Overall - 90%
90%
Official Score
I find myself thinking this about a lot of games this year, but in a weaker year Remnant 2 could be a GOTY contender. Don't hesitate to check it out if you like these types of games.
After the first Remnant took the world by storm, Gunfire Games and Gearbox Publishing’s Remnant 2 is here to keep the momentum going. Is the sequel worth the pickup, or should you catch up on your backlog?
Remnant 2 Review
The plot of Remnant 2 is pretty simple: The Root has taken over Earth, and you and a few other survivors must fight back. While searching for supplies, you and a fellow survivor stumbled into a settlement called Ward 13. It’s basically a shipping yard with containers and a few buildings. Here you meet up with Ford, who shows you the World Stone and how to use it. With this, you are able to set out to find your missing friend and clear out some Root.
From there, the story will vary from player to player due to how things are set up. My first area was a forest zone where an eternal struggle between something known as the Doe and the Ravager has been going on. Our other editor ended up on this dying planet where a giant creature wanted him to find some Star Seeds. You eventually see all the zones, but your story and how you get there is random. Most of the game is procedurally generated, which works for the most part. I did occasionally get lost using the map, due to the placement.
Remnant 2 is best described as Dark Souls with guns. The combat is brutal and quick, leaving you dead if you don’t react quickly enough. The dodge is generous, but you can still go down in a couple of hits. The shooting is on point, and unloading a clip into an enemy feels excellent. You also get abilities from the classes you take. For instance, I had a dog that could bring me back up if I went down or attack enemies. They took what made the original Remnant good and improved it, which is exactly what I wanted.
As for classes, those are new to the series. At the start, you can choose from four different archetypes that will give you certain buffs and skills. You start with the dog handler, the gunslinger, the medic, and the challenger (melee class for those crazy enough to want to play that). There are also other classes you can unlock as you play the game. Some of them are VERY hidden, which I respect. Do you think Final Fantasy VII Rebirth will let you miss Vincent or Yuffie? Not a chance. Players willing to explore are rewarded.
To encourage this exploration, you get what is called Adventure mode. So I told you the story splits depending on the planet you start on. Well, there are multiple different storylines on the planets as well. For instance, while I was in Losomn, I was asked to find evidence against a king. When I returned to Adventure mode, I was in a city instead of a palace like before. The king wasn’t even mentioned this time, and I found an insane asylum in the city instead. That is just one example of many; I’m still not sure I’ve seen them all.
Puzzles in Remnant 2 are both more difficult and less frequent. Alternate boss kills were a big thing in the original, and Remnant 2 still has them; just far less frequently. There is a new inspect mode for items that aren’t used much but is a cool new feature. Mostly you are putting together cryptic clues or looking for specific keys for puzzles. That’s not to say that they are bad; I just felt like there weren’t as many. Also, Ward 13 only has a couple of puzzles in this game, which is a bummer.
There are quite a few weapons in the game. You have the stand assault rifles, snipers and hunting rifles, shotguns, LMGs, and even some bows. I started as the Handler, and they started with an assault rifle. I never switched my gun until I beat the game. Everything else I came across fired too slow for my liking, or were the LMG which took forever to reload. I’m also not sure if I had bad luck or what, but nearly every weapon I found in the worlds was a bow or crossbow, and I had no interest in those. I eventually switched after some boss Alt Kills, but the AR is the way to go.
To go along with your weapons are your weapon mods. These are extra abilities on each of your guns; think fire bullets, grenade shots, summoning vine allies, or shields. You need to kill the bosses and return to Ward 13 to get them made. While there are a ton to choose from, I still stuck with fire bullets, just like I did the last game. Combo that with acid bullets on my sidearm, and I still melt enemies. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it – that’s my motto.
There were some tech issues I ran into. I did have a few crashes (after reviewing this game, I am replacing my PlayStation 5, so I’m not 100% sure it was the game). I also encountered several frame drops, especially when bosses were doing big moves. We also ran into the bug where an enemy would be stuck somewhere, and we couldn’t use the world stone since we were still stuck in combat. There were some minor annoyances, but it didn’t stop me from enjoying the game.
I find myself thinking this about a lot of games this year, but in a weaker year Remnant 2 could be a GOTY contender. Don’t hesitate to check it out if you like these types of games.
