Ghostrunner II - Review
When the first Ghostrunner released I didn't give it much thought, not because it looked like a bad game but at the time I was just swamped with other reviews. A little, ok a lot later, I did actually get a chance to go and play it and from the limited time I had with it, I liked what it was doing. So, when the sequel was announced earlier this year I was intrigued and given that I do enjoy free-running type games, I knew I had to put on my cyborg shoes and go for a run in this one. Did the game meet my expectations or like all cyborg related things did it kill them indiscriminately?
The game story takes place a year after the events of the first game and as I hadn't played through the first game, all the references they kept making to the events of it were very confusing. The basic history is that a being known as the Keymaster ruled over a place called Dharma Tower and after its defeat a power vacuum appeared. One year later you again take control of a Ghostrunner who is now called Jack, who is mostly robotic and aim to uncover the new threat that is taken hold inside of Dharma Tower. The reason why this threat is so dangerous is because while the city is plagued by violence, poverty and chaos, it's also the last refuge for humanity, so it kind of needs to stay in one piece. Jack is a member of the Interface Council, a group of beings who are aiming to find out the cause of the latest round of issues, but also work towards ensuring things don't happen like that in the future.
Over the course of the story, you'll get to meet many characters, some of whom have returned from the first game. Zoe is your mechanic, she knows her way around machinery and therefore knows her way around you, while she seems rough around the edges she's generally a gentle being. Saul on the other hand is more of a medical examiner but for machinery, he looked soft and cuddly but is very much a ‘don't bother me I'm working’ kind of person. Connor is the leader of the group and he's very eager to keep himself at the centre of events even if they don't directly relate to him, but he knows exactly what he needs to do in order to make sure the missions go ahead. They're not the only characters that you meet, there are more as you play through the story, with some coming to you and some you need to go to. As you can spend time between missions in the headquarters you can actually chat with all the members there and learn more about them, sometimes the conversations are just back and forth that you have no control over, but sometimes you get to actually select an input and change how things playout.
Of course, the main reason to play Ghostrunner II is for the gameplay and much like the first, the sequel keeps the action running at full pace the entire time. The developers technically classified the game as an FPP, or a first person platformer and while that is accurate to a degree it's also inaccurate as there is just as much combat as there is running around. Movement is crucial to success, when you're in combat if you stand still you can easily be overcome by enemies and not from the ones that run at you but from the ones that are ready to shoot you from behind. Outside of combat, running is all you'll do and while sometimes you'll be running along walls, grappling up to a higher platform and even using air vents to thrust yourself across the map, you'll always be moving. Even those times when you're allowed to kick back and put your feet up, as you sit astride a motorcycle, you're constantly in motion and this is where the game really shines.
Combat is of course a very central part of the experience and from the outset Jack has access to a good range of abilities, using his katana to attack and block, with his grapple hook to reach new heights. When running in to a combat encounter, at least early on, it's only one or two enemies and you'll start to learn their patterns pretty quickly however after that you'll end up in rooms that have 10, 12 or even 20 enemies. These rooms will test you as it plays more like a puzzle game than anything else, some enemies will have shields around them meaning that they will be completely immune to any attack until that's taken down, just know that they will have no qualms in coming after you if you get within range though. There's one particular room where there were a dozen enemies and I remember it taking me dozens and dozens of attempts to get through. It wasn't particularly complex, in fact there was only one area where there were multiple enemies in that space, but with someone in the middle shooting at me, others leaping distances to try and slash at me from on high and platforms that disappeared, getting that routine down pat took a lot of practice.
While the saying practice makes perfect is true, the game doesn't require you to be a master of the katana and nothing else, as when you're back at headquarters you can upgrade Jack with a variety of skills. The skills all require memory in order to be installed and some skills require more memory than others, but there is a catch you can't just install everything you want even if you have the memory available. When you're installing something from the traversal section, once you have that in place everything else within that lane can only be traversal related. So, if you only have three lanes available, but you have four categories of skills one of those will just never be installed. As you can return to the headquarters and change out your loadout it does mean there is more ways of trying different approaches, but as I was more traversal inclined as long as I had those I was pretty OK.
Speaking of different approaches, the world itself is full of rooms that have countless alternate ways of getting around, from platforms that are up high to grind rails along the side, the way forward may not be as simple as running forward. Don't misunderstand there are some sections where the game wants you to take a very specific path, to the point where you literally can't go any other direction, but there are plenty of times when it gives you a chance to explore and do things your way. Exploration will also net you new memory shards which will allow for more skills, along with additional items to discover. As you play through the game you'll also discover new abilities, these can be as simple as throwing a shuriken or creating a digital double of yourself and you going invisible to sneak around. They require a cooldown, but you can upgrade them which again makes for some interesting builds.
Perhaps the area of the game that will be most intriguing to many players is the sheer gorgeousness of the presentation, if there was ever a game to fully embrace the neon lit dystopian future, it would be this one. The game makes liberal use of the colours gray, blue and purple, and of course a heck of a lot of red when you remove all who stand in your way. You never see much of Jack apart from his hands and if you look down his feet but the rest of the characters you do meet especially those in HQ do look good. My only concern is that they don't do much in the base, sure when you walk up to talk to them though stop what they're doing and face you and talk but they don't walk around, they are just in a spot each time you return. Enemy design is pretty intricate for the most part, there are some that are far more impressive than others and the boss fights are quite unique especially the second major boss fight, I won't spoil that though.
On the soundtrack side of things your mileage is going to vary, I personally couldn't stand the synth rock soundtrack. Don’t get me wrong when the soundtrack kicks in and you're in the middle of a big fight it can help build up the sense of you know this is incredible where I'm doing this sort of stuff, but the music is always on and it's always loud and even in some sections where it's just you platforming up a room, it's still there. When you're outside the tower the music is fun and fits the vibe but still doesn't really fit the overall theme of the game given that it's not really futuristic out there.
Ghostrunner II is a heck of a platforming, sword swinging action game. The game's instant reload after death will invariably frustrate everyone who plays the game, more so when you think the death is cheap but because of that the pace never stops. Taking time to catch up with other members of the group at the headquarters is good as it gives you a chance to decompress, I just wish those folks did a little more than what they do. The soundtrack will get you pumping but if you're not a fan of that type of music it's not going to change your mind in any way shape or form. If you enjoyed the first game then Ghostrunner II should be on your list already and if you're keen to see what all the fuss is about, just know that this is one game that is a cut above the rest.
The Score
8.5
Review code provided by 505 Games
The Pros
The action is incredible, with a need to always move forward, it never stops or feels too much
Visually the game is incredible to behold, it does have some great designs across the tower…
The Cons
… the outside of the tower though is a little dry comparatively and some enemy designs are generic
The music is going to either be a great selling point, or a hinderance, I found it ok, once I lowered it down a fair bit
