[Review] Unravel 2

[Warlock-]

 

I remember the first Unravel more for its adorable protagonist and lush setting than as a puzzle platformer. But Unravel 2 goes a long way to change that, tabling to more accomplished, and at times demanding, platforming experience with puzzles to match. The most immediately-noticeable change is the addition of a second playable Yarny. The entire story mode can still be tackled alone, however, and I did so without ever feeling at a better disadvantage. When playing alone, Unravel Two allows you to quickly enter both, Yarnys to create a single multi-colored character, meaning platforming sections only have to be tackled once, thankfully. It's an elegant little mechanic that works well, even if the image of its spliced beings is ever so slightly harrowing. That said, there are a couple of sections that I can imagine being slightly easier or more elegant with a partner, but it never felt mandatory.

 

Yarny's abilities have carried over from the original. He / she / it can swing across gaps, rappel down walls, ascend cliff faces, lasso distant objects and, by tying knots, create bridges, pulleys, and trampolines. There are no major new skills to single out, but the addition of a second. For instance, either character can now function as a moveable anchor point, allowing the other Yarny to rappel, ascend, or swing across otherwise impassable gaps. At its best, it feels like you're mountaineering through the undergrowth. Playing alone, this allows for some satisfying character switching, as I navigated hazards and inched my way through levels. But in co-op, this mechanic takes on a new dimension - it makes the experience more stressful and much funnier. Since a button must be held for Yarn to anchor his fellow explorer, and sometimes must be released at just the right moment for a jump to be made, it's essential players coordinate their actions.

Otherwise, speaking from bitter experience, you'll see Yarny crash into the ground or smash against a wall, repeatedly. It takes a little getting used to two players, but it is never fiddly, simply requiring good communication and timing. The best puzzles involve looping around objects, creating additional anchor points, but in a way that never tangles up and stops you from moving on. You need to think and plan ahead. Sometimes you also have to create multiple temporary bridges to move objects around that can help you climb higher. There's a decent amount of variety. Ideas are used again, but are elaborated upon in interesting ways. I found the core story puzzles challenging without ever being stumped. And even if you get stuck, the sequel is added to pretty robust hint system to help out.

Platforming is also improved. Yarny feels more responsive, and it's a good thing, too, since there are more sections that demand precision control. Occasionally, like the original, there are sequences that have an element of trial-and-error - you must fail to figure out how to proceed, no matter how finely-tuned your reactions. The core story is unfolded in seven 20-30 minute levels, which take Yarny once again through verdant forests and slightly more grim urban settings. Behind Yarny, in the background of levels, an ambiguous story plays out with shadowy manifestations of past events. From what I can infer, Yarny's retracing the journey of two teenagers who escape from a care home and go on an adventure that leads them into danger.

It's pretty opaque, and while it occasionally adds atmosphere, I'm not really sure what it adds. It's much less emotionally involving than seeing Yarny in the foreground being chased by sinister ember creatures or a deranged chicken. Levels are simply beautiful. Yarny's tiny stature, and the clever use of forced perspective and photorealistic environments, makes you pay attention to the little details. It's like looking at nature through a macro lens - whether it's the spongy moss Yarny has to wade through the puddles that feels like swimming pools, every texture feels more detailed and engrossing seen from his perspective.

Outside of the core story, there are 20 additional Challenge levels, which are a fantastic addition to the game. Afternoon missions, hidden areas open up within the Lighthouse hub world, containing a handful of additional levels. Each one has a difficulty rating of one to three spikes, which probably gives you a flavor of what they have in store. These are exceptionally fiendish challenges, ranging from Super Meat Boy-style platforming gauntlets, which take dozens of attempts to master. to head-scratching self-contained puzzles. I've spent up to 30 minutes getting it figuratively - and literally - tangled working out some of these problems. You really are the flexing their design skills in these levels, and they're a big reason why Unravel Two surpasses the original. However, unlike the core game, some of these challenges will definitely benefit from having a second player. Completing these ordeals not only nets you pride but customisation options for your Yarnys, allowing you to change their shape, eyes, and color.

