Publisher: Koei Tecmo Games
Genre: Hack and slash/ Musou
Available on: PS4, Xbox One, PC
Tested on: PS4
Attack on Titan 2: Final Battle – Review
Are you ready to face off against even more titans? Slash your way through new episodes that delve into the third season of the anime. New missions, new characters, new weapons and so much more await you in this epic new iteration of a great series. Attack on titan 2 Final Battle is developed by Koei Tecmo Games and Omega-Force, and is published by Koei Tecmo Games and aims to continue the story it had and implement new mechanics that are featured in the thrilling third season of the anime.
Story
While this isn’t a new story, it’s a continuation of the previous installment and a rendition of the third season of the anime. This gets presented to you in character episode mode, where you will play as certain key members during the most critical parts to ensure victory. Of course, you should be warned as there can be spoilers.
The story starts off with a beautiful cutscene where Eren asks himself why there is no ocean beyond the great walls like Armin always talked about. Since they were young it was Armin’s dream to see the ocean. You then get a flashback from what Eren experienced, being rescued by the Scout Regiment from Reiner, who turned out to be the armoured titan and Bertholdt who turned out to be the colossal titan. Many lives were lost in this rescue mission, and in a last act of desperation, Eren yells at his former two comrades that he will kill them. This triggers the surrounding titans as they seemed to listen to Eren and attack them. At least part of them did, but as they ride away on horseback Armin sees several titans standing in front of them, yet he didn’t hesitate for a second and decided to go on the offensive for the sake of protecting Eren.
After the rescue mission, a lot became clear, all titans were once humans, their very own friends were part of the titans wreaking havoc inside and outside of the walls surrounding the city. When they returned from the rescue mission, the scout regimen attempted harnessing Eren’s power through exercise but it never succeeded. They then received some peculiar news from the inside of the walls, where the highest in command ordered to halt all scout groundwork and hand Eren over to them for further investigation. Levi made the smart move and told his squad to abandon the base, because only hours after they left, the base was ransacked. The squad was going to move to another base and attempted to do so in all secrecy, all frightened by the fact that apparently, titans weren’t their only problem anymore.
On their journey towards the new base, a kidnapping took place. The villains presumed it was Eren, but it was actually Armin disguised as Eren for the sake of his protection. Now it became crystal clear, the Royal Family was somehow involved in all of this and they aren’t afraid of using their power to make something happen. This then begs the ultimate question…How much are they involved in the grand scheme of things?
Graphics
Seeing as Final Battle is basically an expansion upon the base game, graphically nothing much has changed. This can even be said about the first game going into the second one. While it’s not bad at all, there haven’t been any improvements. That being said, if it’s not broken don’t fix it. The first game already looked good, and it still does. It really looks like you control the characters you know and love from the anime as they are all beautifully designed and rendered with amazing detail.
As for the environment and the titans themselves, nothing has changed here, and this is actually somewhat disappointing. Most levels still look the same as they did, as well as the titans haven’t changed in design at all. They are all the same templates you had in the first game.
Sound
The “whooshing” when you use the Omni-directional Mobility Gear is still as satisfying as it always was and the sound of your sword piercing trough the titans makes you feel like you can take on every titan that comes your way. The Addition of firearms also makes it so they have their own sound effect and truth be told, the sound of your rockets constantly exploding against a titan is amazing, or the sound of placing that perfect sniped shot right in their neck, making the titan roar it out as he falls to his demise. When characters unfortunately die, or you fail in rescuing someone, their screams really cut deep and make you feel sorry and helpless, leaving you in the feeling that you could have done more.
Besides all that good stuff, this game offers you a massive music library to choose from, so you can choose your favourite songs while you go out and protect humanity. The cinematic scenes are all fully voiced, as well as the smaller interactions you have with the characters. During missions the characters are also talking to each other, giving each other tips on where to go or ask for help.
Gameplay
It’s hard to classify this game under a single genre, the best way to describe it would be a hybrid between hack and slash and a Musou game. You zip around the city with your Omni-directional Mobility gear and execute titans by slashing the back of their necks, which is their weak spot.
Experience the freedom that Attack on Titan: Final Battle offers you as you can instantly go from walking on the ground to flying through the skies and cutting down titans left and right. Thanks to the lock-on system, which works brilliantly, you can choose what body part you want to attack. Some body parts offer you items if they are successfully severed. These items will then be used to upgrade all of your gear.
There is a variety of weapons to choose from, with some even being brand new to this expansion. Some blades give up durability for more sharpness, and in turn more damage, but those have to be carefully monitored so they don’t become dull. While others have slightly less attack but have more durability and offer you more margin for error for those attacks that just miss or don’t hit the correct spot at all. The addition of firearms is amazing and gives you a whole new perspective on how to fight the titans. From the slow firing rocket launchers and sniper rifles, to the faster firing sub-machine guns. They all have their own dynamic combat style so you can choose which one suits your style better and be the best scout you can possibly be.
In addition to the main game, this expansion also offers you two brand new battle modes. One will have you face off against other NPCs and not titans, in thrilling, fast-paced, aerial combat. While the other will have you form a custom squad that you will then use to reclaim lost territory from the titans in the desperate struggle for the survival of mankind.
All the regiment funds you acquire in the character episode mode can be used in the other modes, which is amazing as you will have to build and upgrade a lot of bases during territory recovery mode. This even means that all the materials you gather along the way from defeating titans in the character episode mode, contribute to your very own character and upgrades for your gear.
The only thing that apparently hasn’t been fixed is the titan AI that, at times, can be pretty buggy and get caught in the buildings, or even, stuck in some animations. While this does not take away from the greatness of the game, it’s sad to see that this hasn’t been worked on.
Conclusion
Attack on Titan 2: Final Battle is a game that is certainly worth your time. Not only does the plot take you on a journey, but the added mechanics will make it feel fresh for returning players. It captures the same feeling and magic you get from watching the anime, while giving you a chance to live out some of these epic moments yourself. You care even more for the characters and continue to see them develop throughout the whole story. This game is definitely one worth picking up!
Attack on Titan 2: Final Battle - Review,
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