The original was fun. This one is worth playing if you're interested in knowing how the story ends. But otherwise feel free to pass. If you want to play it, definitely wait for a sale. The art style is very unsettling with modern graphics. Very strange looking cartoon people and realistic skin shaders is not a good combination. With a more cartoony style like the original, it would be charming. But the way it is, it is very offputting. There is some very unpleasant imagery that you may not be able to shake. Right out of the gate, the entire crazy dentist level is filled with unpleasant imagery similar to what Ren and Stimpy did it in their 90s game. It wasn't funny then and it wasn't funny now. And it's all made worse by the art style. Although it looks like it's made for a child, do not allow a child to play or watch this. There are frequent references to sex and drug use that kids don't need to hear or see. Plus the disturbing imagery mentioned before. The platforming is passable at best, and varies wildly in quality based on level. It even feels like they focused more on the narrative in places at the expense of making a playable game. QOL things like a map or a reminder what you should be doing next when you load the game or even some kind of hint system are absent or inadequate. But during gameplay, the protagonist never stops telling you the solution to puzzles. Boss fights are particularly egregious offenders, but exploration is essentially punished because you took too long to solve the obvious puzzle that you're putting off.

Psychonauts 2 returns to the creative and playful world of its predecessor with a more streamlined, highly polished adventure in contrast to the inventive antics of the original. Most of the major hallmarks from the first game return in full force: - empowering Psychic abilities - great sandbox hub world to explore and collect things - memorable characters and great writing - Smooth movement and platforming - Highly creative and original mental levels - Engaging Storyline - lots and lots of little details to appreciate As a platformer and action/adventure, the game is a total joy. It should be noted however that the puzzle-solving aspects of the original Psychonauts have been pretty much dropped in favor of more platforming and (quite excellent) combat. Hardcore fans of the original might be a little disappointed that the sequel isn't the brain teaser the previous game was, but this game in and of itself is a excellent time to be had and among the best of this year's releases.

It's very good. It was rather amazing that they got the voice actors sounding the same as they did almost 20 years ago, It maintains much of the character of the first game. If you enjoyed Psychonauts 1 then this game is well worth your time. There are a few problems though, when compared against Psychonauts 1. - It regularly crashes on my machine. I don't know why, but that makes things harder to appreciate. - There are obvious invisible walls. While the original had a few places where you could not pass through open air, mostly on the beach, it almost always felt as though what was constraining you was the natural geometry of the terrain. This is not the case for Psychonauts 2. There are quite a few places where it feels like you should be able to get past an edge, but just can't jump over that chest high wall. - Certain abilities feel like, "here's a new key you can use on one of these doors. No it doesn't really do anything else, why do you ask?" Which leads into the last one, - People talk about the tightened up platforming. I felt that this was actually a slight detriment to game play. In the original, Raz would move almost exactly as you directed him to. This could of course make the platforming difficult, but it enhanced immersion by keeping the feedback loop tight. In the sequel, a lot of things are just jumped perfectly if you are standing in the right place and facing the right direction. Particularly when jumping off of bars, you always go to the next one in the designed list, even if that's much higher or lower compared to your staring point than it is for other bars. This produces a feeling of disconnect from the character which I do not prefer. I suppose most of my annoyance is at the reduced perception of interactivity.

This game was bloody brilliant! The combination of game mechanics and abilities allows the player to fight enemies in a number of different ways with plenty of new mechanics being introduced as the game proceeds which keeps the game fresh and fun. The ending was just the cherry on the cake as well, it's not often that an ending for a game makes me feel like a kid again after finishing some of the old classics that I used to play as a kid, not to mention the original Pychonauts game which this is a fantastic successor to. If you're a fan of the original then double fines hasn't let you down with this game. Just buy it! I bought this game for half price in a sale, but after completing it it's plain to see that this game deserves that full price tag.

I remember playing the first opus but the memories are fuzzy at best and I'm pretty sure I never got very far. I was very young. So I almost discovered the universe of the game with that opus. And what a ride it was. The characters are incredible, the story pretty interesting. But it's really all the little details, both visual and in writing that got to me. This is one of the best gaming experiences I've had in about 5 years and I regret nothing. This title is now in my top 3 games ever.