Conceivably the tightest and most satisfying first-person action platformer ever made. Unfortunately, it's also saddled with the same sort of slick yet forgettable narrative that the Call of Duty franchise has been putting out for years.
Movement in this game is such a sheer joy. The wall-running, double jump, and slide all combine to form a genuinely thrilling mixture. All of the best elements of the first game - the speed, the finesse, the responsiveness - are present here, and this time around the developers at Respawn had the good sense to actually design spaces where these features can really shine (as opposed to the first game, which largely consisted of a series of anonymous maps that bore little difference to any number of generic FPS settings). In terms of pure wireframe, the level design here is surprisingly quite good - the famous time travel level, for instance, is indeed a standout. But the real star of the show is the automated assembly line that churns out prefab suburbs, a setting that's simultaneously satisfying to navigate and surreal to experience.
Sadly, I didn't care a lick about any of the characters or the story. Granted, it's nothing embarrassing - the voice acting is competent and the pacing is svelte enough that the campaign doesn't overstay its welcome. But it's very much generic AAA style-over-substance. The dialogue is quippy without being particularly funny. Showy poses take the place of meaningful themes. And they clearly didn't even try to come up with a compelling antagonist - the villainous mercenaries here are all over-the-top mustache-twirlers straight out of central casting.
It's all a bit upsetting (if unsurprising), because a genuinely engaging narrative and a few well-drawn characters likely would have elevated this into masterpiece territory for me. As is, it's an extremely fun game in the hands that didn't leave much of a mark on my heart or my mind.
Movement in this game is such a sheer joy. The wall-running, double jump, and slide all combine to form a genuinely thrilling mixture. All of the best elements of the first game - the speed, the finesse, the responsiveness - are present here, and this time around the developers at Respawn had the good sense to actually design spaces where these features can really shine (as opposed to the first game, which largely consisted of a series of anonymous maps that bore little difference to any number of generic FPS settings). In terms of pure wireframe, the level design here is surprisingly quite good - the famous time travel level, for instance, is indeed a standout. But the real star of the show is the automated assembly line that churns out prefab suburbs, a setting that's simultaneously satisfying to navigate and surreal to experience.
Sadly, I didn't care a lick about any of the characters or the story. Granted, it's nothing embarrassing - the voice acting is competent and the pacing is svelte enough that the campaign doesn't overstay its welcome. But it's very much generic AAA style-over-substance. The dialogue is quippy without being particularly funny. Showy poses take the place of meaningful themes. And they clearly didn't even try to come up with a compelling antagonist - the villainous mercenaries here are all over-the-top mustache-twirlers straight out of central casting.
It's all a bit upsetting (if unsurprising), because a genuinely engaging narrative and a few well-drawn characters likely would have elevated this into masterpiece territory for me. As is, it's an extremely fun game in the hands that didn't leave much of a mark on my heart or my mind.