Brought to life by Developer Tango Gameworks and publisher Bethesda , The Evil Within 2 still causes chaos in the minds of the players. Not only does the game still create fear, they also make gamers feel like they are barely going to survive no matter the situation they are put in to. Even though the game doesn’t pick up all the dialogue that keeps players enveloped in the story compared to the first game, the environment definitely does.
Returning back in to the chaos that is The Evil Within, Sebastian Castellanos is bribed back to the world of messing with the human mind with the story that his daughter Lily is still alive. When a house fire took the lives of his wife Myra and daughter Lily, Sebastian thought his life was officially over. He fell back in to drinking after the first game and gave up on life and his career. Julia Kidman makes a surprise return to ask Sebastian to head in to Union, a fictional Matrix town much like Beacon, to find his daughter that has been reported alive. Upon entering the new environment, Sebastian finds much more than he bargained for. A murderer is stalking around using his camera as a weapon to suspend people in time, monsters are running still running lose and to top it off, Union has also sent Sebastian to rescue their own rescue team that has been split up.
The controls are as good as ever. You can look around Sebastian in a 360 view. When it came time to shoot a monster, I could get two head shots almost immediately. The weapons are familiar, the agony crossbow is back, and everything feels like a continuation of the first game (at least regarding items, crafting and weapons) One of the improvements is the creation of safe houses scattered throughout Union. No more looking for mirrors to take you back to the creepy hospital. The upgrade system got an upgrade as there is even more abilities to enhance. I would recommend the stealth skills, as even common zombies can pose quite a problem if they gang up on you. The only mechanic that I questioned is a work bench in the safe houses, where you can upgrade weapons. Later, however, you can use a mobile one as well. What is the point of two mechanics that do the same thing?
Visually The Evil Within 2 is quite stunning, compared to the first version of course. There are options in the main menu that allow gamers to change the field of view and contrast as well as all the other little bits for play. Even on the most advanced computer systems, this game doesn’t need much change. The Xbox One has a filtered result and the PS4 has a slightly clearer line of site. Both compared to the PC almost seem faded. But to enjoy the cinematic experience, there really doesn’t need to be much change. Even if all the options were turned up to their highest levels, the game plays the same and players get a clear view of the whole game. Along with this is the sound quality. Even though this isn’t like Hellblade where binaural audio is crucial and new, players can hear even the faintest of noises. Try walking around in the room with all the hanging bodies, you can hear a pin drop, and the flutter of sheets as something moves. That’s all I needed to be put on high alert and get the heck out of there.
I was prepared for creepy environments and horrific monsters. What did surprise me was the connection I felt to these characters. The second Kidman appeared, I felt anger because she was a traitor in the first game (play her DLC from the first game if you are confused). Castellanos feels more real here, although his surprise at the monsters he faces seems a little strange. You fought these things three years ago, what were you expecting to find. There are more stakes here, as Castellanos is trying to find his daughter. While I figured that the evil organization would probably not let me just walk out after completing the mission, I knew that any father would go in to save their child. The story telling is much more focused, allowing for more realistic characters. This game has been everything that I hoped it would be from the scares to the graphics.
The Evil Within 2 is available on Xbox, PS4, and PC
