Virtua Cop 2

Last updated
Virtua Cop 2
Virtuacop2.jpg
Developer(s) Sega AM2
Publisher(s) Sega
Director(s) Wataru Kawashima
Producer(s) Yu Suzuki
Programmer(s) Shunsuke Sekikawa
Artist(s) Akihito Hiroyoshi
Composer(s) Hideaki Miyamoto
Platform(s) Arcade, Saturn, Windows, Dreamcast, PlayStation 2
Release
September 1995
  • Arcade
    Saturn
    • JP/NA: November 22, 1996 [4]
    • EU: November 28, 1996
    Microsoft Windows
    • NA: November 24, 1997 [5]
    • EU: 1997
    • JP: December 5, 1997
    Dreamcast
    • JP: March 2, 2000
    PlayStation 2
    • JP: August 25, 2002
    • EU: November 29, 2002
Genre(s) Light gun shooter
Rail shooter
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer
Arcade system Sega Model 2 [6]

Virtua Cop 2 is a light gun shooter arcade game, released in 1995 and developed internally at Sega by their AM2 studio. It was ported to the Sega Saturn in 1996, PC in 1997, and Sega Dreamcast in 2000. It was bundled with Virtua Cop in Virtua Cop: Elite Edition for PlayStation 2 in 2002.

Contents

This game was known as Virtua Squad 2 for the North American PC release.

The game was succeeded by Virtua Cop 3 .

Gameplay

The game features three levels through which the player's movement is automated on a predetermined path. However, unlike the first Virtua Cop, at certain points the player picks their route from two possible choices. [7] It is the player's job to shoot the criminals that appear before time runs out and they shoot back, while taking care not to shoot any innocent bystanders. Along the way there are various objects in the background that can be broken if shot, some of which will reveal power ups afterwards. [8] As with the first Virtua Cop, players earn extra points for "justice shots", meaning shooting an enemy's gun hand to disarm them without killing them. [9] By consistently defeating enemies without taking hits or shooting hostages, the player increases the multiplier which is applied every time they earn points. [10] At the end of each level there is a boss battle, as well as one extra final boss battle after all three levels have been finished.

A combat training simulator, the "Proving Ground", simulates a variety of life-threatening situations. Each Proving Ground stage is designed to simulate a hostile urban environment thronging with enemies. The goal of each stage is to blast through the crowd of thugs while hunting down and taking out the rival player.

Characters

Normally, Rage is the character for Player 1 in the beginner and expert stages and Smarty in the medium stage, but a cheat code in the Saturn version allows Player 1 to play as Janet, who is normally Player 2 in the beginner and medium stages [11]

Plot

Michael "Rage" Hardy and James "Smarty" Cools shut down the E.V.I.L Inc. criminal empire. Three of its leaders, King, Boss, and Kong are all in the maximum security federal pen. The final, fourth member of the E.V.I.L Inc. gang, international terrorist Joe Fang is believed to have been killed in a helicopter crash, though his body was never found. After the downfall of E.V.I.L Inc., a comprehensive investigation of their black market and gun-running activities was launched in the Virtua City bank. Meanwhile, the Virtua City Police Special Investigations Unit got a new member in the shape of Janet Marshall, an expert in criminal psychology profiling.

The vice-president of the Virtua City Bank is killed in shady circumstances that are only officially termed accidental. And the swollen accounts of the now-defunct E.V.I.L Syndicate, which he had been suspected of laundering, are emptied overnight. The missing funds amount to more than the GNP of most small countries.

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, there is a daring daylight raid on the biggest jewelers in the state. The mayor is held hostage at a ship. And at the site of the new subway construction, there's been an unusual amount of unexplained activity involving some very suspicious-looking material.

After solving all three cases and foiling Joe Fang's plan the players have a final shootdown with Joe Fang attacking the player while on a jet pack. The player ultimately defeats him to end his reign of terror and end the game.

