Darkest Dungeon 2

I've just picked it up today and my first impression is that it is a bit more streamlined and more focused which is definitely a good thing (and makes it a lot easier to pick up).

The relationship system is a nice addition but right now it feels really hit and miss. In the (little) time I've played I've seen two characters develop a bromance and then become bitter rivals.

I'm not too keen on the way the carriage is handled with WASD or arrow keys. As far as I'm concerned I would have much preferred the carriage to drive itself and let me pick the itinerary.

With that being said, the art direction, music, voice acting and animations are absolutely perfect. It retains the aesthetic of the first game but make the characters (and enemies) literally come to life (or unlife).

Plus it's different enough to stand on its own and not make the first game obsolete. If you liked the first game chances are you will enjoy this one.

Last but not least, for an Early Access title it does feel pretty solid (the first game was definitely playable in Early Access so it wasn't totally unexpected).

I adored the first game. I was going to wait for it to leave early access, but maybe I'll have to grab it now.

Same here, Kana.

The first game is one I return to time and time again. It never loses it's appeal.

I keep losing but I love it.

The second game is more like a rogue lite, you get to unlock new characters and items which each run offering more possibilities for your following attempts.

The game is focused on the carriage and it has an FTL vibe to it. You get to travel through big areas and pick between different itineraries so not unlike the first game the risk vs reward element is at the core of the gameplay.

So far my only problem with the game is how aggravating character interactions can be. When things go smoothly they tend to get along and get bonuses accordingly but then as I progress the tension increases and they start resenting and hating each other which means that they get major penalties whenever you take an action... I've had characters routinely get their damage halved because of that or a character preventing the use of a healing skill on another character they hated.

The real problem is that the relationship modifiers are applied all too liberally and although you've got items you can use at inns to reduce stress and improve relationships I haven't found a way to prevent things from getting worse with time.

At the end of the day it really feels unfair and punishing and probably needlessly so. I hope they will tone it down or give us tools to work the system.

One major difference is that characters are not interchangeable like in the first game. You only get one of each and they have personal backstories which you can uncover.

There is a lot to like right now but the whole relationship thing is frustrating. Maybe I'm missing something and there is a way to manage that but right now it's the only thing I dislike about this game.