This product is like new. At NexWave Games, like new means:
Additionally, all discs at NexWave Games are carefully inspected and assessed for quality. When discs arrive, we do not accept any that are so badly damaged that they are unlikely to work. We only accept discs with light scratches at most. Discs with scratches are then treated in our professional disc repair machine. By warming the disc and polishing it with soft brushes, these machines can remove a very thin layer from the disc. This removes the layer containing surface scratches and improves the disc’s readability. This ensures the disc works properly, even on consoles with ageing lasers that have difficulty reading games! Great news for the player.
Champions: Return to Arms for PlayStation 2
Champions: Return to Arms for PlayStation 2 is an action RPG in which you travel through dungeons, ruins and other worlds from an overhead view. You choose one of seven races, including the Berserker and Shaman added in this sequel. Enemies drop weapons, equipment and gold. At each new level you distribute points among attributes and skills, so an archer, spellcaster or strong front-line fighter develops distinctly.
After Innoruuk's death, pieces of his power are scattered across the planes. You choose whether to collect these shards for the good or evil side. That decision changes quests and allies and leads to a different conclusion. Existing characters from Champions of Norrath can be imported, while new heroes start the same extensive campaign from the beginning. Randomly assembled areas and loot make repeat journeys less predictable.
The campaign can be completed alone or locally with up to four players. Three or four participants require a PlayStation 2 Multitap and additional controllers. Players share the screen and cooperate against the same groups of enemies. The original release also supported online cooperation, but that historical network feature is not promised to work today. Each player uses a separate character and equipment.
Region and language
Our PlayStation 2 games are PAL editions and come with a Dutch or English box, unless stated otherwise. By default, you receive the version for the European market. We note it in the product details if the region is different or the box is in another language. In almost all cases, the game is playable at least in English, and often in the other five common European languages too.
Local cooperation with three or four players requires a PlayStation 2 Multitap and three or four controllers. One or two players do not require a Multitap.
Manual
Champions: Return to Arms for PlayStation 2 includes the manual unless the product title states otherwise. If the booklet is missing, the title says “No Manual”. This lets you see before ordering whether the game comes with a manual.
The manuals included with our games usually contain at least English and often around six European languages. The exact languages vary by edition, so Dutch is not always included. The booklet explains the controls and the main rules. You can use it to check how to control the game, which actions are available and how its different features work.
The history of Champions: Return to Arms
Snowblind Studios developed Champions: Return to Arms as a direct sequel to Champions of Norrath. Sony Online Entertainment announced the game in May 2004 and released it in February 2005. The studio again used the EverQuest world and its own action RPG technology, but expanded the campaign and added two playable races to the five familiar choices.
The design built on direct combat, developing skills and large quantities of loot. Importing an existing character connected returning players with the first game. At the same time, the choice between good and evil created two routes through the story. At release, Sony emphasised that the campaign could be played alone or cooperatively, either locally or through the PS2 network service of the time.
Return to Arms became Snowblind's second and final Champions game. Its combat system had roots in Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance, which the same studio had previously made for consoles. Other developers later continued with similar group-oriented action RPGs, but the combination of EverQuest races, importable heroes and a branching campaign remained specific to this sequel. Local cooperation remains playable independently of the discontinued online infrastructure.
Similar games for PlayStation 2
Champions of Norrath introduces the same EverQuest world, five races and the heroes that can be imported into Return to Arms. The sequel adds Berserker and Shaman, expands the item collection and offers a choice between good and evil. Both use direct combat and cooperation, but Return to Arms continues from the consequences of Innoruuk's defeat.
Dark Alliance II also uses an overhead view, direct attacks, skills and loot for two local players. Return to Arms supports four players with a Multitap and chooses EverQuest planes instead of the Forgotten Realms. Dark Alliance tells a tighter linear adventure; Champions uses more randomly assembled areas and a choice between two story routes.
Gauntlet: Dark Legacy sends four players against large groups of monsters and uses clear hero classes. Its action is faster and simpler, with less attention to detailed equipment. Return to Arms pauses more often for inventory, statistics and skill choices. Both work locally with a Multitap, but Champions gives each found weapon and piece of armour more significance.
X-Men Legends forms a team of four mutants and lets you switch heroes during the adventure. Cooperative play revolves around established comic characters and combined powers. Return to Arms lets each player build a separate EverQuest character and divide loot. Both mix action and role-playing, but Champions places more emphasis on random items and personal statistics.
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance brings four superheroes together in a campaign with team bonuses and recognisable comic locations. Return to Arms uses custom adventurers, weapon drops and a good-or-evil choice. Both support four-player local cooperation, but Ultimate Alliance switches through a large hero roster while Champions keeps developing one character.
