Shank 2 (PS3)

With the additions and improvements, you can actually enjoy slicing up a few of the enemies for a while and attempt to enjoy the story line. The user controls are a lot smoother and allow you to pick up a weapon or melee with separate buttons. Shank’s...

Great visual style ; Combat is smooth ; Challenging not frustrating ; Survival mode is fun

Campaign is short ; Removal of traditional co-op

I had a love/hate relationship with the original Shank. I adored the slick visuals and visceral combat, but the difficulty really tested my old man gaming skills. Sure, it was entirely plausible to beat the game with some patience. For some, though,...

Visually, Shank 2 looks about as good as the first one. There aren't many improvements, but animations are a bit smoother. The soundtrack is very good and features of the kind of Mexican western-style music of the first game, but I don't like the...

Slice and dice; Really pretty 2D graphics; Co-op in the mix; Kill enemies... together

Right... then left a little bit... but mostly right.; Hardly anyone playing online; And I have no real-life friends; So... lonely...; *sobs

If you live with a gamer buddy or find yourself frequently in need of some quick, mindless, violent action, Shank 2 is definitely for you. Try the demo if you're unsure. Maybe you're more capable of turning off your brain than you ever knew.

Sure, Shank 2 falls apart here and there, but it's minor compared to the excitement that this game brings, and the reasonable $10 price tag (on all platforms) makes this a good value, too. The annoying checkpoints might make you re-do one easier fight...

The Ugly: “Just make your first chainsaw execution…”

Shank 2 is a competent brawler that has some truly action-packed moments, some of which will leave you staring in awe and asking yourself if that just really happened. While certain aspects have been improved upon since the 2010 original, in the...

I was sold on the original Shank in about 30 seconds; from seeing the main character linking combos, moving like an acrobat, and grinning in his half-cute/half-sadistically violent yet incredibly clean art style. As long as the developers didn't mess...

The core of the first game remains intact, of course -- if it ain't broke, don't fix it, right? -- but Shank 2 is the embodiment of grand change on a small scale. Developer Klei was aggressive about smoothing rougher edges, and the minor tweaks in...