Shining Plume 2
- February 24, 2017
- Warfare Studios
Get on SteamExplore a new, larger world, full of secrets and hidden locations in this direct sequel to Shining Plume featuring 3 different endings!
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The story is engaging and unpredictable, with heartfelt and witty writing that resonates with players.
- The game features an interesting side project of restoring Jun's family manor, providing a sense of freedom and accomplishment.
- The Japanese theme and art style are appreciated, adding a unique charm to the game.
- The game suffers from poor gameplay balance, with bosses being laughably weak and riddled with typographical errors.
- Players experience frustrating control issues and game freezing problems, detracting from the overall enjoyment.
- As a sequel, it fails to allow data transfer from the original game, forcing players to start over at level 1 with no retained skills.
- story12 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The story in "Shining Plume 2" builds effectively on its predecessor, offering a satisfying conclusion to the epic narrative while eliminating the less engaging fetch quests of the original. Players are encouraged to experience the first game to fully grasp the storyline, as it enhances the overall experience. The pacing remains brisk, with a first playthrough lasting around six hours, making it an engaging journey.
“Gone are the mostly fun but unimaginative fetch quests of the original, replaced with the major side-project of restoring Jun's wrecked family manor.”
“It brings the epic story to a satisfying conclusion with all the breakneck pacing of the original (once again, a first playthrough took me just six hours).”
“This makes no sense, particularly since in the undoubtedly rare occurrence of someone playing Shining Plume 2 without having played Shining Plume, they'd quickly realize they need to go back and play Shining Plume to understand any of the story.”
“Yet, when it comes to Shining Plume's strong point - the story - Shining Plume 2 does not disappoint.”
- gameplay8 mentions
- 13 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 38 % negative mentions
The gameplay of Shining Plume 2 is criticized for its lack of meaningful balance and poor map design, often described as low-quality and reminiscent of RPG Maker shovelware. While it introduces some unique mechanics, such as character equipment changes, the overall experience is marred by typographical errors and subpar writing, making it feel more like an extension of the original game rather than a true sequel. Despite a few improvements, the gameplay remains largely unremarkable and visually unappealing.
“The gameplay also does get a couple of improvements.”
“It's riddled with typographical errors, like most Andorlea games, and features little in the way of meaningful gameplay balance and map design, but once more it does have comically awful writing.”
“Like most RPG Maker shovelware and asset flips, the game features extremely low quality copy-pasted 2D retro pixel art, looks awful, and has even worse gameplay.”
“While it makes a few curious changes to the gameplay that you have to watch out for (e.g. Jun is now equipped with two swords instead of sword and shield, so if you give him only one sword he'll be at half strength), Shining Plume 2 is essentially a straight continuation of the original Shining Plume - not a sequel, but the second half of the game.”
- graphics4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 75 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are criticized for their poor quality, typical of RPG Maker titles, with issues such as inadequate fullscreen display and lack of HD support or customization options. Additionally, the overall presentation is marred by typographical errors and subpar map design, detracting from the gaming experience for modern PC gamers.
“As with all RPG Maker games, the poor quality engine displays badly in fullscreen and doesn't have full HD support or any graphics tweaking options, making this unacceptable for any dedicated modern PC gamer.”
- humor2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is largely characterized by self-deprecating jokes, particularly surrounding the final boss encounter, which some players found uncomfortable. Overall, while the humor attempts to engage players, its effectiveness may vary due to its tone.
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by its intelligent and heartfelt script, which combines wit with depth, creating a resonant experience for players.
“The script is consistently intelligent, heartfelt, witty, and just plain deep.”
- music2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The music in the game is highly praised for its calming and relaxing qualities, providing players with a soothing experience that contributes positively to their overall well-being.
“I relaxed for 5 minutes listening to this music, long enough to realize that I would be okay.”
