Remnant II Preview – Growing In The Right Direction

Remnant: From The Ashes entered the looter-shooter space in 2019, defining its core loop with procedurally-segmented levels and Dark Souls-inspired mechanics like a stamina-based dodge roll and limited-use health consumables. Remnant’s fresh take on the shooter genre attracted praise, including Game Informer’s review which states, “Strong systems and a satisfying gameplay loop give Remnant: From The Ashes a powerful foundation, even if the experience is mired by repetitive and uninteresting bosses and environments.“

While it remains to be known whether the sequel’s procedural levels will still be interesting after several hours of play (the environments I explored at Summer Game Fest didn’t necessarily blow me away) developer Gunfire Games includes several notable improvements in Remnant II. The most prominent addition is an expanded archetype system featuring at least four classes: The Gunslinger, which offers the most-familiar gameplay for returning players; The Handler, a supporting character who controls a pet dog; The Hunter, who specializes in sniper-focused strategies and critical hits; and The Challenger, the brutish archetype I chose to play for its heavy sword, shotgun, and “Warstomp” ability, which staggers enemies in a cone-shaped area of effect. While we don’t know the full details, Gearbox Publishing tells us “multiple archetypes can be unlocked during play, leveled up, and equipped together for a variety of playstyles.”

Rifles, pistols, and shotguns offer various screen shake intensity and damage output levels, making most of Remnant II’s weapons empowering. Each piece of equipment changes the look of your character – a requirement for any great loot-based game – and fits the series’ dark-fantasy look well, with worn pieces of metal, patinated leather, and glowing elements adorning the characters. I found many cool items during my session and can already picture how I will customize my Challenger when the game is released.

The first game’s tree-like enemies, collectively known as The Root, return in Remnant II. In this version, the species is a new one, featuring a variety of invasive plants including snakes and hooded arrow-firing archers. The Root Nemesis, Root Flyer and other basic enemies are back to add more variety to your horde of enemies. Gunfire Games appears to have rethought its strategy for bosses. They are relying on setpieces and less enemy waves, which makes the game more exciting.

In this version, we’ve also added other improvements to the quality of life, such as a 3D Map with pan and tilt controls. It contextualizes the environment and has a legend so you can quickly learn what any map symbol means. A new option lets you rotate an item to get a better look at its surface.

I’m eager to play Remnant II, especially after experiencing co-op play in my recent hands-on session, but I’m unsure how the sequel will compete in such a saturated market. After all, loot-based games – even single-player ones – are more prominent now than when the series materialized in 2019. Still, I’m hopeful Gunfire Games’ unique visual style, procedural level design, and exciting combat expertise will deliver a worthwhile action experience when Remnant II releases in the coming weeks.