Neon Genesis Evangelion 2

Neon Genesis Evangelion 2
Neon Genesis Evangelion 2
Developer(s)	Alfa System
Publisher(s)	Bandai
Platform(s)	PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable
Release	PS2; JP: November 20, 2003; PSP; JP: April 27, 2006;
Genre(s)	Role-playing video game
Mode(s)	Single-player

Neon Genesis Evangelion 2 (新世紀エヴァンゲリオン2, lit. "Shinseiki Evangelion 2") is a Japanese video game for the PlayStation 2 developed by Alfa System and published by Bandai. It has role-playing video game and world-controlling elements, and allows the player to follow a number of characters (such as Asuka Langley Soryu, Shinji Ikari, Pen², etc.) through multiple versions of the main plot of the anime Neon Genesis Evangelion. The PlayStation Portable port was released on 2006 as Neon Genesis Evangelion 2 -Another Cases-.

The 24 topics were named in total "Classified Information" (Kimitsu Jouhou). The topics considerably expand upon the back-story: Adam and Lilith are "Seeds of Life," settlers sent to Earth by a "First Ancestral Race," along with the Spears of Longinus. The various Angels seek out the Black Moon of Lilith because they are seeking Lilith, or Adam; and so on. While the information seems to have been based on extensive interviews with Hideaki Anno, creator of the franchise, the canonicity of the information in the game has never been officially stated, as the involvement of the original Gainax staff was limited to the Classified Information material. However, Gainax continuously states that all necessary information has been provided in the series and films.^[1]^[2]

Besides the additional information, Neon Genesis Evangelion 2 also introduced a number of additions like F-type Equipment and the final products of the Jet Alone project (as in some storylines, the eighth episode does not end in the cancellation of the Jet Alone project), and includes several "Scenarios", including of comedic value, that disregard canon. Only Scenario 01, one of Shinji's scenarios, follows the series' own storyline relatively closely. The developers also state in a production log that they wanted to create their own "world of Evangelion".^[3] This is also expressed in their effort to create an "autonomous" simulation and characters.^[4]^[5] This allows the player to create numerous scenarios for characters, battles, and relationships.^[6]

Gameplay

The player controls the Eva walking around a large map, until they run into an enemy. The player is then given a list of action commands which they can choose to attack the enemy. Once one of the action commands is chosen, a sequence will be shown, created by CGI depicting the attack. This was one of the most praised elements of the game. The game also has story arcs in which the player has a list of playable characters to choose from, to play as in the story mode. For example, the 3 main characters Shinji Ikari, Rei Ayanami, and Asuka Langley Soryu, are available from the start. More are unlocked as various game events are triggered.

Reception

The game sold 111,787 copies the week of its release.^[7]

References

^ "CJAS Newsletter Archives -- In the Eyes of Hideaki Anno, Writer and Director of Evangelion". www.cjas.org. Retrieved May 23, 2019.
^ Newtype USA. January 2004. "To solve the mysteries you must understand the world of Eva itself.

The Eva 2 game draws you into the world of Eva once again. During production, the developers did their best to understand everything about Eva, and tried to incorporate what they learned into the game. Without their efforts, it would've been impossible to re-create the world of Eva. Hiroshi Shibamura of Alfa System prepared a thick questionnaire and conducted an interview with Hideaki Anno, the director of both the TV series and the films, that lasted more than ten hours. The interview included questions such as, "What do you think about each of the Gundam series?" (to help program the "Anno AI" in the game) and "What was the first Angel?" (to further understand the story behind Eva). Director Anno and his staff answered the questions frankly, and the game reflects that.

However, it won't be easy to find answers. The quickest way to gather clues is to play the game repeatedly in as many different roles as possible. There are some deceptive characters, such as Gendou (you can never tell whether he's telling the truth). And after all of the hard work, much of the information obtained may turn out to be contradictory or just plain false. That is because a correct answer from the standpoint of one particular character isn't necessarily correct from the standpoint of another. On the other hand, mystery-solving is only a part of it. Instead of trying so hard to find the right answers, just keep playing around in the puzzling world of Eva to discover clues about the "Official Answer," which GAINAX is said to have presented in the game."
^ "新世紀エヴァンゲリオン2". Archived from the original on August 5, 2004. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
^ "新世紀エヴァンゲリオン2". May 9, 2006. Archived from the original on May 9, 2006. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
^ "新世紀エヴァンゲリオン２製品紹介". October 11, 2007. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
^ "There are times when Asuka and Shinji fight, but there are also times when they are very much in love. If you can freely create such a situation, the game will become much more interesting. Simply having a lovey-dovey relationship isn't interesting at all."
Example: Shinji and Asuka have a kissing relationship, but they suddenly have an argument and Shinji runs away from home. Asuka is devastated and makes a lot of mistakes in battle. Later, they become friends and end the story with a kiss.
For example: Shinji and Asuka have a kissing relationship, but when Shinji has a friendly moment with Hikari, they argue, and Shinji's true feelings are only for Asuka,
https://web.archive.org/web/20071018035324/http://www.alfasystem.net/game/eva2/text_conquest/mel015x.cgi
^ "ファミ通.com / 集計期間:2003年11月24日～2003年11月30日". www.famitsu.com.