I'm glad to announce that mossmouth is really lending an ear to the playerbase. Olmec has been tweaked in a way where you can no longer afk and need to actively engage. I still can't defend the lack of level variety though, since a couple level feelings could really sprouce up the game. However, i CAN say that i find myself playing more S2 than i ever did the original.
I personally like spelunky 2 more. but a really agree with your points, also spelunky 2 level generation isnt varied enough and feels way too similar every run
Yeah after a good amount of experience I can easily tell how a level is gonna be just early on, I’ve been playing the game for a while though but it’s still rather alienating to now know how a randomly generated level is made and gonna look like
You make some good points here, I love Spelunky 2 but it does have some problems, the RNG is a little to unfair at times, waiting around for Olmec, world 1 etc..
@@fancydink Indeed I think Spelunky 2 is defiantly the better game for long term Spelunky players. But the sequel is a less perfect package as a whole than HD was.
Problems with Spelunky 2 that 1 didn’t have. Moles. World one feels like a chore every time. More things that can ruin a run if you get bad RNG such as: Drill in volcana going through a shop or (can’t ruin a run but still sucks) Kali altar.
@Tomáš Staněk i find that thats less of a problem with the liquid physics and more of aproblem with volcana's level generation. its also annoying when the drill hits a shop or kali's alter.
What normally works for me is to do the drill as soon as possible then all Lava should be done by 2:10. I recommend exploring the level more during that time so it doesn’t bore you just waiting!
I absolutely agree with this assessment. It's great, but frustrating in a way Spelunky HD never was. I was able to get every achievement in Spelunky HD and I logged over 1000 hours in it because I could spend 40 minutes in a Hell run only to die and want to do it all over. Now I waste the same amount of time trying to get past Dwelling three times before finally making it to 2-3 and inevitably dying and rage-quitting. I've played 35 hours of S2 and I still don't feel like I'm any closer to being better at the game. It's too full of bullshit.
Getting stunlocked and the physics most often times working against you, sums up to what feels like a lit more bullshit compared to the first game. Added the fact that repeating levels means dealing with certain hiccups in S2’s difficulty curve. Even after beating the alternate ending twice, the bullshit moments in the game are just more noticeably present in 2 versus 1, and at least for me it takes away from the experience from learning from what ought to be your mistakes rather than spontaneous death sequences like it’s a lottery machine pulled by the environment and RNG. You can barely make notice of something and before you know it, that split second of analysis to be cautious per how the game conditions you to be aware of your surroundings still spells out death. Yes game 1 had that type of punishment mechanic, but 2 for some reason increases that and forces the player to think 5 or 6 steps ahead rather than 3 or 4; with little or no more reward for the danger once the player finishes discovering new things about the sequel. I get the creator not wanting veterans to beat the game too speedily, but keeping what probably are half-finished or even bad elements in the game’s design barely pulls back S2 from being better than it should be.
All I can say is it's worth persisting. I'm 150 hours in and everything is falling into place. This is an unreasonable about of time to expect new players to stick around for especially considering I had hundreds of hours in the 1st game mostly helping me.
Something I've noticed is that I seem to get worse the more I play. My first Spelunky 2 run of the day tends to go really well, but after that I'm more likely to make mistakes trying to hurry back to where I was. Obviously, this is a potential problem for the whole genre, but it's something I feel the first game got right. HD was frustrating at times, but fair enough, and you could move through areas quickly enough that starting over was never *too* bad. In Spelunky 2, the musical fanfare at the start of the dwelling makes me want to turn the game off.
@@marioisawesome8218 That does suck. There are rare instances of random things like that. The worst to me are environmentally broken ghost jars that punish the player; that’s just straight bad design. It’d make much more sense to make ghost jars into something like ghost chests, which inly the player can open and that has to be deliberately done in order to activate the ghost early in a level. A simple fix that remedies an otherwise really disadvantagous RNG event.
Great video. I think the game greatly improved upon the controls and art style but I find some of the level generation in Dwelling frustrating. It always seems to cost too many resources to obtain the Udjat Eye and I feel like you have to cook bombs or use a couple ropes to reach the key, altars, and other parts of the map in this game. Cooking bombs was more of a specialized strategy that was optional in Spelunky HD and honestly isn't really fun to do. I think Spelunky 2 was designed with the thought that "Harder=Better" and it's frustrating some fans. The team has done a good job of listening to feedback though and has made it so Yang's rewards now can contain rope/bombs sometimes.I hope the team keeps making slight adjustments to make the flow of Dwelling better so it keeps that "just one more run" feel of Spelunky HD.
It was not until halfway through this video I realized that I'm not watching a review by some huge channel, but rather a fairly new, smaller channel. I've gotta say, this is excellent content and you earned my sub! I have never played the original Spelunky myself, nor have I ever seen any gameplay until after Spelunky 2 came out. I enjoy the sequel very much and I would guess that I wouldn't have as much fun playing the original. While I agree with some of your points, some don't bother me personally - like repetitive music (I'm more of a "some TV show in the background" sort of guy) or the elongated Olmec fight (usually you're right, you have to wait it out, but there's a path you can go to relatively quickly, however you miss out on some stuff). Overall, is it objectively better? I'll leave that up to you, since I didn't experience the original first-hand. Subjectively, I love the sequel very much and it's easily one of the, if not the best game of the year. I am experiencing significant improvement in my skills and make it further more consistently. Of course, the occasional dumb death still happens, but that's the game for me. It's sort of a love-hate relationship I know from TBoI.
I’ve played Spelunky 1 and 2 fully through, to King yama and Hunduns lair respectively and I prefer one personally because each run feels just a lot more unique than they do in 2. I don’t know if there actually are but it feels like there are more different layouts an area can be in 1 than 2 because the levels never feel the same in 1 yet they do in 2.
I agree, i have gotten to king yama a few times and beat him and beat Tiamat 2 times the level generation in HD feels more unique and in 2 it feels like your going into the same run over and over.
This is something that I've had on my mind for a while but couldn't really put into words. I love both games and Spelunky 2 is still great tho, just not better than the original. Although I think it could be with updates. First, dwelling needs to be fixed. This is a problem that's a bit to big for a youtube comment but I think decreasing the time moles stay in the ground and disabling there invincibility frames would go a long way. Secondly, I'd like to address the branching paths. One thing I love about rouguelikes is that all there content is so compact. It's the antithesis to the ubisoft model of stretching the game out to 40+ hours. I don't mind the branching paths at all but I would like to have the option to play through all areas in 1 run, although it shouldn't be the default mode. Third is the background layers and how to fix them. If you look in the trailers, the background layers in the jungle seem to be used to make the levels even more mazelike, with more background tunnels that connect to more areas. This should have been in the game. The closest any level comes is temple, which has some cool ideas with the background areas. Finally, temple need to be balanced. It is so clearly harder than tide pool, and has worse rewards. The special weapon you get from temple is likely to kill you, while the excalibur is very useful against pretty much any enemy. The clone gun can be used for a kapala, or 99 bomb and ropes, while the elixir is just a healing item that fixes status ailments. Not to mention that tide pool has a strat that allows you to keep your ankh and a back item, while temple doesn't give you either. Some improvements that could be made to temple are, giving Orisiris a unique drop item or just allowing you to keep your old one, allowing players to save the elixir as a one time use item, which would be great for cosmic ocean runs, and maybe make tide pools boss harder because compared to climbing up the land of the dead with instakill snakes, abzu is boring as fuck. I'd love to go to temple every run but it's just not viable honestly. Also 1 critism of the review is how long the pauses are in between some sentences. Aside from that nice job and I'm subbed.
