Psychonauts 2 Review

"A Perfect Mind"

Campaign

August 23, 2021 at 7:00am
By Jason Stettner

The long awaited sequel is finally here, and it delivers. This story takes place right after the events of the original game and even gives you a brief opening video to help understand what came prior. You can of course play this sequel entirely fresh without having that original game experience, but I think viewing the video at least gives some excellent extra context.

Like I said, the events of this one start basically right from where we left off. We’re chasing an old foe looking for essential information on who they work for. The team is compiled and we once again step into the youthful shoes of Raz, a trained acrobat and powerful young psychic. We get to see the world of the Psychonauts expand greatly in this one as we head into their base of operation as a fresh intern.

It’s interesting as it allows for you to experience the element of learning the ropes while also feeling your powers scale across the course of events that take place. This is a very expansive offering featuring a wide range of distinct levels and places to visit. It’s a wondrous journey as you venture not only through the set real world of the organization, but spend a lot of time visiting the brains of those around you.

This provides some truly magnificent locations that you’ll visit and that was grand. Each one brings new challenges, unique platforming changes and a growing collection of abilities. They’re also rather deep as everyone has problems and you’re uncovering them. You’re aiding in their betterment, whether they’re ready for it or not in most scenarios.

It’s a deeply emotional tale that’s about getting the band back together as to say, and digging deep into the lore of the organization. It’s about dealing with traumas, elements of family and also trying to move ahead while glimpsing back at past mistakes. It’s a very well done story filled with some sorrowing moments, genuine bouts of laughter throughout and of course high octane action as well.

The campaign itself is very healthy in terms of length, and things for you to do. It’s varied, and never once did things feel similar to anything that came prior. There are also side activities or well mission to take part in across some more open world hubs and collectibles as well to gather. It’s a complete package and something that made me want to just keep on exploring.

Gameplay

To say Psychonauts 2 has a special charm, is simply understating the incredible style and aesthetics being provided here. It looks great, with each brain feeling completely unique and yet entirely cohesive. My favorite brain to visit was a psychedelic one that was filled with vibrant colors and a rediscovery of one’s sense. It had some fantastic music there, alongside in general in the game as the audio was very pleasing.

The visuals really do look fantastic, featuring a variety of linear and somewhat open world hubs that were present for you to visit. You can also go back to these areas if you’re missing anything or want to open new areas up with the later abilities you gather. You visit everywhere from spooky forests to overly critical library spots and perhaps the odd casino section as some examples.

When on Xbox Series X you get two visual options, the first is a native 4k resolution at 60fps and the second is 120fps at a 1440p resolution quality. Both have HDR and VRR support as well for one smooth time the whole way through. It really does look fantastic the whole way through, and it loads basically instantly no matter where you’re headed. I imagine even the presence of loading screens is just to offer those for last generation consoles.

It really is just smooth and fast the whole time which is great. Being a 3D platformer you will be moving across many objects and as mentioned that is varied. You’re going through wavy sections in water, or flowing up above in the air. It has basically everything, even 2D segments that were extra charming in presentation. It’s also very different providing some puzzle like areas and also speedy straight forward segments.

This is all well done and it’s easy to get a hold of. I felt in general the difficulty was well balanced, but there are many accessibility options present if you need an easier time. It’s nothing too hardcore, but you might find some challenge in there as well. You will use a variety of abilities alongside general movement such as sending out blasts or lifting objects.

You earn more of these and then can improve them alongside other abilities. You level up in the game through various means and this further helps your abilities. This all feeds back into the regular feeling of progression and by the end you have some good tools in your arsenal. There’s also a neat photo mode too if you like to take cool screenshots.

The Conclusion

Psychonauts 2 is a perfect 3D platformer offering a well balanced challenge that’s engaging and filled with a lengthy narrative that provides many laughs alongside heavier emotional beats. I truly did love playing this game and enjoyed every minute of it. From the zany boss fights, to the quirky characters that make up this vast ensemble. This game is stacked with characters and they use them effectively.

There’s a lot going on here and ever so much to really break down. It offers extra replayability as you gather collectibles and one seriously chunky core story that I feel many will enjoy. There are some sorrowing undertones and many surprises as this one certainly twists here or there when it comes to the overall journey. I thought the story was beautifully handled as I’ve mentioned multiple times.

It hits you many ways, you’ll feel sad at times for what’s going on while at the same time having a blast with some well placed jokes throughout. It’s also rather deep in its emotional beats and I appreciated that. I never expected such a heartfelt journey, one that was action packed and filled with completely different scenarios. I was very pleased by my time with the game and I really hope that Psychonauts 3 isn’t too far off as I want more of this.

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Psychonauts 2 Review on Xbox Series X
Review Code Provided by Microsoft

Rating Overall: 10