Project Warlock II

A cool boomer shooter game that's not too expensive. ✨️👌

i like gun Gun is fun

A big improvement over PW1, it's a flawed but fun experience. The big draw here is the replayability that comes from the different weapon and skill upgrades you can spec into. You won't be able to get them all in one playthrough. The maps aren't that great and the ai isn't that complex. I wouldn't say it was the best boomer shooter, but if you've played the greats and are looking for more, this is a solid option.

it seemed like it has a lot of potential but it froze dramatically anytime a large amount of enemys were on screen

It does everything better than Project Warlock 1 but has some glaring flaws to keep it from the heights of the genre. First off I love the additions to the combat and the tighter focus on the arsenal and spells and how they effect the enemies. The graphics are leagues ahead of the first game and has a good blend of 3d and pixel art leading to it's own visual identity. The weapons, character portraits, animation and enemies all stand out among the current market and I found myself wanting minifigs of the three leads and more than a few of the enemies. Speaking of, they (Palmer, Urd, Kirsten) have just enough different about their arsenals and stats that the concept of a split Campaign is pulled off and does the game many favors. Allowing for a refreshing variety in the environments and their themes. Everything feels punchy, powerful, quick and responsive. The game awards an aggressive playstyle with the inclusion of a combo meter the effects enemy item drops. Breaking the "Wolfendoom" old school maze level design was a great idea and compliments the new speed and momentum of combat. Of the new leads I'll say that Palmer has the best abilities, Kirsten has the best guns and Urd the best Episode by far. With hers having actual set pieces (Train) and levels that are well designed. The music stands out too. Most is standard Retro Shooter fair but some stuff has great horror atmosphere or is borderline experimental. However as everything in general improved the polish on top of that is severely lacking. There's more story and it's told and written poorly, The Warlock is evil now, these three want revenge. "Why" is never fully explained. It meanders and hints at greater things that sound interesting but nothing happens. No payoff or stakes of any kind either. The universe lore is decent and Interesting. I like the characters and their backstories (even though they have no voices and desperately need a quip or two) but their quests are incomplete and the ending is probably the most disappointing in an FPS since Prodeus (and just as abrupt). It's clear they put thought into it this time around and there's probably a plan for each of the characters moving forward but just one ending cutscene could've done wonders here. On top of that the menus and codex entries and tip screens have grammatical errors, The map sucks. The inventory screen looks like it's from an Atari 5200 game. You can very easily break out of the environment or reach places you weren't meant too. And while having the best and most creative guns, Kirsten's episode is comically short. With the last few levels taking less than three minutes as opposed to the usual twenty or so the game asks (with searching for secrets included). It felt like they had to ship it and just mashed walls together. Don't let the negatives turn you away though. PW2 is quick and fun. While it doesn't do anything crazy or new it doesn't insult you or bore you and it is a great example of the Retro Shooter genre done right. There's a lot worse you can play with better review scores that'll charge more and give less. I look forward to the future of the franchise and Buckshot Software themselves and would absolutely support a 3rd entry.