Great video! Everyone seems to really adore this new spelunky and it’s definitely very exciting and has its fun moments. However, I found right after my first few days with the game something felt off. I’ve put a ridiculous amount of hours into 2 and there’s no sense of progression in my skills like the first, I even ended up buying the HD on steam since I always played it on ps3 and now I’ve been playing a ton of HD again and way much more fun with it. Maybe it’s just because I’ve played it so much, but HD feels so comforting, the music sets the tone and the different tracks helped keeping things from going stale. That’s really the biggest problem with 2 and you hit it right on the head as well as the many other issues; things get stale much too quickly. I wish they would add more of the level variants to the dwelling. The spider variant, the snake pit (always my favorite). I can’t really put my finger on it, but spelunky hd is also just more fun to move through, spelunky 2s pacing through the levels feels completely different. I think HD struck the perfect balance with its level’s complexity and everything felt a lot more opened. This new game has a lot more stuff crammed in, but it makes things feel more tight and samey, the level variation feels less complex than the first and it should be the opposite. Maybe if dwelling didn’t exist I would like the game a bit more. Although I’m still happy to have a new spelunky to explore, I think you did a great job summing up this game’s faults and I look forward to watching your future content
Also your argument is exactly how I've felt. Though the new features were neat, the overall quality of its base gameplay didn't hold up, particularly in difficulty.
My biggest gripe with Spelunky 2 is that there's so little incentive to take those branching paths. Like, you *could* go to Volcana and get Vlad's Cape, a single item that's kinda useful... If you go on a whole-ass quest, you can get the Alien Compass, which is... Cool? OR you can go to the Jungle. It has the Black Market for a TON of great items as long as you play your cards right, and get the Three Sisters for an easy Bomb Box. Later on, you can go to the Temple, you can fight Anubis and get the Scepter, go to the City of Gold for money, I guess, go through Duat with its tons of instakills and *maybe* you'll get an item or two. Or you can go to the Tide Pool, get the Clone Gun for potentially more money (by cloning an Idol), more items (cloning a Crate, Bomb Box, so on), a ton of health (clone a Damsel and sacrifice them all), whatever. And better yet, you don't need to use the Ankh in the Tide Pool. It's luck dependent for the most part, sure, but it's there. In Duat, you *have* to sacrifice yourself and use the Ankh. And since there's a chance you can keep a *second life,* why would you ever go to the Temple? Give us a convoluted-but-possible way of keeping the Ankh in the City of Gold, maybe you have to sacrifice a ton of Gold Pots, or "hitch a ride" with a corpse, or you need 99 health to "cheat death," just have SOMETHING. Same for Volcana, move the Three Sisters over there, buff their gifts! Parsley gives you a couple Rope Piles on the spot, Parsnip gives you a Bomb Box, Parmesan gives you a random item or weapon. Then on Olmec, they give you a health up based on your performance (saving one gives you a Turkey, saving two gets you a Royal Jelly, saving three gets you an Elixir). Give us a reason to experiment! I don't want to think "Ugh, I *guess* I'll go to Volcana, but *only* because I already have a lot of resources and don't have an explosive on my back".
i'd say the jungle only balances out because there's a lot more bogus to deal with there unavoidable witch doctors, tikimen which can combo you to death, there's a lot and vlad's cape is a one of a kind item which can work as a safer alternative to the jetpack the great items are somewhat luck dependent (why is the web gun in weapon shops) and sometimes you have to use bombs to reach the three sisters, so if you pass them without knowing, you have to use ropes on top of the bombs in order to finish the sidequest i get that volcana is also kinda bad because everything there deals fire damage but most of it can be avoided if you pay close attention
I had similar issues with the game as well. But for me, the biggest drawback is the waiting that the games forces you into, especially the olmec fight. Considering that this is a game that you can die quick, having to drudge through the same fight is tiresome. Plus the drill on volcana, heaven forbids if lava, an altar, or a shop is under there. The music is probably the biggest letdown as I love the original HD soundtrack a lot! The dwelling by and far is my most disliked track. Overall, it is a wonderful game but it falls short with its baffling changes.
That's exactly it. There is an imbalance here, however slight, in how much attention the game demands vs. how much I'm willing to offer. Over time, muscle memory should take over, but Spelunky 2 wants you to remain pretty attentive no matter how many times you've done it before, and that feels tedious.
well made video. one day i realised that i wasnt enjoying Spelunky 2, it wasnt growing on me and that it probably never will. which is a shame because i love Spelunky HD and waited years for a sequel
i think the enemy-favored hitboxes and the faint lag for whip attacks is probably one of the biggest things that slow down the game, it becomes less about reflexes and reacting and more about playing as carefully as possible so you dont get fucked by those faint things that you have no control over besides just playing along with it.
Apart from the music, i believe it is better than the original. Well, not better, its the same, but more of it. More monsters, more levels, more items, more secrets and definitely A LOT HARDER, but in all fairness, its what i loved about the first: completely unforgiving. One wrong move and youre dead and unceremoniously dropped at the start of lvl 1. Its the kind of game that really makes you feel like youve earned every win. It can be kinda cheap, but thats part of the charm, i think. Its the only game i play regularly other than gt7. If you want an oldschool platformer thats as rewarding as it is frustrating, you cant go wrong with spelunky. And steer clear of online guides at least until you can reach olmec consistently. Part of the fun is figuring out the mechanics to the secrets.
I liked the Olmec break because any time I have a run that could get to a new area I need some time to stop stressing out so the Olmec fight really calms me down and I disagree slightly with your final score but I agree slightly with your points but I have a different experience with what your describing. I just did a no gold run which was really hard and am now trying to get to world 7 but when I first started out I kinda sucked like most new players but I enjoy starting from the bottom and climbing up in skill so I had no problem getting used to the difficulty but I hear your point about it being boring but here is where my opinion differs. I like the idea of learning new strategy and implementing them into your run so as I played Spelunky 2 at least two hours a day I kept finding new things and implementing new higher level strategy’s which is super fun and makes it to where Spelunky 2 will never get old and I watched lots of Northernlion stuff to make me feel good when I died in stupid ways which is why I love watching a youtuber play the game you’re playing currently and is especially important when playing rogue like that require will power to play so I would rate it better then Spelunky in my opinion.
You got me to play Hollow Knight after your last video. Super Metroid is my favorite game of all time and I had an absolute blast playing it. Can’t wait for you to do Dark Souls next.
The thing about spelunky HD is that there is just not as much to do. Even if it is objectively or personally better. You might find yourself coming back to spelunky 2 because of how much you can do.
I've acualy played a ton of the OG OG game, spelunky HTML5 on my chromebook witch I actually really enjoy it and I'll probably get spelunky 1 because it's more related to spelunky HTML5 in level design
Maybe someone here can offer some advice. I’ve purchased and played Spelunky HD on like 5 different platforms and put 300+ hours into it *just* on the Vita. I consider it one of my favorite games of all-time. Alternatively, ever since Spelunky 2 released I’ve probably put about 3 total hours into it and I don’t understand why. Every couple weeks/months I tell myself that today is the day I’m going to learn Spelunky 2 and I boot it up and turn it off within 30 minutes (when you don’t even make it past 1-4 on 90% of runs a lot can be accomplished in that relatively short period of time). I don’t understand why I can’t connect with this game. I’m somehow awful at it even though I can still go back to the old one and pretty reliably get to Olmec (or further) on nearly every run. But the difficulty isn’t the problem. That’s kinda the whole reason I bought it, although it does feel a little more unfair than the original for some reason (but I promise I’m cool with that). I just had the urge to try Spelunky 2 again last night and bounced off it almost immediately but this time I decided to try to do something about it. I’ve had this problem with games in the past because I just wasn’t in the right mental state for gaming but that 100% isn’t it and that’s what’s so frustrating. On paper this game is everything I wanted out of a sequel (except the moles) so I don’t know why I can’t play it for longer than 30 minutes. I want to love this game. I don’t even know what I’m asking for here, just some guidance I guess.
I've put a lot of hours into Spelunky HD. Its my favorite game literally ever. I just spent about an hour in 2 & had a lot of 'WTF?' moments. It already feels more unfair & I agree there are some bizarre design choices here. That said, I'm still excited to play a lot more of it. Nice video, have a sub!
I'm new to the series and only have the cosmic ocean left to conquer. I've thoroughly enjoyed it so far and have also gotten quite frustrated. Thankfully there is an ankh skip you can do at Olmec to save a lot of time, but yeah all the waiting sucks. I think your video is really good, keep it up!
Subbed because you sound like David Blaine talking in full well constructed and coherent sentences that don't involve crazy stunts, rather insightful commentary from your perspective upon game mechanics and feel.
