Anodyne 2: Return to Dust (2019)

I updated my Alphabet challenge post and realised that I had completed all letters up to "i" except for "a" so I went fishing for an "a" game in my collection. This one caught my eye for whatever reason so I installed it. I didn't have a lot of expectations. I was going to give it an hour or so and then move on if it didn't hook me in. And boy did it hook me. Five hours later and I had to force myself to close the game to make dinner.

It's a strange game in all respects. Strange mechanics, strange graphics, strange mixture of game modes and gameplay elements. It's not polished but all the quirks grabbed at the very least my attention.

I enjoyed the original Anodyne despite a few shortcomings, but this indirect sequel didn't grab me right away. In particular, the new 32-bit throwback overworld felt a bit tacked on and slow at first.

But the more I played, the more I found that the 3-D portions... and just about every other addition I won't spoil here... weren't just fun, but relevant to the story. And that story had so much more purpose and intent this time around, while still leaving plenty of room for me to draw my own conclusions. I'm honestly struggling to write this review while my brain ponders the surprises this game held and the questions it posed.

Players looking for a polished, modern experience or clear-cut answers may find themselves bored or frustrated by Anodyne 2. But those who enjoy the purposeful anachronisms of Undertale, the heartfelt ambiguity of EarthBound, the inclusiveness of 2064: Read Only Memories or the appearance and tone of the first Mega Man Legends should give it a closer look. IMO, it's severely underrated.

Anodyne 2 is a unique game. It tells the story of Nova, a young girl named the Nano Cleaner. Her duty is to cleanse people of a damaging aspect called Nano Dust. The implementation of this is fun - you explore a 3D world, looking for characters that need cleansing. Once you find them, you're transported into a 2D world that represents their mind. You fight enemies, solve puzzles, and clean out the dust.

This dimension-hopping gameplay is central to Anodyne 2, but the way the game keeps building upon this setup is remarkable. At first, the characters you encounter are pretty much limited to the 3D world. Later characters have more complex inner selves, which leads more involved 2D segments. Eventually, the game throws entire 2D worlds at you. Exploration is a required part of the gameplay, because you have to find the appropriate characters and objects to proceed with the story. And the exploration is actually fun, because of how radically different the worlds and environments are. Different worlds also introduce new mechanisms in how you interact with the world. You want to explore every nook and cranny, and there are enough characters and secrets to keep it interesting.

It may sound a bit overwhelming to read about all of these worlds, but the game does a great job of easing you into it. The world is unlocked in a phased manner, and the game keeps pushing its boundaries all the way up to the final act. It's not merely a boundary extension of the world, but the way you interact with the world changes throughout.

Visually, Anodyne looks a game from an older era. The 3D graphics are blocky, similar to the first generation of 3D games. 2D worlds are more interesting, and each one has its own unique visual flair. The soundtrack is also varied enough, and provides a relaxed ambience for most of the game.

Considering that Anodyne 2 was entirely conceived and built by a team of two people, I find the results be very impressive. It may not have the appearances of a AAA title, but it has engaging gameplay and a bag of clever tricks to keep you interested and guessing up until the end.