A Hellish Journey into Deck-Building Excellence
It’s been five years since developers Shiny Shoe bravely entered the arena of roguelike deck-builders with Monster Train. Much like every other game of this genre, everyone wondered if it was better than the critically acclaimed Slay the Spire, but in the end, Monster Train established itself as a success with its own unique concept.
Fast-forward to now, and there’s a real buzz about the sequel, Monster Train 2. Can it live up to the greatness of the original with the help of some fresh additions, or will the core ideas feel stale and lead to a follow-up that lacks innovation?
An Unholy Alliance
As sworn protector of the last burning pyres of hell, after it literally froze over, fending off heavenly forces was the original objective. In Monster Train 2 however, it’s Heaven that’s in trouble, with beings known as Titans taking control of it. An unholy alliance must be formed between devilish demons from the depths below and angels formerly residing in the skies above. Working together on the trusty train is the only hope to stop the chaos and defeat the Titans before they destroy the world.
There’s clearly a concerted effort to deliver a better and more interesting story this time around. Every so often you’ll get to witness scenes akin to those of a visual novel, starring the key characters of the aforementioned alliance. They’re fairly swift, with the dialogue taking place essentially drip feeding little bits of lore. It also attempts to breathe some personality into the angels and demons you’re championing. While it’s nice to see, you wouldn’t miss these moments in truth and your attention will certainly be on the gameplay instead.
Deck-Building Dominance
The core of the series hasn’t changed an awful lot, with you being given a deck of cards before boarding a train that’s also a vertical battlefield, accompanied by an excellent heavy metal soundtrack. There are three main carriages acting as floors to deploy your units on, with a fourth carriage housing the pyre. In a single run, there are nine levels to survive, with a number of waves to fend off and each conjuring up a variety of foes. Enemies generally enter on the first floor and it’s up to you to stop them from ascending all the way to the top in a turn-based affair. If the pyre is extinguished, it’s ‘game over’.
It’s a setup that works brilliantly as you’re tasked with tactically placing units and ensuring there’s synergy between your cards. That was the case in the original and it remains so in Monster Train 2, but there are many differences to bear in mind that freshens up the concept.
New Clans, New Champions
Five new clans have been introduced – Banished, Pyreborne, Luna Coven, Underlegion, and Lazarus League – with two available from the outset and the others unlocked quite naturally via general play. The Luna Coven are a fascinating bunch of magical creatures who are influenced by a moon cycle feature, while the dragons of the Pyreborne produce eggs worth hoarding and apply damage-increasing Pyregel. Every faction lends itself well to different playstyles and some of the possible combinations between units are ridiculously powerful.
The clan you choose as the main one for a run will dictate which dedicated Champion you start off with. Keeping this unit alive is important, for their upgrades and abilities can turn the tide in battle; especially when the bosses arrive with health points galore. Initially there’s just the one Champion per clan, but as you earn more experience, new cards and a second Champion are unlockable. This adds to the replayability, for it brings about new combinations and connections.
Room Cards, Equipment, and Pyre Hearts
Further increasing the diversity of the gameplay are the room and equipment cards, which are brand new. Room cards are actionable within an entire carriage, boosting attack strength, stacking buffs, and even damaging every unit within it. The equipment types could be placed on your own warriors, giving them multistrike or the chance of revenge attacks. Alternatively, there are cards you can attach to enemies, inflicting pain as they move around the train.
But wait, there’s more. A host of different Pyre Hearts can be unlocked, providing unique offensive and defensive stats as well as cool abilities. Granting additional turn points (ember), allowing extra options at merchants in between battles, and rejuvenating the health of friendly units, is just a small selection of what they bring to the table. Throw in the customisable train carriages and the intriguing random encounters on the route to the next fight, and you’re sure to keep unearthing new things. Heck, that’s without factoring in the innovative artifacts and spells either. There are just so many variables.
Beyond the Campaign
Should you defeat all nine bosses you can crank up the difficulty using the Covenant Rank, before trying to do it again. And you absolutely will want to in order to witness more of the story and unlock everything on offer. Failing that, you can tackle Daily Challenges or enter the Dimensional Portal, which is full of preset scenarios to attempt. Other options include turning on mutators and opting for an endless run with a victorious deck.
A slight downside of Monster Train 2 is that even for those familiar with the mechanics, the raft of new buffs, debuffs, and abilities means you will need time to become accustomed to them. Only through actually seeing things play out does it all start to make more sense, but trust that it’s definitely worth sticking with it.
A Hell of a Ride for Deck-Building Enthusiasts
Ultimately though, Monster Train 2 takes its winning deck-building formula and enhances it with a cavalcade of fresh ideas to keep you coming back for more. As if the new clan decks weren’t enough, a whole host of innovative card types, original artifacts and other improvements, make for a very addictive experience. Sure, the narrative could be better, and the in-game lingo for card features take some getting used to, but that’s not going to spoil your fun.
There’s no doubt, you should jump on board Monster Train 2 for a hell of a ride!
Important Links
Forget Heaven, We’re Going to the Abyss with Monster Train 2’s Moreish Game Pass Deckbuilding – https://www.thexboxhub.com/forget-heaven-were-going-to-the-abyss-with-monster-train-2s-moreish-game-pass-deckbuilding/
Hell Yeah! Monster Train 2 is Coming to Take You to the Abyss – https://www.thexboxhub.com/hell-yeah-monster-train-2-is-coming-to-take-you-to-the-abyss/
Download Monster Train 2 on Xbox (and Game Pass) – https://www.xbox.com/en-gb/games/store/monster-train-2/9njc29jg70lm
There’s a Collection of both games too – https://www.xbox.com/en-GB/games/store/monster-train-collection/9N0T3PFG2T00/0010
