Psychonauts 2 (PC/Xbox One) - The Review by a Myself
0I wouldn't claim to be the biggest fan of the Psychonauts series. I love it as much as the next guy. But, when even the next guy loves it as much as I do, you know you've got something special on your hands. The fact that Psychonauts 2 even exists is rather mythical, in and of itself. Much like with Shenmue 3 or Half Life 3. There was a time when the sole prospect of that game existing was pretty much a joke.
But, I guess, love prevails, in the end. Because... Here it is. And the fact that it got a genuine laugh out of me in the literal first minute, was already a great sign. One thing that struck me right away, is how there's so many of these things that, if this your first psychonaut game. Will utterly confuse the shit out of you. Outside of some introductory recap, the game doesn't waste much, if any time trying to fill you in.Like, look at this: The kid puts a fucking piece of bacon next to his head. And gives birth to a 100 year old war hero.
There are so many moments in this that will simply make you go WHAT THE FUCK. Like, as a fan, it made perfect sense to me. But, even if you have played the first one. But, haven't played Psychonauts: In The Rhumbus of Ruin. You might feel pretty lost... But, like...
Ok, so: VR...
Day 2
Point being, In the Rhumbus of Ruin is great. Thanks for coming to my seminar.
The best part of the original Psychonauts, which is a fierce competition, had to be the overworld. Exploring the camp in between every major mission, talking to everyone, hunting for arrowheads and trying to complete the treasure hunt... Was like... Damn what a masterpiece! The characters especially. Their location would change after each mission and it encouraged revisiting the same locations again just to get a glimpse at their ongoing storylines.
This is an aspect that the sequel knew not to fuck up. I was affraid that a Psychonauts sequel, now that Raz had fully become part of the team, would become some villain of the week, level to level, linear platformer where we gots to take down the bad guy. But, most of the charm and structure of the original game is fully intact.
Everyone from the tiny NPCs like the two ladies trying to find the mole or that one lady who hates kids. They really are a lot of fun. The Middle cast, as in all the side kids, are good too. The only thing I don't like is the way it elevates previous fan favourites, like Dogan: The Squirrel Exploder to a degree where... Like, did you know that that kid happens to be the son of god himself.
Like, ''He is?!''.
-Yeah, it was proven scientifically at his birth. He's the new jesus...
-We'll gee, sir. It's not that I don't believe you. But, why did not a single person at that camp ever go ''Hey, aren't you the actual son of god?! Doesn't my mom pray to you every day?''
-Well, maybe, it just never came up...
It's also a lot funnier than the original, I feel. The first game was certainly funny. But Psychonauts 2 had me laughing out loud at least once every 45 minutes. It might not seem like that much. But, I'm not an easy laugher. Getting me to laugh out loud once in the entire game, would already qualify it as good comedy. But Psychonauts 2 was constantly pulling out situations and conversations that got a genuine reaction out of me.
And, it's not just a matter of comedy, either. The entire story of Maligula and the fall of Grulovia is fucking amazing. Touching, even. With plenty of twists and turns and other pre-fabricated compliments. Like, it's not the most mindblowing thing ever. But, there isn't a lot of games out there that could claim to have a better story than Psychonauts 2, if anything.
What's weird is the lack of a Switch version. It wasn't even delayed, it's simply never been announced or confirmed to any degree. I mean, it's a PS2 style 3D platformer made using Unreal 4. How was THAT not a simultaneous Switch release? It's basically tailor made for that console! I mean, if it can handle the Destroy All Humans remake , Psychonauts 2 should be doable.
Now, I didn't beat the game again on Xbox. But I did go back trough a few levels to try and get 100% completion. And I have to say, as an Xbox One S title, it is very impressive. All that stuff that I could nitpick on PC. Like, the limitations of screen space reflections or the occasional lower resolution texture.
It isn't quite as noticeable on a console that's punching upward. It looks awesome on Xbox One. And the animations feel much heavier at 30 fps. It plays in its favour, to some degree.
Psychonauts built itself as a game where you have all these psychic powers. But your main power, in the end, was probably your fists. Psychonauts 2 is not at all like that. It sometimes reminded me of DOOM Eternal. With boss characters that show up again as standard enemies, with different abilities or weaknesses that influence and complement each other.
I give Psychonauts 2 a Psychonauts 2/-0, It is the most Psychonauts 2 game ever...