Where the game disappoints, though, is in terms of the combat, which is considerably less interesting than the first entry. This is all on top of the standard Metrodvania concepts of having your progress dependent on acquiring a particular item or weapon, which you then realise open up multiple pathways that previously seemed impassable.Īxiom Verge 2 does all this very well, with excellent level design and subtle signposting that overcomes a somewhat unhelpful map. In essence, the game is two Metrodivanias in one, where exploration in one world often comes to a literal dead end that can only be circumvented by jumping through a portal into the other. Although they do crossover at may points, both worlds have their own unique maps and even soundtracks, with the Breach sounding like the inside of a Commodore 64. It’s a concept that has been used in all kinds of games over the years, with the one in Axiom Verge 2 split between a world filled with decaying ruins and gloomy rock formations and a much more abstract computerised dimension called the Breach. That isn’t the only Nintendo game used for inspiration though, as the big new gimmick for this sequel is a variant of the time-honoured light/dark world mechanic from Zelda: A Link To The Past.

Thankfully Axiom Verge 2 nails that, with a similar sense of solitude and mystery as Metroid itself. Having such an impenetrable story is a shame but, like most Metroidvanias, the plot isn’t nearly as important as the atmosphere. All you really need to know though is that you’re looking for your missing daughter, initially at an Antarctic research base, and that nanomachines are involved. Axiom Verge 2 features an entirely new protagonist but unfortunately the same sort of pseudo-scientific mumbo-jumbo underpinning its plot. The plot of the original game was… complicated but never quite interesting enough to justify the endless reams of exposition that would periodically be thrown at you. The grandaddy of all Metroidvanias is an obvious inspiration but while the first Axiom Verge could almost have been a long-lost sequel, Axiom Verge 2 makes more effort to find its own voice. Although you might say that Nintendo are a silent partner, as Axiom Verge owes an enormous, and readily acknowledged, debt to the original Metroid.

Thomas Happ did get more help with this game than the first one, but he’s still essentially a one-man development studio. That’s not a problem for Axiom Verge 2 though, as it’s almost entirely the work of just one person. It’s no wonder so few video game developers are recognised by name, given how many scroll past you at the end of the average game. The biggest budget games often involve thousands of people and dozens of individual companies (many of which don’t properly credit their staff anyway). Sitting through the credits of a modern video game can be a miserably long experience.

Axiom verge 2 breach map