Dark Cloud 2 is a video game developed by Level 5 Inc. and published by Sony Computer Entertainment Incorporated. Created exclusively for the PlayStation 2 gaming console from Sony, it was released in December 2002. The title is classed as an action and role playing game, played from a third person perspective.

While Dark Could 2 is set in the same universe as the previous game in the series, it has another premise and features totally new characters. The main element in the story is Max, who is a young inventor from Palm Brinks. He is thrown in the middle of a plot which involves a power hungry Emperor who wants to destroy the past so that he can control the future, a Sun Stone which has immense magical force, a bunch of killing clowns, a giant robot called Halloween and, last but not least, a princess who arrives from the future. At certain key points in the game, the player can take control of Monica to solve situations which are too difficult for Max. The switches between characters provide variations which enhance the experience of the game.

One of the most interesting elements is that characters themselves do not level up. The weapons that they wield are the ones getting experience from kills and gaining new abilities. Because of this mechanism, the game makes players more interested in the weapons they are using and forces them to pay attention to the durability of the weapon.

GAMEPLAY HINTS

Easy level up

To level up your weapons faster, alternate your characters. Press L3 immediately after defeating an enemy. The ABS points will then get distributed evenly between your right- and left-handed weapons. This way, you do not have to actually use your gun/armband to level them up.

Use the following trick to level up your weapons quickly and easily. First, obtain additional low end weapons (such as the Trumpet Gun, Broad Sword, etc.). Level them up to +5, then Spectrumize them after using up their Synthesis Points. You will get a Synthesis Crystal with an array of abilities increase, but it only costs you 5 Synthesis Points to add to your weapons. The downside is that you will have to go to Underground Channel very often in order to get all those crystals to synthesize to the weapons you "sacrifice" to the weapon that you are building up.

Use the following trick to level up your wrench. This is easiest if done in Chapter 2 or later, but it can also be done in Chapter 1. Instead of using the crystals for Spectrumizing the weapon you want to keep, use them on a cheap sword, gun, or wrench. If you level up a classic gun, battle wrench, or long sword to level 5, you will have about 18 SP for that weapon, as well as increased power and durability. To level it up quickly, kill an enemy with your strongest weapon, then switch to your cheap weapon while collecting the experience points. Use all the crystals you want on it, then Spectrumize it. Finally, synthesize it with the weapon you wish to keep. This will be a stable Synth Sphere, allowing you to transfer over half of the weapon's stats that you Spectrumized into it. This will cost 5 SP to synthesize into your weapon. However, to get the kind of stats with using crystals on the weapon you want to keep, it will cost about 30 SP. To get even more SP while leveling up cheap weapons, always have the characters that give you extra SP per level.

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