Hylics 2

Last updated
Hylics 2
Hylics-2-cover-art.webp
Developer(s) Mason Lindroth
Designer(s) Mason Lindroth
Artist(s) Mason Lindroth
Composer(s) Mason Lindroth, Chuck Salamone
Engine Unity
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows, MacOS
ReleaseJune 22, 2020
Genre(s) Role-playing, platformer

Hylics 2 is a 2020 role-playing video game developed by Mason Lindroth for Microsoft Windows. It is the sequel to the 2015 game Hylics . Set in a surrealist and absurdist world, the protagonist Wayne must stop the resurrection of the tyrant king Gibby by his minions. The gameplay is a turn-based RPG, the same as its predecessor. The game was acclaimed for its unique claymation and stop-motion visuals and psychedelic funk score.

Contents

Gameplay

A battle from the game after the player has developed a party Hylics 2 Battle screen.webp
A battle from the game after the player has developed a party

Hylics 2 is a turn-based RPG with similarities to traditional JRPGs. [1] [2] It takes place in a surrealist and absurdist world, [2] [3] with some horror elements. [4] The player character Wayne assembles a party of characters, fights enemies, and explore a 3D world, finding hidden treasure. Exploration is sometimes done in an airship, which has been compared to Final Fantasy . [1] [2] [4] [5] Unlike the first game, the sequel contains 3D platforming elements, [4] and contains a segment of dungeon-crawling in first-person. [5] The player can dodge enemies with a variety of moves. [5] The plot of the game involves Wayne attempting to stop the resurrection of the first game's antagonist, [4] the tyrant king Gibby, by his minions. [1] [3] There are many versions of Wayne in the world, of various shapes and designs. [1] [4] The player characters gain more flesh (hit points) by putting the meat of dead enemies and Waynes in a meat grinder. When all party members' flesh hits 0, the player and their reality dissolve. [1]

Development

The game is a sequel to the 2015 RPG Hylics , [2] both developed by Mason Lindroth. [6] The sequel's plot contains motifs of the first game, but can be understood without playing the first game. [5] While the first game was developed in RPG Maker, the sequel was developed in the Unity engine. [4] In Lindroth's games, he uses a psychedelic claymation and stop-motion visual style. [2] [7] He makes clay models and takes pictures of them in front of a green screen, putting the renders in the game. [1] [7] Behind-the-scenes photos of the process were released in 2023. [8] Lindroth supported the sequel's development with a public fundraising campaign. [9] The game's psychedelic funk score was made by Mason Lindroth and Chuck Salamone. [10]

The game was announced with a trailer in January 2018, with a planned release date for later that year. [6] [11] [12] Another trailer was released in November, and by then, the release date had shifted to summer 2019. [9] The game was released on June 22, 2020 on the Steam and Itch.io platforms for Microsoft Windows and MacOS. [2] [13] [9]

Reception

The game was acclaimed upon its release, [1] [2] with significant praise being given to its visual style. [1] [6] [8] [12] Rock Paper Shotgun writer Alice O'Connor claimed the game had some of the best visuals and music in gaming. [2] [10] The visuals were compared to the video game Clayfighter , artist Bruce Bickford's works, and the movie Fantastic Planet , [1] [6] while the score was compared to Frank Zappa's music. [1] The in-game models, animations, and battles were considered improved from the first game. [4] In 2021, PC Gamer named Hylics 2 as having one of their favorite title screens in gaming. [5] [14] It has a Metacritic aggregated score of 8.0. [13] Early user reviews criticized elements of the platforming, and the length of battles. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NeocoreGames</span>

NeocoreGames is a Hungarian video game developer that focuses on creating and publishing role-playing video games. The company has their own development studio that is headquartered in Budapest, and the video games developed at NeocoreGames are created using their custom-built game engine named Coretech. The company is best known for their King Arthur series.

Candy Box! is an incremental online text-based role-playing game that runs in web browser. It was developed by a 19-year-old French student using the pseudonym "aniwey" and released in April 2013. Candy Box! uses ASCII art for the visuals

<i>Cube World</i> 2019 video game

Cube World is an action role-playing game developed and published by Picroma for Microsoft Windows. Wolfram von Funck, the game's designer, began developing the game in June 2011, and was later joined by his wife, Sarah. An alpha version of the game was released on July 2, 2013, but saw sparse updates and communication from von Funck, with many considering the game to be vaporware until he officially released it on September 30, 2019.

<i>Avernum 2: Crystal Souls</i> 2015 video game

Avernum 2: Crystal Souls is a role-playing video game developed by Spiderweb Software. It is the second game in the Avernum trilogy. The game was released for OS X and Microsoft Windows in January 2015, The iPad version was released on the App Store on April 15, 2015.

<i>Xenonauts 2</i> 2023 video game

Xenonauts 2 is an upcoming turn-based tactics video game developed by Goldhawk Interactive and published by Hooded Horse. A sequel to Xenonauts (2014), the game was released on July 18, 2023 through early access.

