If you have never heard of Windjammers, know that it is a competitive game that more or less takes up the concept of Pong, namely two players who send an object back across a screen, the edges making in-goal office. Except that with Windjammers, the coating is much more advanced, with a hyper-colored universe and colorful characters, while the gameplay is undeniably deep, with a tactical layer reminiscent of tennis, and handling which is clearly inspired by fighting games. The game invites us to take part in the Flying Power Disc championship (this is the name of the game in Japan by the way). Classically, the in-goal is divided into 3 zones, the middle offering 5 points, the sides 3, while a frisbee which touches the ground grants 2 points (some arenas change this distribution of points). A match is won in two winning sets, knowing that it takes 15 points to win a set. Moreover, if veterans of the license remember that these figures were configurable in the first opus, know that these frills are over. This simplification also makes it possible to have a single and unique format which will be applied in solo (arcade mode), as in multiplayer, whether local, online or in a ranked match.
THE DISC IS NOT SCRATCHED NO
The first thing you notice when you launch Windjammers 2 is of course its complete graphic overhaul. Fans will find themselves there right away, since we find the stylistic paw of DotEmu productions, and the whole thing is quite close to the other productions of the publisher, Streets of Rage 4 in mind. The set is hyper colorful, and for all that, the action is always readable even when things are accelerating, and that the players deploy their special moves. The other good surprise is finally being able to enjoy the game in 16/9! Indeed, the first Windjammers was in 4/3, just like its port which was content to fill the sides of the screen with artworks. Now you can enjoy large screens, while the public has been added to fill the spaces, which further improves immersion. Content level, we cannot say that we are robbed. Windjammers offered 6 characters, Windjammers 2 offers 11 (one of which is hidden), five newcomers. Nothing to say in terms of variety, since all styles of play have been covered. We welcome among others S-Delys, a super fast Frenchwoman, but with small arms, and H-Max, a very heavy fat guy, capable of breaking the sound barrier with a Frisbee.
It's the same story at the level of the game arenas. The original opus offered 6 fields, Windjammers 2 offers 10, including 5 new ones. Oldies may regret the demise of Concrete (although it was probably one of the worst destinations), which has been replaced by Junkyard, with its moving obstacles in the middle of the field. We also regret that the Rooftop map is almost identical to Clay, except for the decor. However, some maps offer nice new features, such as Casino and its unique goal area, the value of which is determined by a draw before each service. We can therefore find ourselves making exchanges for a poor point, as for eight, which means that we can win a set in two winning moves. Ring puts the spotlight on smashes, with 4 points if a frisbee lands on the ground, while Arena offers an extended playing surface in length, which allows for crazy angles, much like Roland's Court Philippe Chatrier- Garros with its immense clearances.
PLUG & PLAY
Between two matches in arcade mode, we will also be entitled to mini games. If the first remains the classic Hot-Dog (we control a dog that must catch the Frisbee thrown by our character), the second is no longer bowling, but a kind of training called Disc Attack, where a machine sends us full discs that need to be caught up. If the idea seduced us initially, we quickly realize that the pattern of the latter is the same each time, and that in this discipline, the lightest characters (and therefore the fastest) are largely advantaged. Once the arcade mode is over with a character, instead of a prize giving followed by a Game Over, we are now entitled to a small humorous cinematic around each character, which enriches the lore of the game a little. learns there for example unsuspected things on K.Wessel (the mustachioed German)! The novelties do not stop at the content, since the gameplay has also evolved by small touches. The basics are still there (which means that those who sanded the first Windjammer will be able to smash the noobs online) with the semi-circles for the effects, the lobs, the smashes, or even the controls to send a special blow . But now, our player will fill a special bar that allows you to use this famous special move whenever you want. Better, we can also sacrifice our bar in order to send the Frisbee in the air, and thus save a shot that was lost. While that doesn't sound like much, the strategic dimension of using this special bar makes matches even more complicated to manage.
EASY TO LEARN, HARD TO MASTER
Access to the title is also generally quite complicated since no playable tutorial is available. Novices will therefore have to make do with a list of possible moves, without being able to try them specifically. If the basic blows are enough to score the first points against an AI in easy mode, you will have to spend long hours in arcade mode, or to be beaten online by more experienced players in order to master the intricacies of the gameplay. Add to that the specificities of each terrain, and each character, and you will understand that we are facing a perfect example of a game called Easy to Learn, Hard to Master. Moreover, by going for a ride on the side of the online classified, and despite a lot of hours spent on the first opus, yours truly was quite simply humiliated by certain opponents, which suggests how much the room for improvement is vast. The future of the game will clearly go through eSports, the title being cut for high-level competition. Moreover, the first opus was present at EVO in 2018 and 2019 via the Windjammers Flying Power League. Know, if you want to do battle online, that the game allows crossplay between PC and Xbox, and between PS4 and PS5, but that it will be impossible to play against a Switch player, or to face a Sony player from a machine. Microsoft. Since we are talking about the Nintendo console, we must admit that the game runs there as well as with the competition, with a framerate of 60fps regardless of your platform, and no graphics option available on PC. Be careful, however, to have a good controller, the game being particularly demanding, a quality pad will immediately make the difference (in other words, prefer the Pro Controller on Switch).
