MDK 2

This is one of those games that I have a very strong childhood nostalgia for, and the memories of playing it after school as a wee lad are very dear to me. The game features a great, stylized sci-fi aesthetic that I just adore in games from around that era no matter how much the graphics will continue to age over time. The techno music tracks by Jesper Kyd are still bangers and they greatly enhance the game's atmosphere. And the shooting action is still pretty exciting to this day, with lots of particles and green blood effects flying around as you rain down hails of gunfire at funny-looking aliens and robots. There's also a lot of puzzle-solving and platforming for a shooting game and... well, we'll talk about that in a moment. So anyway, the game also has a great sense of humor. It's apparent not only in the funny writing and dialogue but also the overall tone and little details such as enemy animations and sound effects just ooze with character and can be amusing enough all on their own. I remember laughing my ass off at those moments as a kid, and they can still elicit a chuckle today. It does a good job of incorporating humor into the gameplay and making what would normally be ordinary shooting galleries all the more memorable. Alright, I've been putting it off but I guess it's time to talk about the game's shortcomings. And those are mostly limited to levels where you play as Dr. Hawkins, where you have to do a lot of precise platforming which can be maddeningly frustrating. There's also a couple of moments late in the game where you have to do a bunch of platforming with a rocket pack as Max, and I remember wanting to just snap the game disc in half during those particular levels. Some of those platforming sections are the only parts of this game that haven't aged well in my opinion, as jumping controls can be really finicky, and the kind of precision that is sometimes required in order to pull them off always drove me crazy.

Think of this as 1 1/2 stars. MDK 1 is an awesome little shooter. Focused and succinct. The sequal only has faint traces of what made the original fun. It's a boring, frustrating attempt to flesh out the formula. The game is DESPARATE to increase playtime. Extending playtime for the sake of it has ruined many games, and this is no different. The game loves tedium, making you do the same things over and over again, making levels big and tedious to navigate around, making objectives unclear, infinitley respawning enemies. I can't emphasise obfuscated objectives enough, so often while playing this all I could think was "What am I supposed to do???" A lot of the objectives seem intentionally obtuse and unintuitive, making the game range from boring to extremely frustrating. The idea to have all 3 main characters be playable isn't bad on paper, but in practice the game feels unfocused. The Doctor feels clunky to play as and his main gimmiick is undercooked. Kurt is pretty much the same as he was in MDK 1, but is given less time to enjoy all his mechanics. Max the dog is way too simple. Maybe if the game let you swap between characters mid level it would be cool, but forcing you to play entire levels as one character was a huge misstep. The game has pockets of fun, then it decides to stop, then it decides to be fun again, then it decides to stop. Couldn't stand it.

Better than the first but not great. MDK2 has some fun ideas - this time round you get to play as 3 different character: a sniper, a run-and-gun cigar smoking dog and a mad scientist who uses an atomic powered toaster to fight. But a combination of old fashioned (and just plain bad) game design along with a few bugs makes this an experience I would not recommend. Honestly, I only stuck it out because I grew up watching my dad play.

This short review is based on the original copy of the game, so I have nothing to say about the functionality of the GOG version. A third-person action shooter game with platforming and some simple puzzle solving. You have three different personal characters to play making the gameplay more varied than the first MDK. The Kurt levels are most versatile and balanced. Max levels are more about straightforward shooting and some platforming with the jetpack. The doctor levels are the weakest of all but they are tolerable. The game controls are simple enough. There are not too many buttons to press making the gaming experience fluent. The game levels have impressive size and scale, visuals are solid even these days, there are many fancy particle effects and colors, and still the game runs smoothly. The musics are awesome to listen too. Unlike in the first MDK, this game has an actual story to tell which doesn't take itself too seriously, but there are not much goofy surprises like in the predecessor. Unfortunately there are many frustrating moments in the game. Pixel-perfect platforming with the doctor who cannot even mantle over ledges. Some punishing trial-and-error puzzle solving – especially in the level 6. Weapons like the atomic toaster without any auto-aim. Shooting very fast moving crystal balls or something with Kurt's sniper scope. And the last boss fight is a bit disappointing. But even so, I have been returning to play this game which has noticeable originality.

I really like this game, but it does not seem to work very well. the game plays fine until you save the game and quit, once you do that the game will not load anymore and must be reinstalled.