The original Minecraft Dungeons was one of gaming’s most surprising success stories. Not because it did well for Mojang – it’s part of one of the biggest gaming franchises of all time, after all – but because it took the world of Minecraft and turned it into a genuinely enjoyable co-op dungeon crawler. Yes, it was Diablo for kids, but doesn’t that sound great?
The answer in our house was an unequivocal ‘yes’, and for our family gaming sessions, Minecraft Dungeons was second only to Mario Kart 8. Calling out enemies, telling each other to heal, roaring in triumph as massive golems fall, and cooing over a fresh batch of loot became a regular feature of weekend afternoons, and six years later, it’s still a core part of our gaming. The arrival of Minecraft Dungeons II, then, has been a major topic of conversation. Now that it’s in our hands, it feels as though we’ve got a successor that we’ll be playing for another six years.
Minecraft Dungeons II is, like its predecessor, a genuinely enjoyable co-op dungeon crawler. The teams at Mojang Studios and Double Eleven haven’t reinvented the cubist wheel in pursuit of that, and if you’ve played six years of the original game, the hack-and-slash action with a side of looting will be reliably familiar.
What’s new then? Minecraft Dungeons II takes the classic sequel route of bigger is better, expanding from individual levels to an open-world structure. You can now walk from one end of the map to the other, if you want to, taking down mobs, earning experience, and seeking out treasure, though you can also speed things up by taking a ride at the handy minecart fast travel points. The shift feels both more cohesive and more Minecraft-y, the wider playing field giving more opportunity for exploration and discovery, and where some levels could feel like a slog in the original, that’s been minimised here by the added freedom to wander off.
Fans of the block-based builder will get a lot out of Minecraft Dungeon II’s early visit to the franchise’s newest alternate dimension, the Sift. While mainline fans will have to wait a little longer for the Sift to work its way across to them, this bright, otherworldly dimension, with its tentacle-like fronds that reach out for you as you pass, cute-but-dangerous wildlife, and lethal pools of ichor, is a vibrant addition to the game’s iconic backdrop and does a great job freshening up the well-worn landscape.
Despite the addition of the Sift, visually Minecraft Dungeons II is very similar to its predecessor, though cutscenes are more integral, and it feels as though more thought has gone into the different sections of the world. The slightly cleaner presentation is supposed to make it easier to keep track of your character, but I lost sight of them just as many times here as I did before.
Just like the upcoming Ocarina of Time remake, Minecraft Dungeons II hangs one of its key upgrades on the ability to jump. For all that it might sound insignificant, it’s immediately freeing for exploration and movement, and introduces the possibility of alternate route-finding and some light platforming. When it’s combined with the open-world, Minecraft Dungeons II feels more fluid and natural, throwing off the constraints of the original game.
That mindset has obviously also been applied to the loot system and character customisation. Where armour was previously one single piece, Dungeons II has four separate slots – helmet, chest plate, greaves and boots – with powerful Talismans also joining the previous melee, ranged and Artifact slots. The jump from six equipment slots to twelve means that you can dig further than ever into character builds, finding synergistic combinations that can see the mobs wilt with every swing of your sword. It is far deeper than the original game, and if you’re playing local co-op, you’ll be able to experience co-op loadout building, too.
Fortunately, with all of these loadout options, there’s also been a clear eye on quality-of-life improvements. Players can now dive into their individual loadouts at any point, individually or at the same time – a simple tap of the D-pad brings up your own personal gear overlay that only takes up a part of the screen. This is perhaps one of the best improvements, eradicating the need to take turns while you tailor your loadouts. It’s worth remembering that the action now carries on around you, as it’s all too easy to become obsessed with the new unique piece of armour you just found. Not that I speak from experience, of course.
Minecraft Dungeons II remains inherently repetitive, working your way towards tough boss battles – seriously, these guys will smoosh you and your children in seconds if you’re not paying attention – by smacking hordes of beloved Minecraft villains in the face. The gameplay loop manages that repetition well, though, giving you a steady stream of new weaponry, upgrades and loot to hang your fancy helmet on, and while you can play on your own, Microsoft and Mojang really don’t want you to, with the further addition of online matchmaking to fill out your party another key boon to Dungeon 2’s loadout.
At £25/ $30, Minecraft Dungeons II offers surprisingly great value for money. It doesn’t reinvent itself, but its co-op action has been carefully tuned and updated to make this the perfect choice for family gaming, or those who fancy an approachable dungeon crawler with a bunch of friends.
With the new changes to character builds and customisation, and the extensive side quests joining the mainline campaign, there’s a hell of a lot to sink your teeth into, and cross-platform play and the ability to mix and match local and online players make that easier than ever. If you’re remotely interested in the world of Minecraft, or dabbled with the first Dungeons game, then it’s an easy recommendation, and I can see it being a massive, well-deserved hit for Mojang and Microsoft.
Fortunately, you can also pick this up as a physical game with the Deluxe Edition – the bundles in two future DLC packs and some other bonuses – and this is the ideal kind of game to find in your stocking. Or the stocking of a younger member of your household, I suppose.
