Beholder 2

While the first Beholder was more or less "just" an OK game for me, it's clear as day that Warm Lamp Games did the homework perfectly and with Beholder 2 we're entering a dystopian journey into a totalitarian regime once again, one that isn't only satisfying to play, but very intriguing as well.
The game greatly expands on the original Beholder idea. One of the best project decisions in my opinion was tying the time of the day to the decisions made by the player, so every decision subtracts appropriate amount of time from the remaining part of the day, rather than time being continuous. This changed the game dramatically as you're never in a hurry to act quickly, you can always evaluate your choices/decisions and you have a full control over what exactly you'll achieve each day. I didn't like the continuous time in the first game, as very often you had to act quickly and you never had enough of time to really think about your actions.
The story was interesting enough for me to aim for the game completion, the choices and plot twists were executed perfectly, and the dystopian regime never allowed the player to forget about. Beholder 2 is an excellent game that I'm very happy to recommend, especially for those that would like to experience greatly improved idea from the original game, but also for those that didn't play the first one and expect a good story, interesting choices, bunch of side activities and entirely non-linear gameplay where there are at least several different ways to achieve each goal.
I had a lot of fun with the title and I personally hope for a Beholder 3 in the similar setting. There are not a lot of games that let you experience totalitarian regime to such high degree, and at the same time are so polished, filled with content and well-done. Good job devs, I enjoyed it a lot.

I honestly wish there was an option between yes and no for this one.
Firstly, if you've played Beholder, YES, you'll love seeing the inner workings of the Ministry. I'm really pleased with the direction Warm Lamp Games went with their second installment. The environment and experience is a vast change from the original and until I hit the second floor, I was completely in love.
Mind you, I still continued, beat it, and had a fun time but it goes off the rails as far as a grim dystopia once you progress. If you want pressure, stress, and the feeling of imprisonment go with the first. If you want a jumping the shark version of a dystopian regime and a look into the world that Beholder takes place in, you're good to go here.
The controls are all solid, work well, no faults. I played with mouse and keyboard and it was perfect; I don't believe it has controller support.
You know, it's fun but easy. The first game puts a lot of pressure on you, you feel guilt when you have to betray people and you try so hard to save others. In this game those connections just aren't there. It's easy to figure out the right path or the wrong path and continue along it without a problem. Money isn't an issue, nor is authority. Your family is mentioned but you don't have to take care of them.
There are a lot of AMAZING ideas but Beholder 2 doesn't create the same emotional response as the first. I can think of two times where I was just dumbfounded, one of which I sat there and stared. Hint, for one of the best plot lines check Magda's computer.
It's just shallow I suppose. I enjoyed it but probably wouldn't recommend it unless the person had played the first and was aware of the over the top nature. It reminded me a lot of the homeopathic medicines in the Beholder DLC. Which were a nice change of pace and worth a good laugh in the otherwise stressful environment but a whole game with the same vibe didn't quite work.
All things said and done, I'm glad I played it and I'm looking forward to more of Warm Lamp Games' games. I honestly would love to see them do another Beholder that took more after the first!

The game is super cool!
You can watch gameplay here:
Pluses:
1, So many unexpected plot twists!
2. Different ways of finishing the same mission.
3. Art style is the best! It became even better from the 1st part!
4. Music is cool and sinister
5. The job is quite entertaining, reminds a little bit of Papers, Please
6. I like money and respect currency
Minuses:
1. Some solutions are not obvious and is hard to find
2. Sometimes character gets stuck (I got stuck in the house and had to replay some parts) maybe it was a rare bug happened only to me though
3. I think game lacks of necessary navigation sometimes. (This is correlated with the 1st point)
Overall, the game is fantastic! I haven't finished it yet but I strongly intend to!

For starters, I loved Beholder 1. It was addictive and I couldn't stop playing it. This game feels like a huge step up in terms of story mode, graphics, and just feels more like a "real" game. I similarly couldn't stop playing it. I loved the ambiance of the game. It felt just as dark and scary as the first game. I also liked that there was a bigger world than the one screen from the first game. There weer call backs to the first game, without it being a direct sequel. It is everything I would want in a second Beholder game.
However, there is one huge flaw in this game and it’s the mini games. I like the idea! It’s like they were trying to add some Papers, Please to this game. But they were so tedious and took away from the rest of the game. The first mini game was fun, but because I missed out on some story mode quests, I had to grind forever to get to the next level. The second mini game seemed needlessly confusing, and I had to grind that one as well. The last mini game had me actually wanting to kill myself it was so bad. Luckily, I could just kind of breeze through it and didn’t have to play it as much as the other two.
Overall, I do really like this game. I will probably try and 100% it at one point just because I enjoyed playing it. However, the mini games just felt like filler to the rest of the game. Maybe if they made the quotas smaller or fixed that last awful mini game, it wouldn’t feel so bad.

-If you liked Beholder 1, there's a good chance you will like this.
-BUT It is NOT the same game, if you're looking for more Beholder 1 gameplay, purchase the DLC.
-Beholder 2 goes on sale quite frequently.
Beholder 2 is drastically different from the original game. It has a much better story, better characters, and loads of new and interesting mechanics. The pacing is much more friendly to new players such that it IS possible to have a perfect playthrough on your first try (though that is still unlikely).
The work-life mechanic of the 3rd floor brings the game to near-tedium, however by then (in standards playthroughs) it should be understood that you're no-longer at work to work, so that is completely acceptable.
I'd definitely give it a replay just to try out different options.

Having played Beholder (the previous game) before, I was really amazed at how the characters from Beholder can blend in so well in Beholder 2, as simulation fragments!
Unlike Beholder, Beholder 2 was more of a mundane work simulator but slowly it becomes more and more action-packed! Handling queries at Floor 1 and Floor 12 reminded me of Papers, Please a lot! Floor 25 was garbage, to be honest.
The storyline is really touching and shocking as well. It tells people a lot about power. And I have always been warning communities which I pass by about this same danger, this same power.

The gameplay differs a lot from Beholder 1.
Only safe break-ins, no time pressure, no replaying the game to find better strategies. You have all the time you need to complete quests and grind office work for money and authority. Once I understood that, the game suddenly stopped feeling challenging. Decisions barely have any impact and are mostly only there to give you different ways for getting promotions, key items and achievements.
That being said, Beholder 2 is a lot less exciting than the first game and I'm not incredibly thrilled to play it again, but I still had lots of fun and I really liked the story.