Rogue Legacy 2 by developer and publisher Cellar Door Games—PC (Steam) preview written by Marc L. with a purchased copy.
Estimated reading time: 6 minutes
Over the last couple of years there have been some great roguelikes, but even with all of these releases, it’s hard to top Rogue Legacy, a platformer taking you through a family lineage of all sorts.
It has been 7 years since that release and now we are graced with a 2nd part to the series. It’s smooth, looks fantastic, feels more refined and looks great. Sadly, it isn't done yet, but it's but I already see so much promise! At this rate I would bet on it being better than the first. Currently the game is a bit short as it is in early access but I really hope it’s worth the wait.
After a bout 5 hours worth and a couple of attempts at the “dungeons” that grant you boons such as double jumps or air strafes, and even after hitting an funny message from our devs.
I still wanted more. The sudden urge to go back and back again to fail and attack and get all the hidden chests reminded me so much of why I loved the first, but even more so. This one is someone even more addicting to the first one.
The first area is finished (I believe) with enough content to give you a few hours of good fun and progress, along with the trials. All the gold and blueprints / runes you gain are carried over to your next generations endlessly allowing for tons and tons of replay value with some twists! Maybe they have IBS, maybe they are colorblind? Could be a dwarf, or even have gigantasism!
Dying is a huge part of this series, going for a no death run is likely to be impossible for most (I sure some crazy person will prove me wrong) but that’s one of the charms and excitement of the game. It does feel bad sometimes to barely make any progress and fail to traps or simple mistakes… but all these attempts will eventually add up and unlock more features and classes to try, and even a safe to stop Carron from stealing all of your money. Slowly but surely you will become stronger and progress until you have reached the boss and beat the first zone. Then its one down and more to go.
The more you play the more everything just starts making sense. Someone might say “no duh” but what I mean is each enemy, each trap, each room. They all have flaws secrets things that damage you just with a small misplay. But it all helps train you and the next generations to get smarter, stronger more tuned to the environment and just overall better at reading the pace of the game and making it further and further each time and starting fresh with each new encounter.
There are a few different classes that have come up so far in early access. You have a typical knight (sword and shield) you then have access to the tanky and hard hitting barbarian (giant axe), very limited in mana but hits like a coke machine with legs, a ranger (bow) used for attacking from a distance, also has crazy mid-air shots that can be really clutch against some mobs, and lastly the mage (big boom booms) A mix of close and long ranged attacks at a mana cost, extremely strong but lacking in some sort of tankyness. More classes are planned for the future but once again. Early Access.
After a few hours and a few deaths you will likely find both of your Heirlooms along with their trials, which by the way are amazing. Each trial was completely different and had its own unique setup making it a lot more challenging and interesting than simply opening a chest and “DA – NA – NA - NA!” crazy abilities.
Just like in Rogue Legacy we get a cool story line hidden in the journals that you can find lying around. If you search and find all of the clues there are some that can actually lead to secrets, and these secrets can give you permanent buffs against certain bosses or enemies. So far, I have found one to increase the damage given to the Estuary Lamech but I am sure there will be more to come.
The lineage is not as simple as it use to be, before it was a choice of 3 with random good or bad aspects to them also known as their “traits”. But now, they have incentivised hard mode as some of these more treacherous talents now come with huge bonuses like tons of extra gold. You are likely not to make it very far but the promise of all that extra gold really entices you, and who doesn’t like a good power up or 2 between runs.
As in the first one there is plenty of unlocks (more after early access). Currently there is not a whole lot except for the classes I mentioned and a few things such as health armor damage a blacksmith a rune enchantress and a shopkeep. Of course not forgetting your over time free cash saved away from a big meanie in a boat.
The only thing I can say that I have had issues with for Rogue Legacy 2 is FPS drops. It has never been anything game breaking but it can be frustrating if you get hit or die to something that isn’t your own fault…for once...
Summary
Being in early access I have nothing but high hopes for future content. I hope fans will pitch in and help create something amazing and this should be a must play if everything else is as solid as the first area. The limited content did not change my opinion after seeing how great the game looks and feels and once we have a full product this game will be one not to miss as I have faith that Cellar Door Game’s will bring us something amazing!
Score: N/A
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