I do miss out on variants, the ones in 2 just seem way too downplayed (except the dark levels, which are amazing, just like 1). The difficulty isn’t that much harder though. Agreed, the game does make you slow down, but I don’t see how you don’t just take that as a challenge to your own patience. The music is fucked I liked the a-b-c tracks from 1 but you have a lot of great tracks in 2 it just seems unfair to gloss over it. It’s easily just as good as the first wtf! You have two different paths that lead you to a secret end, and on top of that you have a super secret end! I think nowadays people are way too willing to simply look up a guide or watch their favorite youtuber play the game and solve all its mysteries. I spent hours trying to figure out the tidepool path, and still remember being amazed at figuring it out after loads of theory testing. Also, in the first game you could literally plow through every single stage with a shotgun like nothing, and you say spelunky 2 level design is too routined.
i'd say the dark levels staying was a bad choice because there's no good reward for the amount of danger it poses oh, scarabs? yeah the money's really gonna help when I FELL ON SPIKES BECAUSE I COULDN'T SEE THE LEDGES TO GRAB
Love the into. Death is an extremely important part of life and people carry on, day to day as if it's not inevitable. We can live a better life once we embrace the temporary nature of our journey. That's a sub from me. God bless and merry Christmas ✌🏻🎅
I really like Spelunky 2. I think it's better than HD, but I have two problems with the game. 1) TOO many insta-kills. piranha plants, bear traps, lava, A LOT of crushing, freezing, spikes, ceiling spikes, ghost, celestial jellyfish, and LOTS of stun locks (tiki men, yetis, horned lizards, etc). All of these make HP almost useless. Most of these were present in HD, but: 2) the are TOO many unfair deaths. The spark traps are just AWFUL, UFOs explode unpredictably all the time, enemies come from the upper to the lower layer (specially magmamen) and push you to lava or spikes... Everything else is just perfect, but goddamn I lost too many times passing level 50 in the Cosmic Ocean because of a random unpredictable UFO or magmaman.
Yup, that's my main issue with the game. When a run can be so long, when the game is very punishing, it's really hard to accept to lose to a random flying saucer exploding out of screen raining down on you. That's not difficulty level. That's not lack of skill. That's not fun. It's just unfair BS. It happens often in the Cosmic Ocean. In HD, when you lose, you know it was your fault.
to be honest most of these complaints sound like they come from running for 7-99 which is an entirely optional challenge that you get no reward for doing apart from a constellation in the lobby that being said these are valid points even outside of the CO
I gotta be a rare case then when I say I couldn’t get into Spelunky HD (6h played) but Spelunky 2 pulled me in (100h+ played). But I can see where you are coming from.
I was blown away. For a channel with 421 Subs (Me being one), you've done amazing. Usually I thought most people didn't start making good content until around the 1K Mark, but this is amazing. Also, on the review side, I feel like the main problem with 2, at least for me, is the Dwelling. It's far more punishing than the Mines from HD, and as you pointed out, far more structured. Punishing isn't bad, but only about 10% of my runs get out of the Dwelling, compared to the about 50% from the Mines in HD. It just makes it feel like you never make progress. The moles should only have one health since they're so bullshit and there are already TWO other enemies in the Dwelling with 3 health (Cavemen and Horned Assholes). Also, as a side note there should be no invincibility frames on enemies unless they're stunned. Lizards are annoying to deal with mostly because of their large jump at the end of the roll. The jump itself is fine, but the fact that it has I-Frames and goes so high annoys me to no end. Quillback is far to tedious to deal with. His large health pool doesn't make him more challenging, just makes him take longer to deal with. It should be lowered to around 3-5. I feel like waiting for him to get to the side you want to go to should take less time. His design will also confuse new players. It's a mix of a Caveman, a Horned Lizard, and a Mole, but his mechanics only match a caveman. I guess he technically goes through blocks by destroying him, but I think the color should match more of the Lizards than that of the Moles. Then players will be able to instinctively be able to tell how this weird boss works. As for his arena, it's fine. Entering from above lets there be 2 sides to go to, and the Bone Blocks tell the player "This can break". Overall, the Dwelling is the worst part of this game, which sucks because it's the part you go through most commonly.
I haven't played the original except for the demo. I don't know whether the controls are identical in the demo but if so, spelunky 2 is way better in that sense. Also the transitions felt a little annoying. Every time you finish a level it's that same zoom in zoom out thing. As for the soundtrack, I'm sure it as a whole is awesome but for example the track that plays when you anger the shopkeeper is the most annoying loop I've ever heard.
great video! i put hundreds of hours into spelunky 1 like you, and after 120 in spelunky 2 i could not disagree with you more about it not being the better of the two though. i went back and played spelunky 1 for a few runs recently and it feels so empty and uninteresting to me now.
damn this review is actually good, it's not like the others who just say "it's spelunky but better" heere you acually say things that are bad in the game, good job
You perfectly put all my problems with sp2 in words, but you did ignore some of the incredible things going on in here. This comes off as an accurate review, but one that only touches on the negative parts.
I agree the music is pretty lacking.... Also there's no Viking character anymore! What were you thinking, Derek!? (JK Spelunky 2 is amazing overall, just a few patches listening to videos like this would make it even better!)
This is what I expected. No sequel could surpass Spelunky 1. What made Spelunky 1 so attractive and iconic was the music, simple depth, the mystique of it - you just knew it had a full plate to offer if you got invested. And that’s exactly what thousands of players did. Israel Blargh vids on how to own shopkeepers - watched all of them lol.
im just sad they butchered the music, but its evident they went with a more ambient feel for the music because most players of spelunky hd would end up turning the music way down or just turning it off to not distract from the game
There's a 5 bomb sped up Olmec fight(very hard to do though). The games still new, we have much to learn Edit-ua-cam.com/video/ld7AB_bXK1A/v-deo.html Edit again - I've never played the 1st one, I'm loving this game. Edit 1 year later - I now have 5 7-99 wins. Again I never played the first game, but this is one of my fav games of all time now.
Strongly desagree. The sequel takes the original concept and push it further, thats what is supossed to be a sequel. The changes are minimalist but it has a huge impact in the game. Spelunky 1 is a very special and fun game, but Spelunky 2 is almost Chaos theory thesis. In my opinion feels more unique than the first and thats why i think its better.
I agree with you in almost all the arguments but infact i played throgh both games (almost done with Spelunky 2) and I enjoyed Spelunky 2 way more so all i would say is that Spelunky 2 is infact the better Game Edit: this not meant as hate I (personaly) think that Spelunky 2 is better
Good points! As having played lots of S1 and S2 I still have to say that S2 is so many more times better. For me the enjoyment comes from the different scenarios the game can take you to, and the things to discover, and S2 wins by a landslide in both of those categories. Dwelling is really boring though xD
Ok I completely disagree with your olmec point. I didn't even know that was a strategy until I already had my own strategy which was cooler and more engaging while still being safe. You don't have to do that strategy for olmec, you can do your own and if you're good you'll be fine
Whilst Spelunky 2 is a good game it simply does not hold a candle to HD when it comes to its refinement. In fact, 2 feels like Spelunky OG, good ideas but its execution is a bit clunky in some parts. Much like you i have around 500+ hours in HD but I only put in 41 in the sequel. I simply got too bored to continue. The additions don't excite, the levels don't have any flare to them, the background mechanic is too gimmicky, the new bosses generally share the same monster spawner DNA except for a minuscule few. I was generally disappointed with the game as it's just too tedious to play.
Spelunky is empty, theres litteraly only 4 areas, nothing to do in each one, and olmec is the most boring boss ,apart from Yama. Spelunky 2 however, is way more interesting and open, character desigs are better, functions are better, maps sre better, The game is bigger and just better in general. Spelunky was fun but every run that would end, it was be agonizing to see the mines default block, in spelunky 2 its different though.
@@tannertroy7528 I have only played the hd demo but i watched alot of content of it and alot of speedruns and it looks alot shorter than spelunky 2. Many of the things people say are bad about spelunky 2 don't anoyying me like whats bad about dwelling being harder than the caves. Spelunky 2 overall looks way better the characters, worlds bassicly everthing looks better for example temple of anubis, hell and golden city in spelunky 1 are just diffrent colored bricks and in spelunky 2 everything looks way better.
