Figment 2: Creed Valley

[h1]FIGMENT 2: CREED VALLEY[/h1] [b]Rating: [/b] 5/10 [b]Genre: [/b] Top Down Action/Adventure/Puzzle game [b]Length: [/b] 3 - 5 hours [b]Achievement Difficulty: [/b] 2/10 Figment 2: Creed Valley is a short story-driven action/adventure game with light puzzle elements presented in a colourful and surreal musical world. Much like the first game, the art design is relatively unmatched. The world is beautifully designed, colourful and visually distinctive while the overall presentation is polished. The musical boss battles are also a neat idea, although I felt the game's musical theme was underused. The gameplay is where I found Figment 2 most lacking. The game is extraordinarily easy from beginning to end. The combat is very simple and essentially requiring only one button while the puzzles require virtually no thought to solve. There are also relatively few mechanics to engage with in the first place. This isn't necessarily a criticism on its own but combined with how little there is to figure out or to master, I found the gameplay became uninteresting very quickly. The main character Dusty was another significant issue for me. His voice acting is passable, but his characterisation became increasingly irritating; for most of the game his dialogue consists of one liners and negativity so I never really found myself warming to him. This was particularly noticeable because the supporting characters (the Opinions) are much more enjoyable. Their voice acting is great and much of their dialogue is genuinely funny, making them some of the more memorable parts of the game. On the positive side, the achievements are very easy to obtain. A couple can be missed, but the chapter select makes going back for them straightforward. As well, figment 2 is also quite short. I finished 100% of the game in roughly four hours, so the lack of interesting gameplay never had enough time to become a major time commitment. Overall, Figment 2 is a very pretty game with a good supporting cast and some nice presentation, but I found very little in the actual gameplay that kept me interested. The lack of challenge, limited mechanics and unlikable protagonist ultimately made it an unremarkable experience for me. I looked back at my review for Figment 1 and surprisingly my last thought for that game is my last thought for this game as well: I genuinally don't know who the game is marketed for AGAIN. The bright art style, simple characters and extremely easy gameplay seem well suited to a younger audience but the games central subject matter feels much more directed toward adults. The first Figment felt more coherent in this regard, particularly because its greater emphasis on puzzles gave it a clearer identity. Figment 2 shifts more toward combat while retaining the same general presentation, and I didn't find that change particularly compelling. I can't recommend this game to anyone other than people looking for a short, non-comittal playthrough of easy achievements.