Neon Abyss 2 is filled with cyberpunk vibes, absurd over-the-top weapons, and some of the most modern and disquieting takes on gods going. It’s a vibrant nightmare of a roguelike with plenty of style and flair, but it also feels incredibly reminiscent of the first game. That’s obviously not a bad thing – why fix what isn’t broken? – and fans of the first game will already have this on their wish lists.
You’re once again thrown into the bright dystopia that has you fighting for your life after you drop out of a bar into the underworld. The general formula is much the same as it was before. That means you’ll be running around shooting things, trying to survive in different areas and gathering different currencies to then spend in shops and on upgrades. This doesn’t feel meaningfully different than the first game, but, to be fair, the first game felt very solid in this respect, so that’s fine.
Where the game does differ is in some of its general progression. The new Faith system basically lets you unlock special rooms as you’re playing that can have a variety of effects. Sometimes that means you’ll be able to gamble a lot of money to get fancy new items, sometimes it’ll be crafting, and sometimes it’ll just be an artifact of some kind. It makes it worth trying to play a little bit differently as you go, but you can often just sort of power through if you want as well.
The weapons feel better and more worthwhile now as well. Weapons have levels, with new ones often being higher level. However, if you decide to stick to the weapon you’ve fallen in love with, such as the gun that turns your eggs into a big old dragon to attack enemies with, then you can choose to stay faithful to it. If you do that, you can gain experience for the weapon to actually level it up, and when you do so you’ll get a reward. It’s a fun extra wrinkle in trying to decide what weapon to use.
There are some excellent choices now as well. Even the standard weapon fires a laser shot every so often, but you can get gloves that send out mighty long-range punches, weapons that convert your grenades into rockets, and a wide range of melee weapons that can slash through space. It’s pretty hard to argue with a katana that can cut through space and time, you know?
All-in-all, Neon Abyss 2 already feels very slick. A lot of the value of these kinds of roguelikes is hidden behind layers of secrets and unlocks though, so while I enjoyed my time with the preview build, I want to get my hands on the full version before settling into my thoughts on the game. For those who loved the first game and just want more though, you’ll be getting plenty of that with this follow-up, and you’re sure to enjoy some of the new systems and weapons as well. At least you don’t have too long to wait on that front.
