REUS 2

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I never played REUS. This is a bit of a fault of mine, especially given that my best friend was praising that game to the moon, claiming it is such a clever little puzzler. Something in it didn't click with me, however, and so the titles slid into the backdoor of my mind. Always there, dormant, waiting for my brain cells to sizzle again at the mere mention of it to emerge and grab my attention. The original title came over a decade ago! The fans had to wait a long time for the fill, but the promised REUS 2 landed at last and the knowledge of the game's existence that lurked in the back of my head resurfaced like an ancient whale. I checked it out. Watched the trailer. And decided that yes, indeed, it was time to take a dive and see what is it all about.

First of all - what kind of game is REUS 2? The tags on STEAM can be a little misleading. God Game? Colony Sim? City Builder? I mean... I guess? Only if you take a very broad approach to these terms because the game is a Puzzler. A logical conundrum in every stage. You don't build cities, they grow on their own. You don't have the freedom that a 'god game' usually offers. Managing a colony? Yes, but in a very indirect manner. You are in control of the mighty Titans of Nature and your role is to be an Enabler. You will shape the world on which humanity trods, raise biomes, fill them with fauna and flora, and ensure that the growing communities have their needs met. Some covet food and growth, others wealth, and some want to push into science and understanding of nature around them.

The game is beautifully vibrant, full of life and colour.

To meet those desires and demands you'll need to manage your resources well as each Age has a set of demanding goals set in front of you... And a limited amount of options you can put down to make them happen. Your main tool of trade are the Biotica - 'items' in the form of animals, plants, and minerals. You need to strategically place within the borders of each rising human domain to grant them access to the benefits that Biotica provides. Many of them have bonuses for certain adjacency so good planning is key. Especially that as the ages progress you draft a new set of tools to plant down upon the biomes, some requiring upgraded terrain to be placed down. This means that without proper foresight you might often need to redecorate a place you've already utilized. Which, fortunately, is a part of the core gameplay loop as dismissed Biotica leaves a legacy upon their field, making it more valuable in the long run.

I could write hundreds of words describing the game's many mechanics. It is a pretty complex title, given its scope. There are so many things to look towards when growing and developing your environment. Inventions that humans can make from the abundance of certain resources. Great projects that reap big benefits if you amass a number of the same biotica within their borders. Legacy bonuses when crossing to a new Age and the Ages themselves - each offering unique challenges and rewards. You have plenty of control as well, as each realized desire of your human settlers grants you a chance to draft from a collection of unlocked items to place on your land. There are many little systems like that, each having a limiting impact on what you can do - which is proper, as these limitations are the main drivers of the game challenges. You need to overcome them to win in each scenario.

The meat and potatoes are the Biotica - their proper placement to squeeze synergies is the key to victory.

It is in a very broad stroke a roguelite game. You progress at a steady pace, each win granting new unlocks to use in future runs. And once you unlock everything the fun doesn't end there, as the game pulls out of its sleeve set of weekly and daily challenges - curated scenarios that require a bit more knowledge about the in-game systems to succeed. It's a great way to keep the game relevant - if you enjoy the core of it, you will be able to continue playing for an indiscriminate amount of time as long as new challenges keep popping up.

The game looks great and sounds great. It's very vibrant, colorful and soothing.

I heard that the first REUS had some elements of violence in them with wars between the tribes and Titans, but the developers, it seems, decided to steer away from such a topic this time around. REUS 2 is a peaceful game that has a soft message about coexistence with nature, and respect for the natural order. It's a wholesome experience through and through - even if a couple of Ages to pick have a bit of darker undertones, with the Plague or even a healthy dash of Cosmic Horror. These are however entirely avoidable, so if you yearn for a peaceful experience every time, you're more than welcome to play in such a way.

REUS 2 was a very happy surprise for me. It completely hooked me in for a couple of days, in which I could not play anything else. Just this desire to unlock everything, to level up until the very end of progression was too strong to brush aside. The game isn't especially difficult once you crack how the pieces of the puzzle gel together to generate the points you need. It's not by any means a complete walk in the park, especially in challenge runs - but don't expect a brutal brain-burner that will sizzle your mental coils. If a peaceful, engaging puzzler that dabbles in multiple other genres sounds like something you can enjoy, give REUS 2 a go. It's a great, complete game with plenty of interesting, well-designed mechanics to keep you playing run after run.