10.1 hours played
Written 14 days ago
I am an enormous fan of the first game, as one might expect, and I think in terms of being a sequel this is very close to perfect. This title still is very much attached to the first, but more action oriented and more complex (not inherently good or bad, but I think very necessary for a follow up). I love the new machine (whose name seems to just be "the vessel"?), I think the new sails are geniusly re-invented, the engine given some more spice and ease of use with a fuel loader, and the ability to more fluidly choose my path through the game is fun, but it suffers in delivering the benefits of linearity these games depends on. The music, I found, was not only much less reactive to the scene before me, but also much more scarce, like the game was scared of starting a new track for fear of me changing the mood. This was present in the first game, but heavily mitigated by how much simpler and less dynamic the gameplay was. This, as well as the physics jank that inevitably rears its head, are unfortunately necessary drawbacks to a dynamic experience. Related, I think, is what I noticed as an increased prevalence of 3d models over the 2d landscapes common to the first game. I attribute this to models being faster to produce and easier to move around (like, perspective wise) than the 2d "paintings," but it made the game lose some of its character in my opinion.
I would also argue that this game is less optimized than the first, as I personally experienced some quite significant frame drops when playing on the same machine as I did the first game. Again, I think this is a drawback to the more physics-driven nature of this game, but I think that's necessary to the experience. Perhaps my favorite payoff for this is the fact that the vessel can tilt to some wildly extreme angles, sort of emergently introducing difficulty in situations where that is appropriate based on the environment being more or less violent around you. I think this game had a lot of fun with moving you out of your comfort zone with the machine, and I appreciate that, but I can't say I felt as attached to It as I did the Okomotive.
Overall, I think if you enjoyed the first game, you should play this one. It may not be as effective as the first in atmosphere, but it is nothing if not More of the game you enjoy.
--- Spoiler Territory ---
As perhaps my weakest gripe, I would also say the story of this game was much less affecting than than of the first game, though perhaps that is more subjectively motivated. The copper dioramas were amazing as a visual, and leaned very smartly into the more 3d nature of the game's visuals, but the story they had to tell was one I felt I didn't really understand? I don't see how the "ancients" are connected at all to my character or the "parent" (unclear relation, I'm assuming), unlike the very cohesive characters and set pieces in the first game, which in my opinion actually led to a thematic conclusion, unlike this game. Perhaps with more reflection I will understand this game's message. I cannot argue with the ending, however, I think it was a perfect final switch-up to make you refamiliarize yourself with the controls slightly while you recontextualize the game's world, just before your character begins a new chapter of their life and metaphorically does the same. The horn and the cloud in the background immediately made a light go on in my head, and I couldn't see the game ending any more satisfyingly than taking the Okomotive, a machine you are intensely familiar with but is now basically useless, with you on your journey. I know I certainly will be carrying around those two wheels in my head for quite a long time.
