Evoland 2, A Slight Case of Spacetime Continuum Disorder

Maybe this game gets good later, but I couldn't say because I just couldn't take any more of it. The premise is nice, something like Evoland but with a more detailed game. Rather than a linear progression of unlocking game types it looks to move you around a bit and be more narrative driven. The narrative is ok, a mix of serious and goofy with various references to it being a game and so on. However the thing is just a slog fest. You keep doing the same crap over and over, and what you do isn't much fun. I finally just got fed up of dealing with the garbage "mini-game" type things it kept throwing your way and had enough and uninstalled it. In my opinion, a game needs to be pulling you in by, at most, a couple hours in to the game. If they haven't got the premise established well enough by that point and got on to the fun stuff, they are doing it wrong. Evoland 2 still seemed to be faffing around and not going anywhere. It lacks the amusement/charm of the first one and is more or less just a bad mashup of old console games. Save yourself the money, and just go play some good old console games instead.

The concept of changing game mechanics and graphics is interesting, but the game has so many issues the game itself just ends up not being fun. The writing is bad (there's some 4th wall breaking but it misses the mark), the combat is bland and frustrating, the dungeons and puzzles are unimaginative and there will be plenty of times where you have no idea what to do and it turned out you just had to talk to some random NPC. Judging by other reviews, it only gets worse.

Firstly, it's got to be said that while it takes inspiration from the original Evoland, they're really poles apart. The first game had its own slightly interesting mechanics, but it was mostly created to dance on the graves of a bygone era of games. Evoland 2 may poke fun at classic games, yet it does it subtly to work it into the story of the game, and the renditions of these old games stand up well on their own. They throw in some one-liners at the perfect time to catch you off-guard and get you to laugh. It pays great homage to puzzle-adventure, puzzle, tactical RPG, rhythm, 2D platformer, stealth, connect-three, bullet hell, turn-based strategy and fighter games. There are a few sections which are particularly easy and a couple that are tough as nails, but the checkpoints are nice and forgiving. The central mechanic of the game is you start in 16-bit, and you can travel 50 years to the 'past' (8-bit) or the 'future' (fully 3D) to experience parts of the game world in different eras. I know time travel is quite a cliche in pop culture, and yet there's no other way to say it than Evoland 2 just does it right. The story is A+. It gets you really committed because, whenever you're expecting it to end soon, it throws a wrench into the works AND ups the stakes. It's got the precision subtlety that may leave you with unanswered questions by the end of the game, HOWEVER if you dig a little, then mull it over, it all falls together. The secondary protagonists are likeable, have good motivations and their own little arcs. It also has plenty of completely optional collectibles as well as a simple, enjoyable card game. If you grew up with classic games, this one is a must-have. If not, I would still highly recommend it on its own merits. A lot of heart and soul went into the creation of this game.

Evoland II is a unique blend of humorous references to other games/movies/series and video game culture in general, a totally non-linear story (with lots of time travel), lots of "excursions" where the game mechanics change completely for some time, and lovely characters. The world is full of details, with lots of references and jokes to be discovered. I won't spoil any here, but I had to laugh out loud numerous times during the game. The "main" game play is similar to old game-boy 2D Zelda games. As you travel back and forth in time, the graphics change accordingly, from very pixelated to less pixelated to 3D. But every now and then, the gameplay changes to completely for a while (say, half an hour or so). In this "excursions" you get to play remakes of Tekken, Bomberman, Kanabalt escapes, Candy Crush, some generic concepts like Shoot-em-Up and Beat-em-All, and many more. (There's also Pong, PacMan, Space Invaders, Snake, Guitar Hero, and more, but they're rather short.) Evoland II even includes a collectible card game as an additional minigame. The story revolves around time-travel. At first it's accidental, but as the story progresses, the characters decide to travel to earlier epochs to change certain things - and the future version of the world adapts accordingly. The fact that the overall story-line still makes somewhat sense in the end is a marvellous accomplishment of the developers. Overall, Evoland II is a really great game that fails to fit into any category. So be prepared that you will most probably get something very different from what you expect.

Yes, Evoland 2 is an amazing game, BUT! No, this is not the best option to buy and play it, as the game is listed on GOG twice. Instead of buying it on its own, you might want to get "Evoland Legendary Edition". Contrary to the title, it is not an extra edition of Evoland 1, but a bundle! It has both the original Evoland 1, AND Evoland 2 in one convenient package and one single installer. Bonus: It is not only cheaper than both games combined, but also cheaper than Evoland 2 on its own. Less money for twice the fun. You are welcome! That said, I've played both Evoland 1 and 2 multiple times. Both titles, even though they use the same concept, play (very) differently, with Evoland 1 being a little more intuitive. In fact, you should most likely start with Evoland 1 before trying Evoland 2. I would go as far as to say, some negative reviews are most likely from folks who didn't play Evoland 1 first, didn't know what to expect, and thus got confused with what Evoland 2 is trying to do. Evoland 2 does reference the first title in some places, and doesn't bother to ease players into some mechanics again, let alone re-explain why it is such a mish-mash of genres and styles. I would hence suggest to start with Evoland 1, wrap your head around the idea, then enjoy Evoland 2, and fall in love with it once more, as it messes with all your expectations. It may have the "2" in the title, but it is a whole different experience.