Drawn To Life: Two Realms

An enjoyable overworld dragged down by tedious, imprecise platforming gameplay. It’s not devoid of merit, but Drawn To Life: Two Realms isn’t the jolt of electricity needed to shock the franchise back to life.

44%Game Brain Score

story, music

gameplay, stability

43% User Score Based on 348 reviews

Critic Score 52%Based on 8 reviews

Platforms

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About

"Drawn to Life: Two Realms" is the latest game in the beloved franchise, where you once again play as the Creator, tasked with saving the Raposa and human worlds from a mysterious shadow. The game features a new creation tool with expanded customization options, as well as a Book of Imagination to enter the minds of characters and resolve conflicts. Travel between the two worlds to uncover the story and save Mike and his friends.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

+11

43%

Audience ScoreBased on 356 reviews

story56 positive mentions

gameplay36 negative mentions

The pixel art and music are beautiful, maintaining the charm of the original games.
The story continues the narrative from the previous games, providing nostalgic moments for long-time fans.
The puzzle-platforming gameplay offers a unique challenge, requiring creative problem-solving.

The game lacks the core drawing mechanics that defined the original series, with minimal drawing opportunities.
The gameplay is primarily focused on short, repetitive puzzle levels rather than the adventure-platformer style of the previous titles.
The story feels rushed and lacks the emotional depth and character development found in the earlier games.