If video games have taught us anything over the years, it's that adventures are always better when undertaken with a friend. Experiencing a challenging mission for the first time. Overcoming a boss with hard-fought teamwork. Solving a puzzle at the exact same moment. Co-op can often give us some of gaming's most meaningful moments. That sentiment must have been in the mind of Swedish developer Coldwood Interactive when it began working on the sequel to heartfelt platformer Unravel, because it really shows. Unravel Two is very much an iterative sequel. That's not meant to be negative, but rather that its developer knows what the first game was so charming and simply doubles down on those unique qualities. Once again, you control a miniature woollen hero called Yarny, who travels to a 2.5D adventure using his own yarn-based string to swing across gaps, pull down objects to reveal new paths and scale seemingly insurmountable heights. You'll still be using picture frames as gateways to new levels, only now there are new memories to explore. This time, however, is joined by a blue-colored friend, leading to levels filled with environmental and platforming puzzles that call for the two woollen pals to work together.

 

Much like the first game, Unravel Two's story avoids being overly explicit, instead using simple and often metaphorical themes to guide you through a whole host of levels inspired by the Swedish countryside and a variety of local inner-city. With composers Frida Johansson and Henrik Oja returning to the score, you're left with a gaming experience that rarely rushes or stresses you. It's a chilled and charming puzzle-platformer willing to tell stories of sadness and joy at its own pace. In that way, it's similar to the sedate cooperative world of Journey. With the ability to control two different Yarnys this time around, something as simple as reaching a new platform requires you to deploy a constant use of teamwork. Both characters are connected by their yarn, so while you can still swing using your string, you can also use one another as an anchor point to reach seemingly unreachable platforms across far greater distances. So eleven one player has reached said high point, the other can use their position to ascend to cliff face by climbing their own yarn to the very top. You can once again use your yarn to fashion to bridge or trampoline between two points, and you can now increase the height of each jump by doubling up your yarn.

 

 

It's designed in such a way that many of Unravel Two's platforming puzzles can be beaten by a single player, so if you are playing cooperatively with a younger or less experienced pal, one of you can reach the required point on screen while the other uses your position as a handy anchor point to join you. As the game progresses and you move through each chapter, that need for tandem problem-solving increases, but every time you crack how to move to a certain piece of scenery out of the way or use your yarn as to makeshift bridge or trampoline, the sense of achievement becomes the most potent because you achieved it together. It should be noted that while it is being sold on the enjoyment of its local co-op, Unravel Two is brilliant fun from beginning to end when played on your own. You can only move one character at a time - enabling you to place on one's weight, or to create a lift by leaping over a hook - but you just need to have 'X' when both are next to one another to combine them together into one multi-colored Yarny. There are benefits and drawbacks to playing solo or co-op - for instance, getting your swings in sync when trying to leap between swing points can be a challenge in co-op, while solving certain puzzles takes a little longer in single-player - but both remain solid ways to play in their own right.

 

Despite taking an extra nine months of development, Unravel Two proves to be well worth the wait. A visual downgrade is certainly in effect - as you'd probably expect, given that this is one of the most aesthetically pleasing home console games of E3 2018 running on Nintendo Switch - so you'll notice the occasional bit of blurring in the background , rasterized assets here and there and the odd bit of interactive landscape disappearing as soon as its role in an environmental puzzle has been played out. Coldwood Interactive has smoothly used trick it to get Unravel Two running smoothly on Switch's hardware, and it has pulled it off. Loading times can sometimes overstay their welcome and some of the game's amazingly gorgeous dynamically-lit moments do some of their visual magic, but Unravel Two is still a beautiful game to play on Nintendo hardware. Even with two players attempting to solve multiple parts of a puzzle while swinging about the shop, we never experienced a single second of framerate reduction or slowdown. It's another confident reminder that Switch has the potential to run so many different types of game when they're given the right amount of time, care and optimization.

 

The Verdict

 

While its core story, Unravel Two improves upon the original in every other respect. The platforming is more responsive and demanding, while the puzzles are far more inventive and satisfying to solve, which is largely due to the excellent implementation of a second character and co-op. It still works as a single adventure, but is far more enjoyable if played with a partner. And despite its oh-so-cute appearance, the generous helping of brilliant Challenge levels that Unravel Two has really been made by a talented group of Scandinavian sadists

 

 

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