Despite all the warnings and cautioning, I absolutely LOVED this game. Beat it a few minutes ago with 98% map and all weapons and all arms. In some ways I love it even more than the first one.

The world is a lot more open ended where the first felt a bit constrained. I LOVE how the huge bosses are entirely optional which to me gives a lot more of a realistic vibe to it. Also, there was that huge worm thing in the water that I really felt bad putting down, it's just so cute.

I didn't really like the protagonist though and the whole narrative seemed a bit jumbled, though it was interesting and seemed like a prequel to Axiom Verge. Proto-Xedur variants and all that, even... but no, no spoilers. The world building was impeccable and the overlay of Kiengir, the Breach and the Overworld and how they interact and how you explore all three was again genius.

The visuals I really like, especially how varied the Breach is and how mind-bending the Overworld is.

I also loved how combat was de-emphasized and how I managed to rely on the hacking mechanism a whole lot more. This made exploration so much more enjoyable to me with creative items that make the traversal really interesting rather than just another big gun whoopdy-f-doo. I didn't even mind that the little combat that remained was primarily made melee. I didn't use it all that much anyway.

Finally, the music. The music is extremely amazing this time around as well and even better than the first game. Just take a listen to the track titled Monsoon with a good headset or sound system.

All in all this is a very solid 9/10 for me and I highly recommend it to whoever like the first one.

Holy backtrack and bad maps Hammond. Also bonus points for the futility of upgrades that don't change anything.

I really enjoyed Axiom Verge and was excited to find out there is a new one to play. Surprisingly, the game is very different from AV1 apparently due to being based off of Castlevania instead of Metroid. TBH I hated it at first, but decided to push on because I was curious if it was going to get better.

Well it did. I'm not sure exactly what made it really endearing to me but around 3 hours in it just sort of clicked, and I really started to love it even more than the first one. There is a scene where you stand at the edge of the world near an ocean, and you can really see how bizarrely the world is structured. There is a song that plays in this area called "White Sand City." Hearing and seeing that at the same time hit home to me that this isn't just a sequel to AV1, its an evolution of that game's soul. Moments like that are special in gaming. If you know, you know.

The music and art design work together fantastically to communicate an odd feeling that you can't really put into words but permeates both Axiom Verge games. The story is somehow even more strange than the first game and even more bold in the big-brain sci-fi ideas department. The beginning is difficult, but just like in AV1 you end up horrendously overpowered very quickly and the abilities are far more interesting and useful than in AV1. That is NOT a diss on AV1.

Go into this one with an open mind and some patience and you will be rewarded.