Back in 2014, a team of new developers calling themselves GalaxyTrail released Freedom Planet—a retro style platformer that captured the hearts of many classic-era Sonic the Hedgehog fans. Freedom Planet, in fact, started life as a Sonic fan game, though it established a unique identity for itself as development wore on, and sales were fortunately high enough that the team was able to greenlight the development of a sequel. Now, ten years on, Freedom Planet 2 has finally arrived for consoles, and we’re pleased to report that it is everything you'd hope for from a sequel. The level designs are tighter, the gameplay is more exciting, the graphics have gotten a nice boost; this is all around a much more confident and enthralling release.
The story picks up at the same time as the ending of the first game, with the climactic events of that finale causing an ancient Water Dragon named Merga to be released from a magical prison. The plot then jumps forward three years, following original protagonists Lilac, Carol, and Milla as they work to clean up the few robot stragglers left over from the events of the first game. The trio is then recruited by Neera, the new playable protagonist, for a meeting with the Magister, who asks them for help in getting to the bottom of who has been causing the recent robot attacks. Naturally, the ancient threat they unknowingly released has something to do with it, kicking off a lengthy journey to reveal this new villain’s motives and ultimately foil their plans.
It’s a compelling enough story, helped in no small part by much better cutscene pacing this time around. Freedom Planet was notorious for its lengthy cutscenes, but here they convey just enough information to keep the plot moving and build the characters without getting in the way of the high-speed gameplay. Voice acting performances overall feel much stronger as well, with returning cast members such as Dawn Bennett and Aimee Smith showcasing their matured skills, and this goes a long way in enhancing the quality of the many cutscenes. For those of you who still aren’t too jazzed by the focus on story, cutscenes are still easily skippable, while completing the game in Adventure Mode unlocks a Classic Mode that lets you play through the platforming stages back to back.
Gameplay follows the original's structure, tasking you with guiding your chosen character through stages packed with multiple routes as fast as possible. This time around, the two-act structure has been dropped in favor of one-shot stages with slightly shorter runtimes compared to their predecessors, each of which is capped off by a boss fight. Although the mechanics here are largely the same, there have been some welcome additions, such as a guard move for each character that grants them a few i-frames to dodge through enemies or a revive option to continue playing right from where you died for a small penalty.
Freedom Planet 2 may feel very similar to its predecessor, then, but the quality of the gameplay and level designs here have seen a substantial increase in polish. Freedom Planet was certainly no slouch in this department, but the stage design in this sequel just flows so much better. Every level is packed to bursting with new stage gimmicks and mechanics, thrilling set-piece moments, and a near-perfect balance of speed and exploration, making each stage feel like a wonderful theme park ride in all the best ways.
Not only do the multiple potential routes through a level offer up a lot of replay potential as you try to beat your best times, but there are now four playable characters that each feel meaningfully distinct. Lilac, for example, plays as the ‘Sonic’ of this release, focused on high-speed antics with a few helpful options for gaining altitude, while newcomer Neera is a more technical and combat-focused character centered around various attacks and magic spells she can cast with her spear. Every character’s kit feels complete and brings new ideas to the table, which can often totally change your approach to a level. Though it’s a bit disappointing that the characters weren’t given their own stages built for their unique specifications, we still appreciated the variety they offer, especially given that each one has their own unique perspective on story events as they unfold.
When playing in Adventure Mode, there’s also a new collection of hub levels interspersed between the action stages, giving you a chance to slow down, talk to some characters, and buy some powerups at the local shops. Though a change of pace was nice every now and then, these hub levels felt like an unnecessary distraction and a little out of place. Still, you’re not required to engage in these hubs for too long, and Classic Mode strips them out entirely.
Visually, Freedom Planet 2 feels like a huge step up from the original, offering an incredibly detailed and smooth art style that makes virtually every frame a treat. Whether you’re grinding on the rollercoaster rails through the theme park-esque Zao Land or rolling in a snowball down a hill in the junk-strewn Robot Graveyard, each stage overwhelms you in a flurry of sights and sounds with unique colour palettes, detailed spritework, and advanced animation all coming together incredibly well. It’s the little details that really take things from good to great, like how the parallax scrolling in the background during the Battlesphere stage has a slight curve to it to give you the sense that you’re running around inside a closed arena.
These visuals are matched by a similarly excellent soundtrack that mixes pop, jazz, and EDM beats for music that can both raise and cool the intensity as needed. Often the track playing for a stage doesn’t quite match the pulse-pounding speed your character is running at as they blitz through obstacles, yet it never once feels like a tune is out of place. There’s an almost dreamlike quality to the tracks on deck here, and we deeply appreciated the variety.
Conclusion
Freedom Planet 2 is an excellent achievement by GalaxyTrail, setting a high bar for quality that will be tough to beat if we’re ever lucky enough to get a 'Freedom Planet 3'. A compelling story, well-designed levels, tons of gameplay variety, and gorgeous visuals all come together to make this an absolute must-play for fans of high-speed platformers and a certain blue hedgehog. Freedom Planet 2 exudes quality and passion in just about every way imaginable.
Comments 42
The first game was super cute. I'm glad the sequel looks good; I admit I had forgotten it was coming out so thank you NL for the review.
