PixelJunk Monsters 2

Not as good as the first one, but the first one was a tall order to beat anyway.

I never played the first one before, but I find it very odd to see this game sit at mixed reviews. Some of the most fun I've had with a tower defense game. And the graphics are just phenomenal!

This game is super fun, I also have it on my switch. I don’t like it nearly as much as the original tho. It still has the same charm and energy but with a more 3D visual.

If you've not played the original Monsters, play it first. If you have, continue.
I'm not sure why this game has so many negative reviews. After 2 hours I can say that if you liked Monsters 1 this is mostly more of the same. The game still has a ton of charm, and trying to get a perfect on every level is just as enjoyable as before. There are a few issues I'll cover below, but they are pretty minor.
The main thing people seem to complain about is the new perspective. I prefer the old one, but applaud them for trying something different. You can zoom out A LOT with the bumpers, and even get a full map view with left trigger, so it's not a big deal. Readability in general is the biggest issue. Given how similar this sequel is I think it's useful to focus on what's different. Here are the changes I encountered in the first 2 hours:
🚫 It's harder to see coins and gems on the ground now, but you can eventually get used to it.
🚫The tower radial also suffers from reduced readability, and is less responsive.
🚫 Towers no longer tell you what their next upgrade is. Instead you get a generic upgrade icon
🚫 The 3D terrain gets in your way. The new jump button helps with this, but 3D is still a net negative imo. A look at some YT videos suggests 3D might get more interesting in later levels, but I'm not sure.
🚫Tower ranges are poorly represented across elevation changes (they can be longer than it seems).
🚫 It's harder to tell at a glance what level towers are.
⭐ You don't visit the base anymore to unlock tower upgrades. Towers are unlocked during the campaign and then are available immediately via the radial. However, special towers require gems each time they are built.
⭐ New towers are available. I didn't use any of them yet, but that's still probably a good thing.
⭐ Cosmetics are available for your character. Unfortunately player 2 can't use them. Instead they get assigned a random appearance.
Overall, I doubt this will be as good as the original, but it deserves WAY MORE attention than it got. It's still a solid TD with a lot of charm There is a good chance my wife and I will 100% this like we did with the first Monsters. I might update the review once I've played more.

I’ve beaten this game about five times now on various platforms—it’s always a great experience. It has some flaws, and fans of the older 2D versions might prefer those. Still, I think the clay-like visual style holds up really well. The gameplay feels solid and true to the series. I just wish it had more levels, but other than that, I highly recommend it!

simply but satisfying gameplay, lovely art style, addictive gameplay

I don't like menus performance, I need this absolutely sharp.
All the interfaces here are fading in and out, in this game. That's really bad, I don't like it.

Despite the graphics this game's pretty hardcore among TD genre, devs should perfectly understand how important controls in such a stressful gameplay