Zeno Clash 2

A slightly improved sequel
Both Zeno Clash are budget games from a very small studio
Combat
It remains a very basic brawler. This time with a few tweaks, to almost everything the original offered.
Nothing wrong with simplicity. The fighting system is fairly functional.
But like the original, its biggest strengths rely on...well everything that isn't combat.
Still, combat got some minimal changes. More weapons, new abilities. The option for co op.
They eased up a bit on combat encounters. sprinkled in more exploration to areas, a non linear quest progression, some puzzles, secrets and collectibles.
Problems with Combat
AI still don't do much to differentiate fighting styles. It is possible that they have more of tendency to wait for their turn to attack, when in groups. Which make them look a bit brain dead.
Lock on insist on turning on by itself.
I Have no idea why the gauntlet is even available for combat. It's a painful and unreliable move
The ability is necessary to solve puzzles, its entire schtic is that it requires natural light to even work, cant be aimed directly at the target, and likely will miss everything that's not inanimate.
In a combat scenario it means that you need to turn your back to an enemy, look up, and hope to god, the line of attack crosses the enemies path.
Story; Setting; Characters
Its intriguing and creative. That's mostly why i played these games
it's a punk fantasy where almost everyone seems to be an anthropomorphic creature (and you can actually learn why and...ITS GROSS).
It is larger and denser than what came before. If the Original set the stage, this one ran with it, developed lore, explored characters and zenozoik world, and gave it, the golem and its zenos a purpouse.
Everything is presented in different stages of evolution and understanding. There is no set of rules, morals or intelligence identical to each zeno. And now, you get to know why Golem seeks to civilize the world, forcing human like traits in a regressing society .
Ghat is a little more interesting here. albeit fairly one dimensional. likely stuck on the same loop of logic. But i find it funny, that he suddenly turns a 180º because golem is introducing morals and laws, that he cant begin to comprehend. So he is always slightly irritated by everything.
Negatives
Rimat on the other hand, Damn...i wish they had chosen another character. Her entire existence is to be protective of her leader. She is incapable of discussing anything that doesn't involve fathermother.
Pacing issues. Early quests that require visiting brothers that have moved back to their real parents have been, mostly wasted opportunities. It adds very little to the game, at most i would classify it as filler quests in an already short game
Level design had some improvements, but its still fairly dated. My biggest issue is that a lot of these areas don't feel like livable places. Which they should be, as different groups and families live there.
ENDING
To me, it might as well be a definitive ending to the story
it is sad to see the main story end, in such a short game. And they did leave it open to interpretation, of what could happen next. I just think this ending fits.
In reality nothing changed in centuries and nothing ever will. They will go back to being perfectly unaware.

There is no other game out there like this, game is literally a piece of abstract/surreal art!

Even bigger than the first and with more refined combat (though there is still input-queuing for melee, which might take getting used to), Zeno 2 picks up right where the other left off, with a Halstedom under the stifling guidance of the Golem. Despite the stats and level-up totems, it's not quite an open-world RPG like Morrowind, having more in common with the classic Zelda adventure structure than anything. Basically, it's a roving first-person beat 'em up with astounding visual design and great world building -- I was drawn by the uniqueness of the first, but this is the one that nailed me down as a fan of the series. Getting to explore the palaces of the other Golems -- who guard the world of Zenozoik on four sides, like the witches of Oz (almost certainly not a coincidence) -- felt epically adventuresome indeed. You'll get to do a lot, see all the varied sights of this Dreamland Prehistoria, kill tons of Bosch-esque creatures, gather neat items . . . viciously beat down the birth parents of your adoptive siblings.
The new Golem artifacts Ghat finds not only serve to open barriers to progression in ye olde metroidvania fashion, but add cool new dynamics to the combat too -- especially the linking gauntlet, which allows you to chain enemies to each other or even things sometimes, so that you can inflict damage indirectly. Weapons are more disposable now, and guns are useless once their ammo is exhausted, but you can carry them from one edge of the world to another if you want.
There's a bit of jank in this, but nothing close to broken. And didn't you know that a little jank is the true price of soul? This is a world that you'll want to explore to the secret bottom, and after all the time I spent, the adventure was still over far too soon. Beyond my attraction to Ace Team's general visual weirdness, I was really taken by the whole theme of connectedness and family, which the Zeno series was exploring in its oneiric way long before the excellent Death Stranding came along. Yes, even if your mother is your father . . . and he's not even that, but a lonely bird-beast who kidnapped you and your siblings from all over the place . . . the time you spent together and the things you felt were real and you shouldn't throw it all away. And sometimes, trying to force a connection, just because it seems like it should be there, isn't healthy either.
(The Zeno series embodies the fantasy sensibility I like best: having all this beautiful, grotesque chaos on the surface, but actually having the narrative underwiring to hold it together with character and lore. I always get so annoyed when someone with a flare for cool imagery phones in the other stuff!)

A more in-depth sequel to a rather unique game setup. First person melee combat is the specialty.
NOTE: Setting smoothed framerate above 90fps seems to break combos and certain moves. Seriously this shit took me nearly an hour to set up right in the tutorial

A beautifully crafted masterpiece of unbridled quirkiness.
Zeno Clash 2 takes place directly after the first game, continuing on the story with all the characters from the original, and in my opinion giving us one of the most outrageously weird and utterly awesome stories out there.
Combat is satisfying and fun, with a few more moves than the original game, allowing for extra brutal and wacky fights.
The artstyle and world designs are of course as good as they have ever been, with loads of awesome and crazy characters, beautifully bizarre maps and areas, and set pieces that'll have you staring in disbelief.
The game has traded in its predecessors more linear design, to be more open world in its approach, which in my opinion was a truly great decision.
Being more open world truly adds to the immersion and feel of the game, allowing for actual exploration which in many places is rewarded with loot, and occasionally even a side quest.
Pretty much all the different weapons from the original game make a reappearance, along with a slew of fresh ones.
The game adds a few new mechanics, one of which is the ability to recruit a companion who can be called in to aid you in certain fights.
Unlike the first game which was solely combat focused, Zeno Clash 2 adds a little bit of diversity with the addition of simple puzzles, solvable with the use of two new abilities you gain throughout the story, none of which distracts too much from the combat, which is of course still the main focus.
The introduction of multiplayer is absolutely outstanding, allowing two friends to play through the campaign together, truly elevating the game even more.
I will admit my multiplayer experience had a decent amount of issues, but none that made the game unplayable by any means.
I'm hesitant to liken this game to any other as it is somewhat within a niche of its own, but if I were to compare it to something, I would have to say it reminds me personally more of Borderlands than anything else.
More to to do with map layout and the way the story is presented than combat, but I would say that describing Zeno Clash 2 as a melee focused Borderlands, could be somewhat understandable, if a very crude description.
Honestly a fantastic game, and an outstanding sequel, improving on the original in pretty much every way.
I highly recommend you check this game out as it is in my opinion absolutely insane and a real fun time.

Great game, great sequel to Zeno Clash.
Combat is much better than first game. You can play coop.
Adds much more lore to the world of Zenozoik and characters.
I need more of Zenozoik. This is my utopia.

For as wicked and weird these two games may be, I love them immensely.
Punchies combined with so much stuff that takes me out of my comfort zone.
I want to be horrified, but I'm too busy being a pugilism machine.