Coma 2: Vicious Sisters, The Review (Xbox One)

STAFF REVIEW of Coma 2: Vicious Sisters, The (Xbox One)

Wednesday, September 23, 2020.
by Adam Dileva

I was new to the Coma series when I reviewed the original, The Coma: Recut. Building upon its predecessor, The Coma 2: Vicious Sisters has now arrived, adding more characters, areas, puzzles, mysteries and of course, danger and blood. Just like the first, The Coma 2 centers around a high school student that’s not only trapped in her school after dark, but must fight to survive the night while dealing with an alternate world.

A Korean based survival horror game, The Coma 2 appears to be ripped right out of a manga, not only with its interesting story but unique art style as well. Set in the Sehwa district, you play as Mina Park, a student of Sehwa High. A series of events happen that I don’t want to spoil, and Mina finds herself locked in her school after dark when there happens to be a Blood Moon in the sky, unable to escape. Things don’t appear to be normal though, as if she’s either in another dimension, or that something else is bleeding into her world, aptly called The Coma.

The Coma is full of horror and death around every corner, so Mina will have to do all she can to survive the night and find a way to escape back to her world. It doesn’t help that there’s constantly someone trying to hunt you down, someone that resembles her teacher. If you’ve played the first game, you’ll know exactly what to expect, if not, you’re in for quite a surprise and won’t have much time to rest.

Setup essentially identical to the first game; you explore The Coma 2 like any other 2D side-scroller, exploring areas and rooms, always on the lookout for clues and hiding places, but is larger in size and expands on different aspects. You’re simply a student though, so don’t expect to have any weapons to fight back with. Mina really only has the ability to carry a few items that replenish your health, stamina and a few others items, meaning you’ll need to run, escape and hide when the time comes to get away from your pursuing demon teacher.

You’ll be periodically checking your trusty map, trying to make sense of the school’s layout, as many pathways will be blocked or barricaded as the school has a handful of floors and secret pathways. Thankfully rooms that have a save point will be marked once found, and the place you’re supposed to go will usually have an exclamation point to indicate that’s your current objective. You’ll have to manually check every door to what what’s locked and how each area connects, but eventually it becomes second nature as you constantly backtrack.

As Mina explores the school, she’ll learn more about The Coma and what these demons are pursuing. As you explore the school you’ll come across a handful of enemies, though most are in set spots and are static. It’s the middle of the night though, so seeing anything other than right in front of you is quite difficult, though not impossible if you take your time. This is where you need to decide if you want to take your time slowly making sure you don't run into one of these enemy traps, though this allows your teacher to possibly find and catch you. You also have access to a trusty lighter to light up the area nearby, making it much easier to see enemies and collectibles, but this means that the enemies will find you much easier as well, so there’s a balance of risk versus reward you need to constantly weigh.

Basic enemies can be easily avoided if you wait and bide your time for a moment, but you constantly have to be on the lookout for ones on the floor that can grab your ankles, poisonous plants and hands that can scratch you from the ceiling, all while trying to be quick. If you get attacked by an enemy, you will start to bleed, where if not bandaged quickly, will cause you to lose a bar of health. Her teacher though can actually chase you, and can be quite frightening when you start to hear the sound of the clacking high heels get louder, closing in on you. This is where you need to hide under a table, bathroom stall or in a locker, hoping she will pass, but this starts a quicktime event that you need to succeed to hold Mina’s breath and stay hidden. Fail this or be caught in the open and it’s a certain death unless you managed to buy some mace to use as a second chance to escape.

The story will have you venturing further out than just our school, as you go from area to area, though each setting is setup very similar. You’ll search for a map of the place, then figure out how to get passed the locked or barred doors so that you can escape and move onto the next area. Sometimes you’ll need to find a secret passage or a key, other times you’ll have secondary objectives that, while optional, are highly recommended to complete. This is for a few reasons actually that I didn’t expect. For example, there’s a “crafting” system in place, which if you’re able to find certain items, will help you on your journey.

Yes it’s optional, but I decided to ignore this and move onto the next area, only to be bit or scratched on my escape, permanently losing a bar of health because I didn’t protect myself. It’s an interesting way to have you explore more without forcing you to do so, but once you realize the consequences, will make you want to complete these objectives before moving on. There are even dozens of notes scattered throughout on the walls that flesh out the game’s lore much deeper, but to collect these you need to use your lighter to light the room, so you’ll need to risk it to do so.

Just like the first game, The Coma 2 uses a manga artistic style. The cutscenes are hand drawn and is a nice change from the dark and gloomy gameplay. While the animation during gameplay is basic and a little janky, it oddly fits with the manga setting. Character design varies and each looks unique, as do the creepiness of the monsters that are trying to kill Mina, especially that sadistic smile of your constant pursuer.

Audio is just as good, as you start to feel tense when you hear footsteps closing in on your position. There’s a constant creepiness factor to the ambient background sounds and music, fitting of an abandoned school from another dimension where everything is trying to kill you. With English subtitles and the original Korean voice over work, The Coma 2 feels authentic, adding to the immersion like any good manga you can't put down.

More than a simple sequel, The Coma 2: Vicious Sisters improves nearly every aspect from the original game, yet still keeps the same authentic feel. While the horror aspect has the odd jump scare, there’s a surprisingly lengthy campaign for Mina to adventure in, even if it does become a little tiresome and repetitive by its conclusion.

Overall: 7.0 / 10
Gameplay: 7.0 / 10
Visuals: 7.0 / 10
Sound: 7.0 / 10

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STAFF REVIEW of Coma 2: Vicious Sisters, The (Xbox One)

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