Calling Remnant II “Dark Souls with guns” sells short what Gunfire Games has done. The Texas-based team returns to the franchise with both barrels loaded and some of the previously rough edges sanded off. What’s truly strange this time around is how Gearbox Publishing chose not to lean into advertising what is undoubtedly one of the best titles of the year. It’s as if they didn’t quite know what they had because of how difficult it is to describe how well this game is doing so many different things. However, I will try.
This third-person shooter lets you build your own character and immediately throws you into a post-apocalyptic world gone awry as the Root has infected our realm. Before long, you’re in need of saving, and in comes Clementine and Bo two citizens of Ward 13. After a hasty rescue, you are swept away to this safe haven and shortly thereafter introduced to its founder Andrew Ford. While you’re getting to know all the towns folk, Ford shows you a glowing stone that has the power to transport you from one realm to another. However, once it’s activated both Ford and Clementine are sucked away, and you are tasked with their rescue.
It’s a simple premise, rescue your friends and expel the Root. The characters are all unique, and I found the game respects the player’s time by not trying to overindulge in exposition. The characters in the town are all voiced and willing to give you as much backstory as you like. While I’m sure there’s plenty of context I missed as I didn’t play the first game, veterans will probably get more from the dialogue than me.
Your experience is unique as you dive in. Each world can come up in a different order, with varied questlines. Furthermore, there’s a loot system and archetype classes that you’re leveling and modifying each step of the way. At first, I found myself in a large temple filled with angry angelic creatures. Then I wound up in a Bloodborne-ish town with homicidal cockney enemies. Each time I made it to a new teleport I felt the excitement of not knowing what would come next. Each aesthetic is fully realized and could have made a great setting for an entire game.
The combat system in Remnant II equips you with a melee weapon, a primary, and a secondary. All were necessary to chart and clear out each new level. Ammo is scarce enough to feel like I was using a different weapon consistently but not so sparse that I never got to use my favorite weapon. While the enemies and combat are all great, the only gripe I have is with a very specific control hiccup. Aiming down sights and firing is only accessible outside of a dodge or roll. If you have spent much time with The Division, you’re hitting reload while dodging out of harm’s way and popping out of your roll while aiming down the site. While Remnant wants you to wait until the roll animation is completed before aiming and firing your weapon and then some. The fix is to hit the fire button twice. This got me killed a number of times and doesn’t quite fit with the design of the combat that is kinetic and has perpetual motion. It’s so core, that you’re better off learning the muscle-memory to work around it. It felt like a little splinter in an otherwise excellent system.
Remnant II is hard to describe in one or two sentences. I suspect that’s part of why marketing seemed small on an outstanding AAA game. It has all the good parts of a Souls-like without being over punishment. It has an archetype system that is rich and deep to level up. I didn’t even have space to talk about how fun it is to stack two archetypes into a hybrid. There’s loot to uncover and mods that change how you approach each situation. The biggest cherry on top is the randomization of each playthrough. Furthermore, everything is playable with two other friends!
Remnant 2 refuses to be put in a category. Knowing that my playthrough is unique, gave everything that much more weight. Furthermore, being able to reroll previous areas to gain better loot and see new permutations makes the game feel like there is always more to see. The shooting is solid, and the enemy types are amazing. If that were not all, the boss battles put Remnant 2 into an elite category of games. I know this year has some heavy hitters, but this may be my game of the year.
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