story
341 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
77%
7%
The story of "Drawn to Life: Two Realms" has received mixed reviews, with many fans expressing disappointment compared to the emotional depth and complexity of its predecessors. While some appreciate the continuation of the narrative and character interactions, others criticize it for being shallow, forgettable, and lacking the charm and stakes that defined earlier entries. Overall, the game is seen as a nostalgic revisit for fans, but it struggles to deliver a compelling story on its own.
- “Drawn to Life was perhaps the most influential game of my childhood. Behind its childish art style and seemingly innocent narrative lies a story of tragedy and suffering as well as trauma. The original two installments, Drawn to Life and Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter, were pieces of art that, although had relatively repetitive gameplay, shared a long narrative with emotion and actual care put into it.”
- “The story touches on some surprisingly heavy themes, which was great to see tackled.”
- “The story and characters were my biggest sources of enjoyment from this game, but that's only because I played the previous games growing up, and I don't think newcomers will really be able to follow along or get the same level of appreciation that I did out of it.”
- “The story, however, is barely there; what exists is a reprint of the older titles with less character or charm.”
- “Unfortunately, Two Realms' story is mediocre at best and overall forgettable.”
- “The story itself leaves much to be desired.”
gameplay
243 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
72%
15%
The gameplay of "Drawn to Life: Two Realms" has received mixed to negative feedback, with many players expressing disappointment over its shift from the original action-platformer style to a puzzle-platforming format. Critics highlight issues such as unpolished mechanics, frustrating puzzles, and a lack of engaging drawing elements that were central to previous titles, leading to a gameplay experience that feels disconnected from the series' roots. While some appreciate the new mechanics and visuals, the overall sentiment suggests that the gameplay is tedious, glitchy, and fails to capture the charm of its predecessors.
- “The core gameplay revolves around simple action platforming, like the first two games, or more prominently, a bizarre blend of Mario Maker and early 2D platformers.”
- “While about halfway through the game pretty much introduces every gameplay mechanic and enemy, the level design manages to always stay fresh and give you that 'ah-hah!' moment when you finally figure it out.”
- “The gameplay is repetitive, annoying, and entirely puzzle-based, unlike the first two DS games.”
- “The gameplay took a considerable change, going from a 2D sidescroller to a single screen puzzle platformer.”
- “The lore and gameplay is thrown out of the window in this game.”
music
144 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
53%
7%
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with some praising its catchy tracks and nostalgic motifs from previous titles, while others feel it lacks the charm and distinctiveness of the original DS soundtracks. Many reviewers noted that while the overall quality is high, the music feels more generic and less memorable compared to earlier entries in the series. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a strong aspect of the game, but it doesn't fully capture the essence of its predecessors.
- “The pixel art and music, on the other hand, is glorious.”
- “The music was catchy in the little platformer-puzzle-minigame-things, and the leitmotif of 'ooo wilfre!' took me back to my tween years.”
- “The art and music are absolutely beautiful, and the story is short and sweet, answering some questions I had for a while, while also giving me more to ponder as well as more fun character interactions.”
- “The music is bland and forgettable, unlike the amazing record scratch filled compositions of the DS games.”
- “However, this music isn't as remarkable as the other games.”
- “The iconic soundfonts and music were ditched for a slightly more generic feel, there's less overworld interactivity, weird, out-of-place mechanics, and significantly less drawing on the user's behalf.”
graphics
66 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
62%
5%
The graphics in the game have received mixed reviews, with many praising the new pixel art style and vibrant environments, while others lament the departure from the hand-drawn aesthetics of previous titles. Some players noted issues with graphical glitches and clashing art styles that detract from the overall experience. Despite these criticisms, the visuals are often described as charming and colorful, contributing positively to the game's atmosphere.
- “Also, the graphics and art design in the overworld look glorious, so there's another plus I have for this game.”
- “The art style and music are fantastic.”
- “I really like the cute pixel art style, music, and the characters.”
- “Graphics glitch out quite a few times during cutscenes and gameplay.”
- “All the art styles clash with each other, and it's really jarring.”
- “They do not match the game's pixel art style at all, and look as cheap as a shovelware game's UI.”
stability
32 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game suffers from significant stability issues, with numerous glitches and bugs leading to frequent crashes and soft locks, particularly in level design. Players report a frustrating experience due to the game's erratic AI behavior and the need to exploit glitches to progress. While some minor bugs exist, the overall impression is that the game is poorly executed and riddled with game-breaking issues, detracting from the enjoyment of its puzzle platforming elements.
- “The levels specifically are riddled with glitches and bugs, and I had the game crash on me many times along with being soft-locked in levels far too often, creating a very frustrating experience especially after finally making progress in the harder levels.”
- “From infinite load screens to your character constantly being stuck on corners of the ledge or literally being stuck in an animation - this game is riddled with bugs and literal game-breaking glitches.”
- “There are countless and innumerable glitches and bugs and gameplay issues that make it so some levels require you to cheat because of other glitches impeding you.”
emotional
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is a mixed bag; while it retains the goofy interactions and gut-wrenching moments that fans loved from the previous titles, some players found the story to be bland and lacking emotional depth. However, others praised the rich storytelling and character development that elicited strong emotional responses, including tears, particularly in the earlier games. Overall, it appeals to those who enjoy heartwarming narratives in puzzle platformers and RPGs, despite some criticisms of emotional inconsistency.
- “It has the same goofy interactions with side characters and gut-wrenching, emotional moments I had fallen in love with in the previous games.”
- “The first two games had beautiful, heartwarming, and sad stories with characters you genuinely got to care about and menacing, cool villains.”
- “Dtl 2 made me cry with how rich the story was, and the beautiful art and soundtracks to go with it.”
grinding
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The grinding aspect of the game is widely criticized for being tedious and frustrating, with many players finding the gameplay unengaging and the puzzles overly complex or irrelevant to the story. While some challenges require thoughtful problem-solving, the overall experience is marred by glitchy mechanics and a lack of polish, making exploration feel unnecessarily burdensome.
- “Playing levels is incredibly tedious and lacks engaging elements in addition to this.”
- “It just makes exploring the town unnecessarily tedious.”
- “Replaced with long, tedious and boring puzzles with no relation to the story.”
monetization
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization of the game is widely criticized as a blatant cash grab, with many players feeling that it lacks the depth and uniqueness of its predecessors. Reviewers express disappointment that the game prioritizes profit over quality, resulting in a soulless experience that fails to honor the original franchise.
- “You can play this game for 10 minutes and realize that it was a mobile game cash grab.”
- “Left me crying just like the next chapter did, but only because they ruined my favorite childhood game and removed everything that made it unique, leaving us with a soulless mobile game cash grab.”
- “Two Realms feels like a cash grab.”
character development
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
50%
38%
Character development in the game has been widely criticized, with many reviewers noting that the protagonist functions primarily as a plot device rather than a fully realized character. The introduction of new characters fails to add depth, as they mainly serve to advance the arcs of established characters who have already undergone significant development in previous installments. Overall, the lack of meaningful growth for the hero and reliance on existing characters detracts from the narrative experience.
- “Character development is a complaint I see a lot, and for the third game in the franchise...? The only new characters serve to push the characters we already know and love - that got their development over two games - along through the story.”
- “There is very little character development, since the hero solves everything for everyone.”
- “In this game, the hero is literally a plot device that exists to force in random character development; he's the literal personification of the messiah.”
- “Character development is a complaint I see a lot, and for the third game in the franchise, the only new characters serve to push the characters we already know and love - who got their development over two games - along through the story.”
optimization
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
50%
33%
The optimization of "Two Realms" varies across platforms, with PC users reporting better performance and controls compared to the Switch and mobile versions. Given its development for multiple devices, expectations for optimization were tempered, especially considering the original game's design for the Nintendo DS. Overall, the mixed reception of the gameplay raises concerns about the series' future, hinging on this game's sales performance.
- “They play very similar, but performance and controls on PC feel better.”
- “Seeing as the original Drawn to Life entries were optimized to play on the Nintendo DS, right down to its touch screen gimmick, I never really expected the same experience with Two Realms - a game not only developed for the Switch, but for PC and different mobile devices as well.”
- “The developers themselves have basically flat out said that the future of this series depends on the sales performance of this game, which leaves me feeling uneasy since the gameplay is so controversial among fans.”
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Players find the game offers a good variety of puzzle skill levels, enhancing its replayability as they strive for higher scores and better rewards. This encourages repeated playthroughs to improve performance and experience different challenges.
- “The levels offer a decent variety of skill levels in puzzles, and I appreciate that. There's a certain level of replayability in trying to achieve higher scores and better rewards.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is primarily derived from shared experiences and interactions with friends, making it more enjoyable in a social setting. Players feel that the game lacks appeal when played solo, as the comedic elements are best appreciated through group dynamics and collective reactions.
- “The biggest entertainment of the game is laughing at it with my friends; I would definitely drop it within minutes if playing without an audience to complain with.”