<s>
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
II	I-Application
Zwei	I-Application
is	O
a	O
1996	O
rail	O
shooter	O
game	O
for	O
the	O
Sega	B-Device
Saturn	I-Device
,	O
published	O
by	O
Sega	O
and	O
developed	O
by	O
Sega	O
's	O
Team	O
Andromeda	O
studio	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
second	O
entry	O
in	O
the	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
series	O
and	O
a	O
prequel	B-Application
to	O
the	O
original	B-Application
game	I-Application
,	O
the	O
story	O
follows	O
Lundi	O
and	O
his	O
dragon	O
companion	O
,	O
Lagi	O
,	O
as	O
they	O
pursue	O
an	O
airship	O
of	O
the	O
Ancient	O
Age	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Production	O
of	O
Zwei	O
began	O
in	O
1995	O
in	O
parallel	O
with	O
the	O
role-playing	O
video	O
game	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
Saga	I-Application
(	O
1998	O
)	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
small	O
staff	O
and	O
little	O
assistance	O
from	O
Sega	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
response	O
to	O
player	O
criticism	O
of	O
the	O
original	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
,	O
the	O
team	O
reduced	O
the	O
overall	O
difficulty	O
and	O
expanded	O
the	O
story	O
elements	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Zwei	O
was	O
acclaimed	O
by	O
critics	O
and	O
journalists	O
,	O
with	O
many	O
praising	O
it	O
as	O
superior	O
to	O
the	O
original	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
II	I-Application
Zwei	I-Application
is	O
a	O
single-player	O
rail	O
shooter	O
which	O
spans	O
seven	O
levels	O
,	O
with	O
each	O
after	O
the	O
first	O
including	O
a	O
boss	O
encounter	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Gameplay	O
is	O
mostly	O
identical	O
to	O
the	O
original	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
;	O
the	O
player	O
controls	O
an	O
aiming	O
reticle	O
for	O
a	O
flying	O
dragon	O
and	O
its	O
rider	O
as	O
they	O
move	O
through	O
the	O
level	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
reticle	O
can	O
be	O
controlled	O
with	O
the	O
D-pad	B-Device
,	O
analog	O
pad	O
,	O
or	O
Saturn	B-Device
Mouse	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
addition	O
to	O
the	O
original	B-Application
game	I-Application
's	O
gameplay	O
is	O
the	O
Berserk	O
attack	O
,	O
powered	O
by	O
a	O
meter	O
that	O
fills	O
up	O
when	O
enemies	O
are	O
shot	O
down	O
,	O
firing	O
homing	O
lasers	O
that	O
continuously	O
target	O
all	O
enemies	O
on-screen	O
until	O
the	O
meter	O
is	O
depleted	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
dragon	O
's	O
death	O
causes	O
a	O
game	B-Application
over	I-Application
,	O
forcing	O
the	O
player	O
to	O
restart	O
from	O
a	O
save	O
point	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Zwei	O
is	O
a	O
prequel	B-Application
set	O
prior	O
to	O
the	O
events	O
of	O
the	O
original	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
,	O
against	O
the	O
backdrop	O
of	O
a	O
war	O
between	O
the	O
Empire	O
and	O
the	O
nation	O
of	O
Meccania	O
over	O
remnants	O
of	O
the	O
Ancient	O
Age	O
,	O
a	O
vanished	O
civilization	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
II	I-Application
Zwei	I-Application
was	O
developed	O
by	O
Team	O
Andromeda	O
,	O
a	O
production	O
team	O
at	O
Sega	O
led	O
by	O
Yukio	O
Futatsugi	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Encouraged	O
by	O
the	O
success	O
of	O
the	O
first	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
(	O
1995	O
)	O
,	O
Sega	O
began	O
planning	O
two	O
sequels	O
for	O
the	O
Saturn	B-Device
:	O
the	O
rail	O
shooter	O
Zwei	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
role-playing	O
video	O
game	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
Saga	I-Application
(	O
1998	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Concern	O
at	O
the	O
Saturn	B-Device
's	O
poor	O
sales	O
gave	O
the	O
team	O
the	O
sense	O
that	O
they	O
would	O
need	O
to	O
hurry	O
to	O
complete	O
the	O
series	O
within	O
the	O
system	O
's	O
lifetime	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Development	O
of	O
Zwei	O
began	O
in	O
mid-1995	O
,	O
several	O
months	O
after	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
was	O
released	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
aim	O
was	O
to	O
expand	O
upon	O
the	O
gameplay	O
of	O
the	O
original	B-Application
game	I-Application
and	O
improve	O
its	O
technical	O
performance	O
with	O
a	O
higher	O
frame	O
rate	O
and	O
smoother	O
visuals	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Kentaro	O
Yoshida	O
was	O
