Space Channel 5: Part 2

Space Channel 5: Part 2| is the sequel to the rhythm action game Space Channel 5, developed by United Game Artists and published by Sega. It was released on the Dreamcast (Japan only) and the PlayStation 2. It was released in Japan on February 14, 2002, Europe on February 12, 2003 (although it was not released in the United Kingdom) and in North America as part of special edition package with the first game on November 18, 2003.

With its improved graphics, greater variety, and longer campaign, Part 2 is generally regarded as superior to its predecessor. However, it is much less well known than the original Space Channel 5 due to its belated and limited release outside Japan.

An HD version of Part 2 was included in Dreamcast Collection, which was released for Xbox 360 and PC on February 22, 2011, in North America and February 25, 2011, in Europe. It was released on Steam on March 5, 2011, for PlayStation Network on October 4, 2011, and for Xbox Live Arcade October 5, 2011.

Gameplay

 * See also: Gameplay in Space Channel 5

Much like the previous game, players take on the role of Ulala as she uses her funky dance moves and shooting skill to fight against the Rhythm Rogues. Players must repeat actions acted out by their opponent in time to the music, using the four directional buttons and two call buttons, 'Chu' and 'Hey'. In this game, 'Hey' is now used to distinguish rescuing hostages from shooting during rescue segments and serves as its own move during dance sections. Also new to this game, certain commands call for the player to hold down a button to do a charged move. For example, when someone says 'Chuuuuu---', players hold down the 'Chu' button. There are also segments where characters play instruments, which is controlled using any of the directional buttons along with 'Chu' and 'Hey'.

During each section, players are given a set number of hearts. If a player makes a mistake during a line, they will lose a heart, along with some of their ratings. Losing all hearts result in a section being failed, usually resulting in the loss of a captive hostage. If a player's ratings drop below 0%, the game will end. During certain areas, such as boss battles, the player's rating will be converted into stars, which act the same way as hearts, albeit if the players loses all of their stars, the game ends. The viewer rating percentage in the corner works as the score, which changes depending on how well the game is played and the number of hearts or stars at the end of a scenario. There are also secrets at certain points in between gameplay where players press buttons to make Morolians spring up from the corner. Players need to find all these secrets in a level in order to get a full 100% rating at the end. (The last level has a possible 200% rating.) Clearing certain objectives can unlock new costumes for Ulala to wear during stages.

Space Channel 5 Part 2 rewards the player for replaying sections by giving bios for every character unlocked. In addition, saving characters allows Ulala to unlock certain hidden costumes.

Elsewhere, there is a 100-stage battle mode, known as Ulala's Dance or Ulala's Dancing Show, in which players have to play 100 consecutive lines, with only one heart. There is also a 2 player mode, where one player controls directions and the other controls actions, and an alternate story mode where characters and costumes are new and dance moves are harder. Other improvements include replacing the rendered backgrounds of the first game with real time environments.

Plot
The game follows Ulala as she faces off against a new group of enemies called the Rhythm Rogues (known as the Odori-dan in Japanese), led by the mysterious Purge and his masked assistant Shadow. The Rhythm Rogues kidnap thousands of innocent people, including Space President Peace, and force them to dance.

Purge demands a ransom for the return of the president, but when Ulala and Space Policewoman Pine reach the rendezvous point, they discover that the ransom demand was a diversion from Purge’s real plan to steal transmitters from all of the news stations and combine them into a superpowerful dance-control weapon. Ulala is unable to prevent Purge from stealing the transmitters and destroying Space Channel 5’s orbital headquarters, but she does succeed in rescuing Space Michael and the other Space Channel 5 employees, except for (apparently) her boss Fuse.

Pine summons Ulala, Space Michael, rival reporter Pudding, and the Morolian Boss to Purge’s “Mystery Zone” space station, where the group defeats Shadow (revealed to be Ulala’s colleague Jaguar) in a battle of the bands. Ulala then faces Purge, first in a one-on-one dance battle, then in a final showdown with the help of her friends and all of the kidnapped dancers.

Characters
Most of the characters from Space Channel 5 return: Ulala, Fuse, Jaguar, Pudding, and Space Michael. With some new members who are crucial to the game's plot.


 * Noize
 * Ulala's partner who provides transportation for Ulala using a platform ship powered by dance energy and jiggy power. When Fuse is supposedly dead, risking himself to save Ulala, Noize takes over as Ulala's guide until Fuse returns.


 * President Peace
 * As the galactic president, Peace loves nothing more than to sing, but unfortunately whenever he gets the chance he gets kidnapped by the Rhythm Rogues. His amazing voice provides a massive source of groove energy that Purge plans to use for evil.


 * Purge
 * The main antagonist of Space Channel 5 Part 2, Purge is a sly dancer and leader of the Rhythm Rogues. Using his henchman Shadow (who is actually a brainwashed Jaguar) and his army of robots, Purge kidnaps President Peace and steals satellites from several TV stations in order to complete his Ballistic Groove Gun in order to make the galaxy dance for him.


 * Pine
 * A member of the Eastern Venus Space Police. When dozens of reporters are heading for a scoop, Pine lays down the law to clear the area, opening fire on Ulala who refuses to leave. She then challenges Ulala and Noize to a drum battle. Later on, she calls on Ulala's help to stop Purge. She also has a younger twin sister named Texas in Extra Mode.

Development
Michael Jackson reprises his role as Space Michael, with a lot more involvement in the game's story. A section in the game involves Michael 'singing' catchphrases such as 'Dance!', 'Bang!' and his trademark 'Hoo!' to the beat. A lot of the dancing in these areas are also inspired by Michael Jackson's dancing, such as Thriller. In the Japanese version of the game, he speaks in English and is subbed in Japanese.

The music of Space Channel 5: Part 2 was composed, arranged, and produced by Naofumi Hataya, Kenichi Tokoi, and Tomoya Ohtani, with minor contributions from Hideaki Kobayashi, Mariko Nanba, and Shigeharu Isoda.

HD re-release
A high definition re-release of Part 2 was included in the Dreamcast Collection, released for Xbox 360 and Windows in February 2011, alongside Sonic Adventure, Crazy Taxi and Sega Bass Fishing. The game was later released individually on Steam on March 5, 2011, and on PlayStation Network and Xbox Live Arcade in October 2011.

Reception
On release, Famitsu magazine scored both the Dreamcast version of the game and the PlayStation 2 version a 35 out of 40.