Any old-school gamers looking for an outlet on the DS will be pleased to know that Nintendo has more than fuzzy, cute characters on tap. Nanostray 2 fills a two year gap left after the release of the first game in the series. It has everything that you want in an arcade-style space-shooter. Is there actually such a genre? Who cares?!

Don't look for Nanostray 2 to offer lots of slick CG movies; it's down-and-dirty action all the way here. The Adventure mode does offer a few scripted sequences that outline the story, but then you'll slide right into the level. The eye-candy is all in the way each level is designed. Unlike a straight vertical- or side-scrolling game, Nanostray 2 offers close to a 2.5D perspective at times. The comparison I'd make is to the classic Einhander from back in the old, old days. Players of this classic will remember its shifting perspective as your ship went through twists and turns that changed the orientation of the screen from vertical to side and back within a few minutes. This, and the variety of enemies in Nanostray 2, shows a real commitment to be creative and find a true visual style. Too many games of this type are content to regurgitate the same ships from level to level and throw in a new boss with the hope you won't notice. Nanostray 2 pulls out the stops and what it lacks in overall length, it makes up for in depth.

The quality visual production extends to sound and music. Cues around sound are a big part of gauging what's happening in another part of the screen when your eye is trained on incoming enemy fire. The musical themes change for each level and become a distinctive part of what makes that level stick in your head.

You'll find that there's more contained in Nanostray 2 than you're expecting. Compared to a lot of games that fall short of expectations (in any genre), it's nice to see a title that surprises you with its generosity. On the surface, there don't seem to be enough levels but you'll quickly find that the level of challenge dictates that you'll be playing quite a while before you see the credits roll. To be said now and later: Nanostray 2 is one tough sumbeeyotch... The various modes include Adventure, Arcade, Challenge, 2 Player, and Simulator. You'll find that you can view worldwide rankings online through the Nintendo WFC if you've set up your DS to access a wireless point. There is something cool to being listed on the Nanostray 2 leaderboard. Maybe I'll crack the Top 100 someday... or so everyone thinks.

The best way to jump into the action in Nanostray 2 is to launch Adventure Mode. This mode contains some story elements but mainly serves as a way to unlock levels for replay in Arcade Mode. Adventure isn't too linear, because you'll have the chance to select from a series of planets as you enter each of the two systems. This allows you to open a level, master it through Arcade, and then come back to open up more levels in Adventure. Adventure also has the Continue feature that Arcade lacks, making it possible to stay alive a bit longer. There are options to play cooperatively in Adventure as long as your friend has a separate copy of the game. With only one copy, you'll be stuck playing against waves of enemies in space to see who can survive the longest or quickly rack up the most points. It's a nice way to introduce your friend to Nanostray 2, but not a mode you'll enjoy for long. Challenge and Simulator are connected modes. The series of Challenges you'll face are required to access four so-called Simulators in Nanostray 2. Each of the challenges lasts a very short time and they all are challenging. Completing challenges requires as much gray matter as twitch reflexes, and the Simulators you'll win are even more old-school than the sentiments behind Nanostray 2. Nothing classic, but some fun stuff.

Moving from level to level requires that you defeat a mini-boss and final boss, which is no surprise. The mechanics are interesting and will be touched on later, as one original aspect of Nanostray 2. Other than the customization possible in the game, you'll find that the style of play is solidly planted in the old arcade shooters. Timing and use of weapon power-ups is key to winning in Nanostray 2, with more focus on the former than the latter. You'll find that almost every enemy can be defeated by the standard, shipboard cannons, but it takes more time.

The main source of challenge in Nanostray 2 is the sheer volume of enemy fire on screen at any time. Fall behind on your cleaning duties and you'll have a mess of enemies firing a bigger mess of shots at you. In some instances, it is literally impossible to get out of the way. Even fancy flying won't change the fact that you need to be constantly sweeping the screen clear of enemies. There are lots of nifty weapons to help you in this task, but you'll need to master primary, secondary, and satellite weapons to really make it through these levels unscathed. The timing and navigation skills required are intense, even on the Easy difficulty setting. Dialing up a level or two would make the strongest arcade gamer blush. You have to have your nerves honed to a fine edge before attempting some of the more difficult levels, much less the challenges. Challenges will put you in the midst of a situation where there's no change to ease in, usually where you have limited time to rack up points or stay alive. It all fits nicely into the mold of an old-school, arcade shooter, but it would have been nice to see the option to keep powered-up weapons from level to level. The idea that you start over again on each level is understandable given the low number of unique levels, but it would have made for less frustration from newer gamers. As things stand, the Easy setting will feel to novice gamers more like Medium or Hard. With Easy being this hard, you can imagine how the advanced settings feel...

The best thing about arcade shooters came with the advent of customized weaponry. This feature goes way back, but has seen interesting variations over the years. There have been ways to customize your ship prior to heading into the level by adding features, and ways to modify your approach by choosing an entirely different ship. The most common technique is the power-up and variation power-up. You usually see this when it becomes possible to grab a special weapon and use it through the level as your alternate means of attack. This is fine and well unless you can't get the special weapon you want. Nanostray 2 solves this problem by letting you select your alternate weapon at the beginning of each level. What could be easier, you say? The situation is that the neat collection of secondary weapons in Nanostray 2 won't stay powered up for long. Each time you destroy a wave of enemies, you'll earn a token that boosts your energy. Secondary weapons are a good idea with run-of-the-mill enemies and essential for boss battles. Technically it's possible to defeat any boss with your primary weapon, but not recommended.

The other neat aspect of Nanostray 2 is the concept of "satellites." These are objects that spin in orbit around your ship and direct other streams of fire at enemies. This may seem simple, but wait until you've tweaked the two satellites to your liking and gone out to test them in the field. It is possible to adjust for attacks that will go out to the side, behind you, or at an odd angle. The need for this quickly becomes clear once you roll through the highly interactive and unpredictable level designs. Switching back and forth between one of three preset satellite placements is done through the shoulder button in the default button configuration. You can choose an alternate model that puts movement of the ship and the select of satellite placement on the shoulder buttons. This felt awkward for me as a left-hander, but it should be fine for others. Satellites just channel your primary fire and don't have anything to do with secondary weapons.

Combine the secondary weapons with satellites and you have a powerful package that can decimate waves of enemies quickly. The problem is that you'll face stronger and stronger enemies as the game progresses. Many enemies will soak up your regular fire several times over before exploding, but give them a quick shot of your secondary and they're up in smoke. The secondary weapons are extremely good in boss battles, as long as you have them well matched. At the beginning of every level, you'll have a chance to change your settings, including a tweak to how your satellites are configured around the ship and what secondary you've chosen. All this customization and the variety of the game itself makes Nanostray 2 one to grab if you like a retro game. Even if the retro ticket isn't yours, you'll still find Nanostray 2 incredibly entertaining if you like action-packed arcade games. Fans will know the score, but Nanostray 2 has the potential to convert non-fans on their first try. Give it a whirl.