Graphically Fuzion Frenzy 2 has the same theme as the rest of the game; it is an upgraded version of the original Xbox title. The character models are all different (in look and color) and are visually pleasing. Each planet has its own graphical look but I only wish there had been more environments, as playing different mini-games in one of five locations can get old really fast. Other effects such as explosions and lighting look really good in HD and add to the game’s overall fun factor. Graphics have never been an important part of this genre but it is nice to see that the developers took some time to make FF2 look good. There is nothing graphically about the game that will make you call over your buddies to show off the power of the 360 but on the flip side of the coin there is nothing all that bad either, it’s just average compared to other titles out there.
The audio portion of FF2 on the other hand is all bad and no good. With an announcer who’s voice reminds me of nails on a chalk board and a musical soundtrack that could be mistaken for a three-year old banging on a electronic piano (while taking some sort of rave narcotic) I recommend you mute the audio as soon as you boot up the game. The voice acting will remind anyone over the age of 20 of the old Godzilla movies because it looks like a bad day of Ashlee Simpson lip-synching. Because this is a party game I did not let the audio downfalls effect the amount of fun I had playing FF2, quickly muting the in-game audio and pumping up some nice techno music solved the problem. You will not miss anything important by drowning out the annoying play-by-play comments of the quirky announcer.
If you decide to throw down the $49.99 for Fuzion Frenzy 2 you will get an average game, with average features, that look and feels average but is ultimately one hell of a fun game to play. With 43 mini-games it includes enough substance to warrant a purchase, especially if you like the “party game” genre. While the offline modes may lack in terms of a single-player experience, games like FF2 really succeed because they are fun to play with other people. After I overlooked the few negatives that the game offers I found myself having a lot of fun playing through the mini-games with my friends here at the house or against strangers over Xbox Live. If you are a fan of the series this is an easy purchase but if you have never heard of Fuzion Frenzy before today I suggest you at least download the demo on the Xbox Live Marketplace and see what you think. Even though Fuzion Frenzy 2 is not everything I was looking for in a sequel it gave me hope of what a game of this genre can feel like on a next-generation gaming console and I look forward to another installment in the series. At the end of the day Fuzion Frenzy 2 is the only game of its type on the Xbox 360, and so for that reason alone it scores points with me. Give it a try, I don’t think you will regret it.