the	O
art	O
director	O
and	O
designer	O
,	O
with	O
art	O
contributions	O
and	O
oversight	O
from	O
Manabu	O
Kusunoki	O
,	O
the	O
artist	O
for	O
the	O
first	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
of	O
the	O
new	O
artists	O
was	O
Ryuta	O
Ueda	O
,	O
who	O
later	O
worked	O
on	O
Jet	B-Application
Set	I-Application
Radio	I-Application
as	O
art	O
director	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Futatsugi	O
designed	O
Zwei	O
as	O
a	O
prequel	B-Application
,	O
creating	O
a	O
thread	O
which	O
would	O
run	O
from	O
Zwei	O
through	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
and	O
into	O
Saga	O
through	O
the	O
growing	O
emotional	O
connection	O
between	O
rider	O
and	O
dragon	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Lundi	O
and	O
the	O
Emperor	O
were	O
voiced	O
by	O
Shigeru	O
Nakahara	O
and	O
Ryūzaburō	O
Ōtomo	O
;	O
as	O
with	O
the	O
original	B-Application
game	I-Application
,	O
the	O
dialogue	O
is	O
in	O
the	O
fictional	O
language	O
of	O
the	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
world	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
response	O
to	O
criticisms	O
of	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
,	O
Team	O
Andromeda	O
made	O
Zwei	O
less	O
difficult	O
and	O
more	O
story-intensive	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
team	O
was	O
more	O
familiar	O
with	O
the	O
Saturn	B-Device
hardware	O
than	O
when	O
developing	O
the	O
original	B-Application
game	I-Application
,	O
and	O
so	O
were	O
able	O
to	O
incorporate	O
new	O
technical	O
elements	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
transition	O
from	O
ground	O
to	O
air	O
was	O
difficult	O
to	O
display	O
,	O
as	O
the	O
Saturn	B-Device
could	O
only	O
show	O
one	O
scrolling	O
layer	O
,	O
so	O
the	O
team	O
made	O
use	O
of	O
camera	O
transitions	O
to	O
mask	O
the	O
change	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
notable	O
element	O
was	O
the	O
water	O
effects	O
,	O
which	O
were	O
created	O
using	O
a	O
combination	O
of	O
parallax	O
scrolling	O
and	O
layers	O
,	O
allowing	O
a	O
look	O
impossible	O
on	O
the	O
3D-focused	O
PlayStation	B-Device
without	O
exceeding	O
the	O
hardware	O
limits	O
of	O
the	O
Saturn	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Iwate	O
had	O
to	O
work	O
around	O
the	O
Saturn	B-Device
's	O
limited	O
3D	O
ability	O
when	O
creating	O
the	O
models	O
,	O
with	O
Suto	O
and	O
Nakanishi	O
sometimes	O
clashing	O
with	O
Iwate	O
over	O
his	O
complex	O
models	O
and	O
movements	O
when	O
they	O
tried	O
to	O
run	O
them	O
on	O
Saturn	B-Device
hardware	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
branching	O
path	O
system	O
in	O
Zwei	O
meant	O
that	O
the	O
precise	O
scoring	O
of	O
the	O
original	B-Application
game	I-Application
was	O
impossible	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
So	O
,	O
rather	O
than	O
using	O
prerecorded	O
music	O
,	O
the	O
soundtrack	O
is	O
mostly	O
generated	O
via	O
pulse-code	B-Algorithm
modulation	I-Algorithm
by	O
the	O
Saturn	B-Device
's	O
hardware	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
Saga	I-Application
composer	O
Saori	O
Kobayashi	O
credited	O
Wachi	O
's	O
shift	O
away	O
from	O
the	O
first	O
game	O
's	O
musical	O
style	O
with	O
shaping	O
her	O
future	O
compositions	O
for	O
the	O
series	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
arrange	O
album	O
created	O
in	O
collaboration	O
music	O
company	O
Cube	O
,	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
II	I-Application
Zwei	I-Application
Original	O
Arrange	O
Album	O
"	O
Alternative	O
Elements	O
"	O
,	O
was	O
published	O
by	O
NEC	O
Avenue	O
on	O
April	O
21	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
original	O
Japanese	O
album	O
was	O
released	O
digitally	O
worldwide	O
on	O
February	O
14	O
,	O
2018	O
,	O
alongside	O
the	O
other	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
soundtracks	O
to	O
celebrate	O
the	O
20th	O
anniversary	O
of	O
Saga	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
II	I-Application
Zwei	I-Application
was	O
announced	O
in	O
Japan	O
and	O
teased	O
at	O
the	O
promotional	O
event	O
"	O
Toshimaen	O
VS	O
Sega	B-Device
Saturn	I-Device
"	O
in	O
December	O
1995	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
PC	O
version	O
was	O
announced	O
in	O
2007	O
and	O
planned	O
for	O
release	O
on	O
online	O
video	O
game	O
service	O
GameTap	B-Operating_System
,	O
but	O
GameTap	B-Operating_System
closed	O
its	O
North	O
American	O
offices	O
in	O
2010	O
and	O
changed	O
focus	O
to	O
newer	O
PC	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
