Poppy’s Playtime Chapter 2 Review

[Michael {United Critics}]

The Pink Noodle Limbs Lady

I am so glad that I didn’t invest any money into Poppy’s Playtime Chapter 1. I got access to the game through my friend’s account who sadly spent money on it. Why am I saying this? Well, this is mostly because the developers decided to make the game Free-To-Play after releasing chapter 2. If I am right, the people who actually spent money on it weren’t compensated in any way. They could’ve at least given them Chapter Two for free. I mean, the first part did feel like a trial since it was extremely short but it does give an introduction to the game.

Anyways, I am sure you have heard about the developers being involved in some NFT ♥♥♥♥ that drastically hurt their reputation. I am not really sure about what they actually did so I’ll not make any further comments. Chapter 2 picks off from its predecessor but it gives the players a way longer and more immersive experience. You actually get your money’s worth this time since it allegedly is three times the length of Chapter 1.

About This Game

Storyline

The storyline is pretty normie. I feel like the game isn’t really scary. As I mentioned before, the story picks off from where the first chapter ended. It goes something like this:

After almost escaping the Toy Factory, the anonymous protagonist finally sets Poppy free from the cage she is trapped in. She offers to help you to escape in return. Just when everything seems to be going well, Mommy Long Legs pops out of nowhere and traps Poppy. Your goal is to face the trials thrown to you by her, avoid getting caught by her long-ass limbs, and eventually try to escape the factory. Just keep this in mind, do not let Mommy find you….

Okay, the way I worded it makes it sound a bit eerie. I mean, a pink animatronic with long elastic limbs who calls herself “Mommy” is pretty creepy by itself. Man, I am literally having an internal conflict. Anyways, just play the game and see if it scares you since I really didn’t have an actual adrenaline rush during my gameplay. But yeah, the game’s overall mood was pretty spooky.

One more thing, I think they secretly gave us hints on who the antagonist of the next chapter would be. If I am right, it’d be Kissy Wissy who is basically the female version of Huggy Wuggy. How did I jump to this conclusion? Well, trust me, you will see a lot of references to Kissy Wissy during your gameplay. The game ends in a cliffhanger which makes us hyped for the next chapter’s release.

Gameplay Mechanics

Although the overall gameplay’s length is increased by a huge number, the gameplay mechanics remain almost the same. This is good since players who played the previous part can easily get used to the gameplay without facing any complications.

If you’re familiar with Poppy Playtime, you would probably know about the core mechanic of this game. It’s basically something called a “Grab Pack” which is basically two extendable hands. It serves the following purposes:

• As the name suggests, its basic function is grabbing objects.
  
• You can also use it to connect a power source to a switch/button since it is apparently a good conductor of electricity.
  
• The two hands are differently colored; one is blue while the other one is red. The difference in the colors is useful for opening color-coded gates/doors.
  
• In this part, they introduce a third Green-coloured hand which replaces the red one. This replacement has the capability to hold electricity for about 10 seconds.
  
• One more new mechanic is basically the ability to grapple towards certain points using the blue hand. This is a pretty cool addition as it allows you to overcome obstacles and seems very vital during chase scenes.

So yeah, as you can see, it’s a multi-purpose tool and it’s quite obvious that it plays the most vital role in the game. What makes it even better is that it’s not really hard to master. I love when games use unique but easy-to-learn mechanics!

Poppy’s Playtime is filled with creative puzzles. If you ask me, they’re really not that challenging but I guess that’s a good thing since it needs to appeal to a huge array of people. Not everyone would enjoy it if the puzzles were tough. Anyways, I feel like each and every puzzle was designed. They gave us a mini-challenge while managing to keep us entertained.

Remember the VHS tapes back from Chapter 1? This chapter has them too! Searching for the VHS tapes and playing them in the respective players will give you an extra piece of the lore. Collectibles like the Golden Hands obviously exist. I am not very keen on searching for these collectibles, I just collect ‘em whenever I happen to come across them.

But yeah, apart from what I mentioned above, flicking switches & pressing buttons, there isn’t anything more to the gameplay. Honestly, this is fine since the game mainly revolves around the storyline.

Visuals & Audio

This game gives off a lot of FNAF vibes. Probably because of the toys that kinda resemble animatronics. The graphics are between cartoony and near-realistic. This actually works given the premise of the game. I love how they managed to set a very eerie mood that always keeps you on your toes. The game is mostly dark in a lot of areas which adds a lot to the Spook factor. The sound design is in perfect sync with the visuals since they work together to make the player anxious. As I mentioned before, I didn’t find the game that scary probably cuz I am not afraid of toys. But yeah, I have no issues with the visuals and the aural part of the game.

Pros

• A pretty decent storyline that continues Chapter 1 and creates a base for Chapter 3.
  
• They did introduce a few new mechanics.
  
• The overall gameplay length isn’t that long but it’s longer when compared to its predecessor. You can finish it in about 2 hours.

Cons

• I am not sure of this but what if they make this chapter Free-to-Play when they release Chapter three? They did the same with Chapter 1. The possibility of them doing this is nowhere near zero so the risk is high.

Conclusion

The game got a lot of hate when it first came out just because of the NFT Shenanigans and the devs making Chapter One F2P. But if you keep these all aside, it’s actually a pretty interesting game. Is it worth the price? Man, I don’t want to recommend buying it since y’all would attack me if they made it free in the future. But considering the possibility of them not making the game free, I’d say that it is worth its price tag.

Rating: 8/10
(Many people gave the game low ratings just because of the NFTs incident and the previous part becoming free)

Reviewer: Midplayz
Now I can never see the term “Mommy” the same way.