Back in the day, Microsoft had it kind of tough getting original titles on their Xbox system. Some companies showed support while hold certain games back for whatever reason. Viewtiful Joe 2 is one of those titles that snubbed the console from Seattle. Previously released on the Nintendo Gamecube, Viewtiful Joe 2 made his debut today, nine years ago, on Sony’s PlayStation 2.

If you lived under a rock

For those that do not know, Viewtiful Joe 2 is a 2D beat ’em up with some platforming elemnets mixed in to break up the monotony of bashing heads. The art style is what most will remember about this game, and its prequel – cell shaded graphics that make it look quite a bit like a cartoon come to life in the hands of the player. Capcom had dabbled in this style before with Auto Modellista.

Viewtiful Joe 2 doubled the fun

With Viewtiful Joe 2, there are two characters available, the protagonist that shares the game name and Sexy Silvia. Each character has the ability to slow down time, speed up time, zoom into the screen focusing on the action or even rewinding the “scene” and replaying it (for those times that you didn’t get the result you wanted).

Different art style

Cell shaded gaming fans (there are more than a couple out there) here you go. Brawler fans (Final Fight anyone?), action platforming fans, etc there is plenty here to enjoy. There are a few other titles that use this art style but for the most part, it is not overused in gaming.

This method works extremely well for Capcom’s alternative brawler. The screen effects, sweeping camera angles, etc all lend themselves to supporting the cell shaded style quite well.

There has been no digital re-release of on any platform as of this writing. If you are interested in obtaining a copy of Viewtiful Joe 2 you can keep an eye on these sponsors as they get copies in from time to time:

Grab your copy at Gamestop (PS2/Gamecube) or grab a deal on eBay or Amazon instead.

Carl Williams

It is time gaming journalism takes its rightful place as proper sources and not fanboys giving free advertising. If you wish to support writers like Carl please use the links below. https://www.paypal.me/WCW https://www.patreon.com/CarlWilliams