If you’re already a fan of the Gal*Gun series then you’ll likely have a pretty firm idea of what this game is all about; if you’re not, you’ll still probably have a pretty good idea based on the screenshots and artwork currently covering this page. Gal*Gun 2 is actually the fourth entry in this fantasy, over-the-top world, with a VR game being the last instalment on PC and smart devices less than a year ago, and Gal*Gun Double Piece appearing on consoles the year before that.
As you might expect, this game follows in the scantily-clad footsteps of its predecessors. You play the role of a bored schoolboy who finds a mysterious app on his phone which cannot be deleted. Opening this app makes an angel appear who presents you with a VR-looking headset and a magical hairdryer of sorts, before telling you that you have been summoned by the Angel Ring Company to help fight poor schoolgirls who have been possessed by demons.
All of this results in an on-rails shooter where you’ll be fighting off swarms of schoolgirls who are entirely infatuated with you - an “unfortunate” side effect of wearing the headset. You’ll be firing shots at the girls as they appear with your Demon Sweeper (or magical hairdryer), with special point bonuses being given for hitting them in (ahem) certain body areas as you try to make your way through to the end of each level. These critical hit areas give the girls “Euphoria”, and can result in a much quicker overall performance as they need fewer hits to be taken down.
You’ll sometimes notice small demons that are physically attached to the girls, usually peering over their shoulder or on their head. These girls are much stronger, and are therefore much more capable of killing you with kisses and brutal slaps of their love letters, so you need to aim at the demons first, knocking them away from their host. From there, you’ll need to suck the demons up Luigi’s Mansion-style; the overall aim of the game is to hit a quota of demons over a set time period and you are graded on your demon-catching skills at the end of each round.
Aside from that, there isn’t really much else going on in the main game levels. Each one is an extremely similar affair: shoot some girls for a bit; move position by shooting a silhouette of yourself further down the scene; shoot some more girls, and then suck up their demons; and eventually reach the end. There is a zooming option that can help you to hit any girls that are too far away, and you can also make use of motion controls to aid your fire, but you’ll always be performing the same moves and will essentially be doing the same routine over and over.
The game is structured through the use of your in-game mobile phone, which acts as a sort of base hub of operations. It is from here that you’ll be entering each level and choosing between the main story levels or side quests that appear throughout. The side quests are essentially pleas for help from various female students; you’ll head to a certain location, help them with their problem, and receive a bunch of chocolate and their phone number as a result. The good thing here is that these missions sometimes offer different styles of gameplay.
Instead of the identical-feeling on-rails levels from the main story, these quests can task you with different objectives such as defending girls from oncoming waves of demons, or locating objects dotted around a scene while trying to avoid being spotted by your adoring demon fans. We actually found these levels to be a real challenge, and usually came off a little worse for wear – a complete opposite to the mind-numbing simplicity of the main game.
Your phone also allows you to organise meet-ups with any girl whose number you’ve acquired, seeing them turn up in the showers, the gym, a classroom, or even eventually your home. Here you can simply have a chat, feed them chocolate and other sweets as if they’re your favourite pet, and take part in massages that they don’t seem to be all that happy with. You can also change the appearance of the students and teachers that roam the school to your liking, selecting certain outfits for their uniform, gym wear, and more.
Visually the game is pretty average. Character models might provide certain levels of enjoyment for reasons that we don’t need to explicitly mention here, but on the whole the aesthetic is simply there to get the job done. This is something that actually appears to be consistent throughout every part of the game; everything works as you’d expect, but no aspect of the title feels like it hits the standards you’d want from a full retail release.
Of course, the Gal*Gun games are targeted towards a very specific audience and, if you fall into that category, the girls and fantasy plot line might be enough to persuade you to give it a go. Looking at it purely from a gameplay point-of-view, however, leaves an awful lot to be desired. Unfortunately, Gal*Gun 2 feels more like an excuse to live out a visual fantasy than a video game, and while that can work well in some cases, the activities offered here could work just as well in a much cheaper mobile experience. The asking price is simply too much for what you get in return.
