Thinking back on all the PC games I have finished, there have been some bad games endings and then there have been some utterly horrible endings. Drakan 1 was among the five worse endings I have ever played in a game. Buck Rodgers will always hold the top position, dropping you to DOS and leaving a message that said "You Win", but Drakan was damn bad, not giving the finisher any satisfaction.

So, what possessed me to play Drakan 2? Well, outside the horrible ending, Drakan was a damn fine game. I picked up Drakan 2 for the Playstation 2, and you know what? I liked it for all the reasons I liked Drakan. Drakan is a fantasy adventure game about a sexy girl and her dragon. The two characters co-operate to solve puzzles, blast bad guys and generally kill idle time. The interaction and transitions between playing both characters is perfectly smooth.

Drakan 2 is a hard game to classify. It is part Adventure game, requiring you to navigate through 3D puzzles and think of solutions. It is two parts Action game, one is a hack and slash on the ground, another is a flight simulator on a dragon in the air. Finally, Drakan is an RPG, requiring you to distribute points to abilities at various parts of the game, which greatly affect how you play.

The voiceovers and cutscenes are well done in this game. The story is a little thin on the main quest, but there are plenty of smaller stories to follow to keep the overall adventure moving. You will not notice the thin overall plot, as you focus on any subquest at any given moment. The graphics are also rich, allowing you to fly in massive outdoor environments, some of the most impressive graphics I have ever seen.

The controls take a bit of getting used to, but after you do, you will be jumping, locking on targets, strafing and flying all with relative ease. I was impressed at the learning curve to be able to fly and fight other dragons in the air, the battles were cool, and minimal swearing at the controls took place.

Do I recommend this game? Wholeheartedly, Drakan 2 is among the top echelon of Playstation 2 games. It will keep you playing late into the night to complete that next mission, or achieve that next level. The game is fun, and that is what games are supposed to be. As for the ending, much better this time around.

Final Grade: B+