4/5 ★ – Cryophage's review of Axiom Verge 2.

"On the Verge of Greatness!" Axiom Verge 2, the appropriately named sequel to Axiom Verge! This game is fantastically ominous to explore as the world gets more and more bizarre as you delve further and further, equipped with all the traversal goodies indicative of the Metroidvania genre. Impressively, this game was developed by one person, Mr. Thomas Happ! Happ really put his all into this game, and it’s quite impressive when you take into consideration all the details and effort seen when playing! Interestingly enough, the level design in Axiom Verge 2 feels more indicative of Metroid Fusion rather than Super Metroid. The game tends to follow a level-by-level style of progression as opposed to a more somewhat open exploration approach like in Super Metroid. New areas beget upgrades that allow you to get through the area and into another new area, so on and so on, and when the game rewards you for curiosity, it does so in spades! Nothing is too obtusely hidden, and exploring around the map can give you multiple screens worth of STUFF! Of course, visiting previously explored areas with new upgrades usually dishes out even more upgrades as usual, but backtracking to these areas can be a bit of a slog even with areas that connect other areas. The game does eventually give you a fast travel option fortunately.  Regardless of what you’re doing, one thing that’s never dull is experiencing the otherworldly atmosphere of this strange land! Another reason I say that this game is similar to Metroid Fusion is because the scenery, the creatures and drones, and the hauntingly mysterious vocals of the music all contributed to a sense of unease as I sat wondering what things awaited me just around the corner. Things only get weirder and more interesting when you discover the Breach, a strange dimension(?) of sorts that allows you to navigate around obstacles and explore in brain meltingly brilliant ways! I love the depth the Breach adds to gameplay, there were several moments where I was lost and had that “ah-ha!” moment by discovering ways not just to navigate in the Breach but ways to manipulate it! It's a good thing the exploration is top-notch because good glorious grief, the boss battles are not going to sell anyone on this game. I do like the way bosses are set up, however! The game foregoes typical encounters in favor of strong enemies that are put here and there to discover and conquer, and they drop canisters of skill points! However, almost every single boss basically boiled down into rushing into them and going to town, as the bosses can't usually counter when you're right on their back. I can only think of 2 bosses that weren't susceptible to this, and one of them couldn't even kill you. The game does boast a decent skill tree that allows you to upgrade the various abilities you have and acquire, but this system has a weird quirk that I just can't wrap my head around. One of your abilities is hacking, either by sabotaging enemies or opening doors. Some doors are locked behind higher tiers of...hacking-ness, and you need an appropriate skill level. However the amount of skill points needed to fully upgrade this is almost trivial which just makes me question the point of the more secured doors in the first place.  All in all, Axiom Verge 2 is worth its price tag right now, a perfect example of a middle-tier game, and very open for newcomers-to-hardcore gamers alike!