Development

When questioned about Sega AM2's plans for Virtua Cop 2 in a February 1995 interview, AM2 manager Fumio Kurokawa stated "We're not sure if there will be [a] VC2. However, since the original VC did well at the arcades, we are certainly thinking about something to follow up." [12]

The Saturn version was demonstrated at the May 1996 Electronic Entertainment Expo, at which point only the first level was in a playable state. [13] Development was slowed because AM2's resources were prioritized for the Saturn versions of Fighting Vipers and Virtua Fighter Kids . [14]

Virtua Cop 2 was re-released in 2001 as part of the Sega Smash Pack: Volume 1 compilation for Dreamcast. The game was later bundled with Virtua Cop in Japan and Europe on the PlayStation 2 as Virtua Cop: Elite Edition (Virtua Cop Rebirth in Japan) on August 25 and November 29, 2002, respectively.

Reception

Arcade

In Japan, Game Machine listed Virtua Cop 2 on their November 1, 1995 issue as being the second most-successful dedicated arcade game of the month. [21] It went on to become the highest-grossing dedicated arcade video game of 1996 in Japan. It was reported to have sold 7,000 arcade cabinets worldwide by 1996, including 4,000 units in Japan and 3,000 units overseas. [1]

Reviewing the arcade version, a Next Generation critic commented that "the action, enemies, variation of levels and backgrounds, and the fun are all so improved over Virtua Cop 1, and in all the right places, that no other laser-gun shooter comes close to it right now." He especially praised the high frame rate, the level design, the need for skilled aiming, and the way the game is paced such that bouts of intense shootouts with "multitudes of terrorists" are broken by short pauses to give the player a breather. [18]

Saturn

As with the original Virtua Cop, the Saturn version of Virtua Cop 2 received mostly positive reviews for its fun gameplay [16] [17] [19] [20] [22] and close translation of the arcade version, [16] [17] [19] [20] [22] while being criticized as too lacking in longevity for a home console game. [16] [22] However, some critics, rather than complaining about the longevity, noted that while it takes about the same amount of time to complete a single playthrough as in the original, the game is much longer than the first Virtua Cop when taking into account all the different level branches. [17] [20]

Reviews generally hailed the game as a considerable improvement over the already impressive original, due to its more interactive environments [19] [20] and higher intensity, especially in the chase scenes. [16] [17] [19] [20] [22] Next Generation elaborated, "Taking the game one step closer to the feel of a big budget action movie, Virtua Cop 2 seems to have more 'movement' to it. ... Whether chasing down an armored car while picking off bad guys hanging out the window, or dodging bullets in a speeding subway train, this game is just short of being described as a roller coaster ride by some hack movie critic in the Midwest and even closer to being described as an 'edge of your seat thriller' by this reviewer on the West coast." [19] GamePro had a somewhat more tempered response, arguing that one can still quickly memorize the game, making repeat plays increasingly routine. They concluded, "For lightgun fans, VC2's a solid buy. Otherwise, its short-lived but frenzied fun makes for a top Saturn rental." [22]

The four reviewers of Electronic Gaming Monthly had similar reactions, [16] while Rich Leadbetter of Sega Saturn Magazine argued that even the shorter Virtua Cop has far more longevity than it is usually given credit for, as both it and the sequel have numerous modes and approaches that can provide players with new challenges on repeat plays. [20] Tom Ham wrote in GameSpot , "While the first Virtua Cop set a new standard for light gun shooters, Sega and the AM2 team have delivered an incredible sequel that takes the concept to a whole new level." [17]

Electronic Gaming Monthly named the Saturn version a runner-up for Shooter Game of the Year (behind Alien Trilogy ). [23] In 1997, they named the Saturn version number 98 on their "100 Best Games of All Time", citing its addition of branching levels and innovative stage design to the series' revolutionary use of polygonal enemies which move realistically and react differently depending on where they are shot. [24]

Related Research Articles

<i>Virtua Fighter</i> (video game) 1993 video game

Virtua Fighter is a fighting game created for the Sega Model 1 arcade platform by AM2, a development group within Sega, headed by Yu Suzuki. An early prototype version was location tested in Japan by August 1993, before the complete game was released worldwide in December 1993. It was the first arcade fighting game to feature fully 3D polygon graphics. The game was ported to Sega Saturn as a global launch title in 1994 and 1995, and also received a port to the Sega 32X.

