In the time since the previous game, Gunvolt’s power evolved to godlike levels. The potentially bad news is that doing so comes with numerous caveats. The good news is you can swap between Kirin for Gunvolt, and he’ll even turn back into a human for the occasion. My guess, however, is that most people playing a Gunvolt game are hoping for Gunvolt to be more…well, playable. They share a nice dynamic and Gunvolt is a surprisingly natural fit as a mentor. His wisdom and experience keeps the otherwise brash and boisterous Kirin relatively level-headed. In-universe, Gunvolt powers up Kirin, allowing her to do techniques like the Arc Chain. Kirin generally plays the role of the “main” character, while Gunvolt supports her as a canine companion (don’t worry about the details of that). Instead, he is essentially a sidekick, a cheat mode, and the heart of the game all in one. He just doesn’t play the role you might expect from a game’s namesake. Speaking of Gunvolt, he is in this game too. Kirin strikes an overall interesting and satisfying counterbalance to the usual Gunvolt combat. With Kirin, you feel the difference in how fluidly she fights. His appearance in Luminous Avenger iX 2 leans a little closer to the in-your-face antics of Kirin, yet differs greatly in its execution. In battle, Copen still tags an enemy and focuses on dodging. Copen’s differences from Gunvolt were more apparent in the level design and movement mechanics than the enemy encounters.
#Azure striker gunvolt 2 transformed series#
I appreciate how different Kirin feels from anything the series has done up to this point. Kirin’s swordplay offers a compelling new twist to the Gunvolt formula, in some ways evoking the developer’s past Mega Man titles while also not conflicting with Gunvolt’s core enemy design. Kirin constantly places herself in harm’s way. After tagging an enemy, Gunvolt could simply keep his distance in order to focus on dodging attacks while draining his enemies’ health. Her techniques will also briefly lock her into different animations, so you have to commit to what you input.ĭefeating enemies and especially bosses as Kirin requires a fundamentally different approach from Gunvolt. Using Kirin’s sword requires you to get relatively close to enemies – a risk you generally don’t need to take in Gunvolt games. On top of the Arc Chain, she utilizes an expanding arsenal of sword techniques that slowly unlock as you progress through the game. The new protagonist Kirin embodies the visceral nature of the gameplay. Arc Chains usher in the core change this game brings to the table: a faster and more visceral experience. This becomes especially apparent when you begin playing for score, which incentivizes staying in the air, only giving you a short window to tag the next enemy before you touch the ground. The new Arc Chain mechanic warps you directly into a tagged enemy to destroy them, and that changes how Gunvolt 3 feels to play compared to its predecessors dramatically. Stopping and starting is inherent to the rhythm of Gunvolt. You tag an enemy, then you drain their health, and then you move on. No matter how quickly you speed through a stage, Gunvolt (or Copen) will need to stop in order to defeat enemies. Up to this point, the general Gunvolt gameplay followed a similar pacing philosophy. What surprises me are the nature and extent of the changes. All of this is to say that Gunvolt 3 changing things up is not surprising on its own. Copen went on to star in his own spin-offs that further strayed from the established blueprint of the mainline series, with the sequel going as far as overhauling Copen drastically. Its sequel introduced Copen as a playable character, providing a different twist on the usual Gunvolt experience. The original game took a far different approach to action platforming than its inspiration. Gunvolt as a series never rests on its laurels. Instead, it offers something different, something surprising, and most importantly something that is satisfying in its own way.
It arguably doesn’t do what you might traditionally expect from a sequel at all. As a longtime fan, Gunvolt 3 does not cover every base I was hoping for it to. It chooses to move forward anyway, looking back only to further justify its advancement.
On some level, Gunvolt 3 appears to accept that. Change can bring good things and bad things – it rarely satisfies someone in every possible way. You’re a dog now.Īzure Striker Gunvolt 3 embraces that sudden, disorienting sense of change. When you wake up, decades have passed and you’re feeling a little off. You might be happy with how things are going let’s say, for example, you’ve had a successful career as an electricity-empowered superhuman who shoots guys with darts and zaps them. It comes whether you want it to or not, and often when you least expect it.
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