Fairy Tail 2 Review (PS5, PS4, Switch, & PC)

There are three categories of people. Veterans who’ve religiously followed the Fairy Tail anime and manga series. Fairly newbies who jumped on the Fairy Tale game adaptation bandwagon back in 2020. And virgin noobies who’ll be playing the Fairy Tail 2 sequel for the first time ever. Depending on the category you’re in, you’re likely to come off with wildly different experiences, majorly because a huge part of your playthrough relies on how great the storytelling is. See, the game is, at the end of the day, an anime/manga adaptation. For that reason, you’re likely to find lots of references to the source material. Some may be unfamiliar to newcomers or “lost in translation,” as it were. But if Gust Studio has done its job right, then the gameplay will be engaging enough to retain the attention of every gamer. 

Based solely on gameplay, Fairy Tail didn’t quite exceed expectations. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t great either. Fortunately, Fairy Tail 2 has upped the ante by overhauling the battle system. Also, exploration of its world is more intriguing, thanks to a more vast scale and lots of opportunities to level up. Through finding treasure and item drops, you can elevate your party to levels that easily beat adversaries. That simple joy of finding rewards and burying foes is enough to make your experience worthwhile. In any case, there are glaring issues that you may find hard to ignore. Some could be significant enough to detract from your gameplay. In the Fairy Tail 2 review below, we’ll explore all the reasons this new action RPG is worth playing (alongside reasons you may want to wait out a sale). 

Squashing the Alvarez Empire

The Fairy Tail series adapts popular anime and manga using the same name. As a result, you’ll find many familiar characters and story arcs if you’ve faithfully followed the source material. However, as with most game adaptations, the plot has been made more concise. At times, cut down to glaring levels. It’s the reason the first game didn’t quite exceed expectations with a rushed-through story. Spectacle story moments didn’t quite land, and unless you had a good idea of the anime/manga, you might struggle to play house with the gameplay. Unfortunately, Fairy Tail 2 suffers from the same issue. 

Firstly, it’s a continuation of the first game, and unfortunately, it does require playing the first game to appreciate the characters and plot in the sequel properly. The second game tells the anime’s final chapter: the Alvarez Empire story arc. By that fact, it also means more appreciation of the plot if you have diligently followed the series from its inception. Still, Fairy Tail 2 tries to usher newcomers into its universe, breaking down the events leading up to the Alvarez Empire invasion. You’re gradually introduced to the titular party members, learning new characters as you progress.

You can learn more about the characters’ personalities and backgrounds via handy Diaries during save points. These are structured as “by the campfire” cutscene conversations between characters that don’t necessarily tie into the main quest but are a nice way to develop a connection to character favorites. 

Lost in Translation

In the long run, though, the Diaries may have hurt the plot’s impact. It simply isn’t the best place to connect to the characters, as it renders the plot a mere run-through of events without diving deep into character personalities and motivations. As a result, significant story moments like the passing away of a main character or an epic battle gone awry don’t land like they should. It’s the same issue as the first game, where making the anime/manga adaptation concise and to the point may have watered down the compelling factor of the story. Don’t get me wrong: there is plenty of pleasant fan service content for veterans. On the other hand, newcomers may struggle to find the story intriguing or, frankly, memorable. 

You do have post-game content to sink in some more playtime. It’s an original story like the epilogue of the Alvarez Empire story arc. It’s relatively shorter but still a nice way to enjoy bonus content when you aren’t ready to say goodbye to the adventures of Natsu Dragneel and Lucy Heartfilia of the Fairy Tail found family magic guild.

The bonus content is quite fun, delving deeper into the fictional world of Earthland, which is significantly more sprawling than the first game. You explore more open zones, unlocking new ways to traverse the lands as you explore. While exploring, you’ll run into treasure chests and field encounters and branch off the beaten path to complete side quests. The reward for going out of your way to explore and conquer enemies feels satisfying, so much so that you can get lost in the loop of it all. 

Anime in Gaming

On the one hand, the world is beautiful. You’ll spot lots of memorable places in between vast sand dunes and forests. The graphics may not be winning any awards. In fact, it may fall short in fast-paced, more frenetic battle moments with dipping frame rates. However, the feeling of traversing an anime in-game is there. Characters are as charming as in the anime, alongside their addicting personalities and aura. The same goes for the environments that portray a deep fantasy and magical world. The visual effects and tantalizing music score during spectacle battle moments cement your visual experience, knitting the presentation package with a bow.

While exploring, you’ll encounter obstacles that, thanks to unlocking new traversal abilities, allow you to break through them in exciting ways. Field attacks remain refreshing, even as you run into treasure chests and craft new skills. Breaking some obstacles are tied to specific characters.

Moreover, you gain access to new locations upon unlocking certain characters, which is a great way to feel motivated to backtrack and explore locations you’ve previously visited. So, you’ll constantly switch characters while exploring, allowing you to adapt to different play styles. All the while, you’re leveling up your characters with new skills and abilities, effectively preparing them for battle.

Conquer Enemies

Combat is by far the better counterpart in the gameplay. Each character starts with three basic attacks. You directly control one character during battle while teaming up with two more adequately AI-controlled characters. The stakes are higher when you gain experience via Skill Points and are able to unlock new special attacks. The special attacks are widely varied, ranging from high damage output to support and healing. Some are excellent aerial and vertical AoE that are as powerful as they are huge spectacles. You could hoard SP and unlock a higher Fairy Rank. This gives you a higher max HP alongside leveling up your basic stats in the Magic Origin skill tree. Unfortunately, individual nodes on the skill tree don’t seem to affect battle outcomes differently, taking away strategy. It leaves the progression system, specifically on the skill tree, rather shallow and better off, leaving it to automatically upgrade.

Ultimately, Fairy Tail 2’s joy in combat stems from combining clever combos and damaging synergies between characters. You have a healthy dose of characters to choose from, making finding powerful combinations for case-by-case field encounters fun and engaging. What’s more? The animations are ever-so-thrilling and exaggerated to the anime standards.

Visual effects portray just the perfect form of magic thrill as you level the field with devastating attacks. And well, there are the boss encounters, which do provide a welcome challenge, especially since it’s easy to overpower regular enemies. Bosses have a yellow break gauge, which you must drain before you can land any impactful attack. You suddenly find yourself in panic mode, trying to stagger enemies while evading their powerful incoming attacks and still maximizing the often time-sensitive special attacks once your SP is charged.

Verdict

It may be Fairy Tail 2’s only pain point that it may require a refresher of the first game or, even better, the anime and manga series. Otherwise, you may miss out on quite important character background and universe lore that can have a significant impact on how compelling the story turns out. Veterans, as a result, may find the most joy in heading back to fictional Earth-land. Newcomers, on the other hand, could find the plot leaves a lot to be desired. 

Fortunately, Fairy Tail 2 tries to make up for its story mishaps with an addicting exploration and combat loop. You often always find goodies combing out every nook and cranny of the game’s world. And while at it, continue to level up your party in preparation for field encounters. Overhauling the first game’s combat in favor of a more real-time and turn-based RPG may have been Fairy Tail 2’s saving grace. Combat, as a result, is fun and engaging. You’re often thinking on your feet as you string together flashy combos and synergize party members to devastating effect. 

Overall, regardless of whether you’re a veteran or a newcomer, I doubt you’ll leave Fairy Tail 2 disappointed, at least not to the point of feeling robbed of your hard-earned money and time.