Prepare for Pain
Tails of Iron 2: Whiskers of Winter from Odd Bug Studio and United Label takes the Soulslike genre and cranks up the intensity. Think of it like this: if other Soulslike games are jalapeños, then Whiskers of Winter is a Carolina Reaper – there’s a clear family resemblance, but one bite will leave you screaming for mercy.
As I never played the original Tails of Iron, I’ve come into this completely blind, and while the story will stand on its own, I do wonder if playing the first game may have been a good idea. But we are where we are so let’s dive in and talk about how much I’ve been battered by Whiskers of Winter, shall we?

A Feast for the Senses
We’ll start with the presentation of the game and all is quite nice, to be honest, with a hand drawn kind of aesthetic that looks great. The enemies are well designed, whilst our hero, Arlo, is cleverly designed, the equipment he runs changing on the fly as various items are equipped. However, the animation of the creatures we face, and of Arlo and his allies, is a little strange, reminding of old home-made theatres in which characters had joints held together with pins, allowing the joints to move.
It’s hard to explain, but it works very well in Tails of Iron 2: Whiskers of Winter and the only slight problem I have with it is that it is sometimes hard to tell what kind of move your enemies are going to pull off. There are other indicators, such as coloured lines, but the movement makes it tricky to see what is about to happen.
It must be said, the sound of the game is well up to scratch as well, with the voiceover and narration duties given to one Doug Cockle; an RPG legend, who does an absolutely cracking job bringing things to life. The music, the sounds of battle and the sad little sound as you die (you’ll hear that a lot, trust me), ensures that everything works as far as the soundtrack goes.
From Rat vs. Frog to a New Threat
The story is something that is again well thought out, and certainly gives impetus to keep pushing forward. We come to Whiskers of Winter on the back of the last game, where a great war between Rat and Frog played out. However, the peace that followed the victory was too short lived, as in the north, an ancient evil is now stirring, ready to burst onto the scene.
It means that this time we are going to be fighting bats, a race of creatures whose thirst for blood is matched only by their taste for vengeance. We play as Arlo again, the son of the Warden of the Wastes, and after the events of the prologue, it is down to us to get the rats back together and to offer some resistance to our flying cousins. Can Arlo fight his way through the regular minions, the bosses and even giant creatures that can be found in the landscape? Well, it is technically possible, but my goodness, you are going to suffer along the way.

Brutal Battles and a Steep Learning Curve
The gameplay is where we end up next, and here the news is grim. Not in terms of the fun found in Tails of Iron 2: Whiskers of Winter, nor in the fighting mechanics which hold it together. See, those things are very good. What we have to contend with is the extreme difficulty, where even a basic enemy is more than capable of ruining your entire day. I was going to make a joke about masochism, but I have a feeling it would get cut out, so suffice it to say that Tails of Iron 2: Whiskers of Winter is extremely hard.
You’ll come to this one learning attack patterns, learning when to block, when to dodge and when to go for the risky parry option, but even then, Tails of Iron 2: Whiskers of Winter relentlessly beats you around the head until you do begin to see the patterns and finally make some progress. The first boss is a nightmare, the second is pure evil, and then it gets harder from there on out. Of course, one of the important things for a game like this is the introduction to combat, and here the tutorial is a bit lacking, giving basic pointers of what to do, while leaving loads for you to figure out yourself.
Crafting, Rebuilding, and Exploration in Tails of Iron 2
Don’t think Tails of Iron 2: Whiskers of Winter is just a side scrolling kind of Soulslike either, as there is a lot more to it. There are the aforementioned hunts, where you can find giant beasts to take down, if your skills are up to it. There is also a crafting system to get to grips with, building and equipping new weapons and armour, from fast poky spears that don’t do much damage, to the exact opposite; an up-close and personal mace if you fancy going toe-to-toe with the enemies.
There is also the small matter of rebuilding the settlement we live in after a devastating attack, and this requires as much thought as the fighting. Rebuild the Smithy to get new gear, rebuild and upgrade the kitchen to get tasty new meals and so on and so forth.

A Brutally Challenging But Rewarding Soulslike Adventure
There is no doubt that Tails of Iron 2: Whiskers of Winter is hard. But no, it’s harder than that, and the constant banging of your head on a brick wall may well frustrate. Yet on the flip, there are pure moments of joy when you finally beat a boss on the 300th attempt.
You’ll want to arrive in Tails of Iron 2: Whiskers of Winter knowing that the game is absolutely brutal, and so that means you’ll need to absolutely dedicate yourself to learning the game’s systems, closing your eyes and going for it. For many though, that bar of entry may feel a little too high.
Brutal Links
Buy Tails of Iron 2 on Xbox – https://www.xbox.com/en-gb/games/store/tails-of-iron-2-whiskers-of-winter/9PPKMQFXR7FR
Or go Deluxe – https://www.xbox.com/en-GB/games/store/tails-of-iron-2-whiskers-of-winter-deluxe-edition/9NF1VMNL2K4N/0017