It's been a while in the making, but boy was the end goal really great. There were a few bumps, but no road is even. What Risk of Rain 2 brings compared to the first game is- simply put- different. While the base idea of time working against you still being one of the core parts of the game, both are their own experience. Chris Christodoulou (The musician for both RoR1 and 2) completely blew me out of the water. Hopoo have done their best thus far, but they aren't done yet! And of course the new additions on top of the old classics returning in 2 allow for a sense of familiarity!

And for lunatics like me who look too deep into things, the story/lore additions that Risk of Rain 2 are great. The items, the survivors, the other characters and creatures, they're all wonderful. And with that context in mind... I'll put a spoiler warning here before I add what I say next

SPOILER WARNING:
My first time entering the final level, I was thinking "Wow- this place is massiv-" And then "con lentitud poderosa" started to play, and it crashed into my very soul. The familiar tune of "Coalescence" kicking in, but far slower, with the addition of a piano. While we as players have fun with this game- story-wise we have to realize that as survivors we have put forth an act of genocide on a planet we are foreign to. We struggled for survival, we took what we could and ran with it, mutating, and changing our bodies in the process. This song- at least to me- reflects that sadness, the desperation to get away from the nightmare that the survivors were living. Continuing along, the level opened up, I could see the planet, and the broken fragments of the moon hovering about. On some level, it was heart-wrenching. Everything really was coalescing to this point. To fight for escape- or die trying. And when the song picks up, that's the steeled resolve. It's no exaggeration to say we became the monsters we were fighting off, and we had previously killed one guardian king, and now we had to kill the self-centered brother, who was more than prepared to give us a taste of what those we fought felt.

It's been a while in the making, but boy was the end goal really great. There were a few bumps, but no road is even. What Risk of Rain 2 brings compared to the first game is- simply put- different. While the base idea of time working against you still being one of the core parts of the game, both are their own experience. Chris Christodoulou (The musician for both RoR1 and 2) completely blew me out of the water. Hopoo have done their best thus far, but they aren't done yet! And of course the new additions on top of the old classics returning in 2 allow for a sense of familiarity! And for lunatics like me who look too deep into things, the story/lore additions that Risk of Rain 2 are great. The items, the survivors, the other characters and creatures, they're all wonderful. And with that context in mind... I'll put a spoiler warning here before I add what I say next SPOILER WARNING: My first time entering the final level, I was thinking "Wow- this place is massiv-" And then "con lentitud poderosa" started to play, and it crashed into my very soul. The familiar tune of "Coalescence" kicking in, but far slower, with the addition of a piano. While we as players have fun with this game- story-wise we have to realize that as survivors we have put forth an act of genocide on a planet we are foreign to. We struggled for survival, we took what we could and ran with it, mutating, and changing our bodies in the process. This song- at least to me- reflects that sadness, the desperation to get away from the nightmare that the survivors were living. Continuing along, the level opened up, I could see the planet, and the broken fragments of the moon hovering about. On some level, it was heart-wrenching. Everything really was coalescing to this point. To fight for escape- or die trying. And when the song picks up, that's the steeled resolve. It's no exaggeration to say we became the monsters we were fighting off, and we had previously killed one guardian king, and now we had to kill the self-centered brother, who was more than prepared to give us a taste of what those we fought felt.