What i liked about the original Spelunky was the variety in it's soundtrack. No matter how many times i would stupidly die and restart 1-1 i would always get a different background music. In 2 it's just the same song and doing 1-1 for the 20th time isn't making it any more tolerable
This is a great point. The music in Spelunky 1 is some of the best in video gaming, IMO...it seems like it was made to sound nostalgic and modern all at once. S2 really dropped the ball, by comparison.
Great video. Just beat Spelunky 2 for the first time and I agree with nearly everything stated here. I've only played the sequel, so like you said in the video, it was brutal to play through not being a Spelunky veteran. I wouldn't say I hate the game though, I just find it kind of repetitive. Subscribed btw.
I was going to give a very serious and long reply but man, if the footage of 6:34 is you playing... I see where all your criticism might be coming from.
I like how splunky hd had multiple music tracks and different layouts in the first area. Splunky 2 has 1 song and the same layout for the final room for that one big rolling dude, makes it feel worse when starting compared to the first one
The dwelling and def the music have some issues. Honestly Spelunky 2 is definitely better all the way. I play both back to back to get all achievements and Spelunky 1 feels almost dead compared to this game. Thanks to Spelunky 2, Spelunky 1 is a breeze.
One really strange thing that I dislike is the choices between levels. I really like the temple and the jungle, but I never go there because I have no reason to. I kind of wish you had to go to all of the worlds, or at the very least could.
The lack of music variety bothers me more than it should, I'm a huge music guy and the variety in the first game is one of the reasons I love it so much
I know this is a late comment, but on launch I loved spelunky 2. However the thing that has ALWAYS (and still will) bother me, is that the music just doesnt hit as hard as Spelunky HD did, A lot of the music there gets repetitive due to the lack of having 3 varying songs for each floor, and they're all basically just moreso ambient songs then it is to be the real, upbeat and action filled music for spelunky, Spelunky HD nails it with the first layers theme, and then hells theme kicks ass, olmecs theme is a banger, all of the temple songs are amazing. and you can't forget the yeti "Smells like wet fur" random event that plays by far one of my most favorite songs in the game.
do you still stand by this? after the many updates this game received i can easily say that it is superior to 1 in every way except music and the dwelling level generation
I disagree that 2 is meaner to new players. while dwelling is harder and takes more time to learn than caves, it offers one very important counterbalance. turkeys. they give bonus hp, or they can tank damage or spikes, plus they provide a double jump.
@@fancydink At least for me, even though getting wins in Spelunky 2 is a lot tougher now, the moment to moment gameplay is more fun. HP is easier to come by meaning you can make more minor mistakes, the movement is more fluid IMO, and I like the faster pace of the game. The huge increase in variety and choices you can make throughout a run also adds a lot for me. Ex., in Spelunky 1, the way to play is almost always to get a shotgun/jetpack, and to kill shopkeepers. Spelunky 2, killing shopkeepers creates real problems for future floors. And there are real benefits for using different packs and weapons now. Sure there are also more insta/BS deaths now, but Spelunky for me isn't about playing ad infinitum, just to explore deeper and figure out new secrets as I get more experienced. So I don't really mind those occasional deaths.
Good points, and I wish I'd mentioned the increased abundance of HP in the video. I would definitely agree that Spelunky 2 is the more interesting game from the perspective of a Spelunky veteran. But *any* new content would be more interesting to a Spelunky veteran. It's hard for me to ignore the things that feel like downgrades from HD, or straight up design mistakes, and there are too many of them.
@@fancydink I agree with a lot of your points in the video and even though I'm coming into the spelunky 2 as a new player, I've still sunken 83 hours into the game, without winning yet but getting really close. from what I've seen mossmouth is making a lot of improvements to the game over time, and they may fix everything in your video when they get around to making multiplayer. As of now spelunky 2 seems like an early access game with the way you describe and in some ways it is, but i'm sure that it will become the perfect sequel every spelunky veteran would want. (this is all In my opinion)
You make good points, but for no specific reason. I disagree, not to say the issues you bring up don't exist. But I LOVE spelunky2. I've played for over a hundred hours and there is still so much I have yet to uncover. I have very little experience with the first game, so I guess I can't say it's better than the first. But I do really really love spelunky2.
backlayer is never interesting??? ok how about making you bring the key to the chest (rather than chest to key), secret shops, secret levels (vlads, mothership), Tun's challenges, getting to abzu, ushabti, ankh behind olmec. Like sure the torch hut doesnt really benefit from the back layer, but its interesting in many other ways that you just.... dont address. Also, are you sure you liked HD? a lot of your criticisms, like the game trying to troll you, or repetitive level generation are also found in the first game. Also, saying that Spelunky 2 is more structured in the item paths than HD is flat out ridiculous. Like sure Dwelling has a clear rythm to it, but the rest of the game is entirely up to you. Also, giving a clear pattern to the first area helps new players learn it faster and reach later parts of the game more quickly. Also, I completely agree that Spelunky 2 should have more impactful level variations and I really miss the random music tracks. (Sorry for ranting)
I'm glad I'm not the only one who noticed that something was off about Spelunky 2. Don't get me wrong. Spelunky 2 is still a great game, but the first game just feels more polished in every way. Not to mention, the lack of music variety was definitely the most off-putting thing. Spelunky 2 is good. But the original is still the king after over a decade!
A few things is they should not make the lava one shot but make it so you take a good amount of damage still and if you get poisoned the whole run is over basically.
This whole review feels like the product of being very used to Spelunky HD and new to Spelunky 2. As someone who only put 70 hours into the original before trying out Spelunky 2 I have to say that it felt far more fair and reasonable overall. I personally never got the hang of fighting shopkeepers in the original and grinding for a run that reaches the black market with 50k only to have a tiki man or orange frog piss them off is the kind of experience that no amount of Spelunky 2's bs comes close to.
I'm glad to announce that mossmouth is really lending an ear to the playerbase. Olmec has been tweaked in a way where you can no longer afk and need to actively engage. I still can't defend the lack of level variety though, since a couple level feelings could really sprouce up the game. However, i CAN say that i find myself playing more S2 than i ever did the original.
Sadly though, the feelings are fewer and farther between...
Sorry, misread the comment :P
I personally like spelunky 2 more. but a really agree with your points, also spelunky 2 level generation isnt varied enough and feels way too similar every run
I'd rather play Spelunky 2 myself, but only because I've seen everything in HD.
Yeah after a good amount of experience I can easily tell how a level is gonna be just early on, I’ve been playing the game for a while though but it’s still rather alienating to now know how a randomly generated level is made and gonna look like
I feel like in spelunky 2 there is lots of random annoying crap to ruin your run. The reason I watched this video is why does Olmec show up so early
You make some good points here, I love Spelunky 2 but it does have some problems, the RNG is a little to unfair at times, waiting around for Olmec, world 1 etc..
It's one of the best games I've played this year, but nothing's perfect.
Except maybe Spelunky HD.
@@fancydink Indeed I think Spelunky 2 is defiantly the better game for long term Spelunky players. But the sequel is a less perfect package as a whole than HD was.
I really agree with all these responses.
Problems with Spelunky 2 that 1 didn’t have.
Moles.
World one feels like a chore every time.
More things that can ruin a run if you get bad RNG such as: Drill in volcana going through a shop or (can’t ruin a run but still sucks) Kali altar.
@@honey-hunterslimefanno.3257 also the horned lizards
Well that's a dark intro.
I'm doing what I can to make the world a little more glum each day.
my only problem with this game was the dwelling and Olmec. and they basically completely fixed Olmec at this point.
@Tomáš Staněk i find that thats less of a problem with the liquid physics and more of aproblem with volcana's level generation. its also annoying when the drill hits a shop or kali's alter.
What normally works for me is to do the drill as soon as possible then all Lava should be done by 2:10. I recommend exploring the level more during that time so it doesn’t bore you just waiting!
