I just started playing Remnant II yesterday. This is dubbed a "Souls With Guns" type game, so I was a bit intimidated, as Dark Souls is not my type of game at all. I'm playing as a "Handler" archetype, and although I play it solo and the canine companion's main skill minimizes the effects of friendly fire (so is useless to me), I find the dog is pretty effective at both distracting and killing enemies that would otherwise relentlessly swarm you. He has his limits though, for instance if you go down near an AOE, there's a good chance he'll get stuck in it and die and not be able to revive you. And you can't let him run willy nilly among several foes and take cover to reload, heal, etc, if the spot he's in is not approachable from where you're taking cover (such as dropping down off a ledge that can't be mantled). That's really only a problem if you need his help from where you take cover at, as when you move farther forward, he'll eventually warp to you anyway, even if he's gone down.
There's a lot to this game though as far as it's game world and gear and upgrades. It has sections of it's game world you cross into which are procedurally generated, so there's no telling how your playthrough will progress or compare to that of others, or even your previous playthroughs. There are a few key sub worlds, as well as key chests and items in them, but that's about all you can count on. That aspect of it even has some whom are experienced at playing it misleading others as to what items you can find and where. For instance one YTer, who's video I saw, insisted the Vengeance Idol, an amulet that buffs your damage output 30% when your health is below 50%, can be found in The Twisted Chantry, but I didn't find it until I went to Endaira's End just after.
Even beyond that, each sub world can appear different for some as it does for others. It will look for the most part the same as far as the enemies it contains and the features of the environment, but the layout will be different. This means using the map to navigate and even the means to get to secrets can be quite different. I was seeing YouTube vids of The Twisted Chantry showing access to a lower area by means of passing through a surface that looked like a wall, but was immaterial. For me the method was to jump off a ledge in a spot where it's rock wall was broken, down into a large coffin. It was not easy to find because you could not see from above that the coffin had an opening at one end you could get through via crouching. Right behind the spot where I jumped off the ledge was a locked door, so I'd spent a fair bit of time looking for a key, as it's often times the way through them.
The story's premise isn't as well presented as it could be, and the archetype you play never speaks except in cutscenes, remaining silent when choosing dialog options in conversations with NPCs, and your dialog choices don't seem to change anything as in full on RPGs. At best asking certain questions has NPCs referring you to someone whom can help you with what you're seeking, whether it be how to get somewhere, or some of your gear needing upgrading. The story is based on plant based creatures trying to take over everything, but some of the enemies don't look anything like a tree based species. There is however an effect called root rot that can sicken you and slow you down during combat if you don't use the cure for it.
Combat, world, and puzzle wise it's very well thought out and very engaging and immersive. I can see too that it's likely to have tons of replay value due to the several archetypes and gear builds you can go with, and where the game randomly takes you environment wise. It is pretty tough to play solo though, even if starting out on the lowest difficulty like I am, Survivor mode. It kind of lulls you into thinking you'll be fine, but when you encounter more aggressive enemies, mini bosses, and especially main bosses that have a ton of health, it can easily take several tries. I find the dog really helps as long as you can manage to circle around and use cover here and there while he distracts them, but there are times that is not viable.
The checkpoint system is large red crystals here and there that pop out of the ground when you get near them. The plus is, when you interact with them by touching them, they fully replenish your ammo, health, and health packs called Dragon Hearts. The negative is, doing this also resets ALL the enemies in that area. So if you think you can use them to backtrack, restock, and go back to where you were, you'll have to either fight through all those enemies again, or get lucky running past them. I've tried the latter more than once, and even with my trusty dog distracting them, yet still catching up to me, I died every time. This is because if you try to disregard the enemies it places in front of you, it adapts and places more (and tougher ones) in your path as you go. Dying takes you back to the last checkpoint you activated, with, you guessed it, all enemies present.
The checkpoints however DO serve both as a means to perfect your attempt to get through an area via retries, and are also a means to fully restock once you clear an area, as each new area tends to have another checkpoint at the start of it. The game encourages you to be aggressive, as killing enemies will reward you with the type of ammo drops you need. You DO need to use it carefully though, as you aren't given an abundant amount, even on the lowest difficulty mode. It also encourages you to explore a lot, as various crates, chests, and coffins have valuable items that can be very useful.
The dog and careful use of melee can help you prepare for boss fights when saving ammo is a priority, as ammo drops don't happen with every enemy gunned down. If it feels you are stuck trying to find the way to your objective, stick to the sub worlds marked with a (!), and look for edges of it's map that look feathery, without a well defined outer edge. That's a sign it will lead you to unexplored parts of it. However there are parts of certain maps, such as the Ward 13 base, which are unreachable until you progress a certain ways into the story. There's no New Game + in this game, so the only way to start a game with all your gear and upgrades is to grind to get them, then jump in with someone else at the start of their game in coop. However, since I tend to often task myself with solo challenges, it makes me want to instead try to perfect my gameplay and become more efficient.
