We haven’t rounded up a set of reviews for inXile Entertainment’s Wasteland sequel for quite awhile now, and with the advent of several new critiques, there’s no better time than the present to do so.
RPG Codex doesn’t score it:
Fallout was a game where you explored the setting and could kick some ass if you chose to. WL2 is a game where you kick ass (i.e. combat heavy, which is the very definition of old-school design) and can explore the setting if you choose to. If you don’t, your mileage will vary.
Lastly, it’s important to understand the context of Wasteland 2. RPGs have essentially been dead since 2005. Wasteland 2 is the second game and the instigator of what is probably an RPG renaissance. Wasteland 2 isn’t just important for being a good game, it’s important for being the first stepping stone on the way to Wasteland 3, Pillars of Eternity, Torment 2, countless other RPGs that would have never been made if inXile hadn’t taken the risk to show that people still care about this genre. Wasteland 2 is the game that reopened the floodgates for RPG development.
RPGamer gives it a 3.0/5:
Considering how enormous Wasteland 2 is, the impressive emphasis on player agency, and the crowd-funded budget, there are many ways that things could have gone south for inXile and didn’t. The setting is consistently engaging. Strong writing augments it and brings it to life with over-the-top, black-comedy log messages. The second half of the game takes place outside of New Mexico and drops all of the desert-inspired mechanics and themes, resulting in a much tighter, faster experience that ramps up to a conclusion complete with dozens of potential ending screens. Herein lies the game’s main problem: all the strengths come from modern gaming advancements that weren’t possible in 1988; the weaknesses come from mechanics that are too simple or too archaic, inspired by the original. Overall, it’s a memorable game that can drag in places, frustrate at times, and needs a major interface patch, but there’s no denying that inXile went all out creating its idea of a massive dream project, even if it isn’t the greatest such dream project of its time. If you’re a fan of this style of game and have played the best recent releases, look behind you. Because that’s where Wasteland 2 is going to be.
Hardcore Gamer gives it a 3.5/5:
Wasteland 2 Kickstarter backers will get what they paid for plus a few glitches they didn’t. The game doesn’t live up to its ambitions in a number of places, most notably the dialogue system. Graphics and gameplay are outdated and the combat system makes for slow progression as it did in the entire genre before Fallout 3. A throwback game that a mass audience will enjoy needs to be smooth and pretty (i.e. Mario Bros or DKC for the Wii), but Wasteland 2 is too often crude. That being said, the intended audience the ones who took the risk of financing it where the only return on their investment was being able to play it have a whole new post-apocalyptic universe to explore, understand and bend to their will. Wasteland 2 belongs to its community who I’m sure will be discussing it, playing it, replaying it, searching out every last little secret and modding it for years to come.
The Black Panel goes scoreless:
It was with this realisation that I find myself really falling for Wasteland 2. The writing is superb, dark, and detailed enough to draw me in. The choices presented for me to make are definitely in the grey spectrum, leaving the boring concept of binary good vs. evil choices at the door. And the combat is difficult. Wasteland 2 turned this grumpy Fallout fan on his heel, and applied a healing salve to the aforementioned wounds. I have learned that there is room in my life for two post-apocalyptic isometric RPGs, and I am all the better for it.
We Got This Covered gives it a 4/5:
Overall, Wasteland 2 is a must play for fans of old-school RPGs, and for those of you who aren’t sure if they’re for you, this is a fantastic place to jump in. I’ve spent 40 hours with the game and I know that I still haven’t seen everything here yet as there’s a wealth of gameplay just waiting to be uncovered.
Bit-tech gives it a 70%:
If you’ve been waiting 26 years for a sequel to Wasteland, I’ve absolutely no doubt you will be utterly enraptured by InXile’s work on Wasteland 2. It’s a well built RPG with (mostly) engaging systems and a fine, exquisitely detailed script. But I do doubt that, 26 years down the line, Wasteland 2 will be remembered with the same fondness that the original appears to generate.
PCMag gives it a 3.5/5:
Still, InXile Entertainment has crafted a robust and engaging RPG with Wasteland 2. Aside from the occasional direction or tip, the game is thoroughly open-world, and the decision-heavy approach to storytelling makes for an amazing change of pace from less-flexible and radically more-linear modern RPGs. Whether you’re following a tortoise for hidden loot or gunning-down gun-crazed priests in the overgrown streets of L.A., Wasteland 2 offers RPG a rich and intriguing game world to explore.
Financial Post gives it an 8.5/10:
That a game can elicit such negative feelings doesn’t mean that its 60,000+ backers were wrong. To the contrary, what they like and what this game is, is precisely what a crowd-funded game should be: one that lacks mass appeal and the compromises of a game made for the general public. Wasteland 2 is an excellent game that only gets better the more you put into it. It is a challenge made specifically for those people who wanted a sequel that, without crowd funding paying much of the bill ahead of time, otherwise may never have been developed. And if it were, I doubt it could have been this excellent, and certainly not this demanding.
gamrReview gives it an 8.3/10:
For hardcore enthusiasts looking to relive the glory days of ‘˜90s CRPGs, what I perceive as Wasteland 2’s shortcomings will be seen as its strengths, giving players a chance to revisit the foundations of RPG gaming. The fact that Wasteland 2 does everything else so well is an added bonus. Like the post-apocalyptic wasteland in which it is set, Wasteland 2 is unforgiving, but unlike a real apocalypse, it’s a blast to experience.
New Game Network gives it an 87%:
Wasteland 2 is a game that tickles that old school tactical RPG itch. Not everyone will have that itch to scratch, and this is a game that’s most certainly not for everyone, particularly if you’re used to more modern RPGs. However if you’re perhaps an older gamer, or someone who is looking for something a bit different, then I can wholeheartedly recommend it.
GameRevolution gives it a 4/5:
Wasteland 2 won’t be for everyone. It’s a challenging game that only rewards those willing to sink real time into it. If you like your tactical battles with simple presentation and old-school RPG design, you won’t like this game. It’s deep, and it feels that way right off the bat. But if you liked the original title or fancy long sessions in games like Fallout 2, you will absolutely find plenty to love here. I know I said I didn’t have fun with the game, but that’s because it was almost too much for me to bear during a holiday season. But for the gamer who wants to settle in for a really long ride with a well-written, lovingly crafted, difficult game set in a solid post-apocalyptic world, Wasteland 2 is great.
And Front Towards Gamer gives it a 7/10:
There’s a lot of history in the Wasteland series. Having provided much of the ground for Fallout and many other CRPGs to stand on, the series has something of a reputation for being the CRPG. As a result, Wasteland 2 has big shoes to fill. It’s not the best post-apocalyptic game I’ve ever played, but it’s definitely among them. While its mouse controls could use some work and character models look kinda funky, it’s overall a quirky experience full of mutants, synthetics, and toasters in dire need of repair.
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