Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 Review: War… war never changes.

A year has passed since the floating continent of Gasco had been ripped asunder by the Berman army’s failed — and bloody — campaign. The beautiful, bountiful island in the sky with cities and towns dotting her landscape was broken apart into many smaller, disconnected vestiges of what once was, her people doing their best to rebuild under these new conditions. Although Gasco would never again be the same, it was the hope of every citizen that she would at least know peace. Together, both caninu and felineko working hand in hand, Gasco’s people ran towards that bright future that was promised on the horizon — a future secured by a group of brave children and the mysterious tank, the Taranis.

Unfortunately for those brave children, they would once again find themselves in the middle of tank warfare, this time chasing the Taranis in a refurbished Berman tank no less. Burning rubber in the Tarascus, Malt, Kyle, Chick, Hack, and Sheena pursued their former home and ally, the Taranis, with a kidnapped Hanna, Mei, Boron, Socks, and Britz inside. While in transit, the team put their heads together to figure out why their friends had been suddenly kidnapped, who could have possibly done such a thing, and how they were going to get out of this mess without having to resort to the infamously dreaded soul cannon. No rest for the weary indeed — will these children ever know a simple life?

Whether or not you’ve played the first iteration, Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 is — out of the gate — a must-play for anyone who enjoys turn-based strategy, emotional storytelling, and heartfelt party dynamics. Developed and published by CyberConnect2 (.hack//, .hack//G.U.), Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 gives players everything they loved about the first game with some quality of life enhancements plus a few interesting surprises to add even more weight to an already heavy narrative. Promising “a ramped up battle system for more strategy, as well as a brand new event system that gives you more thrilling choices to affect your experience!” on its Steam page, Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 took an already addicting title and turned that dial up to 11 — my 45 hours spent on it in about a week (beating it 3 times already) proves it!

As mentioned above, Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 opens up on about half the original crew in hot pursuit of the other half before a terrible fate befalls them all. And while the Berman army has long since retreated, the ghosts of their warfaring tech — the tanks, artillery, and all sorts of guns on treads — stand in their way, unmanned but not un-gunned. The children will have to take up their arms yet again, this time using the Tarascus to snipe, shoot, and lob grenades on their enemies. Should they find their backs to a corner, a familiar entity-turned-AI will randomly select one child to be thrown into the soul cannon, their life force magically transformed into an insanely powerful energy blast (sadly, at the cost of that child’s life). Can you save every last child while saving Gasco — again?

When it comes to mechanics, Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 is a lot more of the same in most regards. The battles are still turn-based with familiar faces returning to familiar weaponry, the tanks still move linearly across landscapes with occasional battles, items, and exploration segments, and every now and again there will be a pause for life to happen on the inside, the children growing crops, raising livestock, cooking, cleaning, and generally hanging out with each other. Where some sequels will try to reinvent the wheel, Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 largely decided to stick with what works. As the saying goes, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” and Fuga: Melodies of Steel definitely did not need fixing.

With that being said, there were some new elements added, especially when it came to the narrative. Positioning the oldest child, Malt, into more of a leadership role with morality choices affecting gameplay was a fantastic move, as it fed into his character development and the general sentiment that he was indeed growing up. I’d also like to praise the team for its direction in the story, choosing to flesh out the history and world Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 resides in, making the series feel bigger than its initial Gasco/Berman conflict instead of rehashing the same thing over again. In fact, the narrative’s evolution on just about every level is probably where Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 shines best — from small conversations to the world at large, it’s clear that a year has passed since the first iteration, just as it’s clear that what happens in this game will further drive Gasco forward into that foretold future.

I really don’t have any complaints for Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2. The voice acting was superb — both in Japanese and French — with each of the children having distinct lines and speaking cadences to set them apart on the battlefield. The visuals were somewhat minimal but never dull, the landscape providing mystery and intrigue while the level of detail on enemy units telling their own stories on nature’s touch on derelict Berman craftmanship. And the music? I can’t tell you how many times I kept getting flashbacks to playing .hack// as a teenager, that iconic CyberConnect2 vibe serenading me with each intense boss battle. Make no mistake, Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 is another triumph from an insanely talented team, and if the true ending is to be believed, I cannot wait to see what’s in store for the series in the next title.

I want to close this review with a sentiment that I feel is relevant: the importance of novelty in any sequel is defined by the original — i.e., some games need a shake-up while others can get away with more of the same. For example, Final Fantasy X-2’s upbeat tone shift was whiplash to the somber, depressing world of Final Fantasy X, but that was a necessary change after overthrowing a 1,000 year old death cult. In Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2, the few changes that are implemented are more narrative ones, which makes perfect sense in a world defined by what came before. Refining the mechanics based off player feedback made for a more polished experience, deftly woven into the story instead of throwing the baby out with the bathwater and re-inventing the wheel. Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 is, at its core, a grueling, heart-breaking story about children being forced to fight in a war started by those that came before them — no big changes were needed to give that same impactful gut-punch this series provides. Instead, Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 should simply be allowed to tell its truth without the call for a complete overhaul, as what it does it does very, very well.

Fuga: Melodies of Steel was an incredible experience, and Fuga 2: Melodies of Steel provides more depth and character development on top it. The enhanced mechanics and gameplay based off player feedback finessed Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 into a smoother, better-paced title — one that would be a mistake to miss. If you’ve wanted a fresh take on turn-based strategy featuring addicting combat and rewarding character dynamics and development, Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 is ready for action.

Final Verdict: 4.5/5

Available on: PS4, PS5, Switch, XBox One, XBox X|S, PC (Reviewed); Publisher: CyberConnect2; Developer: CyberConnect2; Players: 1; Released: May 10, 2023

Full disclosure: This review is based on a copy of Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 provided by the publisher.