Conclusion
Gal*Gun 2 offers an on-rails shooter experience that gets very familiar and repetitive far too quickly, without ever really providing enough content to keep you hooked. The pure fantasy element of the scenarios at hand is certainly the selling point, but the gameplay that surrounds it isn’t strong enough to justify a purchase. If you’re a fan of the series’ earlier titles, or if the art and plot appeal to your tastes, you’ll likely get something from the game, but anyone looking for great gaming action will likely be pretty disappointed.
Comments 88
... where did we all go so very , very wrong?
@Shiryu I fail to see where anyone went wrong here?
As far as on-rails shooters go, this looks better than Star Fox Zero.
I can't agree with this one, personally. I put a good 30 hours into the game and very much enjoyed myself throughout.
I'll just repost my PS comment:
"Bah.
Probably my most anticipated game of 2018. Double Peace was a blast, and I expect Gal Gun 2 to be the same. I'm excited for the longer campaign, more open structure, multiple endings, score chasing, etc."
Also, why no mention of the multiple endings, different modes, etc.? It's almost like you guys played as little of this as possible to complete your review.
@JHDK If it's as good as Double Peace, then it absolutely is better than SFZ, insofar as that game was far more enjoyable to control and had a ton of replay value, but it doesn't get the 2 or 3 star bonus in the score for featuring Nintendo characters.
Boobs. 10/10
I'd like a non pervy light gun game. Wheres Time Crisis, HotD, hell Mad Dog Mcree? We have the joy cons. Let's do this.
@Shiryu Ask people who never had any intention of playing this, but still talk [removed] about the game.
Not played 2 yet, but Double Peace was very fun.
So I'm looking forward to play it. Gonna buy it ASAP I find it in a Norwegian store.
The perfect bathroom game?
@tobibra Oh don't make any mistake, I will surely pick it up anyway. I am just sad to see that it delivers so very little gameplay wise.
@Shiryu Good to hear ^_^
Hope you end up liking it. And hopefully the writing is as funny as Double Peace.
@Shiryu They're fun rail shooters with cute characters, great humor, traditional gameplay, and multiple endings and scoring to encourage multiple playthroughs. You'll either like that sort of experience or you won't.
PushSquare gave it a 3. What ever happened to Sin and Punishment 🤔
I saw the reviews on the 1st game and thought I give this one a miss too,seems like i wasn't wrong. I remember another pervy game called dead or alive beach volleyball and i was quite looking forward to that hoping it could be virtual tennis with boobs or something sadly not though lol. I think the dating aspect of that game was ok and maybe it was a bit underrated like this one maybe. But still both games are not worth my time bad news!. Still more than likely picking up donkey kong early may though.
I am thoroughly appalled. This is disgusting, abhorrent and has no place on the Switch eShop and I would be extremely ashamed to have this on my console. Do the devs have no shame?!
How could they release a shooter that runs in 30FPS?!
Outrageous.
@tobibra I fist knew of this game from watching Game Grumps play it. I am trying to get the most comprehensive Switch collection possible, so I can't really skip on such a 'unique' game.
@Ralizah Time will tell.
Let's be real here. This is a game targeted at a VERY niche audience. It's not intended to appeal to anyone outside of that core group. I am not gonna say that means it deserves a higher score, but it is something you should consider before you jump to conclusions. If this isn't your kind of game, then just don't play it. But leave the people who like it alone. It's harmless fun.
@PhilKenSebben I'd drop so much money for time crisis on the Switch.
I find it kinda funny how my experience with the game is pretty much the opposite of the reviewer. I found myself getting a little bored of the defend levels after a while as they were a bit too easy and repetitive but it was the standard stages that I found to be really fun and replayable. Clearing them is simple and easy enough but as I improved at the game, I found myself aiming at scoring as many points as I could, which actually made it pretty challenging and a lot of fun. The motion aiming came in real handy, works really well.
@SmaggTheSmug Limitations of the platform. It runs at 60fps on the PS4, so if that's important to you, you might want to nab it there.
I have no problem with 30fps as long as it's not janky, and I've heard it's pretty stable for this game, so I don't expect it to be a problem.
@Ralizah Yeah, the frame rate is fine. I don't really care if a game is 30fps or 60fps because I can never really tell the difference anyway, as long as it's steady. And I've never noticed any dips or anything in my time with Gal*Gun 2 on the Switch. I've mostly played in handheld mode, it's been a great way to pass the time on my train rides.
