| Taito Legends 2 | |
| Developer: | Empire Interactive (Xbox, Win) Mine Loader Software (PS2) |
| Platforms: | Xbox, PlayStation 2, Windows |
| Genre: | Compilation |
| Modes: | Single-player, multiplayer |
Taito Legends 2 a compilation of Taito arcade video games and the follow-up to Taito Legends. It was published for Xbox, PlayStation 2, and Microsoft Windows. As with the former collection, it is derived from the Japan exclusive Taito Memories series.
All three versions of the game were simultaneously released in March 2006 in Europe and Australia and published by Empire Interactive. The United States received the PlayStation 2 version on 16 May 2007 and the Windows version on 10 July 2007 with publishing by Destineer. For unknown reasons, the Xbox version was never released in North America. However, the European PAL-region Xbox version is entirely compatible with the North American NTSC-based Xbox systems without any modifications.
The PlayStation 2 version uses the same layout and engine as the Taito Memories series, while the Xbox and Windows versions use the layout and engine of Taito Legends with additional content on some games.
Eight of the 43 games - Balloon Bomber, Bubble Symphony, Cadash, RayForce, RayStorm, G-Darius, Pop'n Pop, and Syvalion - were split across the platforms due to porting issues,[1] requiring players to buy more than one version to get every game available.
Taito Legends 2 consists of the following 43 arcade games when combined whilst each version contains 39 games. Balloon Bomber, G-Darius, RayStorm and Syvalion are exclusive to the PlayStation 2 version whilst Bubble Symphony, Cadash, Pop'n Pop and RayForce are exclusive to the PC and Xbox versions.
| Title | First release | PS2 | Xbox | Windows | Taito Memories | Regional title | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lunar Rescue | 1979 | I Vol.1 | |||||
| Balloon Bomber | 1980 | I Vol.2 | |||||
| Crazy Balloon | 1980 | I Vol.2 | |||||
| Qix | 1981 | I Vol.2 | |||||
| Alpine Ski | 1982 | I Vol.1 | |||||
| Front Line | 1982 | I Vol.2 | |||||
| Wild Western | 1982 | I Vol.2 | |||||
| Chack'n Pop | 1983 | I Vol.2 | |||||
| The Legend of Kage | 1984 | I Vol.2 | |||||
| The Fairyland Story | 1985 | I Vol.1 | |||||
| KiKi KaiKai | 1986 | I Vol.1 | |||||
| Bonze Adventure | 1988 | I Vol.1 | Jigoku Meguri (Japan) | ||||
| Kuri Kinton | 1988 | I Vol.1 | |||||
| Nastar Warrior | 1988 | I Vol.2 | Rastan Saga 2 (Japan); Nastar (EU) | ||||
| Raimais | 1988 | I Vol.2 | |||||
| Syvalion | 1988 | I Vol.1 | |||||
| Cadash | 1989 | I Vol.2 | |||||
| Cameltry | 1989 | I Vol.1 | |||||
| Don Doko Don | 1989 | I Vol.1 | |||||
| Insector X | 1989 | I Vol.2 | |||||
| Violence Fight | 1989 | I Vol.2 | |||||
| Football Champ | 1990 | I Vol.2 | Hat Trick Hero (Japan) | ||||
| Growl | 1990 | I Vol.1 | Runark (Japan) | ||||
| Gun Frontier | 1990 | I Vol.2 | |||||
| Liquid Kids | 1990 | I Vol.2 | Mizubaku Adventure (Japan) | ||||
| Super Space Invaders '91 | 1990 | I Vol.1 | Majestic Twelve: The Space Invaders Part IV (Japan/USA PS2 release) | ||||
| Metal Black | 1991 | I Vol.1 | Gun Frontier 2 | ||||
| Arabian Magic | 1992 | I Vol.2 | |||||
| 1992 | I Vol.1 | ||||||
| RayForce | 1993 | II Vol.1 | Gunlock (Arcade), Layer Section (Japan), Galactic Attack (EU, USA) | ||||
| Bubble Symphony | 1994 | II Vol.2 | Bubble Bobble II | ||||
| Darius Gaiden | 1994 | I Vol.1 | |||||
| Dungeon Magic | 1994 | I Vol.1 | Light Bringer (Japan) | ||||
| Space Invaders DX | 1994 | I Vol.1 | |||||
| Elevator Action Returns | 1995 | I Vol.1 | Elevator Action II (USA) | ||||
| Gekirindan | 1995 | I Vol.2 | |||||
| Puzzle Bobble 2 | 1995 | I Vol.2 | Bust-a-Move Again (Western arcades): in PS2 release | ||||
| Space Invaders '95 | 1995 | I Vol.2 | Akkan-vaders (Japan) | ||||
| Cleopatra Fortune | 1996 | I Vol.1 | |||||
| RayStorm | 1996 | I Vol.2 | |||||
| G-Darius | 1997 | I Vol.2 | |||||
| Pop'n Pop | 1997 | ||||||
| Puchi Carat | 1997 | I Vol.1 |
The titles included in the Western release were taken directly from various volumes of the Japanese Taito Memories-series:
The only title included in Taito Legends 2 that was not previously included in the Japanese Taito Memories series is Pop 'n Pop, though an earlier standalone PlayStation port of the game was released in Japan.
In addition, the North American PS2 version replaces Puzzle Bobble 2 (the original Japanese version) with Bust-a-Move Again, the game's North American equivalent. It also has a loading times during RayStorm and G-Darius. G-Darius uses full motion video on intro, ending and some of the cutscenes of the game.
The Windows and Xbox versions of Taito Legends 2 received "favourable" reviews, while the PlayStation 2 version received "average" reviews, according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. Major criticisms include the large amount of obscure and "filler" titles, all of which are from the Japanese Taito Memories collections in which they are little known in the U.S. (with GameSpot quoting: "There's really nothing legendary about most of the old arcade games found in Taito Legends 2"), as well as unresponsive, "flipped", and clunky controls. Kristan Reed of Eurogamer wrote a more positive response: "It's all but impossible to make an objective assessment that takes into account everyone's hugely varying tastes. What's definitely unarguable, though, that this particular package has much better presentation than the last one, with all games sorted into chronological order (a small but valuable point), and various useful options that make the experience far better than most retro collections". Some reviewers also compared Taito Legends 2 unfavorably with the Sega Genesis Collection, writing the aforementioned Genesis Collection as superior,[2] and was also criticized for its lack of bonus content (asides from instructions panels that can be viewed in the main menu and during gameplay).