Axiom Verge 2 Reviews

Overall I really liked Axoim Verge 2, most of the upgrades were fun a unique compared to other Metroid-vania styles.

At no point was I ever able to successfully guess what upgrade I'd find next. The most inventive metroidvania I've ever had the pleasure to play (and replay).

A solid game with some creative powerups that really get you thinking. Looking forward to the next game.

Axiom Verge 2 is not exactly the same type of game as the first part, but it feels much more refined. The breach system with 2 overlapping maps was a great take on the Metroid genre. Great visuals, great soundtrack, great platforming. Highly recommended. Please make part 3 asap! 9/10.

Not as good as the first one but still pretty good. Worth the purchase if you enjoy metroidvanias.

I think I enjoyed this game more than the first. Of course, it has a different and distinct mood, and is a radical departure from the first while retaining it in some ways. It's very easy to make comparisons. I found the process of exploring, and particularly completing the game's map and finding everything, leagues more satisfying. The actual traversal was really fun for me, and even backtracking somehow didn't have as much of a bluntness to it as I am used to even in most metroidvanias in general. In the first game I know that was one of the things that had me frustrated the most, and enemies felt like hitches of uncomfortable friction making me stutter on my path. Here, the abilities given usually gave me such a step up that the feeling of added freedom was very noticeable. In the first third or so of the game, my experience felt about average, but my enjoyment increased significantly with the introduction of more abilities; I like this. The combat was also very fun, though really much too easy. I also feel that while the weapons I got were satisfying, unfortunately too many of them were more like variations of each other than the exotic and diverse options we had to choose from in Axiom Verge 1. Still, I really enjoyed the combat. I even more enjoyed that bosses weren't the usual boxed-in encounters, which always feels gamey and like a staple gimmick, but rather exist in the world just chilling out, and you can go past them if you want. This was a brilliant idea. I just wish I could learn some more about these interesting machinations, and also, again, these minor 'bosses' , if you can call them that, were way way too easy and short to defeat. I really liked the new setting, but wish we could get more variety in... texture? Something felt a bit underwhelming. I think it's just not being used to the huge leap from blocky chunkiness to the smooth fine vistas of this game. I like the visuals more in Axiom Verge 2, but it's like I can feel some sort of potential to be filled, and it leaves me mildly perplexed. Some areas I really loved. There was this greenish one which with the accompanying music was a great delight to be in. Speaking of music, it was lovely, as expected considering how the first game also had a really great soundtrack. Very pleasant and interesting, pulled me into the world very neatly. The story and surrounding information I cannot speak too much to. I did enjoy it, but I get the different characters, groups, and locations mentioned in notes mixed up. I have a vague general understanding, but to reach for specifics or extract backed up speculations is something I'm not quite confident with. I almost wish for more to read, since I am intrigued, but there's so many perspectives that I just want to envelop deeper into it. Also, I think the interpesronal relationships in the game, like between Indra and her connection to her daughter, did not feel fleshed out. Would have been nice to talk more, have more to talk about or with. Oh yeah and the enemy and character designs were really great. Less huge set pieces to steep in the mood of than in the first game, but everything present was really really good and I approve lol. I would say all in all Axiom Verge 2 is awesome. The exploration in this game is pretty ace, so if there is a third entry, that standard should be kept up, and I would hope for better improved difficulty and variety in combat, while retaining the neat ideas like having bosses not be tethered into a strict encounter. I would recommend this game.

I honestly enjoyed this more than Metroid Dread - I think because its exploration is more in the player's control, and almost every boss is optional. Also, the soundtrack is really cool and unique.

Summary: Great metroid-style game that has evolved from the first title into something unique for its sequel. AV1 hit all the notes of Metroid (NES), blended with that creepy HR Geiger style art. The game was good, but exactly great. But people were still excited for a sequel. Mixed reviews seem to come from people wanting this game to have been the Super Metroid evolution to AV1, and it's not. This game takes you back to contemporary Earth? -- Gone is the weird alien vibe, but only briefly. The game blends ancient civilizations, barren landscapes, ruined ancient and modern civilizations for its art style. Your character also doesn't fight with futuristic guns, but with a pick axe and boomerang? So the game starts out slowly, but catches its stride, and actually far surpasses the first game. The movement becomes better, exploration becomes actually interesting (you get an alternate form that helps you explore the map similar to the ball, but also there's an alternate dimension in parallel to the "real" world). So is this a directly sequel to AV1? No. But in my opinion, they did something different, and the game actually has its own identity now other than "Metroid clone". The bosses are quite easy, (the game as a whole is technically easier overall), but that's then not really the point of this game. This game is more about exploring and traversing the world -- using the mechanisms of a Metroid style map and some similar mechanics. The game is not for everyone, it's not amazing, but I liked it more than AV1. I understand people who wanted a sequel that explored an even weirder alien world with even more crazy alien weapons, but I'm glad the devs decided to try something different, the experience is more memorable for it. If you want to a more pensive experience (slower paced in some senses, set to beautiful environments on Earth giving you a bigger feeling of isolation), with some legitimately good exploration (after you put up with a bit of a slow start), then AV2 is a great title.

Frustrating gameplay, the Player is stuck with using a pick axe that is a pain to connect and a boomerang which might as well be made of paper. Enemies are all either ranged or are far more aggressive at melee than the Player making it frustrating to approach them for a close quarters strike. Uninteresting protagonist. A Female CEO who begins her quest wanting to know what happens to this other female CEO but quickly wants to leave. That's all her motivation is. The creator probably assumed that having two girl boss CEOs as characters was enough 'character development' and didn't bother taking the effort to write them well. Boring map: the first game offered a truly unique alien world. This game gives you ice, a lake, a mountain etc.