Frostpunk 2 review – a sequel of consequence
A sequel that takes the thrilling cold-survival city-building heart of Frostpunk and evolves it in every way, while losing none of what made the series so special to begin with.
Frostpunk remains one of the most thrilling city-building games I’ve ever played, a tense and hard-fought scramble for survival at the frozen end of the world. A Dickensian tale, almost – a Victorian fable choked in smog and despair as children are sent to work in factories and the dead are eaten, all in the name of survival. There’s no room for sunshine; an apocalyptic storm is coming that will plummet temperatures below minus 100 degrees celsius. There’s no room for dissent; crush it – or else the world will crush you.
Frostpunk 2 reviewDeveloper: 11 bit StudiosPublisher: 11 bit StudiosPlatform: Played on PCAvailability: Releases 20th September on PC (Steam, GOG, Epic, and PC Game Pass). PS5 and Xbox Series S/X versions coming 2025
I worried the sequel would jeopardise that by swamping it in complexity and an urge to do more, to go bigger, to be better – to be a sequel, in other words. And developer 11 bit didn’t assuage my fears by talking about squabbling political factions being the focus of the game, which sounded about as much fun as watching Prime Minister’s Questions to me. I worried 11 bit would overcomplicate it and lose the thrilling essence of what Frostpunk once was. But it hasn’t.
Frostpunk 2 has managed the remarkable; it’s managed to grow in every direction and dwarf the original while still retaining the breathless experience of playing it – that inescapable sense of clinging on. I don’t think I breathed at all over the five chapters and 17-odd hours the story took me, which, come to think of it, is a long time to hold one’s breath.
Frostpunk 2 | Launch Trailer Watch on YouTube
Moreover, it’s gotten bigger without getting flabbier. By jettisoning a whole bottom layer of micromanagement it no longer needs, and letting you govern in broader strokes, Frostpunk 2 has done away with enormous amounts of faff and freed you up to think about more interesting things. And it’s all honed almost to perfection: though it seems more complex, I never found myself at a loss about what to do, or very confused, which I believe signals a developer that has learnt an incredible amount from its first game and then gone to great lengths to show it. Frostpunk 2, in so many ways, is exquisite.
