Unravel Two was one of the big surprises during EA’s media briefing on E3 this year. Not only did they reveal the sequel without teasing it, it also released the same night. Now, a couple of days after the show, it’s time to make a judgment. Is this game as charming as the first one? Did they improve the gameplay? Let’s find out in our review!
You’re not on your own
The biggest difference between this sequel and the first Unravel game is the fact that you’re no longer alone. In the first one, you were the only Yarny on the screen, trying to reconnect the memories of an elderly woman. It resulted in a touching story where you could forgive the gameplay problems. It’s true, the first Unravel struggled with fluent controls but the story made up for this.
In Unravel Two, things get off on the wrong foot. Yarny is stuck in a huge storm at sea and his precious yarn snaps. Moments later, he lands on an unknown environment where he meets another Yarny, a blue one. Since both lost their ball of yarn, they connect with each other, forming a new alliance and eventually even a friendship. Things weren’t looking good for Yarny but it seems like Unravel Two doesn’t focus on a harsh story, instead it focusses on the connection of the two virtual characters and thus also the relationship of both human gamers playing this in co-op.
Work together as a team
Being stuck with the other player or CPU also means you have to work together in order to reach your goal. If you’re playing in co-op, it’s easy to control both characters separately and reach your goals. The game uses a drop-in, drop-out system where a second player can join you at any point. I really recommend playing it together with a friend since it really enhances the overall experience. If you manage to work together correctly to reach your goal, you’ll both feel extremely satisfied. The game really plays a lot better than the first one and it seems like the developer did listen to the complaints of the fans. The controls aren’t as clunky as they were and both characters respond to your input correctly. If you make a mistake, it’s because of your own skills and no longer because of bad controls.
Of course, you’ll end up in situations where your friends can’t help you, no need to worry there, you can play this game on your own too. It’s a bit more difficult since you have to switch between characters manually to pull off the puzzles but it works. During the higher paced segments, you can easily carry the other Yarny on your back so you don’t need to worry about taking an extra hit.
Most puzzles revolve around using your shared thread to overcome obstacles. You can, for example, lift each other out of cliffs or use each other to jump higher to reach new grounds. The puzzles are a fun aspect and it’s great to see that the developers managed to implement great controls. Compared to the first game, Unravel Two is a lot easier to clear but that’s perhaps because it’s focussed on the co-op now. Working together is easier and so is reaching the end of the level. Looking for a true challenge? Well, the challenge rooms got you covered!
In these special rooms, it’s your objective to clear the room before the time runs out. If you manage to do so, you’ll earn special items to customize your characters. It’s nothing that special but I’m sure a lot of gamers will be happy with the extra challenge. Be warned, however, playing these rooms on your own is near to impossible, it’s really advised to invite another human player to clear this together. Compared to the main game, the level of difficulty increases a lot so the main game really doesn’t prepare you at all for those challenges but it’s nice to have them included in an overall easy game.
Missing the connection
Although the game plays great and it offers a vast improvement over the first game, there’s one element I missed the most: the story. What I liked the most about the first game, disappeared in this sequel. The story of the old woman who lost her memory touched me on a personal level and this sequel just couldn’t deliver the same. Sure, there’s a story of two boys displayed in the background but their story never reached the same emotional impact as the one of the first game. Of course, it’s nothing to really worry about since the gameplay is as good as it gets but it’s something I missed to really connect with the characters and lose myself, once more, in the gorgeously created world.
Conclusion:
Compared with the first game, Unravel Two really made some crucial improvements. The controls are finally what they should have been from the start and you can invite a friend over to enjoy the game together. It’s a shame this came at the cost of a less emotional story and a lower level of difficulty. The challenge rooms are there to compensate for the easier story but those are perhaps a bit too hard for most. That being said, it’s still a very enjoyable and beautiful game that deserves your attention. If you’re looking for a new co-op game, this one’s a perfect fit without any doubts.
