was announced in Japan in December 1995. Production was said to be 30% complete by January 1996. It was shown off at the 1996 Toshimaen Show. In the West it was shown off at the 1996 Electronic Entertainment Expo. Zwei was released on March 22 of that year in Japan, on April 14 in North America, and on May 10 in Europe. For the cover art CGI graphics were used, in contrast to the first game's Japanese cover, which was drawn by Giraud. Yoshida jokingly noted later that this was done to save money. A PC version was planned for release on GameTap, but GameTap closed its North American offices and changed focus to newer PC games. GameTap staff said that Saturn emulation was challenging, speaking in reference to a planned PC port of Saga that likewise never saw release due to GameTap's closure. Following the releases of Saga for the Saturn and Panzer Dragoon Orta (2002) for the Xbox, the series went dormant due to low overall sales, with Sega licensing out later projects. Remakes of both Panzer Dragoon and Zwei were announced in 2018, published by Forever Entertainment and developed by their internal MegaPixel Studio under license from Sega. Originally announced for a 2021 release date, the Zwei remake's release was postponed to an unspecified date in June of that year. Scenes from Zwei are also planned for Panzer Dragoon Voyage Record, a virtual reality rail shooter based on sequences from the first three Panzer Dragoon games. Reception Panzer Dragoon II Zwei was critically acclaimed upon release. The four reviewers of Electronic Gaming Monthly praised its multiple routes, differing dragon transformations, and "some of the best graphics ever seen" on the Saturn. However, they felt that the low difficulty damaged the longevity. GamePro wrote that Panzer Dragoon II Zwei "blows away anything resembling a shooter on the PlayStation thus far, in both graphics and imagination." The reviewer felt that the game was too easy, but that the multiple paths increased the replay value and made the gameplay more interesting. He also complimented the way the music reflects what is going on in the game. Entertainment Weekly deemed Zwei much more refined than the already strong original Panzer Dragoon. A reviewer for Next Generation said that while the gameplay makes only minimal innovations to the restrictive on-rails format, the game keeps the player hooked though its gorgeous visuals and