Arizona Sunshine 2

79%
Game Brain Score Based on 1,600 reviews
  • story
  • gameplay
  • graphics
Arizona Sunshine 2 Game Cover
An absolute blast from start to finish, Arizona Sunshine 2 outdoes its predecessor in every way, and that’s high praise indeed.
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Buy Arizona Sunshine 2 on PlayStation Store. Chop, whack and blast your way through a brutal zombie apocalypse.

  • PC
  • Play​station 5
  • Windows
  • Play​Station
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

79%
Audience ScoreBased on 1,600 reviews
story184 positive mentions
stability54 negative mentions
  • The game features an engaging story with humorous dialogue and emotional moments, particularly involving the dog companion, Buddy.
  • The gunplay and reloading mechanics are satisfying, providing a fun and immersive experience when shooting zombies.
  • The graphics are improved over the first game, creating a visually appealing environment that enhances the overall gameplay.
  • The game is relatively short, with many players completing the campaign in around 5-10 hours, leading to concerns about its value at full price.
  • There are numerous bugs and glitches, including issues with weapon handling, reloading, and the dog AI, which can detract from the overall experience.
  • The horde mode is criticized for being limited and repetitive, with only one map available and lacking depth compared to other VR titles.
  • story470 mentions

    The story of "Arizona Sunshine 2" has received mixed reviews, with many players appreciating its emotional depth and character development, particularly the bond with the dog companion, Buddy. While some found the narrative engaging and fun, others criticized it for being predictable and lacking in originality, often feeling like a rehash of the first game. Overall, the story is seen as a solid but short experience, with a runtime of around 5-10 hours, and while it has its flaws, it offers enjoyable moments and humor that resonate with players.

    • “Amazing story, graphics, and mechanics. Definitely a must-buy if you like other VR story games like Half-Life: Alyx. The main character might be my favorite character in any VR story game, with a perfect balance between funny and serious moments.”
    • “The campaign was fantastic! Loved the story, loved the characters, and pet the dog any chance I got. The story flowed smoothly and the ending, which I won't spoil, set up room for DLC and potentially a third game.”
    • “10/10 story! It was fun and emotional, and a great continuation from the first game. I was engaged and thrilled through the whole story with my pal Buddy.”
    • “The story is non-existent; it's a corridor-based, linear shooter, but you have a dog buddy, which is cool at first but eventually you yearn for another human character to accompany you, or to talk with.”
    • “Unfortunately, the story falls apart into a predictable finale that unwinds all the potential this zombie shooter had.”
    • “The only complaint I have is that the game just kind of ends, and the story just slams to a halt with no real conclusion.”
  • gameplay259 mentions

    The gameplay of "Arizona Sunshine 2" is a mixed bag, praised for its engaging gun mechanics and immersive VR experience, but criticized for clunky reloading and weapon handling that can disrupt the flow of combat. While the addition of a dog companion and varied objectives enhance the experience, many players feel the game suffers from outdated mechanics and a lack of polish, leading to frustrations in cooperative play and overall gameplay length. Despite these issues, the game is still considered fun and visually appealing, particularly for fans of the original.

    • “This game has really fun and polished mechanics, a huge variety of weapons, and a great story and dog companion system. The graphics are also really great, and the story is pretty long too; so far I'm about 6-7 hours in and I am still not finished with the story.”
    • “Great gameplay, super immersive, fun and funny.”
    • “It features some of the best VR shooting on the market, with a reload mechanic that is incredibly satisfying and really brings to light what makes the platform so great in the first place.”
    • “The worst aspects of the game are the reloading mechanics...with manual reloading, many weapons (including hand grenades) have a completely wrong grip point...and in stress situations, good luck running around while trying to arm a grenade or reload the Desert Eagle.”
    • “The reload mechanic is a tedious nightmare and the checkpoint system is far too sparse (sucks, needs fixing, someone needs to be fired over it).”
    • “It has almost no gameplay and the 'new' horde maps are ripped straight from the first game.”
  • graphics206 mentions

    The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many praising the improvements over its predecessor and highlighting the detailed environments and character models. While some players consider the visuals to be among the best in VR, others feel that they do not reach the high standards set by titles like Half-Life: Alyx, citing issues with optimization and performance on lower-end systems. Overall, the graphics are generally regarded as good, but opinions vary on whether they are groundbreaking or merely adequate for a modern VR experience.

