PlayStation Magazine UK - 12.2019

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THE SURGE 2

Not quite worth an arm and a leg

W

e’ve seen an adorable hat; it’s

outside the shop on the street to

Cloud 9. The only problem is it’s

currently sitting on someone else’s

head. We’ll have to lop it off from the neck up,

but the violence will be worth it to look like

Crocodile Dundee. “Call that a knife?” Actually

it’s a Gaia Lancer, and just right for the job.

The Surge 2’s thing is its unique combat system

and loot grind that enables you to lock onto a

body part and hack it off in a series of gruesome

close-up death blows. You can then add that

part to your inventory to craft better armour

and weapons, and use spares for upgrades. It’s

a simple idea that changes how you approach

every confrontation as going for a needed piece

of armour means using Battery energy you could

otherwise use to heal. It’s a risk-and-reward cycle

that pits your desire for new kit against survival.

While the general loop of The Surge 2 will be

familiar to anyone who’s played Bloodborne or

Dark Souls, ideas such as body-part harvesting

manage to give this me-too soulsborne a distinct

identity. Collecting and building armour sets,

which come with unique buffs, becomes a quest

in and of itself. Kidnapped child? Bah. A plague

of sentient nanites destroying humanity? It can

wait. An evil corporation that’s walled you inside

Jericho City with those nanites? No time.

That you’ll struggle to care

about the story is just one of

the gripes that hold The Surge

2 back from greatness. And

expanding the action out of the

narrow tunnels of the original

game into a large, mazy city

with plenty of metroidvania

trappings (a good thing) is just

one of the ideas that stops the

story from gaining traction (a

bad thing).

CUT ABOVE

The large city environment

is a genuine step-up over the

original game, however. While

the initial six hours can drag as

you’re forced to battle in Port

Nixon, a sludge-filled open

sewer, once the spider-like

mech Little Johnny is defeated

and you venture into the leafy

paradise of Gideon’s Rock the

game comes to life.

Here the game is colourful

and interesting. Secret paths

lead to atmospheric caves, and

the first time a Gaia statue

comes to life in a whirr of cogs

and dust is startling. These

minibosses are hugely fun and

challenging; they demonstrate

The Surge 2’s combat perfectly

as you target weak spots or

parry an attack. Holding o to

block and successfully pushing

in the direction of the enemy’s

strike will knock them off

balance and open to a counter.

In this one area The Surge 2

has everything its predecessor

lacked: memorable enemies.

Sadly once Gideon’s Rock

is over you’re back to the grey

streets of Jericho City and a

BODY HORROR

“LACKING OPPONENTS WITH

PERSONALITY, THE COMBAT

BECOMES MECHANICAL.”

@IanDean74

These close-

up carvery

moments reveal

the graphical

limitations.