16 years after the original, Psychonauts 2 has finally arrived. Raz returns with another wild adventure that takes place right after the events of the first game, and it looks like the long, long wait has been worth it. Reviews are now being posted from various internet outlets and almost everyone has something good to say.
It is worth noting all the verdicts listed below on Xbox Game X versions S and PC of the game. Right now, there is no PS4 review. This explains why we weren’t lucky enough to track down a review code. Our thoughts will not be posted on the site for long, if ever. However, let’s see what the others in Psychonauts 2 thought.
Honestly, it’s amazing how amazing Psychonauts 2 is. After 16 years, the expectations of the sequel were so high that they seemed impossible to meet. We don’t know how they did it, but the wizards of Double Fine not only met them but easily destroyed them. Psychonauts 2 is an extraordinary hit in both its gameplay and storytelling, balancing the heavy issues of mental health with its whimsical world. In small hands, it could have been a disaster, but the team has taken every aspect of the original game, relied on it, and respected the fan base in the process. Psychonauts 2 is the best game of 2021 to date and one of the biggest sequels ever made.
Psychonauts 2 is, once again, a universe of damaged teachers and teaching environments, a space to think through dark thoughts with varying degrees of seriousness and absurdity. Their worlds are works of incomparable invention, their characters are a joy to exist alongside. Maybe I would have missed it for the first time, but I’m glad games like this are still being made.
I loved almost every second of Psychonauts 2. Get something I don’t often see in games: a continual sense of awe as each of their worlds unfolds. It took 16 years to get to the release, but Double Fine has presented an incredible sequel. I hope we get a third installment that won’t take long to create.
On the surface, Psychonauts 2 is an engaging, ambitious vision made in colorful 3D platform games. However, the most rewarding aspect has not been just mastering their platforms or combat, but peeling off the layers to see what’s underneath; to look closely at his characters, the depth of their struggles, fears and lamentations, which serve as the basis for the game. It’s an emotional, funny, and sometimes devastating story, but a story about forgiveness and second chances. It’s an astonishing success in almost every aspect and the quintessential demonstration of Double Fine’s mastery in different story, gameplay and direction, making it the best studio game to date.
Even in those moments of collectible curse, I had an absolute blast playing Psychonauts 2. It’s weird that a long-awaited sequel does most things right, but this is one of those moments and I trust to say that Psychonauts 2 is Double Fine best match so far and one of the top match candidates of the year. Don’t let us wait a decade for the next one.
IGN – 8/10
The weird and wonderfully written story of Psychonauts 2 is full of interesting, nuanced characters that I instantly fell in love with. Most of his new ideas go a long way toward elevating the psychonaut formula to the modern era, though his new, attractive system of equipable pins may be a little too stingy. Double Fine has also done a great job in expanding this universe into larger and more intimate threats without losing the cheerful childish vibrations of the original. It may bring a bit of that annoyance to mid-2000s action platforms, but Psychonauts 2 is still pretty much everything I could expect from a sequel to one of my favorite games.
There is always the risk of creating a sequel to a cult classic so long after the original, but in Psychonauts 2, Double Fine has not only created a game that respects the original and takes its characters to new heights, but which have been established and new Microsoft owners, with a platform franchise that can thrive over the next few years.
Are these reviews enough to convince you to buy the latest Double Fine adventure? Let us know in the comments below.