GunWorld 2 Review

GunWorld 2 Xbox One Review Screenshot 1

The sequel you didn’t want, to a game you hated apparently. The developer m07games certainly has a sense of humour alongside his positive outlook on life. Upon first loading, you will be greeted with a message, but I wont spoil that for you. Needless to say, this one man developer is a man of positive attitude. So much so, he has treated us to a Gun World sequel. I think he’ right you know, I never asked for this.

So what is Gun World 2 exactly? Gun World is an awesome planet where guns literally grow on trees. Personally, I would prefer to live on Money World, or Rum World. But each to their own I guess. The Exaction Faction are here to invade, as the planet of Gun World is so awesome, and too powerful for its own good. This begins the search for our hero, Dwayne, who has departed into a self inflicted exile. So who better than a talking Eagle to set out and find him. Seriously, this is what happens. Don’t believe me? Then buy the game and see for yourself. Going back to Dwayne, he looks like a stereotypical Africa/American from the 1970’s pimp scene. That pink is a strong colour, and it takes not only a brave, but a badass guy to pull that look off.

The premise of Gun World 2 is to set out with our awesome protagonist, and take down each and every colourful villain of the Exaction Faction. One very cool point to note, is that games from the 8 bit era, such as Zelda, with the world map being reminiscent of Zelda’s top down view, and Mega Man, with the brightly coloured boss characters, with each owning a unique weapon. The music also of the 8 bit era, is a high point and gives a nod to these games, with it’s own unique style.

GunWorld 2 Xbox One Review Screenshot 2

The game is as simple as you would expect, given that it is attempting to hark back to the NES gaming days, and at the same time, borrowing from these games heavily. But Gun World still remains its own funny and unique title. Well, the text based interactions are filled with some amusing and pun filled moments. This is also a double sided coin however, as aside from the text interaction that guides you to the first 2 locations of the Exaction Faction members, you get little help from there on in. Which if you don’t figure it out straight away, you will be wondering around a mostly empty and small world, wondering what on earth you have to do next to progress. There are a few locations you can go to, but with little to do and a game world that also has little on offer, you get the feeling that maybe the game isn’t even finished. But given this is a one man effort, it feels wrong to be harsh about it.

Gun World 2 is unashamedly hard. You will have to replay certain sections of some levels, many times to time jumps and movements through the levels. You start of with 3 hearts of health, and once they are gone, back to the level start you go. It sounds unfair to younger gamers, but back in the day, this was quite the norm. It forces you to improve your game, and train to get better. Each level is in 2 parts, which does give you a checkpoint. So all is not lost. Once you reach the end boss, you get another checkpoint, which is a god send, as you have far less health to take them down. Practice makes perfect though right? A lot of practice is needed to be honest, and lesser gamers, or those who this game does not appeal too, may find they just don’t feel it for Gun World.

The whole package is a mixed bag. There are some great moments within the game, such as the music, and some moments that make you want to turn the game off. Such as being hit by an enemy and knocked off a platform, more times than you would care to count. The control layout is a bizarre one to say the least, X button to shoot, Y to use your highly ineffective sword and RT to slide? Really? It takes some getting used to for sure, and even then it just feels uncomfortable and completely wrong.A big put off moment for most people. Some may like it, but it is certainly not for me.

GunWorld 2 Xbox One Review Screenshot 3

Just who would benefit from making a purchase? Speed runs could be a popular target for those who are good enough. You get your normal story mode, old school, which makes the games parameters even tougher to complete. Then comes level rush. Now this is for those who like more than “just a challenge”, and then some. You get 8 randomly chosen level segments, along with a boss fight, which you must complete in just a single life to claim victory. I gave this a try and failed miserably. More than once just to make sure.

You will have to unlock everything in game to be able to purchase it for use. So be prepared to grind out a lot of coins to be able to make payments for your chosen item. On a downside, you lose 2000 coins should you get killed during the game. So at times you will feel like that you are skating up a hill in your pursuit of more coins. This can become boring as the is so few locations within the game, causing you to think that you should have spent your money elsewhere. Sadly, it’s not quite there to fully recommend to those with some 8 bit gaming urges to satisfy, as the negative points outweigh the good. But that is not to say it is plain awful. Gun World 2 does have a certain charm about it, and the music is just fantastic.

To finish off, it is slightly above average, and has a niche all of its own. A very small one too. I would suggest that a purchase during a sale if you are considering venturing forth into Gun World 2. It just wants to be accepted for its existence, and whether or not it is, will be up to people like you making that purchase and interpretation of the package before you.

Rating 6

REVIEW CODE: A complimentary Microsoft Xbox One code was provided to Brash Games for this review. Please send all review code enquiries to editor@brashgames.co.uk.

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