Looks like garbage
@BenAV I mean, I'd uncategorically prefer 60fps, but I realize that performance is going to be reduced in these PS4 ports, which is usually worth it for the portability. A solid 30fps is perfectly playable and enjoyable, despite how people act nowadays.
Removed - offensive remarks
Yeah I think I'll pass....
-But it's good news for those that like this sort of thing! This game seems like a sign that the Switch could become the Vita's successor where we see lots of Indies and random Japanese games appearing on the eShop. Those games will need a new home anyway as the Vita gets fewer and fewer releases.
Sounds about right.
Bought the special edition of its predecessor; “cleaning cloth” and all during my period of buying every Japanese style game’s collectors editio. And still haven’t played it. Probably will skip the LE of this and give the original a go then decide if this one is worth it.
@Ralizah Yeah that's fair. My eyes are probably just really bad or something but for whatever reason I've never really been able to tell a game's frame rate or its resolution so I'm definitely happy to make the compromise for the sake of portability.
Everything about this game is so wrong and awkward, and I would be embarrassed to even be reading this article in public....and yet, one can't help but smile at the absurdity of it all.
@BenAV Some people are more sensitive to framerate than others. I notice it, but anyone who acts like a stable 30fps is unplayable or some massive compromise is ridiculous, imo.
I'm MUCH less sensitive to resolution issues. I only notice when it goes sub-HD on an HD display. Xenoblade 2 in handheld mode is a particularly extreme example of this.
@JHDK bold claim...
@JHDK Not even funny. Even with a lack of modes and control options Zero blows this paper thin game out of the water
@Kalmaro So much money. I have zero things against this game, just not for me. I much prefer the titles I named. I keep my pervy stuff to video.
@Ralizah Yeah who needs Smash Bros or RDR2 when you've got this game 😂
I played the first one, as far gameplay goes it's average, the appeal of the game is clearly something else. It's the "you either hate it or love it" type of game.
Not my cup of tea to be honest, i rather spend these $60 somewhere else.
It would be cool, if there were some kind of controller with which you could aim independently with your right or left hand via motion control (kinda like a gun). Sadly, this isn't possible in Switch the handheld.😢
@HammerKirby ...I'll be honest. You lost me. What does this have to do with Smash or RDR2?
Your head-shot skills in first person shooter don't applied here, you need to aim lower for boob-shot.
Just looking at the gameplay for this game,it looks like it'll get repetitive after a few minutes.Or after you see all the generic school girls fall for you.
I think I'll give this a try. Looks like a lot of fun, though I do agree I would think it'd get repetitive unless there's more to the game. If this were released last year I don't think I'd get it. There was a great game released every month. Now, there doesn't seem to be too much coming out that I'm interested in so I'll give it a try.
You can't get more Japanese than this!
>_>'
i have noticed a trend on this site: everytime a game comes out that is pure fun (even brainless fun), like in the good old days of the Arcades, it gets poor reviews! this has totally ruined the gaming industry as a whole. video games were invented in order to be FUN! nowadays the mega nerds who run the internet and making the reviews continue to hammer video games if they are fun! mega nerds only allow games to be a substitute for their lack of personal life. take for example this nerd who hammered Gal Gun over here, he probably never had a girlfriend so what he expects from a video game is some 50+ hours of complicated gameplay that it is not fun but heck.. "since i can never find a girlfriend i want something else complicated in my life"! no you mega nerd, this is not what video games are all about! at least not back in the good old days when video games were meant to be played by cool people not the failures of personal life. jesus christ sorry for the long comment but this has to stop! i even remember on this site the review of the NeoGeo classic Burning Fight who scored 3 out of 10!!!!!!!!!!! yes one of the most fun arcade games ever, was crushed by these nerds because they don't even know what fun is!!!
@Snaplocket I stand by what I've said. The problem is that rail shooters are supposed to be fun and simple to control, and SFZ messes that up right from the start with its multiple viewpoints and weird control scheme.
@Snaplocket #opinions
I think it is worth $60. But I like the genre and the aesthetic of the game. I'll play it multiple times over, so I'll be getting my money's worth out of it.
@thermosufwnas4 Wow, it's almost as if you actually know me personally. Thanks for sharing your happiness with the world.