I have a couple videos forthcoming, one of the mini boss called Rot at that aforementioned secret area of The Twisted Chantry, and one of the boss called Mother Mind at the end of The Nameless Nest. I also beat the main boss called Legion at the end of The Twisted Chantry, and he's definitely tougher than Rot, but unfortunately I did not capture it.
There's a lot to this game though as far as it's game world and gear and upgrades. It has sections of it's game world you cross into which are procedurally generated, so there's no telling how your playthrough will progress or compare to that of others, or even your previous playthroughs. There are a few key sub worlds, as well as key chests and items in them, but that's about all you can count on. That aspect of it even has some whom are experienced at playing it misleading others as to what items you can find and where. For instance one YTer, who's video I saw, insisted the Vengeance Idol, an amulet that buffs your damage output 30% when your health is below 50%, can be found in The Twisted Chantry, but I didn't find it until I went to Endaira's End just after.
Even beyond that, each sub world can appear different for some as it does for others. It will look for the most part the same as far as the enemies it contains and the features of the environment, but the layout will be different. This means using the map to navigate and even the means to get to secrets can be quite different. I was seeing YouTube vids of The Twisted Chantry showing access to a lower area by means of passing through a surface that looked like a wall, but was immaterial. For me the method was to jump off a ledge in a spot where it's rock wall was broken, down into a large coffin. It was not easy to find because you could not see from above that the coffin had an opening at one end you could get through via crouching. Right behind the spot where I jumped off the ledge was a locked door, so I'd spent a fair bit of time looking for a key, as it's often times the way through them.
The story's premise isn't as well presented as it could be, and the archetype you play never speaks except in cutscenes, remaining silent when choosing dialog options in conversations with NPCs, and your dialog choices don't seem to change anything as in full on RPGs. At best asking certain questions has NPCs referring you to someone whom can help you with what you're seeking, whether it be how to get somewhere, or some of your gear needing upgrading. The story is based on plant based creatures trying to take over everything, but some of the enemies don't look anything like a tree based species. There is however an effect called root rot that can sicken you and slow you down during combat if you don't use the cure for it.
Combat, world, and puzzle wise it's very well thought out and very engaging and immersive. I can see too that it's likely to have tons of replay value due to the several archetypes and gear builds you can go with, and where the game randomly takes you environment wise. It is pretty tough to play solo though, even if starting out on the lowest difficulty like I am, Survivor mode. It kind of lulls you into thinking you'll be fine, but when you encounter more aggressive enemies, mini bosses, and especially main bosses that have a ton of health, it can easily take several tries. I find the dog really helps as long as you can manage to circle around and use cover here and there while he distracts them, but there are times that is not viable.
The checkpoint system is large red crystals here and there that pop out of the ground when you get near them. The plus is, when you interact with them by touching them, they fully replenish your ammo, health, and health packs called Dragon Hearts. The negative is, doing this also resets ALL the enemies in that area. So if you think you can use them to backtrack, restock, and go back to where you were, you'll have to either fight through all those enemies again, or get lucky running past them. I've tried the latter more than once, and even with my trusty dog distracting them, yet still catching up to me, I died every time. This is because if you try to disregard the enemies it places in front of you, it adapts and places more (and tougher ones) in your path as you go. Dying takes you back to the last checkpoint you activated, with, you guessed it, all enemies present.
The checkpoints however DO serve both as a means to perfect your attempt to get through an area via retries, and are also a means to fully restock once you clear an area, as each new area tends to have another checkpoint at the start of it. The game encourages you to be aggressive, as killing enemies will reward you with the type of ammo drops you need. You DO need to use it carefully though, as you aren't given an abundant amount, even on the lowest difficulty mode. It also encourages you to explore a lot, as various crates, chests, and coffins have valuable items that can be very useful.
The dog and careful use of melee can help you prepare for boss fights when saving ammo is a priority, as ammo drops don't happen with every enemy gunned down. If it feels you are stuck trying to find the way to your objective, stick to the sub worlds marked with a (!), and look for edges of it's map that look feathery, without a well defined outer edge. That's a sign it will lead you to unexplored parts of it. However there are parts of certain maps, such as the Ward 13 base, which are unreachable until you progress a certain ways into the story. There's no New Game + in this game, so the only way to start a game with all your gear and upgrades is to grind to get them, then jump in with someone else at the start of their game in coop. However, since I tend to often task myself with solo challenges, it makes me want to instead try to perfect my gameplay and become more efficient.
I have a couple videos forthcoming, one of the mini boss called Rot at that aforementioned secret area of The Twisted Chantry, and one of the boss called Mother Mind at the end of The Nameless Nest. I also beat the main boss called Legion at the end of The Twisted Chantry, and he's definitely tougher than Rot, but unfortunately I did not capture it.
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