Anomaly 2 Reviews
It’s never simple to make a mixture of fast-paced click-happy and slow-paced strategy genres, but Anomaly 2 is a breathing example of that. Not only the tower defense genre fans, but the strategy lovers won’t want to miss a piece of the gripping experience of Anomaly 2.
Generally speaking, it's a great tower offence game. There are some fun objectives in the levels and the mixture of juggling abilities, your squad's set-up and their direction is quite a thrilling challenge, which makes for some very satisfying gameplay.
Like I said, Anomaly 2 is pretty much more Anomaly but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Anomaly 2 will scratch that itch you likely have for reverse tower defense games and with a longer campaign, new units, plus multiplayer you'll definitely be satisfied with what this game brings to the table.
Nevertheless, that recommendation comes with a caveat. As much as I enjoyed Anomaly 2, I have a very hard time recommending the console version to anyone. Even this non-PC gamer thinks I would have had a far better time with a keyboard and mouse.
Overall Anomaly 2's release on the PS4 offers console players the chance to play an interestingly designed take on the tower defence genre in which we will hopefully see more of in the future.
Anomaly 2 then is a game well worth having if you've always wanted to see a tower defence game from the opposite side of the battle. Unfortunately the single player while entertaining won't last forever, and the ghost town multiplayer means there's very little reason to return once finished.
The novelty wears thin when you realize that you've actually been playing Tower Offense games for a very long time as "Real Time Strategy" games. Here Anomaly 2 is trying to reinvent its own wheel with little tiny incremental upgrades instead of taking the same drastic approach that gained it such praise in the first place.
11 bit Studios, the creators of Anomaly 2, have shown once again that small indie developers can achieve astounding things and Anomaly 2 has a lot going for it. As a tower defense game it is easily one of the best, and the gameplay is a welcome change to the traditional formula.
Essentially a tower offense game, where militant Earth forces must destroy alien towers along their path, the Anomaly games have been remarkable.
If you are looking for a new multiplayer game to play on your PlayStation 4, Anomaly 2 may not fit the bill, unless the population increases. The narrative missions provide a challenging experience, even for veterans of the traditional tower defense genre and Anomaly series.
Overall, though, Anomaly 2 builds off the first Anomaly with some fresh, new ideas, and is an intelligent, strategic game with plenty of replayability value. It is not perfect by any means, but for the price ($14.99), it is a pretty fun game.
Despite some of the new additions failing to add much to the core concept, Anomaly 2's tower-offense gameplay is still fun enough on its own to warrant checking out.
It's all about the multiplayer this time around in the Anomaly franchise. Anomaly 2's singleplayer portion is basically identical to the first game, so if that was your jam, then by all means, go weapons free. If it wasn't your jam, then maybe the multiplayer will keep you interested. Either way, there are fun and interesting gameplay ideas hidden away in Anomaly 2 that can keep you busy over a boring weekend.
Anomaly 2 preserves the unique twist its predecessor brought to the tower defense genre but does little to expand on what came before it.
It will take some patience to really succeed in Anomaly 2. That, on top of a good, planned out strategy. Players looking for a challenge will find it here, and the multiplayer, while still frantic, offers up a nice change of pace from the story mode.
Cheap, beautiful, entertaining, and highly replayable: Anomaly 2 is well worth your money.
The story and characters are nothing to write home about, but the innovative spin on the genre's gameplay results in mentally engaging challenges that reward both quick thinking and deliberate planning, and the satisfactory visuals and sound effects don't hurt in augmenting this amazing abnormality's appeal either.
As well, the online component suffers from long wait times, but when you get a match, there's a certain satisfaction with being able to outwit another human player or the frustration of being outwitted. I genuinely had a fun time playing and if you're a fan of the tower defense style, I recommend you pick up a copy.
A tough-as-nails tactical challenge is hard to find in today's console market, and Anomaly 2 will probably be enough to scratch your strategical itch. Without a strong multiplayer community behind it though, I would say skip the PS4 release and head straight for PC if you have the means.
Meaningful evolutionary changes and an innovative multiplayer mode help this sequel live up to the original