Ludography
Front Mission 2 cover

1997 · G-Craft · Role-playing · Strategy

Front Mission 2

PlayStation exclusive

Front Mission 2 is a tactical role-playing game for the Sony PlayStation developed by G-Craft and published by Square Co., Ltd., and was released in Japan on September 25, 1997. Front Mission 2 is the second main entry and the third entry overall in the Front Mission series. Like other Front Mission titles, Front Mission 2 is part of a serialized storyline that follows the stories of various characters and their struggles involving mecha known as wanzers.

Released
25 September 1997
Platforms
PlayStationPlayStation 3PlayStation 4PlayStation Portable
Genres
Role-playingStrategyTacticalTurn-based tactics
Developers
G-Craft
Publishers
SquareSquare Enix
Modes
Single-player
Perspective
Bird view / Isometric
Themes
ActionScience fictionWarfare

About

Front Mission 2, also known in Japan as Front Mission Second, is a 1997 tactical role-playing game developed by G-Craft and published by Square for the PlayStation. It was released only in Japan on September 25, 1997. It is the second main installment and the third entry overall in the Front Mission series. Like other Front Mission titles, Front Mission 2 is part of a serialized storyline that follows the stories of various characters and their struggles involving mecha known as wanzers. The game was well received by critics and fans, and was part of Square Enix's "Ultimate Hits" collection in 2005.

A remake developed by Storm Trident for the Nintendo Switch, titled Front Mission 2: Remake (Japanese: フロントミッション セカンド:リメイク), was announced in 2022 and was originally set to be released by Forever Entertainment on June 12, 2023, but was delayed to October 5. Ports to Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S were released on April 30, 2024.

›Story

[9] The formation of the OCU in the early 21st century led to rapid industrialization of developing countries such as Bangladesh. During the 1st Huffman Conflict in 2070, Bangladesh's economic growth flourishes with the OCU because of many war factories in the country. However, the economic boom begins to slow down in 2080, with a loss of foreign investments and pullout of several businesses. Five years later, the OCU offers to provide Bangladesh with foreign aid, provided it joins the union.

The Bangladeshi economy resurges briefly during the 2nd Huffman Conflict. Anti-OCU sentiments grew after the war and in 2094, Bangladesh renames itself as the "People's Republic of Alordesh". Four years later, the Alordeshi military staged a coup d'état. While the coup failed, it further increased anti-OCU support and led to a second coup in 2102.

The plot of Front Mission 2 revolves around three individuals from the OCU - Corporal Ash Faruk, Captain Thomas Norland, and intelligence officer Lisa Stanley. On June 12, 2102, the Alordeshi Armed Forces overthrows the pro-OCU government and subsequently declares independence from the OCU. Through a well-orchestrated plan, Alordeshi troops overwhelm the local OCU garrisons at their military bases in the country. In the midst of the chaos, Ash Faruk and members of the Muddy Otters unit attempt to flee the country.

Along the way, they come across some OCU survivors led by Thomas Norland of the Dull Stags unit. Norland leads the survivors to the estate of Saribash Labra, the CEO of the transport business Burg Transportation. Saribash offers to help them escape by the seashore, the only part of Alordesh not controlled by the coup d'état forces. As the survivors head for the seashore, an OCU regiment lands in the country.

Tasked with freeing POWs, Stanley leads a small unit to investigate the movements of the coup d'état forces.

Upon intercepting a transport helicopter, she learns of a detention center where OCU POWs are being held. Stanley succeeds in liberating the inmates and begins preparing for an operation to rescue Alordeshi government officials in Dhaka. A major battle breaks out in the city. The operation succeeds with some help from Norland and his subordinates, who opted to stay in the country and fight the coup forces.

Meanwhile, aboard the OCU aircraft carrier Monto, Faruk is confronted by an officer from the OCU's Central Intelligence Unit. He reluctantly agrees to return to the country when the officer, Pike Reischauer, reveals that some of his colleagues in the Muddy Otters are still alive. Upon returning to Alordesh, they are pursued by coup leader Ven Mackarge. A link between Mackarge's pursuit of them, the OCU's liberation attempts, and Burg Transportation's involvement in the war is eventually formed when it is revealed that the coup forces are receiving support from an unknown third party, and are in possession of a device codenamed "FENRIR".

Keywords

  • anime
  • mech
  • war
  • grid-based movement
  • playstation network
  • digital distribution
  • psone classics
  • fan translation
  • save point
  • playstation tv support
  • backwards compatibility

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

Front Mission 2 uses 3D models and a moving camera.

Front Mission 2 expands on the mechanics found in Front Mission. The video game progresses in a linear manner: watch cut-scene events, complete missions, set up their wanzers during intermissions, and sortie for the next mission. The player travels to locations on a point-and-click world map. As the player progresses through the plot, new locations are revealed on the world map.

Story

The story takes place 12 years after Front Mission 1st. Set in June 2102, the game's story of takes place in Alordesh (modern-day Bangladesh), a member state for the Oceania Cooperative Union (OCU). The formation of the OCU in the early 21st century led to rapid industrialization of developing countries such as Bangladesh. During the 1st Huffman Conflict in 2070, Bangladesh's economic growth flourishes with the OCU because of many war factories in the country.

However, the economic boom begins to slow down in 2080, with a loss of foreign investments and pullout of several businesses. Five years later, the OCU offers to provide Bangladesh with foreign aid, provided it joins the union. The Bangladeshi economy resurges briefly during the 2nd Huffman Conflict. Anti-OCU sentiments grew after the war and in 2094, Bangladesh renames itself as the "People's Republic of Alordesh".

Development

Front Mission 2 was developed by G-Craft, the company which had created and handled development of the original Front Mission. Series creator Toshiro Tsuchida acted as director. Production of Front Mission 2 ran parallel with the spin-off title Front Mission Alternative. During production, Tsuchida was approached by Square, who wanted to buy out and incorporate G-Craft into Square itself.

This deal took place midway through development, with G-Craft being redubbed as Square's Development Division 6, making Front Mission 2 the last title produced under the G-Craft name. While the previous game was produced for the Super Famicom, publisher Square decided to shift production of all core titles from Nintendo's hardware to the in-production PlayStation.

Reception

Famitsu magazine awarded the game 32 out of 40 upon its release. The magazine chose the game as the 63rd best game on the original PlayStation. At the time of the re-release of Front Mission 2 under the Ultimate Hits line on October 5, 2006, the game sold over 510,000 copies in Japan.

Front Mission 2 has been criticized for its long loading times. A workaround for this technical flaw was added in the Ultimate Hits version of the game, which enables the ability to skip battle sequences.

Releases by platformdates and regions as published

PlatformReleasedRegions
PlayStation25 September 1997Japan · Asia 25 September 1997
PlayStation 3Digital Compatibility Release24 December 2008Japan
PlayStation PortableDigital Compatibility Release24 December 2008Japan

Editions and related releases

Remade as
Front Mission 2: Remake

Games like this

Collections6 collections

Years

Genres

Description adapted from its source, CC BY-SA 4.0.