    • “The graphics are the best VR graphics I have ever seen and the story is really good featuring a dog who is very chill.”
    • “Beautiful spinoff of the first game, absolutely love the graphics and gunplay, 10/10 would recommend.”
    • “The graphics were a big step ahead of the last game, being 7 years apart helps with that, but they were still great to look at.”
    • “There are no gorgeous vistas, and the graphics are not amazing.”
    • “Graphics suck, gameplay sucks, everything shown in the trailer is a lie.”
    • “The graphics are terrible, with dark corridors, and searching for door keys in complete darkness is infuriating.”
  • humor104 mentions

    The humor in the game is a mix of crude, silly, and well-written jokes that often land, providing a lighthearted contrast to the action and horror elements. While some players find the protagonist's campy humor and repetitive quips annoying, many appreciate the character's quirky banter and interactions, especially with the dog, which contribute to the game's overall fun and emotional depth. Overall, the humor is seen as a strong point, enhancing the immersive experience of this VR zombie adventure.

    • “The humor is quite crude and silly, but it is actually well written, the jokes land, and it's not overbearing.”
    • “An insanely funny and action-packed VR zombie-slaying adventure made all the better with the addition of your new fuzzy four-legged friend!”
    • “The character interactions between the player and buddy are hilarious, and are genuinely great at filling downtime.”
    • “The constantly annoying, tear-your-hair-out unfunny moron alcoholic, yet fake, personality of the protagonist trying to be funny all the time.”
    • “Let me rephrase: what kind of constantly annoying, tear-your-hair-out unfunny moron alcoholic trying to be funny all the time, do you have to be to come up with a story like that?”
    • “[The protagonist is an unfunny dweeb.]”
  • stability56 mentions

    The game is plagued by numerous bugs and glitches, particularly in multiplayer mode, where players frequently experience softlocks and issues with inventory management. Climbing mechanics and object interactions are inconsistent, leading to frustrating gameplay moments. While some players find humor in the glitches, the overall stability is considered unpolished, detracting from the immersive experience.

    • “The game looks great, sounds great, runs great.”
    • “Multiplayer is a buggy mess that frequently softlocks on you and lacks basic features such as saving the inventory of the second player.”
    • “Bugs such as the second player losing all of their ammo and materials between loading screens and when dying, some areas are not able to be completed unless the host is alive, a ton of animation glitches, almost all of the cosmetics are not placed correctly on the other player, there are way more bugs than this.”
    • “Rather than immersing myself in the game world, most of my time has been spent troubleshooting various issues, from guns glitching out to bugs forcing us to restart the lobby repeatedly.”
  • optimization52 mentions

    The optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players praising its smooth frame rates and effective use of VR mechanics, while others report significant performance issues, including stuttering, FPS drops, and problems specific to certain hardware setups. Although the graphics are generally considered good and well-optimized, aggressive performance adjustments have led to issues like overly dark environments and inconsistent experiences across different VR platforms. Overall, while there are moments of solid performance, many users have encountered frustrating optimization challenges that detract from the gameplay experience.

    • “In my opinion at launch, it's a very clean and well-optimized game with great graphics.”
    • “I didn't run into any issues performance-wise and I felt it made good use of different VR mechanics in an attempt to keep you immersed in the game, and the added companion was a nice touch.”
    • “For performance, I'm getting close to a solid 80 fps in 80 Hz with no motion smoothing, index res 350% (about 32 million pixels per frame) with 4x MSAA and all other graphics settings maxed.”
    • “During my game, I was constantly getting stuttering and FPS drops.”
    • “Also noticed the optimization is terrible in this game.”
    • “Problems with the game: way too dark by default (not enough lights, probably from aggressive performance optimization) meaning you'll be constantly going into the settings to adjust gamma from default 0.0 to -0.30 so you can see in darker areas then reverting back to 0.0 for bright areas.”
  • emotional26 mentions

    The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by its ability to transition from humor to deep sadness, particularly through the bond with the dog character, Buddy. Players express strong emotional reactions to key story moments, including a touching happy ending and intense scenes involving Buddy's fate, which enhance the overall narrative experience. Despite some critiques of voice acting, many reviewers found the emotional depth and character connections to be unexpectedly impactful, making the game a memorable journey.

