Beat Hazard 2

About

Beat Hazard 2 is a single player and multiplayer action game. It was developed by Cold Beam Games and was released on October 3, 2018. It received very positive reviews from players.

"Beat Hazard 2" is a rhythm-based shoot 'em up game where players face off against musically- synchronized enemies and bosses. The game features procedurally generated levels and customizable ships, with the intensity of gameplay tied to the beat of the user's chosen music. Online multiplayer is also available, allowing players to compete against each other's music-driven levels.

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92%

Audience ScoreBased on 733 reviews

music131 positive mentions

grinding5 negative mentions

The game features an innovative 'Open Mic' mode that allows players to use any music from streaming services like Spotify or YouTube, enhancing the gameplay experience.
Beat Hazard 2 offers a vast array of ships and weapons, with each song generating a unique ship, adding to the replayability and excitement.
The visuals are stunning and intense, providing a captivating experience that syncs well with the music, making it a thrilling bullet hell shooter.

The game can be overwhelming with its flashy visuals, which may cause discomfort or headaches for some players, especially at higher intensity settings.
There are reports of technical issues, including crashes and problems with controller recognition, which can hinder the gameplay experience.
The menu system is clunky and not user-friendly, making it difficult to navigate and customize controls effectively.

music
726 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
18%
81%
1%
The music aspect of "Beat Hazard 2" is highly praised for its innovative integration, allowing players to use their own music from various sources, including local files and streaming services like Spotify and YouTube. The game generates unique levels and enemies based on the chosen tracks, creating a dynamic and immersive experience that resonates with music lovers. However, some users have reported issues with song recognition and syncing, which can detract from the overall enjoyment, though the vibrant visuals and engaging gameplay often compensate for these shortcomings.
- “Absolutely great for any music lover and there's a ton of challenges that are actually challenging!”
- “Playable by anyone because it is powered by any music you have, either local mp3s, flacs, or any streaming service!”
- “This game is wonderful if you have music on your hard drive but not so much if you are hoping for a seamless streaming experience (Spotify etc).”
- “Somehow this game messed up my entire music library and now a huge chunk of my music is just without artist associations.”
- “You'll have to listen to that unfiltered filth if you want to get elite ships (if you are lucky and the game doesn't glitch) or mute the music but that defeats the purpose in a rhythm game.”
- “At no point during this game does the music seem to matter to the gameplay... so it's just a Winamp visualizer with the explosions as you listen to music.”
gameplay
83 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
73%
7%
The gameplay is a dynamic twin-stick shooter that integrates players' music choices, enhancing the experience with unique visuals and mechanics influenced by the tracks. However, many users note that the core gameplay loop can become repetitive, and the music's impact on gameplay is inconsistent, leading to mixed feelings about its overall depth and engagement. While the game offers a visually stunning experience and a variety of modes, some players feel it lacks sufficient variety and can feel overwhelming due to excessive visual effects.
- “The intensity of gameplay is fueled by your choice of music, and power-ups scattered throughout increase your chances of making it to the end of a song.”
- “Dynamic twin stick shooter gameplay based on your music with absolutely insane visuals.”
- “Every song will have a unique effect on the gameplay, spawning a large variety of enemies and generated bosses, as well as pumping up your attacks as the song reaches its peak.”
- “Despite the vast galaxy to explore, the core gameplay loop quickly becomes repetitive.”
- “The implementation of the music in this game simply does nothing to the gameplay, and even when songs end, the game doesn't always recognize it.”
- “At no point during this game does the music seem to matter to the gameplay, so it's just a Winamp visualizer with explosions as you listen to music.”
graphics
72 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
72%
4%
The graphics in the game are described as intense and chaotic, often overwhelming players with flashing lights and vibrant effects that can lead to discomfort or headaches. While many appreciate the improved visuals and dynamic integration with music, some express concerns about the potential for photosensitivity issues. Overall, the graphics are a significant upgrade from the previous installment, offering a visually stunning experience for those who can handle the intensity.
- “This game has amazing visuals and an insane amount of flashing lights.”
- “The graphics are sleeker, there's YouTube and Spotify support, bosses don't all look the same, there are four new power-ups that vastly change the way you can play the game, the visual effects are a lot prettier, and since the game is in early access, it's getting a lot of new updates all the time.”
- “There has been a huge overhaul of the game's graphics compared to its predecessor, with gorgeous looking lighting effects, including new explosion graphics.”
- “The visuals are so intense and chaotic that they can quickly become overwhelming, leading to headaches and eye strain.”
- “My second major criticism is due to the nature of the game and the way it is designed: it is extremely flashy and intense in its graphics, which therefore can cause people that are visually sensitive or seizure prone to experience terrible symptoms.”
- “If I do have one complaint it is that I wish there was another way to earn the 20 score multiplier than turning the visuals to 300% because it does hurt a bit after like 7-9 songs, and I do want to play for longer than that without feeling like my eyes are gonna pop out of my head.”
story
47 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
6%
88%
6%
The game lacks a traditional narrative, focusing instead on gameplay mechanics and mission-based objectives. Players engage in "shadow missions" tied to various ships, which involve completing specific challenges using their music, but there is no overarching story to drive the experience. While this absence of a story may deter some players seeking a narrative, many find the mission structure and gameplay satisfying and engaging.
