Axiom Verge 2 Review

Despite the linguistic tradition, I found the basic predicament of Axiom Verge 2 "s main character Indra more than enough to drive me through an eight-hour adventure in which she arrives at an Antarctic research base in search of her missing daughter - the only thing that leads her to the power-absorbing, unique ability of nanomachines known as weapons.

Axiom Verge 2 has a new main character and a new setting, but what separates it from the original game is the ability to gradually penetrate into alternate dimensions that are parallel to the main overworld and do all kinds of strange things, some of which emulate game Boy Color. The way his intrusions into the real world and interaction with each other in the game are thrilling to discover and help make up for his retro trappings, while his visuals and music feel like relics of past genres. Axiom Verge balances the familiar elements that make it great with trying new ideas that give it its own identity; lovers of the series will need some time to adapt to what comes next, creating a powerful experience fans of the genre won't want to miss.

In fact, as a result Axiom Verge 2 is a difficult game to love but at least it lacks the twists and turns of its predecessor and rewards the player with some of the most creative designs and implementations I have ever seen in a nonlinear platformer, with a fascinating new world to explore.

While the first game was inspired by Metroid as part of the genre of the same name, Axiom Verge 2 leaned more heavily on thevania side of the equation and traded the dark boundaries of its underground labyrinth for more generous and detailed environments. While Thomas Happ Games’ second outing brings the exploration and upgrade loop a little closer to its inspiration this time, it is the way it has burrows into the isolation at the heart of Metroid Series that sets it apart. While the first game of Axiom Verge's Metroid evoked a sense of subterranean terror, the sequel leans more toward the symphonic side of things, offering opulent, detailed environments that reward hacking and punching.

While the core battle takes a relative backseat to a concerted focus on exploration in Axiom Verge 2, this focus is confirmed by a significant overhaul of your transversal capabilities that will fundamentally change the way you interact with the networked game world. While the standard approach to boss fights in Metroidvania games keeps you trapped in fenced areas and forces you into claustrophobic confrontations with monolithic monsters, the continuation allows you to adopt the pacifist approach if you prefer. Like Axiom Verges 1, the new protagonist Indra acquires the ability to launch a robot drone connected to the game, which allows you to crawl through small passages and reach new areas that are inaccessible to you as a human.

An alternative map running parallel to the main map, called Breach, plays as a totally different game, with each drone has its own capabilities, including a grappling hook, and the level design is tight and compact. Despite the possibility of missing out, I managed to explore most of the maps and finish the game in several platform jumps. The success came after dozens of failed attempts that require relentless pixel-perfect precision in a way that separates it from the rest of the game.

If you are interested in the puzzle and exploration aspect of Metroidvanias, Axiom Verge 2 shows a level of sophistication in its design that I have not seen in a Metroidvania in a while, even if the end result is a bit dull. This is not to its detriment, not because I think it is a good game, but because it feels like a solid successor to the first, in a strange way that takes some time.

This is a game I've played on several systems and is going to remain in my head rent-free since its release as Super Metroid in the form of a high-contrast sci-fi story. It proved to be the ultimate expression of a Metroid-inspired game with Giger-esque landscapes, expansive worlds to explore, and a killer soundtrack. While the first game paid tribute to Metroid while freeing it of some frustrations, the second feels like an original 2D exploration game that happens to be riddled with the irritating artifacts of Nintendo's genre-creating NES classics.

The last time I got excited about a Metroidvania was with Axiom Verge, a game inspired by the original Metroid and the other half of the equation: Symphony of the Night. Like his predecessor, he played in a dark and mysterious world that felt open to investigation, thanks in part to a device called Axiom Disruptor.

It's hard to believe that it has been six long years since Tom Happ gifted this world with Axiom verge games, and I have played on different systems several times. See, the world runs parallel to one game and the other, like a Metroidvania in two dimensions, a repurchased version of the other. Stumbling over these different dimensions is a rich vein of video game plots, and they were stylishly and well designed by solo developer Thomas Happ in the original game.