The Surge 2 Reviews
Altogether The Surge 2 is a successful sequel, which not only reinterprets the usual Souls mechanics, but has completely developed its own gameplay mechanics and puts them in the foreground. It plays faster and more fluently than its predecessor. The combat system is simply successful and is enormously fun with the wonderfully animated finish moves. Only the less impressive design of the bosses and thus also the boss fights lag behind those of the predecessor. The basic story of the game is very interesting and even has some social criticism traits. However, the plot quickly degenerates into a boring scavenger hunt. However, this doesn't harm the motivation to explore the interesting world, to find and level up Loot.
Review in German | Read full review
You awake in a weird lab dressed in gowns and this is where you make your character. Face, hair color etc. You were the only survivor on a plane crash, after that, not much is revealed. The hospital is deserted except for the insane enemies. You'll have to fight your way through these guys. It took me more than a couple times to even get past the first part. No weapons in hand and no armor, you will rely on your fist.
The Surge 2 is still clunky, still has issues with boss fights and it still needs a bit more polish overall. Nevertheless, it poses interesting questions about power projection and how a city can fall into despair – and if it’s right or wrong to judge those affected by it.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Surge's main focus has always been on its combat aspect, and Surge 2 delivers on this promise too. However, other important elements have experienced a setback which means Surge 2, as an overall package, is not much of an evolution in comparison to the prior title. Graphics design is especially disappointing. If you enjoyed the original, it is more than likely that you will enjoy this one too, but keep your expectations on the same level too.
Review in Persian | Read full review
With The Surge 2, the franchise is finally hitting the upward swing that a non-From Software title deserves in the hardcore action-RPG/Hack-and-Slash genre. Here’s to more titles in the Surge universe …
The Surge 2 doesn’t feel like a massive technological step forward from the original, but on the narrative and gameplay front, it exceeds or refines the experience. Jericho City is a joy to explore, the narrative is more complex, bosses more numerous, and the excellent combat and progression system still engaging.
The Surge 2 is like a juicy, metal-plated bone that gamers looking for a well-crafted yet brutal combat experience can really sink their teeth into: it will push them to their limits, hurt and punish in all the right ways, but offers that sweet, sweet payoff when you finally emerge victorious.
The Surge 2 stands tall as the kind of sequel that not only iterates on its predecessor, but also improves on nearly every aspect of it, while also adding welcome new features.
Surges of brilliance, but still rough around the edges
Overall The Surge 2 is a good Souls-like, nothing groundbreaking or genre breaking; just a solid challenging romp. I would definitely recommend this for people who enjoyed the original and even new people looking for a challenging single player experience.
If you were to sit and nitpick each minor part, The Surge 2 wouldn’t hold up to the scrutiny. Yet if you play it as a whole, it’s a brutally beautiful romp in the mold of what we’ve come to expect from this type of game.
The Surge 2 fixes some of the faults of its predecessor, but some still remain. Despite that, DECK13's newest outing still remains enjoyable. If you're a fan of "soulslikes", you definitely won't choose wrong here.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
The Surge 2 is a great sequel, expanding in almost eveyrthing the first one introduced, while maintaining itself too familiar to stand out on its own.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
The Surge 2 looks gorgeous. As soon as the start menu screen loads and you choose New Game, you’re treated to a stunning cinematic cutscene that succeeds in its goal of amping you up for some immersive future fightin’ action/RPG.
The Surge 2 is about failure and success. Players are put into a dire situation and expected to survive, fighting against deadly humans and beasts that can easily tear through an adult human with ease. You will die, get pushed back, and expected to try again. This difficult journey through the quarantined city of Jericho can be vexing at times due to the lack of some modern conveniences but that makes success that much sweeter. Even with its shortcomings, The Surge 2 excels at providing a challenging science-fiction adventure overflowing with incredible boss fights.
The Surge 2 is a better game than its predecessor in many ways, and shouldn't be overlooked in a growing crowd of soulslikes. Pathfinding can still be a bit vague like its predecessor, but the dense environments are fun to explore and complement its weighty combat and robust gear upgrade system. Deck 13 polished what made the first Surge a decent B-tier game and doubled down on what it's good at, showing us how a good developer can learn and evolve from release to release.
Some may find these types of gameplay a challenge but I find it cumbersome even with the realization I had earlier. Patience could get you so far but not far enough to probably finish the game. Moments of satisfaction are the things that I look forward to and coming up with tactics. Overall this game needs not only your patience but your ability to observe and to be bold enough to commit mistakes and still have fun.
The Surge 2 is a fantastic addition to the PS4 library and will please fans of challenging action-adventure games. It offers satisfying and rewarding gameplay in spades and will melt through your time like a hot knife through butter if you let it. I have no reservations in giving this golden child the Thumb Culture Gold Award. Well done!
The Surge 2 is more of a side step, than a step up. The game's strong combat remains, with an improved variety of weapons and locations to explore, alongside some smart mechanical changes such as the drone. Unfortunately the game's frustrating difficulty spikes, infuriatingly punishing new block mechanic and extensive range of niggles and issues lead to an inconsistent experience overall. Big fans of the original will likely still enjoy The Surge 2, but others may want to look elsewhere.
These are still pretty minor grievances because all The Surge 2 really needed to do to be an improvement was to be a bit more interesting, and it's definitely that. Refined combat, an intriguing and varied place to explore, and just more variety, in general, are huge contributors to The Surge 2's success as a hardcore action RPG and as a sequel. It's not ripping up any rulebooks or striking out with all that much fresh ambition, but it is a supremely confident followup to a bang average game.