![]() ![]() This parallel world is called 'Kiengir' by the locals, but the scientists called it The Breach. The world is split into multiple biomes and it even contains a whole other world. One of my favorite hidden things I found in Mar-Uru I stumbled upon by simply checking and being thorough but later when coming through the room again I noticed a small change in the tileset that suddenly made me aware that I was meant to look around. Axiom Verge 2 really focuses on the exploration aspect of this huge map and puzzle solving instead of the combat you may be used to from the first game. ![]() I can't recall where every single thing was hidden but I seem to recall there's always some minor detail that hints that some exploring may be worth checking out. In pretty much every case it's a gathering of tiles or a gap that made me curious to see if it'd let me fit into the space. There was another in a wall that I first thought (and typed in here) that I thought was random but when I went back to the game it made sense considering it was a next to an otherwise completely unnecessary small floating platform up and out of the way. There's one area that might be where the previous person is talking about that I decided to check if something was hidden because the rock tiles, while fitting the room, were gathered in a spot directly above two floating platforms in a long corridor. Unless there was an ability I missed (and I managed to explore most of the map and finish the game without it), these half-dozen jumps really do require unforgiving, almost pixel-perfect precision, in a way that stands out from the rest of the game.Well, I've found there's typically a very small graphical reason that can hint at something hidden. Several platforming leaps where success finally, mercifully came after about a dozen failed attempts, made while I wrestled with the world’s most fiddly grappling hook. There are times when the game could be more accommodating. Which ability do I need here, and which part of the map should I approach this obstacle from? Can I even get around this barrier yet, or should I come back later? Discovering the solution is usually more satisfying than finding whatever trinket lies in wait as a reward, because you’ve been entrusted to discover it for yourself. Axiom Verge 2-more so than its predecessor-is a game where unexplored map sections are actually devious navigation puzzles. The Breach really blows open the game, particularly when you gain more freedom in travelling between the worlds. It’s an intoxicating place, contrasting nicely with the more grounded nature of the overworld. In the more cramped setting of the Breach, you control your adorable drone sidekick, bashing enemies and dodging traps while listening to synth prog-rock cover versions of an already extraordinary soundtrack. Unexplored map sections are actually devious navigation puzzles The Breach is a separate map-laid atop, or below, the primary one-but with a mostly different layout, and a wildly different visual style: super low-res and with a colour palette that hasn’t been seen since '70s sci-fi. You’ve seen the feature before in games, probably in other Metroidvanias, where the two dimensions are just reskinned versions of each other. ![]() However, its standout feature is actually borrowed from The Legend of Zelda: there’s another world running parallel to this one. The newly fleshed-out world encompasses several distinct biomes, linking together in a more organic way than its boxy predecessor. It feels weird to say that combat is downplayed, in a game brimming with diverse enemies, but that’s only because the exploration side has received such a significant rework. As someone who dreads the bosses in Hollow Knight, for that very reason, I’m very much in favour of this change. Axiom Verge 2 doesn’t want to interrupt the flow of exploration. But there are no locked-off boss arenas-two encounters with the villain excluded-and no giant health bars to whittle down before you can progress. Oh, there’s a perfunctory final battle, and some optional scraps against unique enemies. There’s just as much fighting here, with one key exception: there are no boss fights in Axiom Verge 2. ![]()
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