot that had a structure in the centre with tunnels and other paths leading around the side. We were tasked with activating 4 drills and defending them for 90 seconds. It was at this point communication became key as the drills were placed in different locations and under enemy fire, unfortunately we could only repel the attack for about 60 seconds and thus failing the mission and ending our co-op session.

I would definitely say the co-op gameplay is my preferred game mode in Lost Planet 2, it brings something a little bit different to the co-op scene as a whole and we can’t wait to get our hands on the full game some time in May.

By Aryel Abrahami from GodisaGeek.