What Did I Do To Deserve This, My Lord?! 2 review

You may have never heard of What Did I Do To Deserve This, My Lord?! 2 before this review, but let me tell you a little secret … lean in closer … a little closer … it’s a kickass game!

From Japanese developers Acquire (known developers behind Tenchu and Way of the Samurai), the premise behind My Lord?! 2 is a simple one: Help defend Overlord Badman in his wicked and melancholy underground dungeon from heroic invaders who want to take him to the top soil. To do so, players must create maze-like dungeons and have a call to arms of demonic creatures to stand in the way of the invaders and Badman.

As a real-time strategy / tower defense title of sorts, My Lord?! 2 is as tongue-in-cheek as they come. Acquire put forth excellent, and often hilarious, dialogue to charm the player to death. From inside jokes to in-your-face humor, the title is one of the more enjoyable PlayStation Portable releases in recent memory. Writing aside though, there’s much more to My Lord?! 2 that should bring a smile to the face of the old-school gamers.

Represented by a pickaxe, players have to mold and build the soil on the screen into a viable defense for the almighty Overlord Badman. It is best players take advantage of Slimemoss, a ball of goo that distributes nutrients in the soil that helps bring forth Omnom, a bug-like creature that will fight against the heroes that decide to venture forth through the dungeon. The Omnom eat the Slimemoss and the food chain doesn’t stop there – Lizardmen will enter the scene and are outstanding at taking the fight to the heroes.

Building the evil underground dungeon to tiptop shape, My Lord?! 2 introduces mutations in the sequel that add another layer to gameplay. Creatures can evolve into 239 variations (obesity, gigantism, and deformity), so the game is constantly changing to keep the player on their toes when they are on defense for the cranky Badman. If that isn’t enough, players are still able to upgrade and make their creatures even more powerful throughout the stages. This is where most of the entertainment was found; watching the creatures evolve and interact in the world.

There are three modes to play through: Training (take a guess at what this mode revolves around), Story (five worlds, each with their own levels to complete) and Badman’s Chamber (a sandbox mode). The Story mode is as challenging as they come, so the replay value is often found within a trial-and-error process. If the title serves to be too difficult, players may be best to play through Badman’s Chamber and tinker with the settings on how the game is played.

It cannot be said enough, though: My Lord?! 2 isn’t for the weak-minded or uninitiated. It’s directly catered to hardcore gamers who have the patience and willingness to come back for second and third attempts at completing a stage. The high difficulty is an obvious entry barrier and I’d advise trying out the demo prior to purchase as it’s definitely a title that is unique in its own right and will leave many clueless.

As strange as it is, What Did I Do To Deserve This My Lord?! 2 is a wonderful delight in an affordable package at $29.99 (it also comes with the original).