The game features themes of time traveling, with Max and Monica trying to prevent Griffon's destruction by altering the past to change the future.

The game was met with positive reviews from critics, who praised the improvements over Dark Cloud, in particular the graphics and variety of gameplay styles.

[6] Each character also has a unique combat ability: Max can pilot a customizable, mech-like vehicle called the Ridepod, and Monica can shapeshift into monsters.

In contrast with Dark Cloud, broken weapons do not disappear from the players' inventories but become unusable until repaired and lose some of the experience they have accrued.

[5] As in the previous game, characters can only grow stronger by consuming particular items that permanently increase their health points and defense.

A major component of Dark Chronicle's gameplay involves special items called "Geostones" which are used to rebuild the world outside the dungeons.

Max and Monica use their new ability to time travel, as well as the reopening of the railroad by Mayor Need to go on a mission rebuilding areas of the world that Griffon destroyed.

Max and Monica use Ixion to head 10,000 years into the past to face Emperor Griffon, a young moon-person who lives in Moon Flower Palace.

Griffon plans to summon the Star of Oblivion, which will destroy all life on Earth and allow a new, better world to grow in its place.

These old memories weaken Griffon and Max and Monica manage to defeat him - turning him back into Sirus, who is mortally wounded.

Rumors about Dark Chronicle first appeared in April 2002, when Level-5 Inc. updated its website with an image of a silhouette from its newest game, although no other details were made available at the time.

Level-5 referred to the graphic style as "tonal rendering"; the main characters have a smooth, shaded look and the backgrounds have detailed textures and lighting.

A two-disc album, Dark Chronicle Original Sound Tracks, was released in Japan by Scitron on February 19, 2003.

GameSpot's Brad Shoemaker wrote that "Dark Cloud 2's music ranges from good to excellent", and said that "generally there are enough tunes that you won't get too bored of hearing any particular one".

[5] A remix album, Dark Chronicle Premium Arrange, was published in Japan by Team Entertainment in April 21, 2004.

It consists of 12 arranged tracks from the game by Yasunori Mitsuda, Shinji Hosoe, Motoi Sakuraba, Yoko Shimomura, Noriyuki Iwadare, Kenji Ito and The Black Mages.

A sequel, potentially titled Dark Cloud 3, was first rumored to be in development for PlayStation 3 in an alleged leak published in 2006 by PSMania [it], which said Level-5 was aiming for a March 2009 release.

[25] In 2009, Level-5 manager Yoshiaki Kusuda said that although the company did not have a "specific plan for a sequel", it would "seriously consider making it" if fans asked for it often enough, leading Kotaku writer Stephen Totilo to encourage readers to request the game.

[27][28] Reporting on a 2017 interview that Hino gave to Nikkei Business Publications,[29] Rolling Stone lamented that a Dark Cloud 3 was not among Level-5's plans for the Nintendo Switch.

[30] Hino told Polygon that Level-5 could not produce a new Dark Cloud game on its own because the license was co-owned by Sony.

He praised the variety of the gameplay, writing that "there's so much to do that it's almost overwhelming" and concluded that "Dark Cloud 2 is simply a class act all the way.

Every element of the game, from the georama system to the weapon upgrading to the interaction with a large cast of characters, displays a polish and attention to quality that you find only in real classics".

From the incredible graphics, to the great sound, to the refined gameplay, Dark Cloud 2 just oozes of quality and polish".

There was not a single, solitary moment during the game where I was even the slightest bit interested in or entertained by its copious, well-voiced, cinematic sequences.

His conclusion was: There's no question in my mind that Dark Cloud 2 is one of the most solid RPG adventures for the PS2; but... it doesn't quite live up to its potential.

But beneath the surface, the lightweight story and characters combined with the almost rigidly episodic game flow still hold it back".