Retro Replay Review

Gameplay

TimeSplitters 2 delivers a slick and varied gameplay experience that holds up remarkably well even years after its initial release. Players step into the boots of Cortez as he bounces between ten distinct time periods, from the dusty saloons of the Wild West to the neon-lit corridors of a far-future space station. Each era offers unique level design, thematic weapons, and environmental hazards, ensuring that no two stages feel identical. The mix of linear objectives and optional secrets encourages exploration and rewards curiosity.

(HEY YOU!! We hope you enjoy! We try not to run ads. So basically, this is a very expensive hobby running this site. Please consider joining us for updates, forums, and more. Network w/ us to make some cash or friends while retro gaming, and you can win some free retro games for posting. Okay, carry on 👍)

The core single-player campaign is structured around time-travel missions that often allow Cortez to team up with past or future versions of himself, creating dynamic firefights with multiple “Cortezes” on-screen. Objectives range from simple fetch quests and protection duties to more elaborate tasks on higher difficulties, such as timed defenses or stealth segments. Difficulty settings significantly affect mission parameters, unlocking alternate pathways and bonus objectives for veterans seeking an extra challenge.

Cooperative play is seamlessly integrated into Story mode, allowing two friends to tackle the campaign simultaneously. This not only doubles the firepower against the malevolent TimeSplitters but also adds a social layer that transforms tense firefights into shared triumphs. Savvy players can coordinate strategies—one covering chokepoints while the other flanks enemies—to maximize survivability and uncover hidden areas.

Beyond its story missions, TimeSplitters 2 shines with its robust Challenge and Arcade modes. Challenge mode presents time- and skill-based tests—ranging from precision sniping courses to frantic wave-based survival—that award bronze, silver, or gold medals. Earning medals unlocks additional maps, secret characters, and quirky cheats. Arcade mode’s Custom sub-mode is a playground for up to four humans and AI “bots,” supporting 16 diverse disciplines, including Deathmatch, Virus, Thief, Shrink, Monkey Assistant, and Flame Tag. Each variant retools basic FPS mechanics into fresh, often hilarious, contests.

Graphics

Leveraging the PlayStation 2’s hardware, TimeSplitters 2 offers vibrant, stylized visuals that balance cartoonish character models with rich environmental details. Each time period is distinct: dusty, sun-bleached textures in the Old West give way to the cold, metallic textures of a futuristic space station. Destructible environments—breakable crates, shattering glass, and crumbling walls—add a tactile sense of impact to the action.

Character animation remains fluid, with exaggerated movements that accentuate contact flashes, melee strikes, and reload sequences. Enemy designs are imaginative, ranging from robotic horrors in sci-fi levels to bandits and automatons in historical stages. The lighting and color palettes shift dramatically from level to level, maintaining visual freshness throughout the roughly eight-hour campaign.

While particle effects and polygon counts are modest by modern standards, the art direction ensures that each element is clear and readable, even during intense firefights. The HUD is unobtrusive, providing ammo counts and health indicators without dominating the screen. Multiplayer arenas are equally well-crafted, featuring open arenas, tight corridors, and destructible cover that keep matches lively and unpredictable.

Story

TimeSplitters 2’s narrative is straightforward yet charmingly irreverent. Players follow Cortez as he unravels the origins of the rogue TimeSplitters—an enigmatic group wreaking havoc across the timeline. While the plot seldom takes itself too seriously, it provides a loose framework to justify the wild variety of levels and enemies encountered along the way.

The time-travel paradox mechanic—where Cortez can team up with past and future selves—adds a playful twist to the storytelling. It allows for humorous interactions, as multiple versions of the hero banter and coordinate attacks. Though character development is minimal, the game’s tongue-in-cheek dialogue and comic-book style cutscenes inject personality into otherwise action-focused missions.

Each chapter concludes with a concise cliffhanger, keeping players eager to see what era comes next. Optional side rooms and secret terminals reveal bits of lore about the TimeSplitters’ experiments and the agency that originally recruited Cortez. While not a deep narrative experience, the story provides enough context to tie together the frenetic gameplay and encourage continued progression.

Overall Experience

TimeSplitters 2 remains a high-water mark for fast-paced, arcade-style shooters on the PS2. Its blend of varied single-player missions, inventive cooperative mechanics, and a sprawling array of multiplayer modes delivers immense replayability. The challenge and arcade modes alone provide dozens of hours of content, as players strive to unlock secret levels, characters, and cheats.

Community and couch multiplayer thrive thanks to the game’s customizable options and AI bots. Whether you’re vying for the top spot in a four-player Free-for-All or orchestrating a stealth mission in Challenge mode, there’s always something new to discover. The game’s pacing is relentless, rarely allowing a dull moment to creep in, and its humorous tone keeps the action light-hearted.

For players seeking a throwback to classic arena shooters with a time-travel twist, TimeSplitters 2 is a must-own title. Its tight controls, memorable level design, and unlockable content ensure that both casual gamers and hardcore completionists will find reasons to return. Even decades on, it stands as a testament to Free Radical Design’s creativity and polish in the golden era of console FPS games.

Retro Replay Score

8.2/10