- “Beat Hazard 2 is a visual upgrade on the original music-powered twin-stick shooter, with some extra flavorings, like new ships that are generated by the track, the procedurally generated boss ships (it's actually good though, not bad like other procedurally generated stuff, and only gets better as Cold Beam keeps working). It has weekly and daily challenges that utilize Spotify, and that of course means that you can use your desktop audio and play the game, so you can do your ship missions while listening to a podcast or something.”
- “The cycle of unlocking ships and beating their missions is so satisfying that I can and do disappear into the game and come up hours later.”
- “With a brand new soundtrack, an all-new and revamped way of getting workshop ships and shadow operation missions, generated player ships and boss fights, better visuals than ever before (and I thought Beat Hazard 1's couldn't be topped!), new and powerful perk weapons, a new way of climbing the leaderboards, and really a lot of other new and great stuff makes this game a good idea to buy!”
- “There is no story whatsoever – this is not a bad thing, per se, but it means that players looking for a good story should look elsewhere.”
- “For players who need a clear purpose in any game, this game might feel pointless as the only goals are to score high on the songs’ leaderboards and to do all the missions for all the ships.”
- “As long as you don’t expect a story or want to have an overarching goal, Beat Hazard 2 is an incredibly fun game, very well worth your money and time.”
replayability
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
50%
14%
The game boasts exceptional replayability, with many users highlighting its near-infinite potential due to unique levels generated from each song and a variety of ship types that enhance gameplay diversity. Players are drawn to the competitive aspect of beating high scores on leaderboards and engaging with an active community, while the ability to incorporate personal music libraries adds to the game's longevity. Overall, it is regarded as one of the most replayable games available, offering countless hours of enjoyment.
- “Tons of fun and has a lot of replay value.”
- “This game is an experience, and not only is it an experience, it's an almost infinitely replayable enjoyable experience.”
- “Beat hazard is the ultimate marriage of music and gaming in my eyes and has endless replayability.”
- “This should be developed a lot more until it is more playable.”
- “The fact that each track generates a unique level means virtually endless replayability.”
- “But with that you have endless replayability.”
grinding
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
83%
Reviews indicate that grinding in the game can be a mixed experience; while some players find it tedious due to repetitive resource collection and lack of variety in procedurally generated levels, others appreciate the purposeful grinding for upgrades and customization. The balance between old-school gameplay and farming mechanics is noted as enjoyable by some, enhancing their overall experience.
- “The procedurally generated levels lack the variety and excitement of the original, and the focus on grinding for resources and upgrades can feel tedious.”
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “The game also features achievements that are as grindy as the previous game, along with trading cards if that is your jam.”
stability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The stability of the game has been widely criticized, with users reporting numerous bugs that significantly impact gameplay, particularly after recent updates and installations. Issues include persistent menu glitches, problems with audio track recognition, and overall instability, leading to a frustrating experience for players. Despite these problems, some users still find enjoyment in the game, especially towards the end of tracks.
- “This was a favorite desktop game for me until I reinstalled it on my new PC; now it is buggy as heck, need help.”
- “Extremely buggy.”
- “My complaint is the menu is a little buggy with the wait popping up sometimes not going away.”
humor
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is highlighted by its chaotic and entertaining moments, particularly during musical sequences that evoke genuine laughter. Players appreciate the comedic elements as more than just a gimmick, noting that the experience can be both engaging and amusing over extended playtime.
- “Ozzy Osbourne: (laughing) bleepin' hell, Torgue!”
- “Ozzy Osbourne: (laughing) bleepin' hell, this is a bleepin' party!”
- “The first time I played a song, I was laughing because it gets really crazy depending on the song.”
optimization
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
20%
60%
Overall, while the VR performance toolkit (vrperfkit) appears to load correctly, it fails to deliver noticeable performance enhancements, leaving users wanting better optimization. Despite this, many players find the current VR implementation satisfactory, appreciating the blend of classic arcade gameplay with customization options.
- “This game deftly blends old school arcade shooting with perk-based customization and optimization, using just the right amount of farming to earn improvements.”
- “The VR performance toolkit (vrperfkit) loads seemingly, but doesn't improve performance.”
- “Basically, performance could be better on paper, but it isn't a total deterrent (at least for Rift; Link on Quest may be a different story).”
- “Overall, I'd like to see performance improvements, but I'm pretty happy with how VR is implemented currently!”
monetization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
100%
The monetization model is generally viewed positively, with a fair price tag and no loot boxes or microtransactions. However, some users feel that the promotion of external services like YouTube and Spotify may be misleading, as it encourages users to pay for premium subscriptions to avoid ads during gameplay.
- “The price tag is more than fair, and there are no loot boxes or microtransactions.”
- “I appreciate that the game offers a complete experience without pushing for additional purchases.”
- “The monetization model is refreshing, focusing on a one-time purchase rather than ongoing costs.”
- “I kind of feel like the advertisement that you can use these different sources is a little misleading.”
- “YouTube, Spotify, and other music apps would be happy as well, as it easily promotes paying for their premium service so you can skip annoying ads while doing boss rush and survival runs.”
- “The price tag is more than fair, but the lack of loot boxes or microtransactions is concerning.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The atmosphere is characterized as dull, which paradoxically enhances immersion by allowing players to focus on the music.
- “This adds to the atmosphere of the game and really allows the player to immerse into the music.”
- “The atmosphere is pretty damn dull.”