Blasphemous 2 Review

Once again, a peculiar pixel art Metroidvania is presented to our gaming tastes, with a heavy religious, Andalusian flavor. This is Blasphemous 2 – unforgiving, visually mesmerizing, and immensely satisfying.

So let’s dive into the latest adventure of The Penitent One as he attains absolution from his sins in the land of Cvstodia.

Let thy penance beginneth

Your journey begins with the rebirth of The Penitent One, classic Dark Souls 3 style. Seems the miracle is again in need of some badass pilgrimage assistance, but that will become apparent later in the game.

The first novel feature of Blasphemous 2 comes in the form of a choice – what weapon will you choose to begin your quest to complete penance? Will it be the dual short blades Sarmiento & Centella, or the balanced, blood-thrusting Ruego AI Alba? 

Or maybe you’re a Kratos fan and prefer the range-extending, chained Morningstar called Veredicto, which is more like a giant iron chandelier that hits really hard. Each weapon has its own playstyle, skill tree, and even a resource bar that comes with it. 

What’s more, depending on the starting weapon, you can utilize certain interactables around the map with it, giving you early access to certain hidden paths. 

This particular mechanic gives Blasphemous 2 a fresh replayability flavor, as there would be three completely different paths for the first couple of hours (or more) of the game.

After the obligatory tutorial in the form of an immediate boss, you are thrown into the madness of the land. 

Many cool new (and some returning) enemies await the player to test the skills that come with a rich backlog of Metroidvania titles. When you reach the safe haven that is the City of the Blessed Name, the real suffering begins! 

You see, there’s this massive overcity descending upon the land, carried by three giant monumental figures, and The Penitent One needs to get up there and solve the mystery of the unborn miracle child. 

The story is presented in high-quality animated cutscenes which goes to show the developers of The Game Kitchen have upped their production value level. 

So, you have your hero and your main quest; time to start hacking some mutated Inquisition wannabe mobs!

Doing it like Mario!

Christianvania

The world of Cvstodia is weird in a religious, biblical way, with all its catholic trappings, candlesticks, self-mutilating tools and don’t forget the imprisoned cherubs that need saving. 

The map is large and Metroidvanian – some parts are unreachable until The Penitent One acquires a new passive ability or item. 

Later in the game, certain puzzles will be presented as obstacles to secret areas or shortcuts when players progress faster. 

A fact that I consider a serious drawback, however, is the frequent need to backtrack to way remote locations of the map to access previously closed routes and biomes. Sometimes, this backtracking gets pretty tiresome and may frustrate newer players. 

It’s a good thing players can leave markers wherever they want on the mini-map!

The enemies are interesting, each with a unique mini-gimmick, which requires strategic application of combat moves. 

An interesting aspect is the active AI of the enemies – some of them wait for The Penitent One to approach before attacking, while others unlock a second surprise attack if the player is in immediate proximity. 

Some instances are pure “survive the waves” mode of play, adding another challenge layer to Blasphemous 2. 

They tend to get slightly repetitive after several tries, but an upside to this is their optional nature. Every pixel art life-form that wants to kill the gamer feels unique, making the combat rich and non-repetitive. 

Jingle bells, all the way.

Players will also encounter various NPCs, naturally giving out quests to the player. Most of these tasks are of the fetch-and-return variety, but some are genuinely satisfying experiences when completed. 

Finally, the bosses of Blasphemous 2 are a whole independent category of pure gaming pleasure. Never getting dull, perfectly balanced (as all things should be), sinfully beautiful, and sometimes with a tragic backstory. 

Their tale is told by the level design and the biome they reside in, so pay attention to every little pixelated detail in the background. 

Every boss can be beaten in at least two different ways, and The Penitent One has more than enough of an arsenal to deal with the Miracle’s most powerful servants. 

Visually, these guys are stunning – I was regularly just standing there, admiring their move sets and splendor several times before I could devise a strategy for the win. 

Papa, is that you?

Deconstruction of Sin

Blasphemous 2 improves upon its predecessor in many ways, notably with some quality-of-life additions to gameplay. For example, players can now upgrade the weapons on the fly (which is now done with martyr points, not tears of atonement), and there is no need for kneeling to a weird wall of moving faces to ask for permission. 

Upon upgrading the Prie Diues several times, The Penitent One can instantly unlock the ability to travel between any unlocked waypoint on the map. Or he can take the longer route and just use a pre-set Teleporter (or Gate of Travel) to go about the world.

Movement is now more fluid and easier to execute with the button mapping – there’s the standard low-dodge, double jump, mid-air dash, and every combination in between. The result is a much more versatile, agile main protagonist – The Athletic One, just hopping around, smacking enemies on all sides with a vast battle chandelier. 

Spells (or Prayers as they are called in the game) are now set in two separate categories – Quick Verses and Chants. The latter are more powerful, strategic emanations of fate, like a town portal or a friendly ghost summoned to fight by your side. 

The Quick Verses are exactly that – one push of a button and something quickly flies out of The Penitent One’s praying fingers – blooderangs, fireballs, spikes, toxic clouds, you name it. 

But wait, there’s more! In addition to the prayer beads passive bonus system (and all the tiny beads scattered across Cvstodia), there’s now an additional one – the Altarpiece of Favours. 

It’s a gallery of statues that give tactical passive bonuses to The Penitent One (physical defense, quicker dodge, critical hit chance, etc.). 

But there’s a trick to it – players need to find those statues in the world (or buy some of them) and then go back to the sculptor NPC to equip them within the Altarpiece. Naturally, the most powerful statues are the most well-hidden, so always mind your surroundings.

All these options for powering up the main hero bring a huge customization variety to the overall gameplay.


Don’t worry, it’s just a flesh wound…

Exemplaris Excomvnicationis

Blasphemous 2 is a classic, old-school Metroidvania game with modern vibes. The game is also fair – it doesn’t hesitate to punish players’ mistakes but rewards effort handsomely. 

I promise you – that every time you prevail in a challenge, in addition to the immense feeling of satisfaction, you will gain a little more skill to improve in the coming hardships. 

The second franchise installment is rich with story, dripping with diverse and fun gameplay, putting up a fair challenge. 

The Game Kitchen team respects their audience, never holding the hand of the player but going the extra mile to improve the overall experience throughout Blasphemous 2.

So, I ask you now – are you ready to complete your journey of penance?

Thanks to Team 17 and Game Kitchen for the Blasphemous 2 review code. 

Blasphemous 2 will be available on PC, PlayStation, Xbox, and Switch on August 24th 2023. You can pre-order Blasphemous 2 on Steam today.