@@joshuaperry7323 a robot went into the lava, exploded, and a drip of lava ruined a run where I had tons of resources
what’s the problem with dwelling
@@SirGoonsquire that’s how mafia works
I absolutely agree with this assessment. It's great, but frustrating in a way Spelunky HD never was. I was able to get every achievement in Spelunky HD and I logged over 1000 hours in it because I could spend 40 minutes in a Hell run only to die and want to do it all over. Now I waste the same amount of time trying to get past Dwelling three times before finally making it to 2-3 and inevitably dying and rage-quitting. I've played 35 hours of S2 and I still don't feel like I'm any closer to being better at the game. It's too full of bullshit.
Getting stunlocked and the physics most often times working against you, sums up to what feels like a lit more bullshit compared to the first game. Added the fact that repeating levels means dealing with certain hiccups in S2’s difficulty curve.
Even after beating the alternate ending twice, the bullshit moments in the game are just more noticeably present in 2 versus 1, and at least for me it takes away from the experience from learning from what ought to be your mistakes rather than spontaneous death sequences like it’s a lottery machine pulled by the environment and RNG. You can barely make notice of something and before you know it, that split second of analysis to be cautious per how the game conditions you to be aware of your surroundings still spells out death. Yes game 1 had that type of punishment mechanic, but 2 for some reason increases that and forces the player to think 5 or 6 steps ahead rather than 3 or 4; with little or no more reward for the danger once the player finishes discovering new things about the sequel. I get the creator not wanting veterans to beat the game too speedily, but keeping what probably are half-finished or even bad elements in the game’s design barely pulls back S2 from being better than it should be.
All I can say is it's worth persisting. I'm 150 hours in and everything is falling into place.
This is an unreasonable about of time to expect new players to stick around for especially considering I had hundreds of hours in the 1st game mostly helping me.
Something I've noticed is that I seem to get worse the more I play.
My first Spelunky 2 run of the day tends to go really well, but after that I'm more likely to make mistakes trying to hurry back to where I was.
Obviously, this is a potential problem for the whole genre, but it's something I feel the first game got right.
HD was frustrating at times, but fair enough, and you could move through areas quickly enough that starting over was never *too* bad.
In Spelunky 2, the musical fanfare at the start of the dwelling makes me want to turn the game off.
i dont like a flaming corpse getting flung into me from offscreen and instantly killing me
@@marioisawesome8218 That does suck. There are rare instances of random things like that. The worst to me are environmentally broken ghost jars that punish the player; that’s just straight bad design. It’d make much more sense to make ghost jars into something like ghost chests, which inly the player can open and that has to be deliberately done in order to activate the ghost early in a level. A simple fix that remedies an otherwise really disadvantagous RNG event.
Great video. I think the game greatly improved upon the controls and art style but I find some of the level generation in Dwelling frustrating. It always seems to cost too many resources to obtain the Udjat Eye and I feel like you have to cook bombs or use a couple ropes to reach the key, altars, and other parts of the map in this game. Cooking bombs was more of a specialized strategy that was optional in Spelunky HD and honestly isn't really fun to do. I think Spelunky 2 was designed with the thought that "Harder=Better" and it's frustrating some fans. The team has done a good job of listening to feedback though and has made it so Yang's rewards now can contain rope/bombs sometimes.I hope the team keeps making slight adjustments to make the flow of Dwelling better so it keeps that "just one more run" feel of Spelunky HD.
It was not until halfway through this video I realized that I'm not watching a review by some huge channel, but rather a fairly new, smaller channel. I've gotta say, this is excellent content and you earned my sub!
I have never played the original Spelunky myself, nor have I ever seen any gameplay until after Spelunky 2 came out. I enjoy the sequel very much and I would guess that I wouldn't have as much fun playing the original. While I agree with some of your points, some don't bother me personally - like repetitive music (I'm more of a "some TV show in the background" sort of guy) or the elongated Olmec fight (usually you're right, you have to wait it out, but there's a path you can go to relatively quickly, however you miss out on some stuff).
Overall, is it objectively better? I'll leave that up to you, since I didn't experience the original first-hand. Subjectively, I love the sequel very much and it's easily one of the, if not the best game of the year. I am experiencing significant improvement in my skills and make it further more consistently. Of course, the occasional dumb death still happens, but that's the game for me. It's sort of a love-hate relationship I know from TBoI.
I’ve played Spelunky 1 and 2 fully through, to King yama and Hunduns lair respectively and I prefer one personally because each run feels just a lot more unique than they do in 2. I don’t know if there actually are but it feels like there are more different layouts an area can be in 1 than 2 because the levels never feel the same in 1 yet they do in 2.
I agree, i have gotten to king yama a few times and beat him and beat Tiamat 2 times the level generation in HD feels more unique and in 2 it feels like your going into the same run over and over.
this guy acts so Professional
I can't wait to see you become a big UA-camr your videos are so enjoyable and you voice is so calming
Honestly, great review.
Thank you kindly.
Fair, concise, and informative (not to mention a little vindicating). great video!
I'm subbing, keep it up
This is something that I've had on my mind for a while but couldn't really put into words. I love both games and Spelunky 2 is still great tho, just not better than the original. Although I think it could be with updates.
First, dwelling needs to be fixed. This is a problem that's a bit to big for a youtube comment but I think decreasing the time moles stay in the ground and disabling there invincibility frames would go a long way.
Secondly, I'd like to address the branching paths. One thing I love about rouguelikes is that all there content is so compact. It's the antithesis to the ubisoft model of stretching the game out to 40+ hours. I don't mind the branching paths at all but I would like to have the option to play through all areas in 1 run, although it shouldn't be the default mode.
Third is the background layers and how to fix them. If you look in the trailers, the background layers in the jungle seem to be used to make the levels even more mazelike, with more background tunnels that connect to more areas. This should have been in the game. The closest any level comes is temple, which has some cool ideas with the background areas.
Finally, temple need to be balanced. It is so clearly harder than tide pool, and has worse rewards. The special weapon you get from temple is likely to kill you, while the excalibur is very useful against pretty much any enemy. The clone gun can be used for a kapala, or 99 bomb and ropes, while the elixir is just a healing item that fixes status ailments. Not to mention that tide pool has a strat that allows you to keep your ankh and a back item, while temple doesn't give you either. Some improvements that could be made to temple are, giving Orisiris a unique drop item or just allowing you to keep your old one, allowing players to save the elixir as a one time use item, which would be great for cosmic ocean runs, and maybe make tide pools boss harder because compared to climbing up the land of the dead with instakill snakes, abzu is boring as fuck. I'd love to go to temple every run but it's just not viable honestly. Also 1 critism of the review is how long the pauses are in between some sentences. Aside from that nice job and I'm subbed.
Great video! Everyone seems to really adore this new spelunky and it’s definitely very exciting and has its fun moments. However, I found right after my first few days with the game something felt off. I’ve put a ridiculous amount of hours into 2 and there’s no sense of progression in my skills like the first, I even ended up buying the HD on steam since I always played it on ps3 and now I’ve been playing a ton of HD again and way much more fun with it. Maybe it’s just because I’ve played it so much, but HD feels so comforting, the music sets the tone and the different tracks helped keeping things from going stale. That’s really the biggest problem with 2 and you hit it right on the head as well as the many other issues; things get stale much too quickly. I wish they would add more of the level variants to the dwelling. The spider variant, the snake pit (always my favorite). I can’t really put my finger on it, but spelunky hd is also just more fun to move through, spelunky 2s pacing through the levels feels completely different. I think HD struck the perfect balance with its level’s complexity and everything felt a lot more opened. This new game has a lot more stuff crammed in, but it makes things feel more tight and samey, the level variation feels less complex than the first and it should be the opposite. Maybe if dwelling didn’t exist I would like the game a bit more. Although I’m still happy to have a new spelunky to explore, I think you did a great job summing up this game’s faults and I look forward to watching your future content
That's a one hell of a hot take, love it! Keep up the good work, love your vids
This was very well put together, for such a small channel your editing, voiceover, and content is all fantastic.
Also your argument is exactly how I've felt. Though the new features were neat, the overall quality of its base gameplay didn't hold up, particularly in difficulty.
My biggest gripe with Spelunky 2 is that there's so little incentive to take those branching paths. Like, you *could* go to Volcana and get Vlad's Cape, a single item that's kinda useful... If you go on a whole-ass quest, you can get the Alien Compass, which is... Cool? OR you can go to the Jungle. It has the Black Market for a TON of great items as long as you play your cards right, and get the Three Sisters for an easy Bomb Box.
