The Game:
Back on the original Xbox, a little collection of minigames called Fuzion Frenzy made a bit of a splash. It gained a reputation as a good way to kill a few hours with some friends for a low price. It did well enough for itself that Microsoft decided to resurrect the game for the 360, in an attempt to compete with far more popular games such as Mario Party and Rayman: Raving Rabbids. Have they suceeded?

The answer is a resounding "No." In comparison to far more creative games (such as those listed above), Fuzion Frenzy 2 is very weak. You start the whole affair by choosing one of six utterly interchangeable, wholly generic characters. One of them is black, two are women, but really, the only way to tell them apart is by the colors on their suits. Once you've done this, you choose from three different modes of gameplay.

The first, Tournament, puts you into an intergalactic reality show, complete with a DJ. This DJ, by the way, is easily the most annoying and utterly superfluous character in any next gen video game on any system, and from the first word out of his mouth, you want to kill him. The second, Mini-Game Frenzy, allows you to play whichever games you choose. The third, custom, lets you create a tournament of your own design, without the DJ (this is the option I would recommend). There's also an option for online multiplayer.

The Gameplay:
The heart of Fuzion Frenzy 2 is a collection of over 40 mini-games. And as with any collection, the game itself lives or dies on how good the mini-games are in succession. It doesn't help to have one or two excellent competitions if the rest are terrible. And, for the most part, these ones are pretty awful.

The games are supposedly themed after a certain world, with such wonderfully creative names as Icicle, Moisture, and Earth, but truth to tell, they're not all that different. Take, for example, two games from the planet Machina: Turbine Coin Collector and Turbine Jumper (the creative name streak continues). Both take place on turbines. Both have you avoiding lasers. "Isn't this the same as what I just played five minutes ago, but with a slight tweak?" you might find yourself asking. And, yes, it is. Every world has competitions that hold to the theme of that planet, but they get increasingly less interesting after you play the first one. Compare this to Rayman: Raving Rabbids, where a majority of the goals are varied and creative (and frequently hilarious). It's no contest.

Even if you don't mind a lack of variety, the controls are generally quite sticky. What's funny is that you can practice every single game as often as you like before you play it, but the abilities of the A.I. seem to change from play to play, because sometimes you can breeze through with ease, while at other times the other competitors seem to become supermen. There's no rhyme or reason to it, as far as I can tell. But no matter how the A.I. performs, you will constantly find yourself fighting the controls, shouting in frustration as your character misses a vital jump or swings at the wrong time just because the system isn't accepting your commands in a timely fashion.

In the tournament mode, there is an extra element, known as Frenzy cards, which allow you to potentially change the outcome of the score, due to multipliers and the like. However, some cards can actually negate or reverse the effects of other cards, so you have to be careful when you use them. The cards are a good idea, but at the same time, they're only half-heartedly implemented and feel tacked on.

The one place where Fuzion Frenzy 2 really shines is in the online multiplayer. Let's face it, mini-games are the most fun when you're playing against other real people. That's why most collections are also called "party games." Fuzion Frenzy 2 allows you to jump online and play any challenge you like with up to 3 other people. Finding a game was easy as pie, and there are many options for customization, as well. While it still doesn't beat actually having friends over, it is the next best thing and really the only worthwhile aspect of the entire endeavor.

The Visuals:
Fuzion Frenzy 2 is made to look like a futuristic TV show, but it looks utterly generic. You get a lot of shiny metallic surfaces (which also extends to the players, who look like they were cut out of sheet metal), along with blinking lights and circuitry that clearly are there just to make the whole thing look sci-fi. The actual games themselves have little to no visual flair, most looking rather drab, with only the colors of the players' costumes to provide any visual interest. Every so often there will be some neon lighting, but generally there's not a lot going on. As far as the level of the graphics themselves go, they're simply run of the mill. You know you're playing a next gen game because everything is smooth and shiny, but it's not going to wow you.

The Audio:
Just to keep the theme going, the soundtrack has a lot of beeping and booping, along with some generic peppy game music that I suppose is meant to pass for game show music in the future. The mini-games generally have a good deal of sound effects to involve you in the action, so that's good. I am, however, going to have to deduct points for the voice of the DJ, which is grating, annoying, and utterly stupid. It doesn't help that he repeats the same four phrases over and over, to the point where you want to hunt down the developers and give them a big piece of your mind. Even if the Fuzion Frenzy 2 was great, which it's not, the DJ character would almost be enough for me to recommend skipping the game entirely. But since the mini-games aren't very good, it makes the DJ even more unbearable.

The Conclusion:
Fuzion Frenzy 2 is a complete and utter disappointment. Maybe if this game were $10 like the first one, I could give it a half-hearted recommendation. But at $50, it's highway robbery. Skip It.