Tecmo has been a well known and respected name since the days of 8-bit Nintendo. Successful franchises like Ninja Gaiden, and more recently Dead or Alive have helped push the company into the upper echelon of game developers. Now, Monster Rancher 2 has arrived for the PlayStation and once again, Tecmo's creativity shines and proves they are a company after gamer's hearts.

The idea behind Monster Rancher 2 is just what the title sounds like.  You get a monster, take it back to your ranch, and raise it. This may not sound like anything new, but it would be a mistake to write this game off as a "me too" title. Monster Rancher 2 sets itself apart from the competition with lots of depth, variety, and charm.

Much more than a virtual pet game, Monster Rancher 2 has the kind of depth other games in its class wish they had. You can either buy monsters at the market, or really explore the huge amount of depth by inserting any music or game CD and having the game create a monster based on the disc's date. The monsters themselves all have their own unique abilities and personalities which is incredible when you consider there are over 300 types of monster possibilities. For those of you who have played the original Monster Rancher, you'll notice right away that the monsters have many more animations. For example, when you feed a monster, it may rub its belly, lick its lips, or do a handstand. That's just when you give it something it likes. Give it a foul-tasting food and the monster will brace or turn away. This is just a small part of what makes the monsters so fun to watch and raise. 

When you're not watching your animal roam the ranch, you'll need to train it so it can win battles, thus winning the money so desperately needed to keep your ranch open and your game advancing. There are many exercises for trainers to set up for their monsters that can focus specifically on a single attribute, or a couple different attributes at once. The downfalls of trying out an exercise that builds multiple attributes is that your monster will get tired faster. This means you'll have to give it some rest now and then so it does not train hurt and injure itself. If that happens, its off to the hospital for a while which will cost you precious time and money.

Another addition to the series is the option to send your monster to a sort of exercise camp called "Errantry". Normally, it costs a considerable sum of money to send your monster to this, but now and then you will receive mail telling you about special discounts taking place.  

At Errantry, a monster not only learns new battle techniques, but it also gains points for attributes at a rapid rate. For example, a normal power exercise might raise your monster's power by 6 points.  At Errantry, four weeks of power training can raise your monster's power by 10 each week, AND raise its life as well. So now, rather than depending on battles to learn fighting techniques, monsters can go to Errantry and grow stronger at the same time they learn a technique.

Another good example of the game's depth is the loyalty meter. Train your monster in a strict manner and its loyalty will go down which means it may not listen to you in the crucial time of battle. If you do not train it enough or you let it get away with cheating on its training, it may become very loyal, but not nearly powerful enough to be an effective fighter.  It's the player's job to find ways to balance everything out and get their monster to not only listen to them, but to respect and love them.

Cosmetically speaking, Monster Rancher 2 has average graphics for a PlayStation title. The animation is very good and everything is presented in easy to use menus, but the game rarely makes players step back and say, "Wow" because of some great graphical feat. For the most part, nobody is going to think this is a bad looking game and everyone will be having too much fun to really pay attention to whether or not the game looks better than the others in their library.

Monster Rancher 2 has a decent soundtrack that really seems to fit the mood for whatever situation may arise. If your monster is in the hospital, sad music plays, while during battle, dramatic music will flare up to give the battle a feeling of importance and worth.  In addition to the soundtrack, Monster Rancher 2 has some amusing sound effects that, strangely enough, seem to fit the monsters perfectly.  Monsters will cry, yelp, whine, laugh, and let out squeals of joy. All of it sounds great and really helps add personality to each monster.

In short, Monster Rancher 2 is yet another example of how some creativity and hard work can really pay off and turn out an excellent game. The fact that there are over 300 monsters available, and that data from the original Monster Rancher can be used make this a game that can be played for a very long time. It could even be said that it may take years to raise all the monsters and see what each of them is like.