Remnant: From the Ashes, initially a sleeper hit in 2019, demonstrated great potential for something unique. Often described as “Dark Souls with guns,” it skillfully blended Soulslike principles and third-person shooting within a procedurally generated world. Now, Remnant II takes the textbook sequel approach, expanding, refining, and boldly enhancing all elements, making it bigger and more in-depth for an even more immersive experience.
Remnant II follows the tale of multiple human-made catastrophes linked to an interdimensional evil, the Root. Despite its apparent slowdown, the Root continues spreading across the Remnant many realms, destroying realms and seeking to eliminate all life. Throughout the sequel, you journey across broken planets in search of ways to defeat the Root and confront its source, despite claims of its unstoppable nature.
At the core of Remnant II‘s captivating gameplay lies its archetype system and gunplay mechanics. Initially, players are presented with five primary archetypes: Gunslinger, Handler, Challenger, Medic, and Hunter. Each archetype specializes in distinct gameplay aspects, such as the Gunslinger’s focus on high DPS and efficient ammo usage, while the Medic excels at healing and providing support to others.
The genius of the archetype system lies in its potential for boundless build variety. Players have the unique opportunity to equip both a Prime and Secondary archetype simultaneously, creating a fusion of their chosen playstyles. Furthermore, each archetype offers three distinct skills that serve varied purposes, ranging from damaging abilities to empowering self-buffs. This system grants players the freedom to fully utilize the Prime Archetype’s kit while also integrating some aspects of the Secondary Archetype’s abilities, enabling them to craft truly personalized and dynamic play experiences.
Traits play a vital role as passive abilities that provide valuable stat boosts, enriching a player’s build variety. These traits are essential for enhancing your character’s capabilities and tailoring them to your preferred playstyle. Acquiring trait points is achieved through two main methods: defeating powerful World Bosses or discovering scattered Tomes of Knowledge scattered throughout the world. This system not only encourages engaging in intense combat scenarios but also rewards thorough exploration and discovery, creating a well-rounded and fulfilling gameplay experience.
Equipment plays a crucial role in Remnant II, with armor pieces offering varying levels of elemental resistance while affecting your character’s weight. Exceeding a weight threshold results in consequences like slower dodging animations and increased stamina consumption.
Amulets and Rings are essential for fine-tuning your build, and with a wide range of options available, you can find the perfect combination to suit your needs. The extensive selection of Rings and Amulets ensures that there’s something to fulfill any requirement or playstyle.
In the world of “Dark Souls with guns,” Remnant II offers a fantastic array of firearms. Players can equip a primary gun, a secondary gun, and a melee weapon simultaneously, providing versatility in combat. The selection of guns is impressively diverse, featuring pistols, ARs, shotguns, rifles, and even bows/crossbows.
Each weapon boasts a Mod slot, enabling the use of flame rounds or laser beams, while a Mutator slot allows for customizing the weapon’s functionality, including increased magazine capacity or faster reload speed. Players can further enhance their chosen weapons by upgrading them to deal more damage, especially crucial as the difficulty level escalates. Upgrades start off relatively easy, but become more challenging as they require rare materials dropped only by mini-bosses, making the higher-level grind a rewarding yet demanding endeavor.
Remnant II offers an impressively smooth and snappy gunplay experience, making it a delight for players who enjoy shooting mechanics. The controls are responsive, and the sensation of firing weapons is satisfyingly immersive, adding a level of engagement to combat encounters.
Yet, like any game, Remnant II is not without its flaws. Some players have reported encountering a sporadic issue where a few shots do not register correctly, despite aiming directly at the enemy. This can be particularly frustrating, especially during intense battles or crucial moments when every shot counts.
Remnant II offers a captivating array of enemy diversity, with each region and realm housing distinct foes to encounter. The game’s design shines in its meticulously crafted mini-bosses and bosses, as each encounter presents unique challenges with varying boosts. These formidable adversaries may spawn minions, possess larger HP pools, or even demonstrate teleportation abilities, keeping players on their toes and ensuring that no two encounters feel the same. The thoughtful design of these enemies adds an extra layer of excitement and unpredictability to the gameplay, making Remnant an exhilarating and ever-engaging experience.
While Remnant II does have a lot going for it, the story in Remnant II shares similarities with its predecessor but unfortunately, it tends to be easily forgettable. While the gameplay and combat mechanics excel in providing an immersive experience, the narrative lacks the depth and impact needed to leave a lasting impression.
Remnant II‘s procedurally-generated world offers a thrilling roguelike experience with endless variety in each playthrough. However, it can be a double-edged sword, as some content might not appear, necessitating multiple playthroughs for a complete experience. Nevertheless, this dynamic world keeps players engaged and eager to explore its ever-changing landscapes.
Overall, I’m captivated by Remnant II‘s post-apocalyptic adventure, featuring smooth gunplay and evasive tactics reminiscent of FromSoftware’s games. The exploration of broken worlds and diverse archetypes provide endless build options, making it highly engaging. While the story may be forgettable, the action-packed gameplay and unique realms keep me thoroughly entertained.
Score: 9 of 10
Reviewed on PC