I owe this game an apology as for the longest time I thought it was just some grindy rougelike. No it's an actually designed Metroidvania, and a solid one at that.

What gave me the impression of it being a rougelike is the footage I saw of the main character mining through samey block after samey block. This made me think the world was randomly generated, as it'd be easier to do that with such assets. But no, there's little randomness from what I can tell. Everything feels consistent and intentionally placed, which makes mining through it all the more funny in retrospect. It gives the player a lot of options on how they want to descend down the mines.
The core loop is delving downwards, finding treasure and caves containing upgrades, then returning to base before your lamp oil runs out of fuel. It's pretty slow to start as you're lamp runs dry fast, but because the mines don't regenerate its terrain, it means you're always making progress no matter what. Slowly etching your way towards the next goal at all times. It's simple but very effective. The challenge caves are all a nice... challenge, and give valuable rewards that makes mining and survivability much more comfortable. Yet soon enough you'll earn some incredibly fun moment abilities that makes traversal a blast. The hookshot is snappy and endlessly useful as you can cancel out of the pull-in while retaining momentum. After getting that I'd sometimes forget I had a wall jump since I was just hookshoting at every turn, it was really addictive.
There's a nice variety of stuff to spend your money and upgrades on. Money allows you to enhance your tools while providing access to perks limited by the amounts of cogs (cause your a robot) you have on hand. Glad it's not a skill tree system. You unlock perks linearly, but are free to have whatever perks you want. Simple and clean.
The bosses aren't ideal for a Metroidvania though. They follow patterns of invincibility as you dodge their patterns before finally getting a chance to attack back, only for your damage output to be capped so that you have to go through every phase of their fight. The final boss was cool in concept, yet it felt pretty haphazard in execution. It was too busy without enough grace. There aren't a lot of bosses to be fair, but I feel a Metroidvania having very rigid boss designs defeats a lot of the purpose of getting stronger and improving your character. This would be a bigger issue if Steamworld Dig 2 was about fighting and high action, but no its more about planning, problem solving, and exploration. Combat is low on the priority list, which for the kind of game this wanted to be is probably for the better.

This is an easy recommendation. It offers a nice balance for players who want a chill time digging, and those who want to be challenged in optimizing their paths to beat the game as quickly as possible.

I got killed by falling rocks more then I care to admit...

This game is the byproduct of Samus, Mr. Driller, and Dig Dug getting together for a hoedown. The original Steamworld Dig didn't really blow me away; just a lot of digging down in randomly generated tunnels until I had to resurface and buy upgrades, rinse/repeat until credits roll. This one is a full-blown search-action title though, even if it's still in service of very similar (but refined) concepts from the previous game.

The biggest addition to the gameplay is probably the cog mods, which are honestly excellent. As you upgrade your tools in exchange for cash, you gain access to various mods that you can equip, as long as you have enough cogs. These cogs are frequently your reward for exploring, and the more you have, the more passive buffs you can equip. There's even ones that actively make the game harder in exchange for higher rewards.

There are a couple of minor issues that remain from the first game, like not being able to use your pickaxe in midair, or the process of digging blocks one at a time getting somewhat tedious. I will still gladly give this game's chrome finish a rating of "purty good, partner." Truly a diamond in the rough.

Wie würde ich nun also den zweiten Teil einranken nachdem der erste mir nur so semi gefallen hat? Die Wertung gibt es zwar nicht wirklich her, aber deutlich besser tatsächlich.
Es ist auf allen Ebenen ein deutlich ambitionierteres Spiel als noch der Erste Teil und vieles ist einfach besser durchdacht und spielt sich auch um längen besser.
Die Regionen sind nicht nur interessanter sondern werden auch mithilfe von Sammelobjekten wie Zahnrädern deutlich "voller". Eben diese Zahnräder werden dann ebenfalls noch zum Verbessern von Waffen verwendet mit "Mods" welche dem gesamten Spiel zusätzlich noch mal mehr Tiefe geben.
Eine Schwäche teilt sich dieses Spiel allerdings mit dem ersten Teil: Ein eher träger Beginn welcher hier aber nicht nur zeitlich kürzer, sondern auch vom Volumen des Spiels deutlich weniger ist.
Dazu kommt dann noch das die Achievements dieses Mal deutlich angenehmer sind, wenn auch das Spiel ohne Tod durchzuspielen extrem viel schwerer als im ersten Teil ist und "Die ultimative Prüfung" ziemlich gut von dem Achievement Namen eingefangen wurde, "Zur Hölle und zurück".

Alles in allem ein sehr solider Titel welcher Fans des Metroidvania Genres sicherlich interessieren könnte.
7/10

Steamworld Dig 2 is safe, it’s predictable, it’s comfy. Don’t expect to get your mind blown by any of its content or systems. You dig up shiny stones, you sell the shiny stones, you buy upgrades with your earnings, repeat. It definitely earns some brownie points for the cute robot characters and how gorgeous the world can look at times. But aside from one pretty neat scripted section near the middle, Steamworld Dig 2 isn’t here to reinvent the wheel or even have any really spectacular wheels. That’s not to say Steamworld Dig 2 is bad or anything. It’s quite polished, well paced, and absolutely worth your time if the mining loop sounds fun to you. It’s like a grilled cheese prepared by Gordon Ramsey, ultimately plain but you can tell there’s some super talented folks behind it.

