When I started playing developer Shiny Shoe’s devilish deck building roguelike tower defence sequel Monster Train 2 I thought I’d be able to get a few hours of gametime in here and there and get a solid feel so I could do the review justice. What I did not expect was to have my self-control pride shattered into a million pieces, as this game possessed every inch of my thoughts for the last week.
A Midnight Train Going Everywhere
I generally pride myself on strong self-control and not having any debilitating addictions. Though genetically I should have a few AA coins in my wallet, I’ve somehow staved off hard drugs, alcohol (for the most part), and even got through Fate Grand Order and Genshin Impact without dropping a single dollar or losing my job to gacha hell. This isn’t to say I don’t find some indulgences here and there, but I’m always able to center myself and keep my attention where it needs to be.
At the time of writing this review, I’ve had the game downloaded for five days and already have nearly 40 hours of playtime. As a father of two, I struggle to find the time to keep up with a thirty minute show, but somehow I found 40 hours to keep coming back to. Even as I type this review, I see images of my last and next playthrough float through my brain.
The Devil’s Formula
Monster Train 2 surprised me in more ways than one. Being accustomed to my fair share of deck builder’s, it is fair to say the card monster battler genre is getting stale. Having not played the previous Monster Train, I had middling expectations. The trailers, screenshots, and even the main menu do not do nearly enough in highlighting the juicy gameplay or the stunning in-game visuals.
In the intro run, you get a pretty decent feel for the rhythm of the loop. The gist of the story is that you are the conductor of a train joined by demons and angels alike on its way to burst through the gates of heaven and take back the throne from a malevolent big bad. There is more backstory that ties back to the first game, and some of the character interactions do point to some potentially interesting plot points, but nothing really stuck with me.
On first glance, I underestimated the depth of the mechanics. Your train has three floors where you can place various monsters to protect your Pyre Heart “core”. Enemies come in through the bottom and work their way up to the top.
You have a good initial mix of spell cards, equipment, and room cards, each with varying effects based on the very distinct Clans (which I will gush about soon). You make a number of stops at shops and classic mystery segments to gain items, de/buffs, and units. Then battle it out with differing enemies with gnarly (and frustrating) abilities, with a boss at the end of each stop. Seems simple enough, right? We’ve all been here before, right? Wrong.
Strategically Crafting My Addiction
As soon as the tutorial boxes stop popping up and the cards start stacking, the level of depth and complexity triples with each new card. Eventually, you can choose two Clans; one primary with its champion, and another support clan, which allows you to minmax strategies tenfold. Each is incredibly thought out with a radical amount of strategic potential between each pairing. I wish I could spoil some of the best aspects of these Clans and the progression, but that would be doing both you and the developers a massive disservice.
I will say that I found the clans that revolve around summoning allies for buffs and debuffs were particularly engaging. But believe me when I tell you that just swapping one clan almost entirely changes your playthrough and can add another 5 to 10 hours of just testing things out. Not to mention, each run has you unlocking different cards for each clan, which again shakes up the whole formula. I am a numbers going up kinda guy, and nothing is more satisfying than placing the optimal two units together with the perfect abilities and seeing a symphony of glowing red numbers gain an extra couple of digits on attack.
I Can See The Pearly Gates
The menus make learning the mechanics of the game simple and intuitive. Being able to easily see the effects and definitions of each card, and there are many effects, on hover or hold of RT is a small but much welcomed aspect of what is a very well thought out and mature UI. This is doubly appreciated as much of my playtime is on the OLED Steam Deck, which runs the inherent risk of being assaulted with layers of illegible text walls, and thankfully that was not the case here.
After battling it out on a few runs, I was able to take a breath and really take in the breathtaking visuals of this fantasy world. Each Clan, their equipment, spells, and monsters all have such phenomenal art direction that at just a glance displays the depth of their mechanics and lore. The OLED panel on the deck was the perfect vessel to take in the vivid color palette that perfectly illustrated such a diverse set of characters without any of them feeling out of place. This genre is often more gameplay-driven, with art being a “nice-to-have”, but Shiny Shoe did not waste a single pixel in crafting such beautifully designed art. Your ears need not be jealous of the treat your eyes were devouring because the soundtrack contains banger after banger of the most inspired battle music I’ve heard in the genre thus far.
Forgive Me Father For I Have Gamed Too Close To The Sun
I am one of those “hates being wrong” kinda guys, but boy was I wrong to underestimate this one. The aspects of the game that left me whelmed were the story and lackluster post-game progression are likely due to not being previously acquainted with the series. With the latter being even less of an issue, seeing as I am 40 hours in and have not unlocked all there is to unlock.
To say I am excited to spend another 40 hours unlocking everything I can would be an understatement. This is the perfect recommendation for anyone who has too much and/or not enough free time. If there was ever potential for a game to dethrone Balatro as my leisure game of choice, this is it. I can only hope for the sake of my sanity that the devs never release a mobile version. (Please do.)