GameTap	B-Operating_System
staff	O
said	O
that	O
Saturn	B-Device
emulation	O
was	O
challenging	O
,	O
speaking	O
in	O
reference	O
to	O
a	O
planned	O
PC	O
port	O
of	O
Saga	O
that	O
likewise	O
never	O
saw	O
release	O
due	O
to	O
GameTap	B-Operating_System
's	O
closure	O
in	O
2015	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Following	O
the	O
releases	O
of	O
Saga	O
for	O
the	O
Saturn	B-Device
and	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
Orta	I-Application
(	O
2002	O
)	O
for	O
the	O
Xbox	B-Application
,	O
the	O
series	O
went	O
dormant	O
due	O
to	O
low	O
overall	O
sales	O
,	O
with	O
Sega	O
licensing	O
out	O
later	O
projects	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Remakes	O
of	O
both	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
and	O
Zwei	O
were	O
announced	O
in	O
2018	O
,	O
published	O
by	O
Forever	O
Entertainment	O
and	O
developed	O
by	O
their	O
internal	O
MegaPixel	O
Studio	O
under	O
license	O
from	O
Sega	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Scenes	O
from	O
Zwei	O
are	O
also	O
planned	O
for	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
Voyage	O
Record	O
,	O
a	O
virtual	B-Application
reality	I-Application
rail	O
shooter	O
based	O
on	O
sequences	O
from	O
the	O
first	O
three	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
II	I-Application
Zwei	I-Application
was	O
critically	O
acclaimed	O
upon	O
release	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
score	O
of	O
88%	O
on	O
the	O
review	B-Application
aggregation	I-Application
site	O
GameRankings	O
based	O
on	O
five	O
reviews	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
four	O
reviewers	O
of	O
Electronic	O
Gaming	O
Monthly	O
praised	O
its	O
multiple	O
routes	O
,	O
differing	O
dragon	O
transformations	O
,	O
and	O
"	O
some	O
of	O
the	O
best	O
graphics	O
ever	O
seen	O
"	O
on	O
the	O
Saturn	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
GamePro	O
wrote	O
that	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
II	I-Application
Zwei	I-Application
"	O
blows	O
away	O
anything	O
resembling	O
a	O
shooter	O
on	O
the	O
PlayStation	B-Device
thus	O
far	O
,	O
in	O
both	O
graphics	O
and	O
imagination.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Entertainment	O
Weekly	O
deemed	O
Zwei	O
much	O
more	O
refined	O
than	O
the	O
already	O
strong	O
original	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
summarized	O
:	O
"	O
In	O
a	O
surprising	O
victory	O
for	O
art	O
and	O
plot	O
direction	O
,	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
II	I-Application
Zwei	I-Application
proves	O
that	O
visual	O
sophistication	O
and	O
compelling	O
storylines	O
can	O
sometimes	O
overcome	O
less	O
than	O
revolutionary	O
gameplay.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Rob	O
Allsetter	O
of	O
Sega	B-Device
Saturn	I-Device
Magazine	O
praised	O
the	O
impressive	O
attention	O
to	O
detail	O
in	O
the	O
graphics	O
and	O
the	O
multiple	O
routes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
concluded	O
that	O
it	O
"	O
belongs	O
up	O
there	O
with	O
VF2	B-Application
and	O
Sega	B-Application
Rally	I-Application
as	O
the	O
standard-bearer	O
for	O
its	O
genre.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Maximum'''s	O
Daniel	O
Jevons	O
concurred	O
with	O
Scary	O
Larry	O
that	O
the	O
game	O
"	O
positively	O
laughs	O
in	O
the	O
face	O
of	O
any	O
competing	O
PlayStation	B-Device
3D	O
shooters.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
also	O
praised	O
the	O
animation	O
,	O
3D	O
graphics	O
,	O
high	O
frame	O
rate	O
,	O
absence	O
of	O
pixelation	O
even	O
on	O
the	O
heavily	O
detailed	O
bosses	O
,	O
precise	O
controls	O
,	O
lock-on	O
attacks	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
adjust	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
difficulty	O
by	O
choosing	O
different	O
routes.Panzer	O
Dragoon	O
II	O
Zwei	O
was	O
a	O
runner-up	O
for	O
Electronic	O
Gaming	O
Monthlys	O
Shooter	O
Game	O
of	O
the	O
Year	O
(	O
behind	O
Alien	B-Application
Trilogy	I-Application
)	O
and	O
Best	O
Graphics	O
of	O
the	O
Year	O
(	O
behind	O
Super	B-Application
Mario	I-Application
64	I-Application
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
IGN	O
staff	O
writer	O
Levi	O
Buchanan	O
ranked	O
Panzer	B-Application
Dragoon	I-Application
II	I-Application
Zwei	I-Application
fifth	O
in	O
his	O
list	O
of	O
the	O
top	O
10	O
Sega	B-Device
Saturn	I-Device
games	O
,	O
saying	O
that	O
"	O
The	O
original	O
Panzer	O
Dragoon''	O
that	O
flanked	O
the	O
Saturn	B-Device
at	O
launch	O
was	O
nothing	O
short	O
of	O
revelation	O
.	O
</s>
