Crashlands 2 Review: A weirdly wonderful exploration game boosted by its absurd humour

Quite late to the party, eh? I know, I was supposed to review this wonderful crafting RPG since it launched this April, but I felt spending more time in the game would give me a better view to review Crashlands 2, and it definitely did.

Developed by Butterscotch Shenanigans, this follow-up builds upon everything that made the original great, and surely it carried a lot of expectations while coming into its release. So, after playing the game on my iQOO Neo 7 Pro Android device for plenty of hours, here’s my take on Crashlands 2.

Crashlands 2 banks on its prequel’s success, but with a more involved gameplay

Let me start by saying this: Crashlands 2 is stupidly fun. It shouldn’t be a surprise, honestly, as the first part, even though I played it long back, had me enjoying it. The new game, of course, comes with a ton of improvements to start with, which was expected given that the first one is nearly a decade old.

To begin with, the story is Flux’s return to Woanope, but with the crash, he finds himself in a different land. This new land is darker compared to the tad-bit brighter environment of the prequel, but the colourful vibe surely keeps you hooked.

The opening animation, which I feel goofy is the right word to describe it, is what tells you how the game is going to be. It carries the same fun vibe into the story, which is filled with absurd jokes and over-the-top in-game animations.

The core loop of the series remains intact, though, where you are put into doing these: explore, craft, fight. From the moment you land, you’re dropped into a land full of weird creatures, patches of water where we can’t swim, tall grass to shop, and plenty of stuff to pick up or craft into something useful.

Graphics and art style help in grabbing attention

I’ve always been a fan of art styles that don’t rely on extravagance to tell a story, and Crashlands 2 fits right into that category. One of its biggest strengths is how organic the world feels. It does feel otherworldly and puts a feeling of urgency because, for some, being trapped there, surely uncomfortable.

The art style is also worth praising because of the cartoony visuals that are clean, expressive, and very animated, especially I like the water resources here, the colour is pretty attractive. The attention to detail is impressive, even in a ‘messy environment,’ the shadows are crisp enough to help differentiate elements.

The UI on mobile is neatly integrated and easy to access. On the right, everything is packed into an action wheel, which you can customise to your preference, however, I suggest keeping it unchanged.

The movement pad on the left is very responsive, and the overall layout makes it easy to perform quick attacks without fumbling around. Although I did find this same UI eating space a little bit, maybe I’m expecting too much.

Sound design is another strong point. The soundtrack starts with upbeat electronic tunes during the intro, but as you explore, it transitions to deeper, more interstellar melodies running in the background. Voice snippets and humorous sound effects add to the charm, which is a good mix indeed.

‘Not so tiring’ exploration and crafting mechanics that reward your effort

The progression is pretty linear, although for someone new to such games, it might take time. I felt the learning curve was decent enough, and the tasks made it simple for me to understand what my next move was. Crafting is the heart of Crashlands 2, and it is the core gameplay here, from what I experienced.

Finding yourself in the mix is important, which means you need to follow the script or the dialogues carefully about what is being tasked to you, else you will find yourself wandering aimlessly, like I did initially.

I didn’t even understand the flooring part at first, even Juicebox couldn’t help me because I didn’t read the narration correctly. Although I did understand what I was supposed to do, I did feel that there was a disconnect with the map; I didn’t find it as informative as it should have been, could have been better integrated.

Continuing on the exploration side of things, you’ll gather materials from enemies and the world, be it cutting grass or killing those extraterrestrial beings. This will unlock new workbench recipes. Again, it wasn’t tiring, but without giving gaps, I can feel that the grind might be a little boring and might test your patience.

Combat is also pretty in-depth. While the animation when you trigger a move does make you smile for the first few tries, the variety of gadgets and use cases of weapons gives you real flexibility in how you approach fights or even crafting, for instance.

Free of ads and in-app purchases

If you didn’t know, Crashlands 2 is a premium game with no ads or in-app purchases. You make a one-time purchase, and boom, you get full access to everything, including the sweet bonus of cross-platform saves between mobile and PC. I didn’t test it yet, all my gameplay was on my phone. But what’s stopping you?

Final Verdict

If I were to sum up the review, Crashlands 2 is one of the enjoyable RPG titles I’ve played this year. I’m a sucker for games with humour in it, and Crashlands was able to provide me that exact essence, the writing or the storytelling aspect of this game is too good to ignore.

Whether you’re here for the exploration, the base-building, the combat, the pet-raising, the fishing, or just the jokes, Crashlands 2 offers you that fun. If you have played the original, I see no reason to skip this one. It is priced at $9.99 on the store pages as I write this, which I feel is worth it.

That’s all from us for the Crashlands 2 Review! Did you find my Crashlands 2 review helpful? Let me know in the comments below!

For more Mobile Gaming news and updates, join our WhatsApp group, Telegram Group, or Discord server. Also, follow us on Google News, Instagram, and Twitter for quick updates.