The Evil Within 2
Developed by: Tango Gameworks
Published by: Bethesda Softworks
The Evil Within 2 is one hell of a game. It’s a game that does a great job at building an incredibly tense, and eerie atmosphere and is brutally difficult to play at times. The story kept me engaged and excited from start to finish and it was a great survival horror experience that left me feeling satisfied encounter after encounter.
In The Evil Within 2, the player controls Sebastian Castellanos who is on a mission to rescue his previously thought dead daughter from a world known as “STEM” that parallels and is best described as a “Matrix” in the universe that The Evil Within 2 takes place in.
The Evil Within 2 isn’t a game that has perfect writing. It’s on the level of a B level horror movie and exactly what you would expect. Graphically The Evil Within 2 looks great despite it being a 6 year old game at this point.
Tango Gameworks did a great job with lighting and overall level design in The Evil Within 2. Using lighting to their advantage along side environmental story telling Tango did a great job at making me feel unsettled and tense, making me wonder what I was going to encounter as I explored “Union” the location the game takes place in. “Union” is a made up town in STEM and is a post apocalyptic type of town that is abandoned. Union contains a church, diners, a movie theatre, houses and more. While not every building can be entered a good amount can be and often times the game will reward the player for exploring. By thoroughly exploring Union the player will find “weapon parts” which can be used to upgrade weapons, or keys that can be used to unlock lockers that will provide Sebastian with different types of supplies. They range from ammo, to weapon parts to a “green gel” that can be used to upgrade Sebastian. The player can also find ammo pouches for the various guns Sebastian will unlock as the story progresses. The ammo pouches increase the amount of ammo a certain gun can hold. The player will encounter a pistol, a sawed off shotgun, an assault rifle, a crossbow, and a flamethrower throughout their journey.
To circle back for a second, I previously stated that “green gel” can be used to upgrade Sebastian. Sebastian has various attributes that can be upgraded via the central hub of the game. They are his health, athleticism, recovery, and combat ability. Resources can be scarce so choosing the right attribute to invest in is absolutely critical. From weapon damage to Sebastians stealth abilities to his overall stamina, properly investing in the right upgrades will determine how hard or how easy the overall experience of the game will be for the player.
All that being said I have to talk about my experience unlocking achievements. 3 achievements bugged on me and it took me 2 additional playthroughs, a complete reinstall of the game and another playthrough to unlock them. During my first NG+ run of the game 5 achievements unlocked at various times during the playthrough that should have unlocked during my first playthrough of the game. Something is seriously wrong with this game or with how it connects to the Xbox servers. It was frustrating that a game that should normally take 3-4 playthroughs to complete took me 5+. If I didn’t enjoy The Evil Within 2 as much as I did I would have gave up on trying to get all of the achievements.
The Evil Within 2 is a game definitely worth playing if you’re a fan of the horror survival genre and have Xbox Game Pass. If you’re a completionist and play it on Xbox be prepared to encounter bugs. I’m unaware of how the Steam or Playstation versions perform. I really enjoyed my time with The Evil Within 2 and hope they make a sequel some day. I was left wanting more and I believe that Tango Gameworks left the door open to explore more of The Evil Within’s universe.
Pros:
The atmosphere
Graphics
B level horror movie plot and writing
Cons:
Achievements were BUGGED
Played on: Xbox Series X via Xbox Game Pass
Review Score: 4/5
Developed by: Tango Gameworks
Published by: Bethesda Softworks
The Evil Within 2 is one hell of a game. It’s a game that does a great job at building an incredibly tense, and eerie atmosphere and is brutally difficult to play at times. The story kept me engaged and excited from start to finish and it was a great survival horror experience that left me feeling satisfied encounter after encounter.
In The Evil Within 2, the player controls Sebastian Castellanos who is on a mission to rescue his previously thought dead daughter from a world known as “STEM” that parallels and is best described as a “Matrix” in the universe that The Evil Within 2 takes place in.
The Evil Within 2 isn’t a game that has perfect writing. It’s on the level of a B level horror movie and exactly what you would expect. Graphically The Evil Within 2 looks great despite it being a 6 year old game at this point.
Tango Gameworks did a great job with lighting and overall level design in The Evil Within 2. Using lighting to their advantage along side environmental story telling Tango did a great job at making me feel unsettled and tense, making me wonder what I was going to encounter as I explored “Union” the location the game takes place in. “Union” is a made up town in STEM and is a post apocalyptic type of town that is abandoned. Union contains a church, diners, a movie theatre, houses and more. While not every building can be entered a good amount can be and often times the game will reward the player for exploring. By thoroughly exploring Union the player will find “weapon parts” which can be used to upgrade weapons, or keys that can be used to unlock lockers that will provide Sebastian with different types of supplies. They range from ammo, to weapon parts to a “green gel” that can be used to upgrade Sebastian. The player can also find ammo pouches for the various guns Sebastian will unlock as the story progresses. The ammo pouches increase the amount of ammo a certain gun can hold. The player will encounter a pistol, a sawed off shotgun, an assault rifle, a crossbow, and a flamethrower throughout their journey.
To circle back for a second, I previously stated that “green gel” can be used to upgrade Sebastian. Sebastian has various attributes that can be upgraded via the central hub of the game. They are his health, athleticism, recovery, and combat ability. Resources can be scarce so choosing the right attribute to invest in is absolutely critical. From weapon damage to Sebastians stealth abilities to his overall stamina, properly investing in the right upgrades will determine how hard or how easy the overall experience of the game will be for the player.
All that being said I have to talk about my experience unlocking achievements. 3 achievements bugged on me and it took me 2 additional playthroughs, a complete reinstall of the game and another playthrough to unlock them. During my first NG+ run of the game 5 achievements unlocked at various times during the playthrough that should have unlocked during my first playthrough of the game. Something is seriously wrong with this game or with how it connects to the Xbox servers. It was frustrating that a game that should normally take 3-4 playthroughs to complete took me 5+. If I didn’t enjoy The Evil Within 2 as much as I did I would have gave up on trying to get all of the achievements.
The Evil Within 2 is a game definitely worth playing if you’re a fan of the horror survival genre and have Xbox Game Pass. If you’re a completionist and play it on Xbox be prepared to encounter bugs. I’m unaware of how the Steam or Playstation versions perform. I really enjoyed my time with The Evil Within 2 and hope they make a sequel some day. I was left wanting more and I believe that Tango Gameworks left the door open to explore more of The Evil Within’s universe.
Pros:
The atmosphere
Graphics
B level horror movie plot and writing
Cons:
Achievements were BUGGED
Played on: Xbox Series X via Xbox Game Pass
Review Score: 4/5