MTV Music Generator 2 is the follow up to the critically acclaimed MTV Music Generator, which launched in the U.S. in 1999 to rave reviews and won the Sony Innovation award in 2000. Featuring twice as many simultaneous music channels as its predecessor and nearly 10,000 pre-recorded samples, MTV Music Generator 2 offers a virtually endless potential for musical creations.

The trend of home mixing studios which originated in Europe has made its way to North America. Young people everywhere are now mixing and editing their own tracks, thanks in most part to the advances in home computing technology. Jester, the developer of MTV MG2, has essentially taken the key elements from the more popular PC-based music programs and put them together into a nice package on the Playstation 2. In addition, they have been backed by MTV and the famous Bronx hip-hop native DJ Funkmaster Flex. Flex offers some words of advice at the beginning of the game and offers a couple of his own mixes of which players can break down and remix at their own pleasure.

In terms of overall design, features and extras, Jester has done a wonderful job. The raw materials and sheer number of options available in the software is staggering. You get tons of samples that are high quality as well as some samples and whole songs from real groups that you can play around with. This aspect is especially useful in the early stages as you get used to the environment and gain confidence in your producing abilities. Pulling everything together allows you to create original soundtracks utilizing samples from the vast library of sounds filled with pre-recorded riffs, vocals and rhythms that range in musical style from rock and R & B to trance and house. Up to 100 songs can be saved to a memory card at any given time. A very nice addition is the ability to add creative original 3D video from an impressive graphic library of integrated shapes and objects to accompany your musical piece. You can also choose pre-recorded tracks from such artists as Flex, Gorillaz and Apollo 440, which can be re-mixed and edited into your own unique spin on the track. A 16-bar riff editor allows you to access and edit pre-recorded riffs and samples, enabling fast and easy editing of songs as they are being built. An innovative real-time jamming mode is also featured, which enables players to jam simultaneously with up to eight friends. An optional device known as the Sampler Kit is also available but sold separately via a mail offer included in the game. We were fortunate enough to test the sampler kit along with the game. The sampler kit allows players to record their own voice directly into their songs as well as take samples directly from CDs and virtually any other audio source. Keep in mind that copyright restrictions are pending and they would be for your personal use only. The sampler kit simply plugs into the USB port on the front of the PS2 and the other end plugs into the supplied microphone or into your selected audio source. The sampler kit was easy to use and added some more dynamic to the vocals already supplied. Not that we have great voices but is fun to add your voice into a piece and then stretch it or shrink it to change it's sound. A very innovative and useful peripheral.

My major issue with the MTV MG2 is the interface. While it looks friendly and a number of skins are available to suit your musical tastes, the overall feel of the design is slow and tedious. A lot of time is required to get used to the environment and various control options. Jester obviously set it up for a console design but it still feels clumsy at best. The joypad works sufficiently but is no substitute for a mouse option. Given the fact that the PS2 has 2 USB ports makes the omission of the mouse baffling. Perhaps in it's next iteration of the series, mouse and even keyboard support would make the application more user friendly and practical. My other complaint is about the video editing options. While Jester has supplied a number of options, the actual visual experience of many of the sample are very out dated. This is especially noticeable to anyone who frequents clubs around the world. The PS2' graphic abilities are immense and Jester should take advantage of this in the future.

Regardless of these nuances, MTV Music Generator 2 is a very viable piece of software. While hardcore gamers and casual gamers may be interested, it is the wanna-be DJ's and closet musicians that will get the most out of this application.