Later on, you can go to the Temple, you can fight Anubis and get the Scepter, go to the City of Gold for money, I guess, go through Duat with its tons of instakills and *maybe* you'll get an item or two. Or you can go to the Tide Pool, get the Clone Gun for potentially more money (by cloning an Idol), more items (cloning a Crate, Bomb Box, so on), a ton of health (clone a Damsel and sacrifice them all), whatever. And better yet, you don't need to use the Ankh in the Tide Pool. It's luck dependent for the most part, sure, but it's there. In Duat, you *have* to sacrifice yourself and use the Ankh. And since there's a chance you can keep a *second life,* why would you ever go to the Temple?
Give us a convoluted-but-possible way of keeping the Ankh in the City of Gold, maybe you have to sacrifice a ton of Gold Pots, or "hitch a ride" with a corpse, or you need 99 health to "cheat death," just have SOMETHING. Same for Volcana, move the Three Sisters over there, buff their gifts! Parsley gives you a couple Rope Piles on the spot, Parsnip gives you a Bomb Box, Parmesan gives you a random item or weapon. Then on Olmec, they give you a health up based on your performance (saving one gives you a Turkey, saving two gets you a Royal Jelly, saving three gets you an Elixir). Give us a reason to experiment! I don't want to think "Ugh, I *guess* I'll go to Volcana, but *only* because I already have a lot of resources and don't have an explosive on my back".
i'd say the jungle only balances out because there's a lot more bogus to deal with there
unavoidable witch doctors, tikimen which can combo you to death, there's a lot
and vlad's cape is a one of a kind item which can work as a safer alternative to the jetpack
the great items are somewhat luck dependent (why is the web gun in weapon shops) and sometimes you have to use bombs to reach the three sisters, so if you pass them without knowing, you have to use ropes on top of the bombs in order to finish the sidequest
i get that volcana is also kinda bad because everything there deals fire damage but most of it can be avoided if you pay close attention
I had similar issues with the game as well. But for me, the biggest drawback is the waiting that the games forces you into, especially the olmec fight. Considering that this is a game that you can die quick, having to drudge through the same fight is tiresome.
Plus the drill on volcana, heaven forbids if lava, an altar, or a shop is under there.
The music is probably the biggest letdown as I love the original HD soundtrack a lot! The dwelling by and far is my most disliked track.
Overall, it is a wonderful game but it falls short with its baffling changes.
That's exactly it. There is an imbalance here, however slight, in how much attention the game demands vs. how much I'm willing to offer.
Over time, muscle memory should take over, but Spelunky 2 wants you to remain pretty attentive no matter how many times you've done it before, and that feels tedious.
well made video. one day i realised that i wasnt enjoying Spelunky 2, it wasnt growing on me and that it probably never will. which is a shame because i love Spelunky HD and waited years for a sequel
Your timing and tone in these voice overs is always so dang good man
Who knew that 45 seconds is all it takes to give someone an existential crisis.
Glad I could help.
i think the enemy-favored hitboxes and the faint lag for whip attacks is probably one of the biggest things that slow down the game, it becomes less about reflexes and reacting and more about playing as carefully as possible so you dont get fucked by those faint things that you have no control over besides just playing along with it.
Apart from the music, i believe it is better than the original. Well, not better, its the same, but more of it. More monsters, more levels, more items, more secrets and definitely A LOT HARDER, but in all fairness, its what i loved about the first: completely unforgiving. One wrong move and youre dead and unceremoniously dropped at the start of lvl 1. Its the kind of game that really makes you feel like youve earned every win. It can be kinda cheap, but thats part of the charm, i think. Its the only game i play regularly other than gt7. If you want an oldschool platformer thats as rewarding as it is frustrating, you cant go wrong with spelunky. And steer clear of online guides at least until you can reach olmec consistently. Part of the fun is figuring out the mechanics to the secrets.
Also enjoyed the OG Super Mario World ad you put in there around 2:24
I liked the Olmec break because any time I have a run that could get to a new area I need some time to stop stressing out so the Olmec fight really calms me down and I disagree slightly with your final score but I agree slightly with your points but I have a different experience with what your describing. I just did a no gold run which was really hard and am now trying to get to world 7 but when I first started out I kinda sucked like most new players but I enjoy starting from the bottom and climbing up in skill so I had no problem getting used to the difficulty but I hear your point about it being boring but here is where my opinion differs. I like the idea of learning new strategy and implementing them into your run so as I played Spelunky 2 at least two hours a day I kept finding new things and implementing new higher level strategy’s which is super fun and makes it to where Spelunky 2 will never get old and I watched lots of Northernlion stuff to make me feel good when I died in stupid ways which is why I love watching a youtuber play the game you’re playing currently and is especially important when playing rogue like that require will power to play so I would rate it better then Spelunky in my opinion.
Really well done and honest review! Great points made
You got me to play Hollow Knight after your last video. Super Metroid is my favorite game of all time and I had an absolute blast playing it. Can’t wait for you to do Dark Souls next.
You have what we might call impeccable taste.
The thing about spelunky HD is that there is just not as much to do. Even if it is objectively or personally better. You might find yourself coming back to spelunky 2 because of how much you can do.
I've acualy played a ton of the OG OG game, spelunky HTML5 on my chromebook witch I actually really enjoy it and I'll probably get spelunky 1 because it's more related to spelunky HTML5 in level design
Surprised to see so little subs! I know this is an old video and prolly won’t see this, but keep it up
Maybe someone here can offer some advice. I’ve purchased and played Spelunky HD on like 5 different platforms and put 300+ hours into it *just* on the Vita. I consider it one of my favorite games of all-time. Alternatively, ever since Spelunky 2 released I’ve probably put about 3 total hours into it and I don’t understand why. Every couple weeks/months I tell myself that today is the day I’m going to learn Spelunky 2 and I boot it up and turn it off within 30 minutes (when you don’t even make it past 1-4 on 90% of runs a lot can be accomplished in that relatively short period of time). I don’t understand why I can’t connect with this game. I’m somehow awful at it even though I can still go back to the old one and pretty reliably get to Olmec (or further) on nearly every run. But the difficulty isn’t the problem. That’s kinda the whole reason I bought it, although it does feel a little more unfair than the original for some reason (but I promise I’m cool with that).
I just had the urge to try Spelunky 2 again last night and bounced off it almost immediately but this time I decided to try to do something about it. I’ve had this problem with games in the past because I just wasn’t in the right mental state for gaming but that 100% isn’t it and that’s what’s so frustrating. On paper this game is everything I wanted out of a sequel (except the moles) so I don’t know why I can’t play it for longer than 30 minutes. I want to love this game. I don’t even know what I’m asking for here, just some guidance I guess.
Those giant spiders in spelunky HD scare the shit out of me
You sound exactly like someone who I can’t remember right now but I like it and the way you make your videos
I've put a lot of hours into Spelunky HD. Its my favorite game literally ever. I just spent about an hour in 2 & had a lot of 'WTF?' moments. It already feels more unfair & I agree there are some bizarre design choices here. That said, I'm still excited to play a lot more of it. Nice video, have a sub!
I'm new to the series and only have the cosmic ocean left to conquer. I've thoroughly enjoyed it so far and have also gotten quite frustrated. Thankfully there is an ankh skip you can do at Olmec to save a lot of time, but yeah all the waiting sucks. I think your video is really good, keep it up!
Subbed because you sound like David Blaine talking in full well constructed and coherent sentences that don't involve crazy stunts, rather insightful commentary from your perspective upon game mechanics and feel.
sums up my experience pretty well
I do miss out on variants, the ones in 2 just seem way too downplayed (except the dark levels, which are amazing, just like 1). The difficulty isn’t that much harder though. Agreed, the game does make you slow down, but I don’t see how you don’t just take that as a challenge to your own patience.
The music is fucked I liked the a-b-c tracks from 1 but you have a lot of great tracks in 2 it just seems unfair to gloss over it.
It’s easily just as good as the first wtf! You have two different paths that lead you to a secret end, and on top of that you have a super secret end! I think nowadays people are way too willing to simply look up a guide or watch their favorite youtuber play the game and solve all its mysteries. I spent hours trying to figure out the tidepool path, and still remember being amazed at figuring it out after loads of theory testing.
