Here's an interesting concept for a game: you play as a young boy who hunts vampires.  He's inferior to his enemies, but will ultimately prevail in the end.  His arsenal includes swords and modern-day vampire blasters.

Here's the interesting part: vampires have always been written as frail creatures that cannot stand the sun.  I know – let's summon a gigantic sun monster and fry the vampires!  That's not possible, at least not in this game.  Instead, let's step into the sunlight.

As the rays fill your Game Boy Advance screen, magically, your character is infused with greater power.  Time to take out those pesky vampires!

And so Boktai was born.  Boktai was the world's first solar-enhanced game released in North America.  Produced by Hideo Kojima, the mastermind who created the Metal Gear Solid series, Boktai's cartridge was designed with a tiny solar sensor that detects the rays of the sun.  By playing out in the open (not with a lamp and not by a window – under direct sunlight), Boktai would gain energy that was needed to rid the world of all blood-suckers.

Boktai 2 continues the quest for Django the Solar Boy.  If you think that sounds silly, you're not alone.  The story is a little too cute and a little too happy for one that's filled with vampires.

What many of you may not know, or what many of you may not realize is that Boktai and its sequel are action/RPGs.  The word action shouldn't be taken too seriously though – the game moves at a much slower pace than Alundra and Secret of Mana, or even Brave Fencer Musashi.

Attacks are made in the typical action/RPG fashion: run up, hit the enemy, and run away before it can retaliate.  It's not too easy to do that though.  This is where the game has a chance at garnering serious attention from hardcore players.  The isometric view, strange world layout and difficult enemies make the game hard to rush through.  You could beat it quick, possibly in a day if you had enough sunlight.  But you'd be working your butt off to do it.

One very interesting control element is Django's ability to lean up against walls.  He can lean up and walk along them just as Solid Snake can in Metal Gear Solid.  There isn't a huge incentive for doing so.  The main point is to be less visible to your enemies, or to cross thin ledges than you'd otherwise fall off of.  The camera angle can't be changed (the game view is isometric from start to finish), but you can shift it around to focus on different areas.  It would've been cool to be able to lean up against a wall, wait for an enemy to approach, then quickly jump out and chop its head off.  I guess we'll have to wait for the Nintendo DS for stuff like that -- or stick with The Twin Snakes.

Everything but the solar system considered, Boktai 2: Solar Boy Django is a better-than-average game.  It's a bit slow, which will most certainly turn off gamers looking for something with more action.  I like a good challenge though, and the action/RPG genre isn't as prevalent as it used to be.  I really couldn't complain too much. 

Then it was time to take the game outside and gain enough solar power to actually finish it.  You can't make just one trip outside though.  That's okay, I thought.  The sun is my friend, and we all could use a little vitamin E in our lives.

Using the Game Boy Advance SP with Boktai 2 proves to be a royal pain.  Cartridges are inserted in the top of the standard GBA, but they're hidden inside the bottom of the GBA SP.  Boktai 2 has sensors on both sides of the cartridge, but that doesn't make it any less frustrating.  The manual says that you should make sure the sensor is not in the shade.  But with the bottom of the SP pointed at your chest, how else are we expected to play?  By holding your hands outward as shown by the manual's diagram (that gets tiring really fast).  Or you could turn your body so that the side of your face soaks up the UV rays, along with your SP, which may or may not detect the sun's existence.

Hideo Kojima is a brilliant game developer, there's no question of that.  That's not an issue.  What I take issue with is the danger of getting lost in a game while my skin is at risk.  Should we really have to stand directly in the sun, risking our health, just to "enhance" our game?  Even the game tells you not to stay in the sun for too long!  It'll tell you if you do, and cause the main character to pass out (as if from heat exhaustion).  But who's to say that a video game is the best judge of when we should get in the shade?  Who's to say that gamers – people who don't bathe, eat or sleep in order to continue the game – will even listen?

Gameplay: 7.2
An action/RPG with much action.  Boktai 2: Solar Boy Django is a challenging game with a puzzling world.  The enemies will crush you, the puzzles will confuse you, and the world will not be fully explored without going in circles at least once.

Graphics: 8
A cluster of colorful, highly detailed backgrounds, wonderfully animated characters, and giant boss battles that Game Boy Advance players rarely see.

Sound: 7

Difficulty: Medium/Hard
Just 'cause you're a master at Zelda doesn't mean you can defeat Boktai 2 in a day.  The difficulty isn't as hard as Alundra, one of the hardest action/RPGs released on the PSone, but there are definite similarities between the two.

Concept: 6.5
Technologically, Boktai 2 doesn't go far beyond the original.  You still have to stand in the sun to gain solar power.  It'd be nice if you could use a desk lamp, or play in front of a window so that only your hands and arms would get some sun, not your face.

Multiplayer: 6.5
Collect the most points to win.  That's all you'll get out of this multiplayer mode, which requires at least two GBAs, two cartridges and two link cables to play.

Overall: 7
Was Boktai 2: Solar Boy Django designed for a specific type of gamer?  No.  It couldn't have been.  There is no "type of gamer" who will enjoy it.  You either will or you won't.  No matter what I am pretty certain that the sun factor will drive you nuts.  Konami might have been wiser to release this game in the spring when the days are getting longer, not in the fall when our days are the shortest.  The concept is a great idea, but the Game Boy Advance is not the best place to implement.  We need a game that can utilize solar power without putting gamers at risk for any kind of sun damage.  Call me paranoid, but I don't want to have to check the weather and put on sun-block every time I play a video game.  Not even Halo 2 is worth that.