<i>Hylics</i> 2015 role-playing video game

Hylics is a role-playing video game developed and published by Mason Lindroth. It was released for Windows on October 2, 2015, on Steam and Itch.io. The game uses claymation graphics to depict a surreal world. A sequel, Hylics 2, was released in 2020.

<i>The Swords of Ditto</i> 2018 video game

The Swords of Ditto is an action role-playing video game developed by Onebitbeyond and published by Devolver Digital.

<i>Kenshi</i> (video game) 2018 video game

Kenshi is a real-time strategy action role-playing game developed and published by Lo-Fi Games for Windows. The game focuses on sandbox gameplay features that give the player freedom to do what they want in its world instead of focusing on a linear story. Kenshi's development was primarily led by a single person over the course of twelve years, and it was released on December 6, 2018.

<i>Streets of Rogue</i> 2019 video game

Streets of Rogue is a roguelite video game developed by Matt Dabrowski and published by tinyBuild for Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. It was initially launched in early access during 2017, and was fully released on July 12, 2019.

<i>Bus Simulator 18</i> 2018 vehicle simulation video game

Bus Simulator 18 is a bus simulator game developed by Stillalive Studios and published by Astragon Entertainment. It is powered by Unreal Engine 4 and was released in June 2018 for Windows and in September 2019 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. It is the fifth game in the Bus Simulator franchise and is the direct sequel to Bus Simulator 16. A sequel titled Bus Simulator 21 was released in 2021.

<i>Cris Tales</i> 2021 video game

Cris Tales is a role-playing video game developed by Colombian indie game studios Dreams Uncorporated and Syck, and published by Modus Games. It was released for Google Stadia, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on July 20, 2021.

<i>Resident Evil 4 HD Project</i> 2022 video game mod

Resident Evil 4 HD Project is a mod for the Steam version of the survival horror video game Resident Evil 4. Created by a duo of modders, Albert Marin and Cris Morales, its purpose is to update the original remaster to the most thorough level possible and provide a "definitive graphical experience". While in the planning stages since 2008, its development started shortly after the game's PC release in 2014 and continued for the next seven years. It was fully released on February 2, 2022. The mod received unanimous positive reception from critics due to its extreme accuracy and attention to detail.

<i>Chained Echoes</i> 2022 video game

Chained Echoes is a 2022 role-playing video game created by Matthias Linda and published by Deck13 Spotlight for Linux, macOS, Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S. The game is inspired by classic Japanese role-playing games from the 1990s, featuring turn-based combat, 16-bit-style visuals, and a multi-character narrative. Linda was influenced by games such as Xenogears, Terranigma, Secret of Mana, Suikoden 2, Breath of Fire, The Legend of Dragoon and Final Fantasy VI. The game has been praised by several reviewers as living up to the quality of its inspiration while offering modern advancements.

<i>Ode to a Moon</i> 2022 video game

Ode to a Moon is a video game under development by Colorfiction, the professional name of independent developer Max Arocena. Described as a "first-person thriller" with an "exploration focus, light action and puzzle elements", the game is a horror game with surrealistic visuals. Ode to a Moon was released as a demo in 2019 and appeared on the 2020 horror game compilation Haunted PS1 Demo Disc by Irish developer Breogán Hackett.

<i>Dead in Vinland</i> 2018 video game

Dead in Vinland is a survival game developed by CCCP and published in 2018 by Dear Villagers. Players control a Viking family who shipwrecks on an island. A Nintendo Switch version was released in 2019. It was renamed to Dead in Vinland: True Viking Edition.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 James Davenport (2020-06-22). "Hylics 2 feels like a long-lost RPG from the 1970s". PC Gamer. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 O'Connor, Alice (2020-06-22). "Claymation RPG Hylics 2 is out now". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
  3. 1 2 Jody Macgregor (2020-06-22). "Absurdist RPG Hylics 2 will be out tomorrow, here's a weird trailer". PC Gamer. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Allisa James (2022-10-22). "This week's top PC games are made of fever dreams and horrifying retro reality". TechRadar. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Hylics 2 is out on Steam and I can't look away". Destructoid. 2020-06-22. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
  6. 1 2 3 4 kotakuinternational (2018-01-18). "Claymation JRPG Hylics 2 Is Looking Twisted As Heck". Kotaku Australia. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
  7. 1 2 Giada Zavarise (2018-03-31). "Remembering Hylics, the surreal art RPG". PC Gamer. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
  8. 1 2 O'Connor, Alice (2023-01-18). "I adore these Hylics secrets of handcrafted art and actual hands". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
  9. 1 2 3 O'Connor, Alice (2018-11-06). "Hylics 2 continues to look chuffing gorgeous". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
  10. 1 2 O'Connor, Alice (2021-10-01). "Our video game music recommendations for Bandcamp Friday". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
  11. ↑ "Hylics 2's Preview Trailer is Bizarrely Perfect and Just as Trippy as its Predecessor". Gaming. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
  12. 1 2 "Hylics 2 is a total fever dream and I love it". Destructoid. 2018-01-20. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
  13. 1 2 "Hylics 2". www.metacritic.com. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
  14. ↑ Jody Macgregor (2021-01-06). "Our favorite title screens and main menus in PC gaming". PC Gamer. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.