Going into a sequel that was released in just under a year from its predecessor and features largely the exact same cast and crew, you'd probably be expecting something about the identical level of quality of what came before. This however is a fairly massive improvement. It's got better acting, directing, production values, and gore effects. It feels like an entirely different and superior film despite the returning characters and setting. By far the area where the biggest step forward was taken is the narrative. The Book of Shadows game marks the point where the storytelling in the Corpse Party's "Heavenly Host Saga" trilogy started to get really interesting (before going a bit off the rails in the third entry), resulting in a more twisted, creepier plot here. There is a minor continuity error in the form of it being totally unclear why everyone BUT the previous outing's villains are revived when the protagonists go back in time, yet I ultimately didn't miss them too much thanks to a fantastic performance by Tsunenori Aoki as fan favorite Kizami who absolutely steals the show even from the new main killer ghost girl. The only other slight annoyance stems from the budget. Victims will constantly get stabbed in parts of their bodies that are conveniently located off-screen before the camera pans to show the murder weapon sticking out of them. It does rob the deaths of some of their punch, but doesn't stop the overall experience from being a supremely messed up slice of terror that has the occasional surprisingly effective jump scare to go alongside all the nasty brutality. The first movie will be required viewing to understand what's going on and regardless of whether you walk away from that thinking it's dreck or not this follow-up truly deserves to be on the radar of every hardcore horror fanatic, if only for its unforgettable ending alone.