Spelunky 2 is a roguelike platformer that builds upon the basis of it's predecessor Spelunky HD, while improving and expanding the already proven formula in almost every way.

You start the run with 4 health, 4 ropes and 4 bombs and try to make it out alive somehow. Throughout the run you will collect lots of treasure, fight many different enemies and (hopefully) avoid all kinds of traps. The levels get more dangerous and devious the further you proceed, but you will also be able to upgrade your gear, buy new items, tame various animals and increase your health through many ways.

Throughout the run you will find shops where you can buy - or steal - various items and consumables that can increase your chances of survival. There are also many NPCs that can be encountered along the way. Some of those offer quests, others give you challenges to fulfill, some of them need to be rescued or offer to trade things with the player.

Everything you encounter is recorded in the Journal, where details about the game can be conveniently looked up at any time. Fully completing the Journal is a challenge on its own, and while it will take a very long time to fully complete, it also feels very rewarding to look into the Journal and see the 100% complete mark.

While the first game already had it's fair share of hidden levels and easter eggs, Spelunky 2 expands upon that aspect even more and often offers the player the choice between two completely different paths - each with their own dangers and their own rewards.

And just like it's predecessor, Spelunky 2 also has multiple different "endings", all of them increasingly difficult to achieve.

As you proceed through the levels you free more Spelunkers, unlocking them as playable characters in the process. You are also able to build shortcuts to deeper levels by beating previous levels multiple times and helping Mama Tunnel by bringing her the tools she needs to expand said shortcuts.
Ironically, using these shortcuts usually ends up making the game even more difficult, since you are tossed into deeper levels without the chance to upgrade your gear and health first. However, the shortcuts still are a neat tool for getting used to the later levels and learning how to avoid their dangers.

Spelunky 2 can definitely get pretty frustrating at times, since almost everything you encounter is designed to hinder, damage or even kill you in various ways. The game is know for it's creative ways of killing players, often in very unexpected or even hilarious ways. Enemies can trigger traps and explosions, some traps create chain reactions with other traps, certain enemy types will fight each other and explosive traps often end up setting off even more explosions.
However, all of these factors can also be used to the players advantage once they get familiar with them, allowing for quite some creative strategies and plays. Making progress in Spelunky 2 feels very satisfying and in my opinion easily manages to counterbalance the frustrating aspects of the game - Although you will still end up cursing the game quite so often even after hundreds of hours.

Overall, I highly recommend Spelunky 2 to any roguelike or platformer enjoyers due to the variety and depth of the game, as well as it's perfect blend between temporary frustration and long-term satisfaction.

250 hours and I still get my teeth kicked in. I can just beat it every now and then now

nevermind i was wrong

this game can be awesome at times but half the time you'll get killed by a lizard in 5 seconds
handle with care if you are an angry individual