You'll find them littered all around the larger, quasi-open-world districts of Union, which benefit from expanded exploration in exchange for the occasional bit of boring backtracking. If you so choose - which I absolutely do - to play Sebastian as a loose cannon zombie killer who doesn't afraid of anything, you can safely go guns-blazing as long as you take the time to snatch up the myriad crafting items. Once you've collected and come to grips with a few firearms, you'll quickly find that you don't really need to conserve your resources all that much, at least on the Survival (read: Normal) difficulty.
Yes, it was highly annoying whenever you ran out - but it also created some truly terrifying moments of panicked cremation and a looming distrust of the dead bodies you left in your wake. This sequel completely ditches the original's match mechanic, where unburned corpses could potentially revive at any time - and surprisingly, I found myself missing those troublesome matches a wee bit. And I hope you don't mind having to occasionally line up perfect stealth kill sequences or die trying - because early on, one misstep can easily result in your being spotted, swarmed, and slain in a matter of seconds. Some enemies are tougher or faster than others, but none are particularly smarter, so you rarely have to adjust your tactics. If you played the first game, you know what to expect from The Evil Within 2's gameplay: a mix of ammo-conserving stealth takedowns that can eventually give way to some shoot-'em-up action once you've amassed enough upgrades and munitions. Shooting and sneaking both have their place But compared to The Evil Within's lavishly gory intersection of serrated metal and soft organs, the lack of a distinct, cohesive look for the sequel is a bit disappointing. It's by no means an ugly game, excluding the purposely hideous enemies who look great despite a lack of variety. You can spot soon-to-be-reanimated zombies from a mile away by how much they contrast with the environment, as if this is an old episode of Scooby-Doo where you can clearly pinpoint what can and can't move at any given moment. The result is a visual style that feels oddly vibrant given the overall vibe, like a Fallout 4 spin on Resident Evil. Where the original game made great use of grimy textures and dark visual filters to give the world an air of rust, intestinal slime, and decay, The Evil Within 2 feels like it's trying to make every little thing pop.
THE EVIL WITHIN 2 REVIEW IGN PS3
Somehow, despite the fact that this sequel wasn't made with PS3 and Xbox 360 versions in mind, the visual presentation has taken a stylistic step backwards. In fact, the graphics make an odd departure from the first game across the board. The character models seem to have taken on a vaguely rubbery look, struggling to emote in ways that make the dialogue hit home.
THE EVIL WITHIN 2 REVIEW IGN CRACK
I always crack up at how nonplussed Sebastian is by the absolutely horrific things he's regularly exposed to, grunting out a world-weary "Shit." as enemies close in, or plainly responding to a living nightmare with "That was weird." That said, the line delivery is still solid, and often charmingly goofy. Both Castellanos and Kidman have new voice actors say what you will about the original performances, but I'm personally miffed whenever a universe's central characters experience a change in speak. All you really need to know is that Sebastian is back and ready to kill any and all freaky monsters and murderous egomaniacs to save his daughter. It quickly becomes apparent that trying to rationalize anyone's motivations or the logistics of some impossibly convenient plot devices is going to be tricky at best. You've no choice but the brave the undead dangers of Union, a virtual small town that's twisting in on itself like a blood-soaked version of the neighborhood from Psychonaut's Milkman Conspiracy. Suddenly, his former partner-turned-double agent Juli Kidman appears with news: Lily didn't die in that house fire after all, and Sebastian must rescue her by delving back into the shared consciousness of the STEM system, better thought of as The Spooky Matrix. After barely mentioning her in the first game, the former detective is now wrought with guilt over the death of his daughter Lily we know this because the opening scene graphically shows the flesh melting off her five-year-old face. Three years after surviving Ruvik's twisted mindscape within Beacon Mental Hospital, Sebastian has been kicked off the force and seeks solace in the sauce.