Twisted Metal 2

Twisted Metal 2

North American cover art
Developer(s) Sony Interactive Studios America / SingleTrac
Publisher(s) Sony Computer Entertainment
Director(s) David Jaffe
Producer(s) David Jaffe, Scott Campbell
Designer(s) David Jaffe
Programmer(s) Randy Zorko, Michael Badger, Polly Harris, Steve Poulson
Writer(s) Daniel Bennett Phillips
Composer(s) Chuck E. Meyers / Lance Lenhart / Tom Hopkins / Pinnacle Group, The [1]
Series Twisted Metal
Platform(s) PlayStation, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation Network
Release date(s)

PlayStation

  • NA: October 31, 1996
  • EU: February 1997
  • JP: August 28, 1997

Microsoft Windows

PlayStation Network

Genre(s) Vehicular combat
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer, Split-screen multiplayer

Twisted Metal 2 (known as Twisted Metal: World Tour in Europe and Twisted Metal EX in Japan) is the second and most successful game in the vehicular combat series, Twisted Metal. It was developed by the game studio SingleTrac, published by Sony, and released in 1996 for PlayStation and Microsoft Windows.

The Microsoft Windows version features slightly cut-down graphics compared to the PlayStation version but doesn't require a 3D accelerator video card. It also features multiplayer mode over a modem line or Internet.

Two years after its release, Twisted Metal 2 was re-released as a PlayStation Greatest Hits game, however under the developer 989 Studios instead of SingleTrac. It was also released for download in Japan and North America on the PlayStation Network in 2007.

Gameplay

A screenshot showing Outlaw 2 targeting Twister

In concept, Twisted Metal 2 is a demolition derby which permits the usage of ballistic projectiles. Players choose a vehicle and an arena—or a series of arenas in the story mode—to engage in battle with opposing drivers. A variety of weapons are obtainable by pick-ups scattered throughout the stage. The objective of the game is to be the last remaining player.

Plot

2006: Los Angeles is in ruins and its citizens left to struggle for survival after the conclusion of Twisted Metal, a brutal contest held by Calypso, exactly one year earlier on Christmas Eve. Aboard his airship (running the ticker "CALYPSO RULER OF THE EARTH") in the skies over the destroyed City of Angels, Calypso wonders where the next Twisted Metal will take place; fourteen of the world's best drivers are already assembled to compete for whatever prize they desire. Ultimately, Calypso decides that the world itself shall serve as a battleground. In addition to the remains of Los Angeles, drivers will also battle in Moscow, Paris, Amazonia, New York City, Antarctica, Holland, and Hong Kong.

After defeating all the opponents in Amazonia, the player must face Minion before proceeding to New York City. The Dark Tooth boss fight takes place after the player defeats all the opponents in Hong Kong; once Dark Tooth (and his flaming head) is defeated, the driver meets with Calypso in New York to receive their prize.

Development

SingleTrac began brainstorming ideas for a Twisted Metal sequel in late 1995.[5]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
GameRankings(PS) 86.44%[6]
(PC) 49.50%[7]
Review scores
PublicationScore
AllGame(PS) [8]
(PC) [9]
Edge7/10[10]
EGM8.25/10[11]
Game Informer8.75/10[12]
GamePro[13]
Game Revolution(PS) B+[14]
(PC) B[15]
GameSpot(PS) 8.8/10[16]
(PC) 6.4/10[17]
IGN7.3/10[18]
Play88%[19]

Twisted Metal 2 was both a financial and critical success. The PlayStation version sold 1.74 million copies in the United States alone.[20] The PlayStation version has an aggregate score of 86.44% on GameRankings, based on eight reviews.[6] The PC version is claimed to have averaged at 49.50% on the same website, based on two reviews, though many other reviewers are in favor of said version too.[7]

Frosty Treats, a major ice cream truck company, filed a lawsuit against Sony contending that Twisted Metal 2 infringed on the company's trademarks through the use of the phrase, "Frosty Treats", as well as similarities between the video game clown, Sweet Tooth, and the company's own safety clown. In Frosty Treats, Inc. v. Sony Computer Entertainment America, Inc., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit ruled against the trademark claims because they were either too generic or were unlikely to cause confusion among consumers.[21]

See also

References

  1. Twisted Metal 2 on Discogs. Retrieved January 2, 2014.
  2. Sony staff (November 13, 1997). "Sony Interactive Studios America Unleashes Jet Moto And Twisted Metal 2 For The PC.". TheFreeLibrary.com (Press release). Farlex, Inc. Retrieved September 10, 2012.
  3. Spencer (July 26, 2007). "Wild ARMs on Japan's Playstation Store". Siliconera. Retrieved September 10, 2012.
  4. McWhertor, Michael (November 1, 2007). "PlayStation Store Update: Twisted Metal 2, Y'All". Kotaku. Gawker Media. Retrieved September 10, 2012.
  5. "Twisted Fan". Electronic Gaming Monthly. Ziff Davis (79): 137. February 1996.
  6. 1 2 "Twisted Metal 2 for PlayStation". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Retrieved September 10, 2012.
  7. 1 2 "Twisted Metal 2 for PC". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Retrieved September 10, 2012.
  8. House, Michael L. "Twisted Metal 2 (PS) - Review". Allgame. Retrieved March 13, 2014.
  9. House, Michael L. "Twisted Metal 2 (PC) - Review". Allgame. Retrieved March 13, 2014.
  10. Edge staff (February 1997). "Twisted Metal 2 (PS)". Edge (41).
  11. "Twisted Metal 2 (PS)". Electronic Gaming Monthly (91). January 1997.
  12. "Twisted Metal 2". Game Informer (44). December 1996. Archived from the original on September 10, 1999. Retrieved March 13, 2014.
  13. Major Mike (1997). "Twisted Metal 2 Review for PlayStation on GamePro.com". GamePro. Archived from the original on February 9, 2005. Retrieved March 13, 2014.
  14. Fletcher, Irwin (November 1996). "Twisted Metal 2: World Tour Review (PS)". Game Revolution. Archived from the original on June 6, 1997. Retrieved March 13, 2014.
  15. Anderson, Tom (January 1998). "Twisted Metal 2 Review (PC)". Game Revolution. Archived from the original on June 13, 1998. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
  16. Kitts, Jeff (December 9, 1996). "Twisted Metal 2 Review (PS)". GameSpot. Retrieved March 13, 2014.
  17. Mooney, Shane (January 12, 1998). "Twisted Metal 2 Review (PC)". GameSpot. Archived from the original on March 14, 2007. Retrieved March 13, 2014.
  18. IGN Staff (January 7, 1997). "Twisted Metal 2 (PS)". IGN. Retrieved March 13, 2014.
  19. "Twisted Metal World Tour". Play UK. 1997.
  20. "US Platinum Videogame Chart". The Magic Box. December 27, 2007. Retrieved September 11, 2012.
  21. Arnold, Morris Sheppard (25 July 2005). "FROSTY TREATS INC v. SONY COMPUTER ENTERTAINMENT AMERICA INC". FindLaw. Thomson Reuters. Retrieved 30 August 2015.
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