Evolution 2: Far Off Promise is the another entry in the growing library of Dreamcast RPGs.  Published domestically by Ubi Soft, the game is a true sequel to the first Evolution, which was released in late 1999.

The second chapter picks up right where the first game left off, with a complete summary of what happened in the last game.  Mag, Linear, and Gre are called away by the Archeological Society in Museville to help investigate the activities of the criminal Carcano and his bandit gang.   Along the way Mag and company explore many exotic ruins and search for the 4 key orbs to an ancient civilization.  Characters from the first game such as Chain and Pepper are back.  In addition, the new characters, Carcano and Yurka, are introduced.  More plot development then the first game is present since Yurka seems to be Mag's rival for Linear’s attention.  The game flows from dungeon to dungeon with story segments in between.  The translation is very good with the original Japanese voice acting left in, which really makes this game unlike others.  It’s almost like watching a subtitled anime.  

Graphically, the sequel is not much different from the first.  Smooth polygon models complement a colorful world that can be rotated at all angles.   There is one main town where Mag can gather supplies and regain health.  Dungeons are reached by way of overworld arrows and feature a variety of settings such as jungles, mountains, ice caves, and volcanoes.  Unlike the first game, most of the dungeons are not random which gives some sense of useful exploration.  The music is relatively upbeat and never gets tiring.  Sound effects include voices during battle actions and spell effects. 

Gameplay is almost identical to the first game.  Characters can either use either spells or cyframe attacks.  Technique points can be gained from the turn-based battles to increase the power of attacks and learn new attacks from each cyframe or weapon category.  Slots can be added to the cyframe to learn new attacks or spells.  During battle, the side turn bar is still there giving players an easy way to select which enemy would be the best to attack based on what turn they go in.  The party must explore multi-floor dungeons to fight enemies, avoid traps, and gather appraisal items for sale in town.  At the end of each dungeon is a huge boss which must be defeated to obtain the next ancient orb artifact.  Despite the rather standard battle sequences, this game is fun because of its simplicity and the interactions of the characters.   

I’ve always liked the anime style RPG and that’s why I like this series.  The story raises more questions then it answers so I’m hoping for a third chapter.  Meanwhile, this game is highly recommended as an appetizer before the main course of Dreamcast RPGs, namely Grandia II and Skies of Arcadia, arrives later this year.