Following in the wake of one of my favorite and overlooked console strategy games comes Vandal Hearts 2. Although the success of Vandal Hearts was minimal, Konami tried to give the game another chance with its sequel titled Heavenly Gate. Although many recognize Final Fantasy Tactics as the best strategy RPG to date, my heart stays with the Vandal Hearts series. FF Tactics offered you many skills, techniques, and classes to master but in my opinion the many options eventually become a chore and bog down the pace of the story. Some may think that the emphasis in this type of game is only on the battles, but there is also a heavy emphasis on the story, and I feel Tactics was lacking in that area. Vandal Hearts, although following a similar story of politics, religion, corruption and demonic forces, is not bogged down by tedious micro management. There are still many options and secrets to unlock in Vandal Hearts 2 as well as an average of 30 hours of Gameplay.

The time is 986; a time of political strife and upheaval. The death of a King by his Queen leads the land of Natra into tyranny. With the death of King Lagore, Queen Agatha and Cardinal Ladorak obtain power and place a puppet king on the throne. Ruling by tyranny and murder they suppress the people of Natra and gain absolute power over the country. The game begins with a town being plundered, and the citizens massacred by an elite guard known as the Blood Knights, the henchman of Cardinal Ladorak. They mercilessly butcher the denizens of the town and their leader, Jacob, explains that the town is to be an example. I truly think that in this scene Konami describes the tyranny of Ladorak very explicitly as the people are massacred, helplessly. So begins the story of a young boy who believes he is destined by fate to be a peasant and a farmer all his life. Living a simple life as an orphan adopted by the mayor of Polata village, he assumed that his life would never change. One day the fate of this boy would change forever by the influence of one man, a mysterious knight known as Nicola. From then on the boy loses his identity, his love, and his friends for that of a life of a wanderer and bandit. Little did he know that once again fate would dictate his course in a new direction.

The flow of the story glides smoothly from battle to battle, as pieces of the puzzle unfold every time you win. As far as presentation and graphics go, the game doesn't expand too much over the first title. Konami tried to create new portraits for each character reflecting real people rather then cartoony characters. Although maybe not the best idea, I feel that these portraits give a little more of a realistic feel. The graphics do not push the Playstation to its limits but I do think that it is an improvement over the prequel as well as FF Tactics, and Tactics Ogre. The new magic system looks stunning, with new magical effects, lighting, and animations. Each suit of armor and weapon has its own look, unlike Vandal Hearts 1 where each character had one look for each class. Though in Vandal Hearts 2, characters of the same class will look alike, I still prefer this to the previous game. Like I said, though this game may not be pushing the Playstation to its limits, it creates a familiar feel, almost like an extension of the first title.

Konami expands on its Vandal Hearts battle system by introducing a new system called the "Dual Turn System." No longer do you plan what your units will do and then wait for the computer to move their units, now both the human players and the computer AI move at the same time. It is very simple, when you move a unit or take an action, a split screen will open and show you what the computer is doing at the same time. With this new battle system, vantage points, positioning and direction become critical. You can literally fight a whole battle without getting hit if you move and position your units correctly. Although this is very hard it can be done, and it makes it a superior battle system than any before it. Skills in Vandal hearts are learned from the many different types of weapons that you can buy or find, as well as shields and accessories. By equipping a weapon, shield or accessory, any skill that is inscribed in the weapon will be automatically learned as you fight in battle. You can then later transfer skills from one weapon to another weapon of the same type. Magic is learned in the same way, using staves, which contain a magic spell that can later be transferred to a new and better staff. Magic consists of the basic spells, healing, fire, lightening, wind, and other defensive spells.

Following in the tradition of Tactics Ogre and FF tactics, you gain hp from the different types of armors or shields that you equip. Like in FF tactics you can choose which class your characters are, but there are fewer classes to choose from. The skills inherited from the 120 weapons and armor, though, I think will keep you busy long enough to sate your appetites, if not, then the intriguing story and political scandal should keep you entertained for a time.

The music in the game may not be the best but it is superbly done and fully orchestrated. It plays a role in the telling of the story by emphasizing the emotions of the characters and also the battle atmospheres. On the other hand I find the sound affects to be repetitive and somewhat annoying once you have heard them a few times. Over all, though, I find the music to be a pleasure to listen to. It is relaxing and flows along smoothly with the game.

The Vandal Hearts series has been my favorite because I find them to be entertaining with enough action and customization to keep the game interesting without a hassle. There are a good amount of secrets to be found and the game can be easily learned by the casual gamer and still be of a moderate enough difficulty for the hardcore gamer. The menus and battle options can be learned with relative ease. Transferring of skills, items, and equipment can all be done quickly and efficiently enough to suit your needs. The only clear downsides to the game are that if your main hero dies in a battle you must restart the battle and you cannot save midbattle. This may become an annoyance, but usually the next time you play a battle it is easier since you have a good idea of what the enemy will do and what types of spells they have. Also a new feature in this sequel is the ability to go back to a previous battle and fight monsters for experience and money. This idea had all ready been implemented in FF Tactics but they were random battles and were required to gain all the skills. In Vandal Hearts 2 you have the choice of fighting a non-important battle, it isn't required and it isn't random.

"I would describe Vandal Hearts 2 as all the fun of FF tactics, without the hassle of micro management. A game that expands on the original in size, depth, and intrigue, and in my opinion a masterpiece in its own way."