Also, in the first game you could literally plow through every single stage with a shotgun like nothing, and you say spelunky 2 level design is too routined.
Look at the date
i'd say the dark levels staying was a bad choice because there's no good reward for the amount of danger it poses
oh, scarabs? yeah the money's really gonna help when I FELL ON SPIKES BECAUSE I COULDN'T SEE THE LEDGES TO GRAB
Love the into. Death is an extremely important part of life and people carry on, day to day as if it's not inevitable. We can live a better life once we embrace the temporary nature of our journey.
That's a sub from me. God bless and merry Christmas ✌🏻🎅
they changed the olmec fight a bit so it's no longer just a waiting game :)
I really like Spelunky 2. I think it's better than HD, but I have two problems with the game.
1) TOO many insta-kills. piranha plants, bear traps, lava, A LOT of crushing, freezing, spikes, ceiling spikes, ghost, celestial jellyfish, and LOTS of stun locks (tiki men, yetis, horned lizards, etc). All of these make HP almost useless. Most of these were present in HD, but:
2) the are TOO many unfair deaths. The spark traps are just AWFUL, UFOs explode unpredictably all the time, enemies come from the upper to the lower layer (specially magmamen) and push you to lava or spikes...
Everything else is just perfect, but goddamn I lost too many times passing level 50 in the Cosmic Ocean because of a random unpredictable UFO or magmaman.
Yup, that's my main issue with the game. When a run can be so long, when the game is very punishing, it's really hard to accept to lose to a random flying saucer exploding out of screen raining down on you. That's not difficulty level. That's not lack of skill. That's not fun. It's just unfair BS. It happens often in the Cosmic Ocean. In HD, when you lose, you know it was your fault.
to be honest most of these complaints sound like they come from running for 7-99 which is an entirely optional challenge that you get no reward for doing apart from a constellation in the lobby
that being said these are valid points even outside of the CO
Nothing beats spelunky hd for me. It's perfect.
I gotta be a rare case then when I say I couldn’t get into Spelunky HD (6h played) but Spelunky 2 pulled me in (100h+ played). But I can see where you are coming from.
Tbh I have never played Spelunky HD and ended up loving Spelunky 2 and this weekend I beat it. Maybe I should pick up the First one.
Did you play spelunky 1 yet?
@@bananafone1414 I did.
I came to hear an opinion about the funny game that keeps beating my ass not having an existential crisis 15 seconds in
the review that followed justified it. excellent points made.
I was blown away. For a channel with 421 Subs (Me being one), you've done amazing. Usually I thought most people didn't start making good content until around the 1K Mark, but this is amazing.
Also, on the review side, I feel like the main problem with 2, at least for me, is the Dwelling. It's far more punishing than the Mines from HD, and as you pointed out, far more structured. Punishing isn't bad, but only about 10% of my runs get out of the Dwelling, compared to the about 50% from the Mines in HD. It just makes it feel like you never make progress.
The moles should only have one health since they're so bullshit and there are already TWO other enemies in the Dwelling with 3 health (Cavemen and Horned Assholes). Also, as a side note there should be no invincibility frames on enemies unless they're stunned.
Lizards are annoying to deal with mostly because of their large jump at the end of the roll. The jump itself is fine, but the fact that it has I-Frames and goes so high annoys me to no end.
Quillback is far to tedious to deal with. His large health pool doesn't make him more challenging, just makes him take longer to deal with. It should be lowered to around 3-5. I feel like waiting for him to get to the side you want to go to should take less time. His design will also confuse new players. It's a mix of a Caveman, a Horned Lizard, and a Mole, but his mechanics only match a caveman. I guess he technically goes through blocks by destroying him, but I think the color should match more of the Lizards than that of the Moles. Then players will be able to instinctively be able to tell how this weird boss works. As for his arena, it's fine. Entering from above lets there be 2 sides to go to, and the Bone Blocks tell the player "This can break".
Overall, the Dwelling is the worst part of this game, which sucks because it's the part you go through most commonly.
They made it so moles dont have I-frames now, what do you think
@@Kittycat7070- Still hate Moles, now I just get to harm them more
Same, the moles are the worst part fo the dwellings tbh. Everything else except some world gen is good
I haven't played the original except for the demo. I don't know whether the controls are identical in the demo but if so, spelunky 2 is way better in that sense. Also the transitions felt a little annoying. Every time you finish a level it's that same zoom in zoom out thing. As for the soundtrack, I'm sure it as a whole is awesome but for example the track that plays when you anger the shopkeeper is the most annoying loop I've ever heard.
Same i only played the spelunky hd demo and after playing spelunky 2 the spelunky hd controls feel kinda cluncky and the zoom also annoys me kinda.
great video
Thanks!
great video! i put hundreds of hours into spelunky 1 like you, and after 120 in spelunky 2 i could not disagree with you more about it not being the better of the two though. i went back and played spelunky 1 for a few runs recently and it feels so empty and uninteresting to me now.
damn this review is actually good, it's not like the others who just say "it's spelunky but better" heere you acually say things that are bad in the game, good job
You perfectly put all my problems with sp2 in words, but you did ignore some of the incredible things going on in here. This comes off as an accurate review, but one that only touches on the negative parts.
I agree the music is pretty lacking.... Also there's no Viking character anymore! What were you thinking, Derek!? (JK Spelunky 2 is amazing overall, just a few patches listening to videos like this would make it even better!)
This is what I expected. No sequel could surpass Spelunky 1. What made Spelunky 1 so attractive and iconic was the music, simple depth, the mystique of it - you just knew it had a full plate to offer if you got invested. And that’s exactly what thousands of players did. Israel Blargh vids on how to own shopkeepers - watched all of them lol.
Olmec has been changed.
Also I'm sadistic.
im just sad they butchered the music, but its evident they went with a more ambient feel for the music because most players of spelunky hd would end up turning the music way down or just turning it off to not distract from the game
super meat boy
He is beating s2 to the ground because hes used to s1
They’re different, and both good in their own ways
What have they changed since this video was made?
Edit I think it's better now that I've played it
That was a great review that answered all my questions. You earned a sub here
There's a 5 bomb sped up Olmec fight(very hard to do though). The games still new, we have much to learn
Edit-ua-cam.com/video/ld7AB_bXK1A/v-deo.html
Edit again - I've never played the 1st one, I'm loving this game.
Edit 1 year later - I now have 5 7-99 wins. Again I never played the first game, but this is one of my fav games of all time now.
Who’s this guy?
i smell an underrated channel🤔
Strongly desagree. The sequel takes the original concept and push it further, thats what is supossed to be a sequel. The changes are minimalist but it has a huge impact in the game. Spelunky 1 is a very special and fun game, but Spelunky 2 is almost Chaos theory thesis. In my opinion feels more unique than the first and thats why i think its better.
I dont desagree
I agree with you in almost all the arguments but infact i played throgh both games (almost done with Spelunky 2) and I enjoyed Spelunky 2 way more so all i would say is that Spelunky 2 is infact the better Game
Edit: this not meant as hate I (personaly) think that Spelunky 2 is better
Good points! As having played lots of S1 and S2 I still have to say that S2 is so many more times better. For me the enjoyment comes from the different scenarios the game can take you to, and the things to discover, and S2 wins by a landslide in both of those categories. Dwelling is really boring though xD
Ok I completely disagree with your olmec point. I didn't even know that was a strategy until I already had my own strategy which was cooler and more engaging while still being safe. You don't have to do that strategy for olmec, you can do your own and if you're good you'll be fine
a real review that isnt an overhyped "this is the b e s t game ever m a d e" in attempt of attracting fans.
im impressed.
it's too hard playing this game when you can take damage by shooting a gun while stomping on an enemy.
context: you take damage from the enemy you're stomping on
while I love the game, I have to agree with alot of your points. great video man keep it up
Whilst Spelunky 2 is a good game it simply does not hold a candle to HD when it comes to its refinement. In fact, 2 feels like Spelunky OG, good ideas but its execution is a bit clunky in some parts. Much like you i have around 500+ hours in HD but I only put in 41 in the sequel. I simply got too bored to continue. The additions don't excite, the levels don't have any flare to them, the background mechanic is too gimmicky, the new bosses generally share the same monster spawner DNA except for a minuscule few. I was generally disappointed with the game as it's just too tedious to play.
