Highlights
- Blasphemous 2 is a worthy sequel to the first game, expanding on its strengths and improving combat and boss variety.
- The game features three distinct weapons with different traversal abilities and combat styles, allowing players to choose their preferred playstyle.
- The sequel addresses the criticism of the first game by providing a larger, more detailed map with fluid traversal, making exploration a joy.
Even though it might not be the same one that sits high atop thousands of players' wishlists, there's a new Soulslike Metroidvania sequel that is absolutely deserving of fans' attention. Releasing just a few weeks ago, Blasphemous 2 is the follow-up to 2019's excellent Andalusian-themed Metroidvania Blasphemous. Part Metroidvania and part punishing Soulslike, the original Blasphemous already counts itself as one of the best entries into the crowded indie Metroidvania space, but its sequel expands on everything that made the first game great and then some. In terms of broadening the ambitions of its predecessor, Blasphemous 2 is every bit the sequel that Hollow Knight: Silksong is aiming to be for its predecessor.
Interestingly, the first Blasphemous arrived not too long after the announcement of Hollow Knight: Silksong and its successful Kickstarter, becoming yet another well-crafted Metroidvania in a post-Hollow Knight world. For all intents and purposes, Hollow Knight completely raised the bar for all Metroidvania games, indie or otherwise, and that the first Blasphemous sits alongside Hollow Knight as an example of the genre's pinnacle titles speaks volumes. The sequel smartly expands on the Metroidvania elements of the title while also providing players with an improved combat suite and some more boss variety, making it a title that fans of the genre should absolutely not miss.
Blasphemous 2's Three Weapons Completely Change Routing
Contrary to the first Blasphemous' inclusion of one weapon in the form of the Mea Culpa (or even Hollow Knight's sole armament, the Nail), Blasphemous 2 features three distinct weapons for the Penitent One to get their hands on at the beginning of the game. Although players will eventually gain access to all three of these weapons, the choice that the player makes in choosing their starting weapon will determine which areas of the map are available to them first thanks to each weapon's inherent traversal abilities.
Beyond that, though, each weapon fills a very specific niche in combat. The flail, Veredicto, is the slowest of the three but also happens to deal the most damage. The Penitent One can also set the flail alight with fire to deal bonus damage. On the other end of the spectrum are the Sarmiento and Centella—an extremely fast and versatile sword and dagger combo capable of dealing a flurry of attacks in rapid succession. Right in the middle is the Ruego al Alba, a standard longsword similar to the Mea Culpa. Not only does this weapon have decent range and damage, but it's also the only one capable of parrying. In terms of its combat, Blasphemous 2 absolutely ups the ante over its predecessor.
The Map in Blasphemous 2 Is a Treasure Trove of Secrets and Collectibles
In addition to combat, a good Metroidvania absolutely needs to provide players with plenty of incentive to traverse across its large, interconnected map. Part of the genius of Hollow Knight was its incredibly varied and intricately detailed world of Hallownest, complete with a map absolutely stuffed to the gills with secrets, collectibles, and optional bosses. This was one area that the first Blasphemous found itself slightly lacking in, with the map serving as more of a means to an end rather than a true joy to explore and backtrack through.
Thankfully, The Game Kitchen has addressed this complaint fully in Blasphemous 2, with the sequel having a much more palpable Metroidvania leaning than the first game. Not only is the map larger, but it's also an absolute thrill to traverse thanks to the various weapon abilities that help to facilitate that traversal and the removal of instant-death penalties for missing jumps. It's been over 1000 days since the initial announcement of Hollow Knight: Silksong and there's no concrete evidence of the game's progress, but Blasphemous 2 is absolutely a worthwhile sequel that players should check out while enduring the long wait for Team Cherry's anticipated sequel.
Blasphemous 2 is out now for Nintendo Switch, PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