@Ralizah
If Splatoon 2, Mario Kart 8, Arms and Super Mario Odyssee can run at 60fps, this game could easily run at the same framerate on the Switch.😆
It's so hard to believe that the same devs behin Megaman Zero, Azure Striker Gunvolt, and Blaster Master Zero made this series.
@thermosufwnas4 I think you might be projecting a little there.
Cant wait to play on the commute with the volume up full!!
I would give it a 7/10 but that is blind rating. Who knows I may rate it higher.
I'll buy almost anything from Inti Creates but I'll have to pass on this one. I still have Striker Pack, Mighty Gunvolt Burst and Blaster Master Zero DLC to tide me over until Dragon: Marked for Death, Bloodstained: RotN and the inevitable Mega Man X9 from Inti Creates. If I say it over and over it will happen right?
@Shiryu
for me personally it started in 1979
@BenAV
This game has motion aiming?
Ok, I'm taking a risk after hearing @Ralizah rave about it for months. If I don't like it, oh well. Wouldn't be the first time, and I thrive on trying new experiences. It's what gaming is all about, for me.
But the motion aiming seals the deal. I've heard too many people talk highly of this game to ignore it.
@ogo79 Close enough for me...
@Shiryu
I play games on all platforms but it still surprises me that if such game comes to a Nintendo system, people call it "perv" or "bad" even if it's okay purely because it's japanese.
Sigh, reminds me of Senran Kagura 2 for 3ds which was a better game than this but some Nintendo users kept calling it bad and perv purely because it's japanese.
(sometimes I feel like a strange example of loving Nintendo and Japanese games)
Heck, I've seen people complain about Atelier and Attack on Titan being perv on the switch...
@Ralizah You said this game was your most anticipated game of the year which I just thought was funny.
@thermosufwnas4 Yes, this what cool people play, a Fan Service game about giving High School Girls Euphoria. The failures play Open World games
@JaxonH Great! Be sure to post your impressions. Everything I've heard about this game points to it being better than Double Peace (which was shorter and more of a pure arcade game), so I'm expecting to love it.
And yeah, I'm really loving how motion controls are becoming the go-to standard for shooters on the Switch. So much better than pure dual analog.
@HammerKirby Ah, I see.
It's not my only anticipated game this year, though. Although, if I'm being honest, I'm not hugely jazzed about RDR2. I might still nab it (the first one was decent), but there are more exciting games releasing this year.
Like Valkyria Chronicles 4. And Octopath Traveler. And this.
Verdict is still out on Smash. We don't know enough about it yet.
@JaxonH The default settings have motion aiming only when you zoom in but you can change it in the settings so that it's always active. I did that at first but actually didn't really like how it felt so changed it back. It's different to the aiming in something like Splatoon because you can't aim with both the stick and the motion at the same time. If you start moving the stick around then the motion controls get disabled till you stop. But having motion aiming when I zoom in felt really good and natural when I got used to it. I'd use the stick to aim around the room and get near my target then I'd zoom in and use motion to line up my shot precisely. It feels really good, can aim very quickly and accurately without looking like a crazy person swinging my Switch around the train.
@HammerKirby @Ralizah Certainly nothing wrong with anticipating Gal*Gun 2. It's the second most amount of fun I've had with a game so far this year, behind only the masterpiece which is Celeste.
No thanks to these weird anime games.
why is it that weird and bad anime game reviews always draw out a hundred nerds to Defend The Honor Of The Game Where You Look Up Girls Clothes
I imported the Japanese copy which has full english language support and I have absolutely enjoyed this game. It's easly a 7/8. The levels can feature alternate paths at times, as well as many hidden objects/power ups through-out. It really keeps you looking around to find all you can for the best run. The game is a vast improvement over Double Peace as the bunch of new side missions really add lots of variety to the game that just wasn't there before. There's also multiple endings and unlockable costumes as well.
The game is awesome, if anything I feel NL gave it a low score because rail shooters are a dying breed. Rail shooters themselves seem to be a dying breed perhaps because they're not as mainstream these days. But this game works plays very smooth, just as good as House of the Dead or Virtua Cop. The Gyro option while zooming gives amazing mouse like control that really makes up for the lack of a 'light gun' like was common back in the CRT Televesion days.
If the cute aesthetics doesn't turn you off it's definitely worth playing.
