Instead of managing a small, developing country, Tropico 2 puts you in charge of a secret pirate hideout. You must kidnap workers to create a basic economy of products and services, and then keep them terrified so they won't try to escape. -Gamespot
As an intellectual toy, Tropico 2 is fascinating and detailed; as a game, it's enormously addictive. -Adrenaline Vault
Games like Tropico 2... keep the genre fresh. They remind us all about what makes a good strategic simulation both challenging and fun to play: a strong economic base, a good element of variability in the machine, a broad field of responses to every situation, and the ability to pause and consider your options or examine every corner of your universe. -IGN
With Blizzard, Sierra and Microsoft having a basic stranglehold on any good RTS title that’s released, it’s refreshing to see a simulation that doesn’t involve classical civilizations. The pirate theme is fresh and well-executed, and Tropico 2 has the delicious gameplay to back itself up. -Gamenikki
Taken as a whole, Tropico 2: Pirate Cove is the kind of great sequel that should be encouraged - it builds on the solid base of the original, cleans up most of the problems and manages to stake out its own territory in the process. Tropico 2 is a (parrot) feather in the cap of Frog City and a treasure for strategy gamers. -Gamespy