A fairly simple story, but in fact, a high-quality continuation of the first part. A very interesting sandbox with upgrades for the main character and the search for things that help you move forward. Of course, there is a small grind of resources for sale, but it is harmoniously integrated into the progression through the plot. A pleasant Metroid in which it is interesting to find out how it all ends, fortunately the game does not drag out the ending.

Достаточно простая история, но на деле, качественное продолжение первой части. Очень интересная песочница с апгрейдами главного героя и поиском вещей, которые помогают продвигаться дальше. Конечно, присутствует небольшой гринд ресурсов для продажи, но он гармонично встроен в продвижении по сюжету. Приятный метройд, в котором интересно узнать, чем все закончится, благо игра не затягивает с концовкой.

Long before I decided to become a reviewer, I used to jot down brief thoughts on the games I was playing in order to capture my feelings at the moment of completion for personal archival purposes. Since then, I’ve of course evolved my craft into full-fledged write-ups, but I do think there is enough merit to some of these earlier critiques to warrant their publication, especially for titles I do not intend on replaying (in the near future at least). I’ve thrown in some updates, but this is one of them.


STORY
-SteamWorld Dig 2 is a direct sequel to SteamWorld Dig, It follows Dorothy/Dot as she tries to find Rusty following his disappearance at the end of the first game.

-Fen is annoying, and his decision at the end (like with most of the game's emotional beats) comes off as contrived (much like how the ending of the first SWD wasn't sad).


GRAPHICS
-Graphically, it looks the same as the original but with more detailing and texturing. Not a huge difference, but it is noticeable and gives the game greater flare.


GAMEPLAY
-The transport system has been heavily streamlined. There are no more ladders and torches, and you now have access to multiple transport tubes which have to be discovered throughout the area, compared to the first game where you only had 1 and had to buy extras if you wanted to replace the preexisting one.

-Resources are more diverse, and I actually noticed a difference this time around compared to the first game where they all felt jumbled together.

-There are a lot more upgrades this time around. In fact, there are so many that you won't have enough money to buy them all, adding a little bit of strategy to the game. That said, I didn't like that mining was your only method of making money. For a game that puts a lot of effort towards building-up the town of El Machino, the buildings serve no purpose and it consequently would've been cool to have a renovation or task system for the different city inhabitants in order to procure cash beyond excavating.

-There are also cogs you can find (or buy, limited amount) throughout the world, which is far larger than the first Steamworld Dig’s. Cogs are usually found in caves (which serve as "side missions") and can be used to either give bonuses to your machines or Dot herself, such as increasing elemental orbs generated by killed enemies or making your weapons stronger.

-I was mixed on the cave aspect. They have secrets in them, but these secrets are usually discovered through uncovering a hidden pathway rather than solving puzzles (a good puzzle one being the mine cart button one), which wouldn’t be a bad thing were it not for those hidden pathways often having nonsensical locations.

-Completed caves have a green checkmark on them. However, you can only see that when you exit them, meaning you could end up restarting it despite not getting everything.

-The world at times feels too big for its own good. Things get grindy pretty soon, compared to the first where, because it was shorter, it didn't wear out its welcome. I also didn't like how you were forced to start off with the pickax again as it was annoying having to reupgrade Dot. The developers should've done something like Assassin’s Creed Rogue where, even though you had to reupgrade The Morrigan, you began with the charge ram and machine gun from the get-go. Here, Steamworld Dig 2 could've had you start off with the drill to alleviate extraneous farming.

-That's another thing, the drill (my favorite tool from the first game) is replaced with a jackhammer that just isn't as good or cool-looking as its forebearer.

-It was also dumb how, no matter how much you upgraded your armor, you still couldn't survive a falling boulder. Got really annoying, especially when you lose a cut of the game's already limited ores.

--Respawning enemies are tiring, especially those birds that make the irate noise.

-On the plus side, pools this time around last forever, meaning you don't have to worry about draining a source compared to the first game. This might be seen as a bad thing by some players, but it's not like SWD is an inherently strategic series (at least not until the third one).


VERDICT
-Took me about 6-7 hours to beat the story, and while there is a lot of extra stuff via the caves, they, as I said above, lack genuine puzzle elements. There's also no post-game playing, meaning you have to beat everything before doing the final boss, otherwise you'll have to rebeat them at the end.

-However, I didn't end up 100% the game because it just got tiring having to look for every secret. I wish there was a map or tracker you could unlock, because the game really doesn't have good exploratory incentives compared to true Metroidvania titles.

-I did end up putting in a total of 12-13 hours, meaning SteamWorld Dig 2 falls under my cost:gametime ratio formula. That said, because of the grinding, I ultimately had less fun with it than its predecessor, despite the tube and upgrade system improvements.

