This game was originally presented, as I understood it at least, as a cousin to the Fallout series in the sense that they would both be spiritual sequels to the classic Wasteland, though taking different directions. In the event, WL2 ended up being a very straight sequel, setting-wise at least, to Wasteland; very un-Fallout-like and unfortunately also very basic. The graphics and interactivity certainly are a great leap from the late 80s classic to, well, err, 2006 or so anyway, but the complexity of the storytelling and characterization isn't anything that would strain a Commodore 64. So what we're left with is pretty much a tactical shooter with some quests and RPG-ish elements in a post-apocalyptic setting. The writing is decidedly mediocre, often badly spelled at least (at release anyway), and the characters are very flat and do not evoke the least bit of sympathy or attachment. As I mentioned before, WL2 feels very outdated for a 2015 shooter. I'd compare it to Silent Storm from 2003. As a shooter it is not bad, though the AI is dumber than expected and using anything but assault rifles is pointless. The story is a paint-by-the-numbers struggle vs an evil villain's henchmen leading up to a final battle against the villain himself and a credits roll. At least I assume so, I didn't bother finishing the final battle at seal beach because it was easier to finish the game by skipping it and just proceeding straight to the uninstaller. Finally, I've bought a lot of games over the years and I'm hardly poor but even so the worst thing about this to me was that I spent $60 on it. I wouldn't have bought it at all if I'd known better obviously but that they charge $60 for this uninspired low-effort bin filler is especially galling. Even if you love this sort of thing there are many, many better games in the $15-$20 range.
