Video Game Vintage Title: Lost Planet 2

Lost Planet 2

Lost Planet 2 is a third-person shooter video game developed and published by Capcom. The game is the sequel to Lost Planet: Extreme Condition, taking place ten years after the events of the first game, on the same fictional planet. The game was developed for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows. Originally set to be released in early 2010, Capcom delayed the game's consoles release to May 11, 2010 in North America and Europe, May 13, 2010 in Australia and May 20, 2010 for Japan, and the Microsoft Windows version was released on October 12, 2010. As of February 2, 2011, Capcom has stated that the title has sold more than 1.5 million copies worldwide.

Lost Planet 2 Plot

The story takes place back on E.D.N. III 10 years after the events of the first game. The snow has melted to reveal deserts; and jungles have taken the place of more frozen regions. The plot begins with mercenaries fighting against jungle pirates. After destroying a mine, the mercenaries continue on to evacuate the area, in which a Category-G Akrid appears and attacks them. After being rescued, they find out their evacuation point (where the Category-G appeared) was a set-up and no pick up team awaited them.

The game then shifts to NEVEC's Black Ops, Task Force First Descent, who fight their way through a Carpetbagger city in an effort to capture a railway gun, a train mounted with a massive cannon. After failing to succeed, a "space Akrid" appears and begins to attack the group. After it is killed and the members evacuated, it is revealed they are clones of Ivan Solotov, a character from Lost Planet: Extreme Condition.

The story once again shifts, this time to Waysiders, snow pirates now living in the desert. They are returning from a raid on a carpetbagger city, apparently with heavy casualties and not much thermal energy. On the way back home, they are ambushed by a Category-G Akrid, dubbed "Red Eye". After loading the remaining thermal energy on a helicopter-like VS, they make their escape, only to be shot down by sandraiders. After stealing a train from the sandraiders, the group is ambushed by the Carpetbaggers on the railway gun. After seizing control of the gun, they are once again attacked by Red Eye, this time they are able to kill it though. As they continue towards their home, it starts snowing heavily, burying their home. The player 1 waysider notices a giant, glowing orb in the distance and declares "I'm so going to shoot the shit out of you!" and apparently fires at it.

The game shifts to two NEVEC people talking on a helicopter VS. The orb seen by the waysiders is declared "the Over G", and its increase in thermal energy use will trigger another ice age on E.D.N. III. NEVEC plans to kill it with the satellite known as NEOS. Once the thermal energy is harvested, they will abandon the planet. To prevent this genocide, most NEVEC ground troops defect. Two Ex-NEVEC characters are imprisoned by Carpetbaggers, but are freed by one who "Brought your friends here". More Ex-NEVEC troops rescue them and they make their way through the underground tunnels. They capture a NEVEC submarine and make their escape. Meeting up with all the other Ex-NEVEC troops, an invasion of a NEVEC base is planned. The base is captured and an experimental weapon created by NEVEC is destroyed. The group of player troops stowaway on a shuttle headed for the space station NEOS. The plan is to use its massive firepower to destroy the Over-G before it reaches its final form. The plot shifts quickly to the "Vagabundos". A group of sand pirates. They battle NEVEC troops, eventually capturing a massive cannon-bearing overland ship from NEVEC. They see the Over-G in the distance and decide to head there.

The plot shifts back to the Ex-NEVEC troops in the space shuttle. After capturing NEOS, they plan to control and aim the cannon on it using VSs, but the NEVEC Black Ops appears. The Ex-NEVEC commander assures his troops they can trust them. The Ex-NEVEC troops descend to the planet as a call is sent out to all snow pirates, asking for assistance in destroying the Over-G Akrid. After fighting to the core of the Over-G, the group tags their GPS units to it and NEOS is fired by the NEVEC Black Ops. The Over-G survives and begins to regenerate itself. Shooting frantically, the NEVEC Black Ops, (Task Force First Descent), decide to sacrifice themselves by crashing NEOS into the Over-G. As NEOS gets closer, Akrid flock to the Over-G and the units outside the core begin to retreat. The Ex-NEVEC characters and the characters present for the final fight are rescued by the Mercenaries from the beginning of the game. After awaking in darkness, Thermal Energy appears to not work, but as the sun comes up a sea of thermal energy is seen and all the VSs activate. NEOS can be seen in the distance as a mountain, showing where the Over-G once was. The game ends as the Mercenaries and Ex-NEVEC troops fly off in a helicopter VS and a Trillid-like akrid flies whimsically alongside them.

Lost Planet 2 Gameplay

Many gameplay features from the original Lost Planet game are present. Recurring elements include major boss battles, extreme terrain, and the ability to pilot mechanized armor suits, known as Vital Suits (VSs). On July 24, 2009, at Comic-Con 2009, producer Jun Takeuchi held a Q&A session for fans. Takeuchi revealed that there would be a lot more co-op based VSs. Players will be able to ride on the sides of some VSs. These VSs can be controlled by one player, while two others hang on by the sides and shoot. Takeuchi also revealed that there would be flying VSs which feature unlimited flying time.

Also unlike Lost Planet, Lost Planet 2 will not constantly drain players of thermal energy. This is due to the warmer climate, which can sustain T-ENG presence longer than a cold climate, which drains thermal energy bit by bit. Instead, energy can only be drained when the player pilots a VS and uses a weapon that requires energy. However thermal energy is still constantly lost unless a specific ability is equipped despite the 'warmer climate'. The character may also lose thermal energy by completing one entire sprint with a character (confirmed in the demo). If one player loses all their energy, another can give them some of their energy, using a new weapon, to keep players alive.

Kenji Orguro and Jun Takeuchi announced that the game would reward players with experience points. Players will earn more points for playing in a unique manner and completing extra objectives in missions. Once the game has been beaten on any difficulty, players are allowed to use this character for the campaign. These points can then be used to unlock costumes and attachments for the player to customize their Pirate.

Reception
Lost Planet 2 received mixed reviews. Aggregating review websites GameRankings and Metacritic gave the PlayStation 3 version 70.06% and 68/100, the Xbox 360 version 67.95% and 68/100 and the PC version 59.10% and 63/100.

GamePro awarded the game 3/5, concluding that "Lost Planet 2 features an enjoyable multiplayer component and interesting monster designs, but it isn't enough to overcome its many faults. Gamers who enjoyed playing the original title online will find reasons to play it, but it's a disappointing title that doesn't live up to its potential."

GameSpot gave it 5.5/10 and took a similar view on the frustrations of the game, stating: "This sci-fi sequel seems like it should have everything you need in a shooter, but a shocking number of design missteps suck out much of the fun." Although, they later released a second review for the PC release which received a 7/10. The review explains the differences and tweaks made to make the game more tolerable and much more graphically advanced than the console installment.

IGN gave the game a 6/10 stating that "If you've burned through other multiplayer or co-op options, then there might be something for you in Lost Planet 2. The single-player campaign is lengthy at around 14 hours with full co-op support and the multiplayer has plenty of maps and modes. Just do yourself a favor: buy some insurance for the controller you'll invariably throw across the room at one of Lost Planet 2's seemingly endless design and interface issues."