Only been looking forward to this sequel for almost 10 years (console player - I know it’s been on steam for a while) 🤣
Happy to hear it lived up to the hype, been replaying FP1 on Switch this week in preparation and still love it (lengthy cutscenes and all).
Looks like it’s been well worth the wait. Can’t wait to pick up!
I've still yet to play through the original Freedom Planet, it's been on my backlog for ages and it's a game I want to give a lot of care and attention in dedicated playthroughs to really master it, I've heard it's a plenty challenging but rewarding game.
I was a big fan of the first one (have it on WiiU and Switch). While the long wait for the Switch version of the sequel has sucked, I'm glad its finally here. These guys know how to make a good platformer!
Never did beat the first game, but I enjoyed what I played. I want to finish that before buying this, though.
Wow, sounds good. However, the original didn't really click with me (too much story for a platformer game, imo, which affects the pace). Do you think I will like this one??
Haven't played the first Freedom Planet yet, but eventually I'll play that and this even better sequel for sure!
This game feels like it's been in the works forever, glad to see that it is good.
I enjoyed the first Freedom Planet game and I'm prolly gonna give this one a shot at some point.
This is a game I was looking forward to but it was also a game I often forgot about, if that makes sense. Enjoy the 1st so no doubt I’ll like this one.
They should force Sonic team to play this game and learn from it.
I feel like @SwitchVogel has to have the record for most all-time reviews on this site. And yet he never skimps on depth.
the first game was good but the final boss was hard as hell.
@Sonicka
i want more than anything a sub 300 dollar "console" that runs steam and uses standard bluetooth controllers. 🙃
Another one for the wishlist! Can't wait to play it.
Well, they took their time. But it seems it was worth it. I download it someday, at a discount.
@JohnnyMind Not sure if you’re aware, but there’s a demo for the first game on the eshop. Imma check it out myself.
Who's "he"? Sonic?
Come on.
Also available on Steam
How is it that small indie developers inspired by Sonic manage to nail the gameplay for that type of game, while SEGA, the very creators of Sonic the Hedgehog, consistently fall short in that regard?
Maybe it was a skill issue but I never did beat the first one. I enjoyed playing it though...might consider the sequel.
But, what does the frame rate look like specifically? 30 or 60fps? Are there any drops?
I don’t think I ever finished the first. It’s gotta be on my Switch still. Glad to hear the sequel scored well. I’ll have to dig in my backlog and finish the other so I can get this one.
@ShingoTamaiX No drops that I saw, all 60 FPS.
I was one of those who got the first game on Wii U but didn't quite understand the objective so the little time I spent with it was quite aimless beyond hoping to find something that would point the way. And so I fell off it too easily and have yet to go back.
But now it's got a quality follow-up I feel it's proved its worthiness as a series.
Physical 1 & 2 collection please.
Can't wait to finally play this.Also i'm so happy Neera is a playable character,because in the first game she was a huge pain since she was a boss.
The first was so dang good! Anyone who has had trouble getting into Sonic in the past needs to give this or the first a shot because it bridged that gap for me between growing up with Mario games as a kid, and not being able to get into 2D Sonic games as an adult.
When does this come out?
@RupeeClock Yeah, you definitely want to dedicate the time for the original. I stopped & went back years later & have no idea how the heck I got as far as I did.
Struggled to the point where I quit playing it again.
So long as I can mute the characters and skip the story, I'll happily grab this.
@the_beaver you can play through the first in a mode that skips the story bs. I don't remember what it's called, but that's what I did
Xseed doing digital only confuses and frightens me
Just played the demo of the first game. I’ll wait for a sale on that one, but this one i’ll be getting for the coming weekend. Thanks for the review, Mitch!
Thanks for the review.
I enjoyed almost everything on the PC version, and so wouldn't mind doing a second playthrough on consoles.
@Diogmites I've already bought the game during a sale and just have to find the time for it but still, thanks for telling me!
I remember the first one being quite good and I spent a few hours with it on my third party abandoned wii U. It was fun.
I won't call myself the greatest 2D Sonic fan, but playing Freedom Planet felt amazing, and in some moments better than 2D Sonic for me. GalaxyTrail easily could've just painted by the numbers and yet, gave everything and more a 2D Sonic fan could love. I've been looking forward to part 2, so I'm glad it did not disappoint. I wouldn't be mad if Sega finally tapped GalaxyTrail to take the reins to make the next 2D Sonic-- That's how confident I am.
I've been playing this on PC/Steam Deck since launch and this is a sequel done right. Good to see it performing so well on the Switch.
Loved the first game on the WiiU. This second installment actually looks & reads significantly better. Also saw NL's review on youtube. Cheers for the reviews
Both 1 and 2 are great games that classic Sonic fans will enjoy 😎
I enjoyed the first game with a few caveats, I felt kinda bogged down towards the end and I felt like the bosses took way too many hits
@RiasGremory @Dualmask You can always play the first "Freedom Planet" on Easy difficulty, which provides you with regenerating health up to a certain point. Then you just need to back away from the bosses for a while, including the Final Boss, once your health starts getting low.
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