<i>Area 51</i> (1995 video game) 1995 video game

Area 51 is a light gun arcade game released by Time Warner Interactive in 1995. It takes its name from the military facility. The plot of the game involves the player taking part in a Strategic Tactical Advanced Alien Response (STAAR) military incursion to prevent aliens, known as the Kronn, and alien-created zombies from taking over the Area 51 military facility.

<i>Virtua Cop</i> 1994 video game

Virtua Cop is a 1994 light gun shooter game developed by Sega AM2 and designed by Yu Suzuki. It was originally an arcade game on the Sega Model 2 system, and was ported to the Sega Saturn in 1995 and Windows in 1996. The Saturn version included support for both the Virtua Gun and Saturn mouse, as well as a new "Training Mode" which consists of a randomly generated shooting gallery.

<i>Daytona USA</i> 1994 arcade racing video game

Daytona USA is a 1994 arcade racing game developed by Japanese studio Sega AM2. Inspired by the popularity of the NASCAR motor racing series in the US, the game has players race stock cars on one of three courses. It was the first game to be released on the Sega Model 2 arcade system board. Released by Sega in March of 1994, Daytona USA is one of the highest-grossing arcade games of all time.

<i>Virtua Racing</i> 1992 racing game

Virtua Racing or V.R. for short, is a Formula One racing video game developed by Sega AM2 and released for arcades in 1992. Virtua Racing was initially a proof-of-concept application for exercising a new 3D graphics platform under development, the "Model 1". The results were so encouraging that Virtua Racing was fully developed into a standalone arcade title.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sega AM2</span> Japanese video game developer

Sega AM Research & Development No. 2, previously known as SEGA-AM2 Co., Ltd., is a video game development team within the Japanese multinational video game developer Sega. Yu Suzuki, who had previously developed arcade games for Sega including Hang-On and Out Run, was the first manager of the department.

<i>Virtua Cop 3</i> 2003 video game

Virtua Cop 3 is the third and final game installment from Sega's Virtua Cop light gun shooter franchise, and released exclusively for video arcades in 2003. The game is available in standard and deluxe cabinet formats and runs on Sega Chihiro arcade hardware. A port for the Xbox was planned, but later cancelled.

<i>Lethal Enforcers</i> 1992 video game

Lethal Enforcers is a 1992 light gun shooter released as an arcade video game by Konami. The graphics consist entirely of digitized photographs and digitized sprites. Home versions were released for the Super NES, Genesis and Sega CD during the following year and include a revolver-shaped light gun known as The Justifier.

<i>Fighters Megamix</i> 1996 video game

Fighters Megamix is a 1996 fighting game developed by Sega AM2, a crossover between Sega's 3D arcade fighting games Virtua Fighter 2 and Fighting Vipers, with unlockable characters from several other AM2 games such as Virtua Cop 2 and Daytona USA. Developed for Sega Saturn, it had a global release in 1997; unlike most of AM2's games of the era, Fighters Megamix did not have an arcade release.

<i>Die Hard Arcade</i> 1996 Video game

Die Hard Arcade, known as Dynamite Deka in Japan, is an arcade beat 'em up video game released by Sega. It was the first beat 'em up to use texture-mapped 3D polygon graphics, and used a sophisticated move set by contemporary beat 'em up standards, often being likened to a fighting game in this respect. It also features quick time events, the ability to combine items to make more powerful weapons, and in two-player mode the ability to perform combined special moves and combos.

