Drakengard 2

As with the original Drakengard, the game is split into chapters and subdivided into ground-based and airborne missions. The story of the game dictates which missions come when during the initial playthrough and how they play out, though as the player progresses, new remixed versions of the various playable levels called "free missions" are unlocked, which allow the player to go through the missions with the story elements removed. The player can jump between the game world's self-contained areas via a world map unlocked after the first chapter. In between the various chapters and missions, the player builds up their characters using experience points earned in battle: the characters' weapons and abilities, and the abilities of the player's dragon, can be gradually improved.

The player's view of the world is through a fixed camera, which tracks the player's progress across the player area. Collectables in the form of weapons and items such as armor and health points and items needed to progress within the level are also available for the player to seek out. The game features Easy/Normal, Hard, and Extreme difficulty levels, and there are multiple weapons and items to collect throughout the levels.

Drakengard 2 takes place in an unnamed land nearly two decades after the events of Drakengard: originally said to take place after the game's first ending, it was later retconned so it took place in an isolated timeline following events similar to Drakengard. In the original game, two powers, the Empire and the Union, were engaged in a religious war over the Seals, magical bindings tied to a chosen Goddess of the Seal that kept dark entities known as the Watchers from appearing in the mortal world and destroying humanity. Caught up in the conflict were Caim and Angelus, a human and a dragon who had made a pact (a magical ritual that linked their souls), and fought to try to keep both the Seals and the Goddess safe. Though they ultimately failed, Angelus became the new seal, averting the end of the world. Eighteen years later, the Seals are protected by the Knights of the Seal, who eventually grow to become a dominating force in the land.

The game's main character is Nowe (ノウェ), a Knight of the Seal who possesses superhuman powers. Nowe's companion is Legna (レグナ, Reguna), a dragon who helped raise Nowe and was involved in the events of 18 years before. Accompanying Nowe on his journey is Manah (マナ, Mana), the main antagonist of the first game who now seeks to free the people from the oppression of the Knights; Eris (エリス, Erisu), a female Knight of the Seal and Nowe's childhood friend; and Urick (ユーリック, Yūrikku) a former Knight who made a pact with the Grim Reaper in exchange for his mortality. The main villain of the game is Gismor (ジスモア, Jisumoa), leader of the Knights of the Seal.

Drakengard 2 was announced in December 2004. Producer Takamasa Shiba and character designer Kimihiko Fujisaka returned to the team, alongside actor Shinnosuke Ikehata, who voiced the dragon Angelus and its partner Caim in the previous game. The original director, Yoko Taro, originally proposed a space adventure involving dragons, but this was vetoed at an early stage. Yoko was not involved in creating the narrative as he had been in Drakengard, being mostly tied up with another project, though he was able to observe the project's progress.

He and Drakengard 2's director Akira Yasui suffered from creative differences, with the result that Yoko termed their relationship on the project as a "love-hate" story in a 2013 interview concerning the series. Their relationship inspired one of the stories created for an in-game weapon. Yoko was eventually brought on fairly late in the game's production to act as video editor for the CGI cutscenes and trailers. The CGI cutscenes were created by Studio Anima.

Drakengard 2 sold well in Japan. The game was considered a hit in Japan by Ubisoft, selling 100,000 units in its first week, and reaching sales of 170,000 units by the end of the month, becoming the second best-selling game of June behind Sega's GBA port of Mushiking: King of the Beetles. It eventually sold just over 206,000 copies by the end of 2005. The game was eventually re-released as part of Square Enix's Ultimate Hits series, re-releases of high-selling titles.

Drakengard 2 received a score of 30/40 from Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu. The game received "average" reviews, according to video game review aggregator Metacritic.

In September 2013, the game was given an honorable mention among Kotaku's Tim Rogers as one of the best games on the PS2. Rogers gave praise to the game's parry mechanic and atmosphere. In the year of its release in Japan, the game received a novelization written by Emi Nagashima under her pen name of Jun Eishima. Yoko and Shiba teamed up again to create another game in the series, but that eventually developed into Nier, a spin-off from the first game's fifth ending.

After Nier's release, Cavia was absorbed into AQ Interactive, then Yoko left to become a freelance. An attempt by Shiba to begin development of a third Drakengard game at AQ Interactive were unsuccessful. Drakengard 3 was eventually unveiled in 2013, with Shiba, Yoko and Fujisaka returning to their former roles and the story being set before the original game. Both Shiba and Yoko have voiced their willingness to continue the series on next-generation consoles if there were sufficient sales and funds, while Yoko also expressed interest in making a second spin-off, although he did not specify whether it would be set in the world of Nier or not.