Clock Tower 2

Clocktower 2 or Clocktower (Playstation US port) Review
written by Ceara Ivory

Story: 8/10

1 year ago, orphan Jennifer Simpson and her friends were adopted by the wealthy Barrows Family and brought to the Barrows Mansion by Mary Barrows. However, their dreams of finally having a family became a nightmare when almost immediately after their arrival, they were attacked by a monstrous child called Bobby Barrows or Scissorman. Bobby Barrows earned this moniker with the giant pair of scissors that he used to slaughter anyone in his path.

Only Jennifer survived this horrific night. Now a year later, she is being studied by Professor Samuel Barton in Oslo, Norway. Professor Barton does not fully believe her story and thinks a lot of it may have been damaged by the trauma she experienced that night. However, he does not truly care for her wellbeing at all, and is willing to traumatize her even further just to get the information he wants. Jennifer has been adopted by Helen Maxwell, Barton’s assistant who severely disagrees with his methods. To make matters worse, Jennifer also has to deal with something even more frightening than Scissorman. Reporters and all of their thousand and one questions concerning her ordeal.

One night, after one of the reporters, Nolan, takes her out to dinner, she is on her way back to the house she and Helen share. However, on the way she gets this strange feeling that someone is following her.  She runs the rest of the way to the university (which is on the way) and tries to get the security guard to help her. Out of nowhere, Scissorman appears and kills the security guard. Yes, Scissorman is back and Jennifer once again has to run for her life!

Now, she and Helen, and the rest of the cast has to find a way to stop Scissorman, once and for all!


                                                                                                                                                                   

Game Play: 6/10

Clock Tower 2 is obviously a direct sequel to Clock Tower: The First Fear (released only in Japan which is why those in America know the sequel only as Clock Tower). Clock Tower is a point-and-click style, stealth-based survival horror game made by Human Entertainment.

Unlike the previous game, the player has the option of controlling either Helen or Jennifer (in the previous title, Jennifer was the only playable character). The story is the same either way but the endings are different depending on which character the player chooses. There are also 3 different scenarios with the second scenario having two different areas the player can explore (although they can only choose one).

In keeping with the first game, the player runs around collecting different items, solving puzzles and trying their best to avoid Scissorman with the use of hiding places and evade points. Hiding places could be used as many times as they were needed but they did have the possibility of failure whereas evade points always succeeded but could only be used once the entire game.

The game does have an obvious creepy factor. Scissorman’s appearances are randomized and the player stays in one place too long they may find themselves having to run for their lives. There is also several places in each level where Scissorman could jump out as if from nowhere and start running after the player. The player can also stumble onto some horrific sights and the game itself is a little gory.

It is a good idea for a player to explore as much as they can, to make sure they collect all the necessary items for completing the game however, as mentioned above, if a player takes too long, Scissorman will start chasing them again. Thus it is never recommended to dilly dally; get in, find what is needed, and leave. This is NOT a JRPG where the player has ample time to explore whatever they want.

There is also a very obvious lack of traditional weaponry. No swords, no daggers, no knives, no guns (at least not until the end and only once) nothing. The only way to stop Scissorman is to use hiding places and evasion points. That is it. Thus, this game actually requires some thought and strategy. This is a stealth-based game and the player will have to exercise some common sense (staying away from elevators for instance is a very good idea).

                                                                                                                                                                   

Graphics: 4/10

I suppose for the time period, it’s not too bad but personally I thought the graphics were a little too grainy and glitchy. The game is a 3D game but it looks like they just tried to put way too many details into the graphics with very little room.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                            

Sound: 9/10
I liked the music. The music and sounds were the cues to run as Scissorman’s theme is very obvious and one could hear his scissors clanking in the background to boot. The sounds would also get louder as the player got closer to him, which would tell the player which way he was coming from and where to run.

Voice Acting: 2/10
Okay they get points for having voice acting to begin with. However, that’s where it stops. The actors sounded like they had the script right in front of their faces. The emotions were very faked and really took AWAY from the fear factor. It is hard to feel the fear if the characters do not feel the fear. Voice acting is a plus in any game, but BAD voice acting can completely ruin it.

                                                                                                                                                                   

Replay Value: 10/10

As with the previous game, Clock Tower 2 has several possible endings ranging from E to A (Worst to Best). Each ending could be achieved depending on what the player did (or didn’t do) throughout the game. Both Helen and Jennifer have 5 possible endings, which makes 10 total and the player is encouraged to find 

them all to unlock secrets.

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Conclusion:
Clock Tower 2 is either a hit or miss game. Either you hate it or you love it. I cannot tell you to go out and buy it right away or to pass on it altogether. The best thing you can do is either rent it or find a ROM of it and try it out first.

Total Score: 74% or 7.4/10