Popcap is one of those developers that just really resonates with me. I think everybody has one of those game studios that just put out a ton of games that they like, where their way of designing games just really gels with what they like. For me, that's Popcap games. I've played all of their classics, such as Bejeweled, the ever present Plants vs Zombies, the slept-on Bookworm Adventures, and of course, the focus of this review, Peggle.

Peggle 2 is arguably one of the last good games that Popcap ever developed. Still post EA buyout, but not yet to the Plants vs Zombies 3 brainrot just yet, they still had enough creative power to push out a great game like Peggle 2.

Peggle 2 makes some strides forward in certain areas, while regressing in some, so I'll talk about what I liked first. The new graphics style is very charming in my opinion, but I could see why it would be divisive. The characters have a very very cartoonified style as compared to the first game, which isn't everybody's cup of tea, but this allows them to have much more in depth animation this time around. The characters stand to the side of the screen rather than being in the ball-shooter, which gives them a chance to really show life, where the original portraits could feel lifeless. This visual charm permeates throughout the game, with backgrounds being in a style that matches the characters art style, while still not sacrificing on any detail from the original game. They very much look like promo art from a cartoon, which looks great in my opinion. The UI also looks great, although I don't necessarily think it beats out the original Peggle, it just goes for something different. More geometric, less futuristic but more "modern" if that makes any sense?

The music also has taken a huge step up in my opinion. Now, the original Peggle OST is a great listen, but this game gives each playable character their own suite of background music when playing a level, each based on their own royalty free stock melody. This feels like a great extension of the original game's use of 'Ode to Joy' when clearing a level, and also gives each character their own leitmotifs. Examples are Bjorn's song being 'Ode to Joy', Windy's being 'Hallelujah', and Gnorman's being 'In the Hall of the Mountain King'. The game's soundtrack was performed by an actual orchestra, which is kind of crazy to think about Peggle getting that kind of production value, but it's the kind of silly thing that I can just get down with if that makes sense. Each character ALSO has their own peg-hit sound effects to make playing each one feel even more distinct.

Another sound-related thing I feel compelled to mention is that the Menu sound effects (when you flick between buttons) are to the tune of 'Morning Mood', the Peggle title theme. This is a SUPER nice touch and just shows that extra level of devotion that I love to see from games in general. Also the multiplayer lobby theme is a great jazz rendition of 'Ode to Joy' and it honestly goes insanely hard.

The new masters are also great, although they definitely feel power-crept from the first version (aside from poor old Bjorn, unchanged from Peggle 1). This leads the game to rely more on the green pegs as they are more powerful, and the levels have been designed in a slightly more difficult manner to compensate. This isn't necessarily a negative change, but it's something to note if you really enjoyed the balance from the original Peggle. I also appreciate how the majority of characters are new to this game with new powers, giving a reason for both games to exist on their own. Gnorman is a bit overpowered, but it's not like the original game had the best balance between characters.

A large place where I feel this game regressed from the original, however, is in terms of the number of playable characters. For some reason, this game only has 7 (if you buy the 2 DLC packs, we'll get to it) playable characters, which is a pretty steep drop off from the last game's 11. Each character has double the levels to offset this, but in terms of character action, there's fewer options, which is strictly a downgrade in my opinion for a game like this. So much of the appeal is in the wide variety of characters and ways to tackle a situation, so it's sad to see that removed in part.

Now, two of those characters are locked behind DLC. Womp womp. EA got their hands on this one I suppose. I can't hate too much on the level pack DLC though, as it does come with a full level pack and new character, so I believe it justifies the $5 price tag. When compared to the original Peggle though, it's hard to not feel like you're paying more to get less. The costume pack DLC for the characters is honestly kind of insulting though, the costumes actually don't even look good.

The original charm of Peggle and its Nights counterpart is maintained in this sequel in my opinion, and arguably surpassed in the art and music department, despite a short list of pitfalls. This is one of the last real Popcap games out there, and unfortunately it's exclusive to consoles, so you can't pick this up on PC, but I'd recommend it if you have a Xbox or Playstation console. Even if the crowd doesn't cheer for this game (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sr57Je1fVvM), it's my favorite installment in one of my favorite game series. I can only hope to see EA or Popcap revisit this franchise (in a not free-to-play mobile game) someday in the near future.