Spelunky is empty, theres litteraly only 4 areas, nothing to do in each one, and olmec is the most boring boss ,apart from Yama. Spelunky 2 however, is way more interesting and open, character desigs are better, functions are better, maps sre better, The game is bigger and just better in general. Spelunky was fun but every run that would end, it was be agonizing to see the mines default block, in spelunky 2 its different though.
@@tannertroy7528 I have only played the hd demo but i watched alot of content of it and alot of speedruns and it looks alot shorter than spelunky 2. Many of the things people say are bad about spelunky 2 don't anoyying me like whats bad about dwelling being harder than the caves. Spelunky 2 overall looks way better the characters, worlds bassicly everthing looks better for example temple of anubis, hell and golden city in spelunky 1 are just diffrent colored bricks and in spelunky 2 everything looks way better.
@@-Nentah- *misunderstood lol
sorry
What i liked about the original Spelunky was the variety in it's soundtrack. No matter how many times i would stupidly die and restart 1-1 i would always get a different background music. In 2 it's just the same song and doing 1-1 for the 20th time isn't making it any more tolerable
This is a great point. The music in Spelunky 1 is some of the best in video gaming, IMO...it seems like it was made to sound nostalgic and modern all at once. S2 really dropped the ball, by comparison.
Great video. Just beat Spelunky 2 for the first time and I agree with nearly everything stated here. I've only played the sequel, so like you said in the video, it was brutal to play through not being a Spelunky veteran. I wouldn't say I hate the game though, I just find it kind of repetitive. Subscribed btw.
I was going to give a very serious and long reply but man, if the footage of 6:34 is you playing... I see where all your criticism might be coming from.
If you can't handle me at my best, you don't deserve me at my worst.
there are valid points but there is no excuse for walking directly into the fire
make more vids
I like how splunky hd had multiple music tracks and different layouts in the first area. Splunky 2 has 1 song and the same layout for the final room for that one big rolling dude, makes it feel worse when starting compared to the first one
They are both great
Yes
I seriously agree with absolutely everything you are saying, it's sad. I only played Spelunky HD's demo, but I already LOVED IT.
The dwelling and def the music have some issues. Honestly Spelunky 2 is definitely better all the way. I play both back to back to get all achievements and Spelunky 1 feels almost dead compared to this game. Thanks to Spelunky 2, Spelunky 1 is a breeze.
One really strange thing that I dislike is the choices between levels. I really like the temple and the jungle, but I never go there because I have no reason to. I kind of wish you had to go to all of the worlds, or at the very least could.
The lack of music variety bothers me more than it should, I'm a huge music guy and the variety in the first game is one of the reasons I love it so much
Yea the music from HD is better and there is more also the Olmec fight doesn't have cool music like the first one.
I know this is a late comment, but on launch I loved spelunky 2. However the thing that has ALWAYS (and still will) bother me, is that the music just doesnt hit as hard as Spelunky HD did, A lot of the music there gets repetitive due to the lack of having 3 varying songs for each floor, and they're all basically just moreso ambient songs then it is to be the real, upbeat and action filled music for spelunky, Spelunky HD nails it with the first layers theme, and then hells theme kicks ass, olmecs theme is a banger, all of the temple songs are amazing. and you can't forget the yeti "Smells like wet fur" random event that plays by far one of my most favorite songs in the game.
I just wish there were more room feelings like snake pit
do you still stand by this? after the many updates this game received i can easily say that it is superior to 1 in every way except music and the dwelling level generation
I disagree that 2 is meaner to new players. while dwelling is harder and takes more time to learn than caves, it offers one very important counterbalance. turkeys. they give bonus hp, or they can tank damage or spikes, plus they provide a double jump.
you’re wrong
@@tannertroy7528 ok
To answer the title, yes. Yes it is.
Why do you think so?
@@fancydink At least for me, even though getting wins in Spelunky 2 is a lot tougher now, the moment to moment gameplay is more fun.
HP is easier to come by meaning you can make more minor mistakes, the movement is more fluid IMO, and I like the faster pace of the game.
The huge increase in variety and choices you can make throughout a run also adds a lot for me. Ex., in Spelunky 1, the way to play is almost always to get a shotgun/jetpack, and to kill shopkeepers. Spelunky 2, killing shopkeepers creates real problems for future floors. And there are real benefits for using different packs and weapons now.
Sure there are also more insta/BS deaths now, but Spelunky for me isn't about playing ad infinitum, just to explore deeper and figure out new secrets as I get more experienced. So I don't really mind those occasional deaths.
Good points, and I wish I'd mentioned the increased abundance of HP in the video. I would definitely agree that Spelunky 2 is the more interesting game from the perspective of a Spelunky veteran.
But *any* new content would be more interesting to a Spelunky veteran.
It's hard for me to ignore the things that feel like downgrades from HD, or straight up design mistakes, and there are too many of them.
@@fancydink I agree with a lot of your points in the video and even though I'm coming into the spelunky 2 as a new player, I've still sunken 83 hours into the game, without winning yet but getting really close. from what I've seen mossmouth is making a lot of improvements to the game over time, and they may fix everything in your video when they get around to making multiplayer. As of now spelunky 2 seems like an early access game with the way you describe and in some ways it is, but i'm sure that it will become the perfect sequel every spelunky veteran would want. (this is all In my opinion)
Yes. End of story
I play spelunky 2
I subscribed within the first 20 seconds of this video
Nah.
You make good points, but for no specific reason. I disagree, not to say the issues you bring up don't exist. But I LOVE spelunky2. I've played for over a hundred hours and there is still so much I have yet to uncover. I have very little experience with the first game, so I guess I can't say it's better than the first. But I do really really love spelunky2.
So you do not actually disagree
backlayer is never interesting??? ok how about making you bring the key to the chest (rather than chest to key), secret shops, secret levels (vlads, mothership), Tun's challenges, getting to abzu, ushabti, ankh behind olmec. Like sure the torch hut doesnt really benefit from the back layer, but its interesting in many other ways that you just.... dont address.
Also, are you sure you liked HD? a lot of your criticisms, like the game trying to troll you, or repetitive level generation are also found in the first game. Also, saying that Spelunky 2 is more structured in the item paths than HD is flat out ridiculous. Like sure Dwelling has a clear rythm to it, but the rest of the game is entirely up to you. Also, giving a clear pattern to the first area helps new players learn it faster and reach later parts of the game more quickly.
Also, I completely agree that Spelunky 2 should have more impactful level variations and I really miss the random music tracks.
(Sorry for ranting)
bro.. I broke your curse of 666 likes to 667 and subscribed !
The "first first" game is actually my favorite. Has the best music too.
I'm glad I'm not the only one who noticed that something was off about Spelunky 2.
Don't get me wrong. Spelunky 2 is still a great game, but the first game just feels more polished in every way.
Not to mention, the lack of music variety was definitely the most off-putting thing.
Spelunky 2 is good.
But the original is still the king after over a decade!
A few things is they should not make the lava one shot but make it so you take a good amount of damage still and if you get poisoned the whole run is over basically.
(very distant) **boo!**
They both SUCK! Because i sucked at the first one, and assume i would suck more at the second one, that one SUCKS too! lol.
Shits on the game for 10 minutes, 84 score
This whole review feels like the product of being very used to Spelunky HD and new to Spelunky 2. As someone who only put 70 hours into the original before trying out Spelunky 2 I have to say that it felt far more fair and reasonable overall.
I personally never got the hang of fighting shopkeepers in the original and grinding for a run that reaches the black market with 50k only to have a tiki man or orange frog piss them off is the kind of experience that no amount of Spelunky 2's bs comes close to.
Look at the date
@@Njordin2010 October 27th, 2020? This video is over 2 years old.
@@neutraldalek4222 game had many more difficulties at release and was way improved. Maybe some of his issues aren't issues anymore
In my opinion spelunky hd is better than 2 because everything feels the same every run in 2
Your opinion is bad
Your opinion is trash