In theory, that’s a good thing, but the problem is that The Evil Within 2’s crafting mechanics and character skill tree system are almost too deep. It’s highly-reminiscent of The Last of Us in that respect, though the game’s scavenging and crafting mechanics are much deeper than they were in Naughty Dog’s masterpiece. There are guns in The Evil Within 2, but most of the basic enemy combat consists of sneaking around creatures and taking them down via stealth attacks. That predicament is made all the more complicated by the game’s surprisingly challenging combat. Do you brave that area patrolled by a particularly hazardous creature in the hopes of finding spare ammunition? You may think its always worth the risk considering that you can just restart from one of the game’s save room checkpoints, but in practice, it truly is sometimes better to let sleeping demons lie. This is far from the first survival horror game to incorporate scavenging mechanics, but The Evil Within 2 forces you to weigh the benefits and hazards of your scrounging.
From the gruff protagonist – he has a drinking problem, don’t you know – to mad doctors, most of Evil Within 2’s primary players serve as vehicles for the game’s uneven dialog.Įvil Within 2’s scavenging aspect, however, is a wonderful addition to the original game and the modern survival horror genre in general. It certainly doesn’t help that the game’s characters don’t rise beyond the level of cliche. Maybe it is, but that does little to make the experience of enduring that dialog any more enjoyable. Actually, the voice acting here is so bad that you’re left to conclude it’s a throwback to the days of laughably bad PS1 survival horror dialog. That’s especially true of the game’s downright awful voice acting. The problem is that The Evil Within 2’s moment-to-moment storytelling is quite bad. By the end of the game, you’ll be able to relay an entertaining version of the story you experienced. These milestone moments do a good job of upping the ante and advancing the narrative. Revelations abound in this downright weird mystery involving science experiments, multiple dimensions, and a father’s unwavering love. Evil Within 2’s major story beats do work well. Unfortunately, the presentation of the sequel’s story is about as awkward as that classic dream scenario.