<i>Virtua Fighter 2</i> 1994 arcade video game

Virtua Fighter 2 is a 1994 fighting video game by Sega. It is the sequel to Virtua Fighter (1993), and the second game in the Virtua Fighter series. Created by Sega's Yu Suzuki-headed AM2 team, it was designed on the purpose-made Sega Model 2 hardware which provided a significant upgrade in graphical capabilities. Following its release on the arcades, Virtua Fighter 2 was ported to the Sega Saturn home console in November 1995, while ports for some other platforms appeared later.

<i>Virtua Fighter Kids</i> 1996 video game

Virtua Fighter Kids is a 1996 installment in the Virtua Fighter fighting game series, and a super deformed version of Virtua Fighter 2. It was developed by Sega AM2 on the ST-V arcade board, unlike Virtua Fighter 2's hardware; it was also ported to the Sega Saturn home console.

<i>Fighting Vipers</i> 1995 video game

Fighting Vipers is a 1995 fighting video game developed by Sega AM2. A 3D fighter, it uses the same game engine as AM2's Virtua Fighter 2 (1994) but features enclosed arenas and an armor mechanic, and was targeted more towards Western audiences, using a U.S. setting and more freeform styles of martial arts.

<i>Virtua Fighter 3</i> 1996 video game

Virtua Fighter 3 is a 1996 fighting game developed and published by Sega, the sequel to 1994's Virtua Fighter 2 as part of the Virtua Fighter series. Released originally on arcades, an updated version named Virtua Fighter 3tb was later made with the addition of team battles. This updated version of the game was ported to the Dreamcast home console in 1998 after the cancellation of a Sega Saturn port.

<i>The Lost World: Jurassic Park</i> (arcade game) 1997 video game

The Lost World: Jurassic Park is a light gun arcade game from Sega. It was released in 1997, and is based on the film of the same name. It is also a sequel to Sega's 1994 Jurassic Park arcade game. A third Jurassic Park arcade game, based on Jurassic Park III, was made by Konami in 2001.

<i>Dead or Alive</i> (video game) 1996 Video game

Dead or Alive is a 1996 fighting game by Tecmo and the first entry in the Dead or Alive series. Built on the Sega Model 2 hardware, it was released first in arcades in 1996, followed by home ports for the Sega Saturn in Japan during 1997, and for the PlayStation in all regions during 1998.

Virtua Fighter is a series of fighting games created by Sega AM2 and designer Yu Suzuki. The original Virtua Fighter was released in December 1993 and has received four main sequels and several spin-offs. The highly influential first Virtua Fighter game is widely recognized as the first 3D fighting game released. The latest mainline release was Virtua Fighter 5 in 2006; this version has since been continously updated.

<i>Scud Race</i> 1996 video game

Scud Race is an arcade racing video game released by Sega in 1996. It is the first racing game to use the Sega Model 3 hardware. Despite being released well within the lifetime of the Sega Saturn, no Saturn port was ever released. A Dreamcast port was announced for the system's 1998 launch lineup and was shown as a tech-demo in the Dreamcast Presentation in 1998, but was cancelled.

<i>Maximum Force</i> 1997 arcade game

Maximum Force is a light gun shooter arcade game developed by Mesa Logic for Atari Games in 1997. In 1998, Atari Games re-released the game as part of one machine called Area 51/Maximum Force Duo that also included Area 51, and later ported the game to both the Sony PlayStation and Sega Saturn game consoles.

<i>DecAthlete</i> 1996 Video game

DecAthlete, released in Europe as Athlete Kings due to a licensing issue, is a track-and-field themed arcade sports video game. On its unveiling, the gaming media generally described it as a modern clone of Daley Thompson's Decathlon. Released in 1996, it was developed by Sega AM3 and produced by Sega. A home port was released on the Sega Saturn in 1996, largely identical to the arcade version, due to the similar hardware of the ST-V hardware and the Saturn. It was released on the PlayStation 2 in Japan only as part of the Sega Ages 2500 series. Compared to other decathlon based games, Decathlete has a more comic and cartoon-like style. A sequel followed in 1997, which was the winter sports-based Winter Heat.

