14 DAY TRIAL // Seeing as how its full-pledged reimagining of the classic Bionic Commando arcade series flopped severely, Capcom has reoriented itself to continuing the franchise with classic 2D side-scrolling titles, due to the success of the more recent Bionic Commando Rearmed game.
Now, Nathan "Rad" Spencer is back in the sequel, this time leading a whole squad of bionic commandos like himself deep into enemy territory to once again save the world from evil dictators.
Besides sporting a funky looking mustache, Spencer received plenty of other upgrades, specifically to his bionic arm, which can now equip special active powers, like grenade launchers, and passive ones, like regenerating health.
The most important addition, at least in the eyes of longtime Bionic Commando fans, is the ability to jump, as Spencer relied only on his arm to get over gaps and other such obstacles in previous titles.
As you can imagine, this caused a bit of an outrage, but, after seeing him in action, the ability to jump makes a lot of sense and feels natural.
You're no longer trying to grapple onto things just to progress, and, in order to please retro fans, he still relies on the arm to span bigger gaps and outsmart enemies, not just on his legs.
Besides the ability to jump and the rest of the arm upgrades, things have stayed pretty much the same as the first Rearmed title.
You'll still need to make your way through a series of multi-level stages, filled with bad guys, explosive barrels and hidden rooms, while Spencer cracks his usual witty remarks when talking about his mission.
Up until now, things have gone pretty smoothly, but already there are some rooms that can't be opened as you go pass the stage, meaning you'll no doubt need to go back with specific upgrades, found later in the game, in order to unlock them.
Still, Bionic Commando Rearmed 2 looks like a great treat for fans of the first title and for those who want to remember the good old times spent in video-game arcades.
Check out the first stage of Bionic Commando Rearmed 2 in the video below.