Crashlands 2 [Review]
Admittedly, I know very little about the original Crashlands, which was released in 2016. And it turns out that, while I missed out on some references, it wasn't necessary to play that game to enjoy Crashlands 2. In fact, I recommend diving right into this one if you haven't played the original.It would appear Butterscotch Shenanigans successfully improved upon everything here, resulting in a family-friendly introduction to the open world survival crafting genre.
The adventure begins when Flux Dabes and her robot companion Juicebox crash land on the planet Woanope -- quite literally. It's here the game begins with a tutorialized string of side quests. Through these Flux gets to know a gruff alien named Graal after accidentally destroying his cabin. The tone is silly and laidback with the characters exchanging jokes and quips with each other. However there's a lot of heart behind all this, and the writing shows a surprisingly emotional depth as it tackles themes of grief and found family. It's a good thing, too, as the stellar story was what carried me through the multiple hours of tutorials found at the start.
Gameplay, once it gets going, takes the best from mobile gaming and PC gaming to form an addictive combination. I found myself running all over the planet excited to discover new things, fight new beasts and harvest new resources to get better equipment. While I was out doing that my alien friends would research new technology that expanded my gameplay options, including farming and fishing. The gameplay is just tough enough to be engaging, especially in the beginning where Flux is rather squishy.
There are no new ideas on display here but what is here is just so charming that it doesn't even matter.. The planet of Woanope is vibrant and gorgeous -- full of life and secrets to discover. For example while I could fight monsters head on, I also could lure and trick them into attacking each other. Another option? Activate a bomb plant to do tons of damage. Afterward Flux can just pick up the pieces and add them to the inventory. Veteran players may desire a game with more complex systems, but for players less experienced with survival crafting RPGs, this is a fantastic introduction.
Those new to the genre will also appreciate how forgiving the game is.. Flux thankfully does not have a hunger meter that needs to be maintained, which is a common staple of these type of games. There's no starting over from scratch upon death (well pseduo-death) either, as I found I retained most of my items and equipment upon death. The objects I did not retain were retrievable. These elements allowed me to creatively explore my options -- if a plan failedI could dust myself off and try again.
The only issue, aside from the slow start, is that the build mode controls are a little clunky. I found placing objects to be much harder than it needed to be using my controller. It was if I couldn’t quite get things where I wanted them to go. I usually just ended up using the touch screen on my Steam Deck.
Overall I had a blast with Crashlands 2 and highly recommend it. I'm about 10 hous int, and have only scratched the surface of what this game has to offer. This is a wonderful handheld experience I can see myself sinking many more hours into.
SCORE: 9/10
Thank you to the game devs for the free key and chance to review this game!
