Psychonauts a psychedelic romp
Psychonauts finally has a sequel to the hit original Xbox game and it was worth the wait.
Psychonauts 2 creates a solid platformer that has some of the most creative level designs seen in a game and an engrossing story with charming characters.
The visuals of the game feature an art style that is reminiscent of Tim Burton’s style, with strange colour pallets and unique fashion on all the characters. The level design features strange worlds from psychedelic areas to dark gloomy parts set in people’s minds.
You play as Razputin, a psychic that ran away from his family’s circus. Raz is a new recruit into the Psychonauts, a group of secret agents that have various psychic abilities.
The game throws you into the first level where you and a team of other psychonauts enter Dr. Loboto’s mind to try and manipulate him to give you information. With the very first level, players can see this isn’t your standard platformer. Once you enter Loboto’s mind you see the walls are made up of the flesh of a mouth, and teeth are everywhere. Even doors are made of teeth with a zipper to open them. You face teeth enemies.
You start out with a few powers and gain more as the story progresses. The first power is telekinesis, letting you grab objects in the environments, throw them, open doors, and more. You also get pyro, which lets you burn enemies and objects, and it can expose secret areas. The controls are simple enough to start. Move the character with the left thumbstick and aim or adjust the camera with the right one. Since this game is a platformer the controls have
to be precise.
The platforming, which you’ll do a lot, is solid. From running, jumping, double jumping, and other psychic abilities, all to be used to make it through the array of levels.
As you get more and more into the story, the level designs get more imaginative. Since these levels are in people’s minds, they are never what they seem. Some levels inside minds are full of psychedelic colours and themes. I really don’t want to spoil some of these level designs as it takes away from the experience. You will traverse levels inside people’s minds and around the academy. The mind levels are all different and each one shows a new element or design. Each mind level reflects that owner’s interests. A dentist will have a dentist-themed mind; levels with teeth, flesh, and more. A musician’s mind will be more psychedelic, etc.
Besides the different levels, the boss battles are also a highlight. Bosses require some quick reflexes and you have to constantly be on the move and use different abilities.
All the levels have a nice amount of challenge and when you do lose a life, it’s your error not an unfair game design. Even the enemies have a large variety in both sizes but also powers.
I won’t spoil the amazing story. The game is full of humour and heart. It does delve into some dark subject matter. Conditions like PTSD, anxiety, and trauma are all discussed and dealt with by heart.
All the characters you run across have their own charm. You want to interact with all the characters to learn more about them. While most platformers have story take a backseat to platforming, Psychonaut 2 focuses as much on narration as platforming.
Psychonauts 2 features a touching story, solid gameplay and some of the most varied and interesting level designs seen in a game. Psychonauts 2 is a must buy and gets a 10/10.
Psychonauts 2 is available on Xbox Series X, Xbox One, PC, and PS4.