A simple and wholesome experience all round, there’s not really anything strictly bad about this game, I enjoyed my time with it, its just a basic fun time where you dig to reach objectives, make money by mining ore which can upgrade your tools and rinse and repeat. Its a satisfying loop despite the fact that it gets a little repetitive since I had to go back to el machino constantly to trade, but as you progress it does become less frequent.

This game has lovely presentation, a charming cartoony artstyle with a goofy steampunk aesthetic and a really quality soundtrack too, some of the beats hit kinda hard. I was expecting something with procedural generation or randomness not unlike spelunky or minecraft or some kind of roguelike, but its actually a very intentionally crafted metroidvania with thoughtfulness in its placement of enemies, ore, tools, objectives etc. There’s clear barriers for progression until you get new tools and said tools feel excellent to use, especially the grappling hook and jet pack which make traversal so much more fluid and fun. This is also a game with very little focus on combat, every ‘boss fight’ is crafted around your movement and digging, just as you’ve been practicing throughout the game (though ‘combat’ exists to an extent), which was the right decision, but still, none of the boss or enemy encounters are particularly interesting or enjoyable, they’re more of an obstacle and an inconvenience than something I actively want to encounter.

In general though, the game is fairly basic but quite effective and I really enjoy being given a far away objective that I have to find my own path to get to, all the while exploring caves (which offer some great platforming & puzzle challenges), gathering upgrades and becoming more efficient at the core gameplay loop, simple but well executed stuff. The economy and upgrade system is also very well implemented and balanced, allowing me to upgrade at a good pace but still feel restricted enough as to feel like I had to prioritise and choose my upgrades meaningfully. The cog system letting you take out and re-use cogs like a ‘slot’ mechanic rather than a currency mechanic was a great choice. There’s also tons of secrets to be found, a charming and generally jovial tone and the game is just the right length for what it sets out to do I think, an all round good, albeit easy and inoffensive time.

Such an amazing sequel!
Expanded on so many things.
We have several zones and more fun abilities to get.
The story gets right after the events of 1, which is cool to see.

They've put more effort on the metroidvania aspect, game is pretty chill and not that long. The final boss fight was really fun. I definitely recommend

started this while Tekken 8 was installing and ended up playing the whole thing over a couple of days

really easygoing and charming journey

fun wee loop of dig, upgrade, dig better, repeat

meaningful upgrades make traversing previous areas a blast

loads of clever level design

a lovely wee time was had

SteamWorld Dig 2 is quite honestly one of the best sequels I've ever played. My main takeaway from the first game was "Good concepts, but it needs more in the overall execution to fully make use of them", and this proves me RIGHT.

While the game maintains the core "Dig hole. Feel whole." gameplay loop from its predecessor, it's no longer the only thing going on. While all that original DNA is still there, it now fully embraces a more Metroid-style structure as a whole, Like, it's genuinely impressive how well it manages to balance them without sacrificing any of the original's aspects, a real "Have your cake and eat it too" situation.

In terms of upgrades, this one's so much better. Like, be honest, how often did you use the pickaxe in Dig 1 after getting the drill? This time around, you get a jackhammer, and it's balanced in a way to keep it useful while not completely replacing the pick. Instead of a weird Doki Doki Panic charge-jump, you get a grappling hook, and holy goddamn is it so fun to use. The collectable cogs, roughly equivalent to Metroid's missile tanks, also give you more options for toggleable upgrades, which I'm a big fan of.

Do you like sequence breaking, by the way? Cuz I got to the final boss, blind, without getting the jet engine. Not even because I got lost; the game has a very solid objective pointer system (which you can turn off at will, by the way). No, the game just has so much freedom in the way you can move about that just wandering and getting creative lets you tackle obstacles in many ways. Like, I don't even know what the intended time to do some of what I did even would be, and you know what? That rules.

Overall, fantastic game that makes the previous game feel like a prototype, in the best way possible.

This game is vastly superior to the first.

There is much more meat to the story. I enjoyed it. It looks absolutely beautiful. The much is soooooooooo good! It's a much bigger game. Feels more like a metroidvania than the first game did. The first game you most dig down. This game you have several paths the interconnect. It still is mostly digging down, but much more variety. There are also so many secrets. You are rewarded for exploring.

Above ground is even more fleshed out. There is more than just a town. You have more above ground exploration to the left and right of town.

Gameplay loop is the same, dig, get resources, upgrade. Repeat. But now there are way more challenge rooms and secrets to find. More upgrades are found in the mines too. Traversal is much less jank. Harder to screw yourself over to where you have to die. It really is just a better game in every single way.

The final boss is a bit frustrating though. It still can get tedious. It didn't happen to me, but yet again, I can see if you are bad enough, you might screw yourself out of resources in a way to hardlock. Some of the late game challenges are frankly insane. Demands a mastery of things that to be fair are not fun to do.

It's a chill brain off game mostly. Think before you dig, you will enjoy this game. I was absolutely shocked by how much of an improvement this was over the first and how much I enjoyed it. The first game is a resource gathering game with light metroidvania elements. This game is a fully fledged out metroidvania. I highly recommend it. But you need to know the basic story from the first game to appreciate the story in the sequel.