@BenAV Yeah, sticks for rough aiming and gyro close aiming is definitely the way I'll be playing it. It's too bad the sticks disable the pure gyro option, though, as you could use both sticks and full gyro at the same time in DOOM and it worked out well. But I expect zoomed-in motion aiming to work nicely as well.
@Ralizah Double Peace was alright imo, but only for $10 I spent on it during a PSN sale, but to each their own I guess. Yeah Smash and RDR don't have very much info at the moment so I could understand hype hesitation.
@myMaudlinCareer because a lot of times people that don't like anime games review them and give the game (almost always) a bad score.
Let me review a FPS game and 9 ou of 10 times I give it 2 out of 10 at most because I don't like them.
Average? Really NintendoLife? This game deserves at least an 8!
The Puritan-ism of some of the commentariat here is truly depressing.
Why don't y'all go flip on the Disney channel for 10 minutes and see how they present underage & "barely legal" girls, then get back to me about how "pervy" and "only in Japan" this game is.
Jeez.
This game is made for a very specific kind of person.
@Rayquaza2510 The problem with having anime fans review games like this and JRPG's is how they tend to highly overrate them for everyone who isn't really big on anime. I mean it's great if you love something, but reviews are meant to work as advice for everyone, not just people who happen to be a fan of something.
@JoakimZ They're not even women, they're high school girls.
I'm not the guy to get offended by this kind of thing, but you won't ever see me play it either.
@JayJ Yeah, that reminds me a page called Digitally download; they give almost every random anime game, especially from Koei Tecmo, a 5/5, but they are far more critical with other games, they even gave Doom a 2.5/5.
still getting it and supporting any rated m game for switch.
I’m always happy when drivel like this is shown up for the mediocre, demeaning, puerile wreck that it is. It still works for its target audience but at least they can’t try to hide behind the “it’s actually a good game with an meaningful narrative excuse”. If you are a perv, own it...so others know to avoid you.
Didn't think this was for me and "brutal slaps of their love letters" both confirmed it and intrigued me!
Would definitely like to see more shooters on here eg point blank, crossbow training etc.
@Ryu_Niiyama Wow, harsh. I actually do enjoy the gameplay, as simple as it is, because it's an "easy to beat, difficult to master" sort of game, as are most rail shooters. I also enjoy the cute characters, often extremely funny dialogue, side missions, colorful aesthetic, etc. I don't know that it's any more fair or accurate to portray people who play games like this as perverts than it is to portray people who play games like DOOM, GTA, etc. as budding mass murderers.
@Shiryu By comprehensive, do you mean every Switch game, or just a lot from different generes? Good luck with your collection
@Ralizah I totally agree with your last comment. (#87)
@tobibra Nope, just the ones I think will better define the Switch wide appeal. So the very best of the best and the very best of niche.
@Ralizah Shrugs. I stand by my comment.
@Oscarzxn I still don't fully believe Digitally Downloaded isn't a satirical publication. Take their review of this game, for example. Now, I expect to enjoy this game, but when I see a 9/10 review on their website that talks about it in relation to transgressive art and Georges Bataille, I HAVE to assume they're trying to be funny. And the same is true for a lot of the material on their website.
@tobibra I get people being uncomfortable with games like this, but if we're going to start judging people based on the content of the media they consume, we're all going to be poorer for it.
Never really been sold on this series. I like rail shooters, but not enough to go for one as silly as this, especially without an interesting gameplay hook.
Still a better love story than Star Fox Zero. It's a fine game, just don't expect a game that centers on actual fun innovative gameplay, but one that centers on exactly what they advertise: A bishoujo rail shooter with massive replayability. 70+ girls with each their own ending, a system that puts emphasis on choosing your route, meaning you have to replay it to experience it all, and the return of the doki-doki mode which people seemed to enjoy in the first game.
It's obviously focused on fanservice and harem elements, so expecting it to do something new or forgo repetitivity just shows completely unrealistic expectations.
TL;DR Decent game, get it if you're into harem branching-route games with rail shooter elements that put emphasis on replayability.
Never change, Japan.
@Shiryu I got Gal*Gun 2 today ^_^
And I aplogize to you or whoever removed that word from my first comment in this review, I did not think it was bad enough to be removed when I posted it. Sorry for that.
@tobibra I am not a mod here, but we appreciate your apology.
“Bare-bones” You guys are extremely clever.
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