Developer: 11 bit studios
Publisher: 11 bit studios
Platform: PC
Tested on: PC
Frostpunk 2 – Review
It feels like yesterday that we were still trying to survive the frozen landscapes of Frostpunk. The 2018 survival city-builder proved to be an amazingly captivating experience that didn’t hesitate to punish players for making rash decisions when trying to survive and expand their settlement. The game ultimately spawned a console port and DLC, all of which were very polished experiences. We were quite excited when developer and publisher 11 bit studios announced a direct sequel. Frostpunk 2 has now been out for a few days, and we enjoyed every minute of our playthrough.
Story
Several decades have passed since the end of the world, and the previous warden has passed away, making it necessary to fill in the leadership position quickly. You are the next warden, tasked to not only make sure humanity keeps surviving and thriving on a frozen Earth, but you’ll also have to think about expanding the settlement and possible additional settlements as you go. We felt the story was fleshed out more in Frostpunk 2, but it does often take the backseat when you’re actually playing. You’ll be presented with different choices, and you’ll have fixed goals to achieve when playing through the actual story mode, but it’s still all about the gameplay. Nonetheless, the narrative is interesting, and the occasional cutscene does heighten the grim atmosphere.
Graphics
It’s hard to clearly say that Frostpunk 2 is a step up from the first game, as it simply looks different in many ways. The frosty vistas and the overall steampunk-esque aesthetic are still nearly identical, but the UI, the moral system, and even the voting system look a lot different. The world map has also received an overhaul, and you can now zoom in on certain activities outside of the main colony and its satellite colonies. Some structures had a lot more detail than those in the first game, while other tiny details were handled better in the 2018 game. It’s a bit hard to judge, as both games look great. Even so, the UI is clean, most items are very clear, you’ll get proper visual feedback during events, and so on.
The game also boasts a few cinematics, which also look quite cool (no pun intended) and add charm to the mix. There are quite a few character portraits in the game as well, and these complement the gloom and doom of the Frostpunk universe perfectly.
Sound
The sound design of Frostpunk 2 is great. On top of the somewhat melancholic soundtrack, the game utilizes a lot of audio cues. You’ll get notifications when you need to vote for something or when an event unfolds. While this is not uncommon for games in the genre, the way Frostpunk 2 does it feels quite different. You’ll often hear low bass noises when something happens, and it sounds fittingly depressing, as you know you’ll have to make another tough choice. Other SFX also provide great audio feedback, and this also gives you a nice impression of the hustle and bustle of your post-apocalyptic hub.
Gameplay
Frostpunk 2 is, just like its predecessor, a city-builder where you try to survive an end-of-the-world scenario. Where the first game seemingly focused more on the construction aspect, this title has a bigger focus on politics outside of expanding your hub. The game demands your constant attention, as you’ll have to make tough choices, ensure you don’t run out of resources, and even expand beyond the confines of your original city. Our biggest mistake was assuming that with our experience with the first game, we would be able to find our bearings a lot easier, which proved to be a bold assumption. Don’t get us wrong, if you played the first installment, you’ll know how a lot of things work, but Frostpunk 2 further expands on the first title and adds quite a few more complex elements to the mix.
Just like in the first game, you’ll be juggling quite a few tasks, trying to please the citizens of your frosty settlement. You’ll have to ensure there’s fuel to turn the heat on, but you’ll also have to expand your settlement by breaking the ice to reach resource deposits. The game has different types of resources, and you’ll need a combination of these to keep expanding. On top of that, you cannot ignore the inhabitants, as they are your actual workforce. To extract resources, you’ll need workers, but also to go on expeditions or even for other types of buildings. If you expect things to go smoothly when plopping down the right buildings, you’ll be gravely mistaken, as your inhabitants are prone to sickness or simply freezing to death by temperature fluctuations. Then you’ll also have to decide what to do about child labor laws, feeding the elderly, ensuring there is something for your people to relax, and so on. This further expands in keeping all the different factions happy, as turning up the heat may please one faction but annoy another one. If you thought this was the last of it, politics are also thrown into the mix, as you’ll have to vote on laws, which will require a sufficient amount of votes. To get the necessary votes, you may have to make promises to certain factions, who might riot if you cannot keep your promise(s). It will surely sound daunting at first, but soon you’ll realize that you won’t be able to keep everyone happy, and sometimes choices need to be made to serve the survival of the colony.
Aside from the story mode, you’ll also have the Utopia Builder, which is basically the sandbox mode. You pick a scenario here, and you’re good to go. The game does advise you to play through the story mode first, as it will explain all gameplay elements, and you’ll gradually ramp up the things you’ll have to keep track of. We do hope DLC scenarios or new story missions will be added in the future. Our only gripe with the game was that we sometimes struggled with the controls. Some menus felt a bit less responsive, and sometimes canceling actions proved to be quite unresponsive too. This was only a minor hiccup in an otherwise streamlined experience.
Conclusion
Frostpunk already amazed us back in 2018 and Frostpunk 2 takes the experience to the next level. Even though we sometimes struggled a bit with the responsiveness of the controls, the overall experience was captivating and every choice weighed on us. A city-builders are often captivating, simply because you want to keep expanding your city or settlement. This proves to be true for Frostpunk 2 as well, but here you simply want to keep going to see what the game throws at you next. If you loved the first installment, picking this one up is a no-brainer.
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