Axiom Verge 2 is a Metroidvania video game created by Thomas Happ Games, an independent developer from the United States. It is the follow-up to Axiom Verge and was released on August 11, 2021, for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Windows (only available through the Epic Games Store). The game was later made available on Steam and PlayStation 5 in August 2022. It was also released for Xbox One in July 2023.
The game tells the story of Indra Chaudhari, a billionaire who receives a strange message instructing her to travel to Antarctica if she wants to reunite with her missing daughter. Critics generally gave the game positive reviews.
Gameplay
Axiom Verge 2 is a side-scroller action-adventure game, similar to its earlier version. The player controls Indra Chaudhari, a billionaire with unknown origins. The game uses ideas from older games, such as Metroid, Contra, Blaster Master, and Bionic Commando. It emphasizes action and exploration, with many items, enemies, and power-ups. Most of Indra’s power-ups are called "Arms," which have special abilities. Indra fights enemies using weapons like axes and boomerangs or by hacking them to change their behavior. Her health and attack strength can be improved using items called Apocalypse Flasks found throughout the game. Unlike many Metroidvania games, most bosses are not required to complete the game and can be skipped without affecting progress.
Most of Axiom Verge 2 takes place in the world of Kiengir, which has two separate areas called the "Overworld" and the "Breach." The Overworld is large and resembles Earth, while the Breach looks more digital and can only be entered by Indra as a drone. To move forward in the game, Indra often needs to travel between the Breach and its matching locations in the Overworld, and vice versa.
Plot
In 2053, Indra Chaudhari, founder and CEO of Globe 3, buys Hammond Corp after its owner, Elizabeth Hammond, disappears while researching at Jones Station in Antarctica. The purchase includes Hammond’s original prototype for ansibles, which can send messages instantly without any delay. When Indra activates the prototype, she receives a message from an unknown source telling her to go to Antarctica if she wants to see her missing daughter again.
Indra travels to Jones Station and is transported to a strange place through a cargo lift. She drowns in rising water but is later reconstructed at an altar by an entity named Amashilama, who identifies herself as an "Arm"—a group of intelligent machines that has bonded with Indra’s body.
Indra locates the base camps of Hammond’s research team. The researchers explain that they were studying Kiengir, a different world, with Hammond until robots attacked them, killing most of the team and separating the survivors. The cargo lift was destroyed, making it impossible to leave Kiengir, and a group of Kazakh scientists from Sagimbayev Station were never heard from again.
Indra gains access to other Arms, such as Damu, a sentient being who can transfer Indra’s consciousness into a small drone. She learns that Damu was once a child who was converted into a machine. The sender of the ansible messages is revealed to be Hammond. Indra also meets the Lamassu, an advanced AI that released the robots to eliminate all humans on Kiengir and destroy the cargo lift. The Lamassu explains that its actions aim to prevent mixing between different universes, such as Earth and Kiengir.
Amashilama tricks Indra into giving her control of Indra’s body and traps Indra’s consciousness inside Damu’s drone. Later, Indra acquires a new humanoid body and fights Amashilama. Both discover that technology from the native Sagiga people on Kiengir prevents them from dying. The Lamassu reveals Amashilama’s plan: she intends to use war machines called Siuna to destroy A’ansur, the mother world of Kiengir. Amashilama believes this will free Kiengir, but it would actually destroy Kiengir, A’ansur, and many other worlds, including Earth. Though distrustful of Indra, the Lamassu gives her a mission to stop Amashilama using one Siuna on Kiengir.
Indra finds her daughter, Samara, and Hammond trapped between universes, where they are held in a form of detention with others. Hammond allows Indra to speak with Samara but does not explain how they ended up there, fearing it might harm Indra’s mental health. Indra later finds Hammond’s body on Kiengir, where Hammond had been trapped during the Lamassu’s attack and died before sending her message. Amashilama takes control of the Siuna Indra was given and leaves Indra’s original body motionless on the ground. Seeing the seemingly dead original Indra, the new one questions her own identity.
The new Indra prepares to plant a powerful Breach bomb to destroy the portal connecting Kiengir to A’ansur. Amashilama stops her during a battle and traps her in a force field. The original Indra suddenly appears and attacks Amashilama, giving the new Indra time to activate the bomb and escape. The explosion destroys Amashilama, her Siuna, the original Indra, and the portal to A’ansur. The new Indra realizes she no longer wants to return to Earth and instead joins the Kazakhs, who have transcended humanity. Reflecting on the death of the original Indra, the new one decides she can no longer use her old name and has become something else.
If the player completes the game with a high completion rate, a post-credits scene shows the original Indra reuniting with Samara in the afterlife.
Development
Development of Axiom Verge 2 started in November 2015 after several months of planning. While working on the first game, Happ created ideas for seven different games and selected the one that seemed most interesting to continue. He said, "I would not have time to make the other games, but Axiom Verge 2's story looked most exciting to develop if I had the chance."
Enemies in the game were designed to be less "spongy" and to allow players more ways to defeat them. The game includes elements from Sumerian culture because it was the first in the series to feature a written language. The visuals were changed to be brighter and focus more on outdoor settings because Happ felt tired of making the same type of artwork repeatedly. The sequel was influenced by games such as Prey, The Legend of Zelda, Horizon Zero Dawn, and Shadow of the Colossus. When writing the story, Happ wanted it to share details about the game's universe while also being a complete story on its own.
Mayssa Karaa sang for the music. Happ expanded into the folk and fantasy genres while keeping the electronic style from the first game.
Reception
The game received "mostly positive" reviews on Metacritic.
Tom Sykes of PC Gamer praised the title, calling it a "courageous and creative follow-up" that improves on the work of its first game. Eric Van Allen of Destructoid gave it a positive review, saying it "feels unique and clearly different from its predecessor." Mitch Vogel of Nintendo Life called the Nintendo Switch version "a high-quality experience from start to finish." Tristan Ogilvie of IGN enjoyed the game's world, saying, "Axiom Verge 2 is a Metroidvania-style game that combines two different worlds, making it fun to explore even though its combat is simple and its boss battles are not as strong as they could be."
GameSpot liked the new areas in the game, describing them as "clearly different from each other" and praised the new world, saying, "The Breach's creativity comes from the way it challenges players to solve tricky navigation puzzles." Polygon said the game's story created a "feeling of deep loneliness" that made it "most powerful." Nintendo World Report liked the "infect" mechanic, which lets players control mechanical objects, saying it "added another level of depth to battles."
NME also praised the environments but said the focus on exploration made the gameplay feel less exciting. Game Informer's Matt Miller said the large map could be overwhelming and criticized the lack of variety, saying, "the many connected hallways start to look the same and become confusing." Rock Paper Shotgun said the game's frequent backtracking and unclear goals made it "unnecessarily hard to follow."