After beating Spelunky 2, I can easily say that this is game of the year material for me.

The sheer amount of content is staggering. After 30 hours, I'm still not even close to sinking my teeth into all of it, much less mastering it. In particular, the branching levels are one of my favorite additions; where Spelunky HD forced you down a "Caves > Jungle > Ice Cavern > Temple > Hell" progression at all times, Spelunky 2 lets you choose your own route, which lets me switch gears if a zone is getting on my nerves.

For the most part, Spelunky 2 is faithful to the original's "tough but fair" design. Almost every death will inevitably be your fault, and not the game's. Rarely, a drop of lava might decide to fall on your head or a nearly invisible beartrap will snap your legs off, but these instances are few and far between. Spelunky 2 is a game that will reward a player who takes the time to learn its unforgiving mechanics.

The joy of seeing a caveman riding a turkey getting roasted to death by ladybugs, or a bunch of screaming aliens getting bounced around like pinballs by their own force fields, that isn't something I can convey in a review. You'll have to play Spelunky 2 to feel that.

After beating Spelunky 2, I can easily say that this is game of the year material for me. The sheer amount of content is staggering. After 30 hours, I'm still not even close to sinking my teeth into all of it, much less mastering it. In particular, the branching levels are one of my favorite additions; where Spelunky HD forced you down a "Caves > Jungle > Ice Cavern > Temple > Hell" progression at all times, Spelunky 2 lets you choose your own route, which lets me switch gears if a zone is getting on my nerves. For the most part, Spelunky 2 is faithful to the original's "tough but fair" design. Almost every death will inevitably be your fault, and not the game's. Rarely, a drop of lava might decide to fall on your head or a nearly invisible beartrap will snap your legs off, but these instances are few and far between. Spelunky 2 is a game that will reward a player who takes the time to learn its unforgiving mechanics. The joy of seeing a caveman riding a turkey getting roasted to death by ladybugs, or a bunch of screaming aliens getting bounced around like pinballs by their own force fields, that isn't something I can convey in a review. You'll have to play Spelunky 2 to feel that.