Guacamelee! 2 (2018)

Guacamelee! was one of my favorite games when it came out, during a time where new Metroidvanias were far less common. I thought its combat and platforming were great and the universe and humor was charming.

Fast-forward to 2018, a year in which Metroidvanias is the reigning genre for indie games to an overwhelming and sometimes even obnoxious degree. Now don't get me wrong, this is probably my favorite genre and far from me the thought of poopooing this ubiquitous renaissance. However, this avalanche of titles has made me far pickier and less forgiving of some of these games's flaws.

In 2018, I played Hollow Knight and Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom for the first time, and they immediately catapulted to the very top of the pack, as well as redefined what I now look for in Metroidvanias. Add to that list genre-bending delights like SteamWorld Dig 2, The Messenger, or Yoku's Island Express, and the bar for what can be accomplished has significantly been raised in the past few years.

So it was with this in mind that I embarked to play the sequel to a game I thoroughly enjoyed. There is nothing I disliked in Guacamelee 2, except maybe one meta joke too many (although some of these, like the reluctant Mimic, or the "why can't Guacamelee crawl?" accomplishment were absolutely masterful), but there is also nothing I particurlaly loved. It felt far too similar to the first game, with a couple of mechanical improvements, but with none of the originality, none of the fresh gameplay idea that recent greats have come up with.

I enjoyed the 10 hours I spent playing the game, and if you are a fan of the genre who has already played the other titles I mentioned above and want to scratch that power-upping, backtracking, map-unveiling itch, than I can easily recommend this game. If not, do yourself a favor and pick up Hollow Knight and Monster Boy as soon as possible.

Did you know that Guacamelee and its sequel are two of Anita Saarkesian favorite games?

I just heard a podcast where she RAVES and explains how much she loves this games. She's obviously critical of some of its elements (the first one being about a damsel in distress and the fact that are games about mexicans made by a mostly white team), but it's still cool to hear her so passionate about a game. (I like her work, but always hoped her tone wasn't that cold).