SteamWorld Heist II expands the beloved 3DS title, but is that what fans really want?

Is there any genre? Steam world Afraid to deal with it? Start life as an RTS in SteamWorld Tower DefenseImage & Form’s long-running series has gone into space, the Wild West and even been adapted into fairy tales. And while DigMetroidvania style game series, arguably the most popular, many people sympathize with the hit 3DS game of 2015 SteamWorld heist.

Returning to the series’ strategy roots, SteamWorld Heist is a side-scrolling turn-based strategy game that takes the unique humor and aesthetic of the SteamWorld series and combines it with gunplay, bullet-proof action. We love it, and The final version on Switch is a given. We didn’t expect to see Heist return, though, nine years later, SteamWorld II Heist almost here. We had the opportunity to experience the PC version of the game at Summer game festivaland we can say that this is a well-oiled machine that fans will love and newcomers will be able to jump right into.

This time SteamWorld Heist II is about steampunk sailors, and the new setting is also where the biggest change in gameplay is. Your base of operations is the submarine, and this is where all of your crew (i.e. playable characters) congregate. You can talk to them, find out what to do next, and then start your next adventure from there – similar to the first game.

Coming to the ship’s helm – a fancy computer terminal – you have the opportunity to explore a vast open world on the high seas. Most of this just involves maneuvering your boat around the water, following the map to find the next heist, or simply exploring. The portion of the game we played took place just before the game’s midpoint, so we were given some guidance by producer Petter Magnusson, who told us to head north for the first mission mine and then head west for more exploration along with a second quest.

The problem is we have Therefore We were distracted by the map being much larger than we expected. The game will guide you towards your next objective, but sailing the big blue seas was really fun, and we spotted lots of little details on the islands. A small umbrella and a beach towel; metal scraps from some rocks; and lots of crates with items and currency inside.

However, our delay led us to some trouble – an enemy ship and it was shooting at us. Ship combat simply involves you retaliating by using cannons, ramming into enemy ships, or running away. It’s basic, but it adds flavor to the underworld and really emphasizes the seafaring theme. We were very surprised every time we were discovered by the enemy.

Finally, we made it to our first mission, where we were reintroduced to the combat in SteamWorld Heist. We chose two different characters – Daisy, a sniper, and Crowbar, a wingman. Daisy specializes in taking down enemies from afar, while Crowbar is very fast and can get close to enemies. Each mission will allow you to choose who will accompany you, but after success, your warriors will need to rest, so you will have to drop them off at a nearby tavern to regain strength.

After jumping in, we had to go to the back of the facility and take out the leader. The gameplay is basically the same as in the original SteamWorld Heist, but this level has a lot of additional challenges thrown at us. There is a timer that, if it runs out, will signal waves of enemies coming out to cause trouble for us. Another problem is the automatic guns at the top of some rooms – we can take them out but they are also quite dangerous.

One thing that stood out was the layout of the stage we performed on. The level quickly branches into two patches, which although both lead to the same ending, allow us to split our team up to focus on keeping enemies busy or speeding towards the objective. There are also items and loot to pick up along the way, and depending on how many you collect, you can improve your rank and get better rewards. The layout of every level is crucial to creating those excellent bounce shots, and we felt really satisfied every time we bounced bullets off the wall.

However, once we reached the end of the stage, it wasn’t the end. We had to find our way back; to our surprise, we actually failed and both of our units were destroyed. Luckily, SteamWorld Heist II gives you one free retry per level, and it loads from autosave during the mission. That gave us the opportunity to change our focus from shooting everything in sight to getting the hell out of there.

Of course, you can’t just move around at will, as movement also takes up action points that you need to attack or defend. Choosing the right spot to hide your character or deciding whether to take out an enemy first is a risk you have to consider. But using Crowe’s special ability – which allows them to teleport over greater distances – means we can sneak up on enemies and take them down.

Each character has its own special skills. Daisy’s skill increases the accuracy of the shot significantly, providing a very clear line of fire so that we can almost guarantee a hit. Combine these character skills with a robust and improved class system that expands the amount of customization available, and it’s something we could find ourselves tinkering with for hours.

We’ve already mentioned snipers and wingmen, but we also have to learn about boomers, an explosive class that deals damage in areas, and engineers, a healer and debuffer class that can also take gets two shots in one go. These classes are tied to your character’s weapons – for example, changing from a rifle to a shotgun will change that character’s class from a sniper to a wingman. And it also helps that character access more skills.

Completing missions will earn you cogs that you can use to unlock new skills. And this class’s default abilities are always accessible if you unlock them, even if you change weapons. We didn’t have much of a chance to test this out, but we did spend some time looking at the skill grid and each character class. Giving squishy characters healing abilities or fast characters’ melee attacks may seem like easy wins in the beginning, but the deeper you play, things can get too dangerous. dangerous. Luckily, you can change your character whenever you want.

However, we still have some questions for SteamWorld Heist II ahead of its launch in just over a month. The game looks absolutely gorgeous on PC, with stunning visuals and incredibly smooth performance – we think the Switch won’t struggle too much. The final game in the series, SteamWorld Buildcertainly did well on the Switch, but it was a fully 3D city-building combo. So that little bit of doubt is always with us, but we still have hope for Heist II.

Second, is Heist what SteamWorld fans want right now? It’s been a tough year for Image & Form and Thunderful, with Thunderful reporting that SteamWorld Build sales have declined “a little short of expectations” and development of the new SteamWorld game, Headhunter, has been paused. SteamWorld Dig 2 launched seven years ago and fans are craving a third deep dive. Given the promise, intrigue and fun of SteamWorld Heist II’s early hours, we hope the franchise can get back on its feet and fans will show up and be ready to celebrate.