2020's Minecraft Dungeons successfully spun its survival-sandbox source material into a Diablo-like dungeon crawler. Mixing Minecraft's charming voxel aesthetics with action-RPG gameplay, it crafted an entirely fresh experience that appealed to existing franchise fans while putting the series' iconic pickaxe into the hands of new players.
Minecraft Dungeons 2 nicely builds on this foundation, expanding on both the base game's blocky universe and its spin-off's hack-and-slash action. The former comes courtesy of an original dimension dubbed "The Sift." This vibrant, supernatural realm is a highlight, complementing the gameplay and storytelling, but also giving fans of the vanilla game a peek at the franchise's first new dimension in over a decade.
This absorbing addition alone should be enough to hook longtime Minecraft players, but those introduced to the cube-constructed world via Dungeons will be more drawn in by the numerous gameplay updates and inclusions. While the first entry provided a satisfying dungeon dive, it could still seem pretty bare-bones compared to its looting-and-leveling contemporaries.
The sequel addresses this, starting with a much deeper, more layered gear system. On top of a greater variety of ranged and melee weapons, armor is now broken into four categories – helmets, chestplates, leggings, and boots – with each item becoming more powerful through leveling and enchanting. New artifacts and talismans further complement your monster-slaying build, adding various active and passive abilities that can be mixed and matched.
Combined, these varied, abundant options allow for lots of customisation and experimentation, encouraging players to breach the boundaries of their more class-based comfort zones. Regardless of what kit you put together, your blades, bows, and fireballs now carve through a wider, organically interconnected world. Where the original could be a bit linear in its level design and rigid in its mission structure, the follow-up's semi-open environments makes it feel like a proper action-RPG, with plenty of room to explore and optional activities to tackle. Best of all, the new ability to jump makes traversing this bigger, more immersive world feel far more fun and natural to navigate.
The sequel is literal leaps and bounds better than its predecessor...
The sequel is literal leaps and bounds better than its predecessor, but it's not without a few cracks in its cubes. At its core, Minecraft Dungeons 2 is a family-friendly experience that prioritizes accessible, all-ages entertainment over potentially intimidating RPG depth. So, while clearing its dungeons is an absolute blast – especially with a buddy in local co-op – seasoned genre fans might find it a bit shallow.
It's also lacking a little in post-campaign content, as the relatively short main story isn't followed by a whole lot to do. That said, if the first chapter's prolific DLC output is any indication, the sequel's weekend's worth of adventuring is just the warm-up.
Minecraft Dungeons 2 doesn't so much evolve its chosen genre as much as it dramatically improves upon the solid foundation laid in the first game. It also delivers the year's best reason to recruit a friend or family member and save the world from the comfort of your couch.