Ditching the house exploration of the unique, SteamWorld Heist 2 is a swashbuckling techniques journey that locations you within the sneakers of Captain Leeway. He takes to the Nice Sea together with his ragtag group of Steambots to unravel the water disaster, cope with the oppressive navy making issues worse, and show he can dwell as much as his legendary identify. The sport’s writing is undoubtedly charming and has you rooting for the crew. This additionally extends to the assorted taverns and areas discovered on the Nice Sea, that are full of enjoyable, humorous characters that by no means outstay their welcome, and make the world really feel lived in.
The gameplay loop breaks down into two sections. There’s an overworld wherein you traverse the waters in your submarine. This consists of battling navy ships (and even perhaps different enemies) as you discover the seas to search out missions. Whereas it is cool to search out hidden areas and shortcuts, that is most likely the weakest a part of the sport – particularly the additional you get into the journey.
The opposite half, and the principle occasion of the sport, are the turn-based battles. These are 2D tactical fights that includes the identical issues that made the unique recreation so nice. This time round, there are six distinctive courses out there, which is nice by itself, however the place it actually shines is the cog system, which lets you stage up in a single class and switch a number of the skills to a different, resulting in some lethal combos (the Engineer’s cowl is incredible for the Sniper, for instance). You may as well recruit particular Steambots from taverns, who in flip have their very own distinctive skills so as to add an additional layer. These are backed up by a singular variety of mission sorts, resembling capturing a selected piece of loot in time, beating a boss, or simply merely surviving.
SteamWorld Heist 2 does every thing the identify implies. It has the copious quantities of appeal and robust world-building discovered within the wider sequence, whereas constructing and enhancing on the superb gameplay basis launched within the authentic SteamWorld Heist. This seafaring journey is not one it’s best to miss for those who’re after some top-tier techniques, and the enhancements over the unique make the almost-10-year wait greater than value it.