References

  1. 1 2 Akagi, Masumi, ed. (1 February 1997). ""Tekken 2", "Virtua Cop 2" Top Videos '96" (PDF). Game Machine . No. 534. Amusement Press, Inc. p. 26.
  2. ↑ Akagi, Masumi (October 13, 2006). アーケードTVゲームリスト国内•海外編(1971–2005) [Arcade TV Game List: Domestic • Overseas Edition (1971–2005)] (in Japanese). Japan: Amusement News Agency. pp. 131–3. ISBN   978-4990251215.
  3. ↑ "Sega Coin-Ops: Virtua Cop 2" (PDF). Computer and Video Games . No. 176 (July 1996). 12 June 1996. p. 90.
  4. ↑ "Virtua Cop 2". 1996-12-15. Archived from the original on 1996-12-15. Retrieved 2023-11-15.
  5. ↑ "OPEN FIRE! VIRTUA SQUAD 2 SHOOTS TO PC FROM SEGA ENTERTAINMENT". Sega Central. Sega of America. November 24, 1997. Archived from the original on February 2, 1998. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
  6. ↑ "New from Sega: Virtua Cop 2". Maximum: The Video Game Magazine. No. 1. Emap International Limited. October 1995. p. 128.
  7. ↑ "NG Alphas: Virtua Cop 2". Next Generation . No. 22. Imagine Media. October 1996. p. 124.
  8. ↑ "Virtua Cop 2: Bad Boys, Watcha Gonna Do?" (PDF). Electronic Gaming Monthly . No. 89. Ziff Davis. December 1996. pp. 232–3.
  9. ↑ "Call the Cops! Virtua Cop 2 Is Almost Here!". Sega Saturn Magazine . No. 13. Emap International Limited. November 1996. pp. 6–7.
  10. ↑ "Crime War in Virtua City!". Sega Saturn Magazine . No. 14. Emap International Limited. December 1996. p. 46.
  11. ↑ "Sega Saturn Tips". Sega Saturn Magazine . No. 17. Emap International Limited. March 1997. p. 78.
  12. ↑ Ogasawara, Nob (May 1995). "The Creation of Daytona, and the Future Projects of AM2". Electronic Gaming Monthly . No. 70. Sendai Publishing. p. 70.
  13. ↑ "The Sentence Is Death". Sega Saturn Magazine . No. 9. Emap International Limited. July 1996. pp. 28–31.
  14. ↑ "Dig that Groovy Beat". Sega Saturn Magazine . No. 11. Emap International Limited. September 1996. pp. 47–49.
  15. ↑ "Virtua Cop 2 Sega Saturn Review Score". Archived from the original on 2017-03-13.
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Review Crew: Virtua Cop 2". Electronic Gaming Monthly . No. 90. Ziff Davis. January 1997. p. 62.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Ham, Tom (December 1, 1996). "Virtua Cop 2 Review". GameSpot . Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  18. 1 2 "Bull's-Eye". Next Generation . No. 12. Imagine Media. December 1995. p. 209.
  19. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Bang Up Job". Next Generation . No. 27. Imagine Media. March 1997. p. 92.
  20. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Leadbetter, Rich (December 1996). "Review: Virtua Cop 2". Sega Saturn Magazine . No. 14. Emap International Limited. pp. 66–67.
  21. ↑ "Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25 - 完成品夕イプのTVゲーム機 (Dedicated Videos)". Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 506. Amusement Press, Inc. 1 November 1995. p. 25.
  22. 1 2 3 4 5 Air Hendrix (February 1997). "Saturn ProReview: Virtua Cop 2". GamePro . No. 101. IDG. p. 80.
  23. ↑ "The Best of '96". Electronic Gaming Monthly . No. 92. Ziff Davis. March 1997. p. 90.
  24. ↑ "100 Best Games of All Time". Electronic Gaming Monthly . No. 100. Ziff Davis. November 1997. p. 102. Note: Contrary to the title, the intro to the article explicitly states that the list covers console video games only, meaning PC games and arcade games were not eligible.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.