    • “The emotional value: this game went from really funny to really sad with the story. Seeing 'Fred' is us and Buddy being patient zero, and Fred wanting us to kill Buddy was really sad. Seeing Buddy flatline and then come back as a super dog and mauling the guy that killed him was so satisfying.”
    • “10/10 story! It was fun and emotional, and a great continuation from the first game. I was engaged and thrilled throughout the whole story with my pal Buddy.”
    • “The voice acting is amazing, and there are a couple of really hard-hitting emotional moments, which I honestly didn't expect from the game.”
  • replayability14 mentions

    Overall, the game has limited replayability, with solo and co-op experiences rated low at 3/10 and 5/10, respectively. Players express a desire for more diverse environments, weapon modifications, and co-op specific content to enhance replay value. Many reviewers suggest waiting for potential DLC or a price drop, as the current offering feels overpriced given its lack of replay incentives.

    • “To many sewers, weapon mods would be nice, more open areas, some co-op specific events or areas, some choices on routes to make for some replay value perhaps, a bit more polish on the co-op (we found a fair few bugs).”
    • “Based off the price of the game... I would wait for that DLC or you will spend $50 on a game that I personally don't see it having much replay value at the moment, and horde mode just isn't for me.”
    • “Although I will admit it's a bit overpriced, maybe a $40 price tag would be better since there really isn't any replay value.”
    • “Based on the price of the game, I would wait for that DLC or you will spend $50 on a game that I personally don't see having much replay value at the moment, and horde mode just isn't for me.”
    • “Solo replayability rate: 3/10”
  • grinding12 mentions

    Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and frustrating, particularly due to cumbersome mechanics like the grip required to hold weapons and a challenging reload system. The repetitive nature of enemy waves and sparse checkpoints contribute to a sense of monotony, leading some to suggest that a second life may be necessary to endure the grinding. Overall, enjoyment of the grinding experience seems to heavily depend on individual preferences.

    • “It depends on how much you like grinding.”
    • “Grinding can be quite time-consuming, so be prepared!”
    • “The waves can become tedious, particularly when they spawn from multiple directions, leading to unavoidable deaths.”
    • “The reload mechanic is a tedious nightmare and the checkpoint system is far too sparse (sucks, needs fixed, someone needs fired over it).”
    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
  • music6 mentions

    The music in the game is generally well-received, earning a score of 7/10, but it stands out as one of the few polished aspects amidst a backdrop of clunky mechanics and frustrating gameplay elements.

    • “The lack of polish on just about everything except music and audio just adds to the letdown.”
    • “It has strange weapon handling, finicky grabbing mechanics, and idiotic 'musical chair' gun swapping that just felt really cumbersome.”
  • atmosphere4 mentions

    The atmosphere is consistently praised for its humor and charm, reminiscent of the original game, with many users highlighting its phenomenal quality. Fans of the first installment are particularly likely to appreciate the engaging environment and the helpful presence of the canine companion.

    • “The atmosphere is phenomenal; if you liked the first game, you'll love this one.”
    • “That same great atmosphere and humor from the original is present, and your trusty canine is very helpful.”
    • “The atmosphere is immersive and engaging, making every moment feel alive.”
  • monetization4 mentions

    The monetization strategy for the game has been criticized as a blatant cash grab, with comparisons made to other franchises that have similarly exploited their names for profit. Reviewers found the marketing tactics to be distasteful, further reinforcing the perception of a lack of genuine value in the product.

    • “I was convinced that it was a clear cash grab based on the name of the first, like Walking Dead 2.”
    • “The marketing was very distasteful, like Ghostbusters; that one was another cheap cash grab.”
  • character development2 mentions

    Character development is consistently praised as a strong aspect of the game, with multiple users highlighting its quality.

Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

79% average critic score

Buy Arizona Sunshine 2

Play time

5hMedian play time
5hAverage play time
4-9hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 18 analyzed playthroughs

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