Product reviewsEcco: The Tides of Time (Sega CD, 1993)

Ecco II: The Tides of Time

Good old Ecco the Dolphin, after saving his dolphin chums from an invading alien race you would have thought he could have just spent the rest of his life in peace spinning a ball on his nose! These plans were shattered when the queen of the Vortex took it upon herself to travel back in time to start her trouble again. An older and wiser Ecco must kick some aquatic butt in order to ensure the survival of his world.

Many will be tempted to write off Ecco 2 without even playing it. I mean how can a game where the main character is a dolphin be any fun? It is hard to put into words but this aquatic action-puzzler does have a lot more going for it than it might appear from a causal glance. You’ll spend your time swimming about the sea using sonar to communicate with your aquatic friends and charging and nose-butting the bad guys. The levels are vast and there is a lot to explore. To cap it all off there are some challenging boss fights to spice things up.

Sega obviously listened to fans of the original Ecco game. The unbalanced difficulty level has been addressed. There are 3 difficulty levels so you can decide for yourself how tough you want the going to get. There are also some nice new features in Ecco 2 such as the ability to morph into different forms such as a jellyfish, a shark, a school of fish, a seagull or even a Vortex drone. The 3D stages where you swim though teleport rings are a welcome addition to the regular 2D side scrolling exploration levels.

For a Megadrive game Ecco 2 looks amazing. Ecco has a 3D rendered quality much like what is found in Donkey Kong Country. The backgrounds are amazing and the whole environment really feels like it is teaming with life. If all this has whet your appetite then we recommend that you give this a try - you’ll have a whale of a time!

By Darren CalvertRead full review...

A classic game that challenges you while the music enthralls you.

A lot of what I remember about this game is the wonderful music; the colorful, highly detailed landscapes; and the difficult (but fun) gameplay. Also, it has a very interesting story that draws you in to the plight of the dolphin Ecco with the mysterious stars on his head. I played the Sega Genesis version of this game as well, and this Sega CD version is preferable (I think) because of the improvements to the graphics (check out old Eight Arms), the added cutscenes, and the redone music (in my opinion, the new music has more of a mysterious and oceanic feel).Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: boughtnowcommerce

A great sequel

A little easier than the first one but still a challenge love this game.

Ecco Preview

Direct sequel to the original Genesis hit, Ecco the Dolphin. The Vortex Queen has followed Ecco to Earth and has established a new hive. It's up to Ecco to once again navigate the depth and heights of his sidescrolling world to meet up with marine life, solve puzzles, and take on the alien threat. New to the series are some 3D levels and the ability to turn into different forms via metaspheres. Ecco can transform into a seagull, jellyfish, shark, a school of fish, and a Vortex drone.Read full review...