Elex II

66%
Game Brain Score Based on 2,577 reviews
  • story
  • graphics
  • gameplay
Elex II Game Cover
A great improvement over the previous game with a vast open-world and better gameplay, but it still comes with a steep learning curve.
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In ELEX II, players explore a post-apocalyptic world torn by war and magic, assumes the role of Jax, the previous game's protagonist, and navigates complex relationships with factions and characters to shape the world's future. The game features an open-world setting with non-linear quests and an extensive skill tree for combat customization. As Jax, players will have to make tough decisions impacting the narrative and face epic battles against powerful enemies.

  • Mac OS
  • PC
  • Play​station 4
  • Play​station 5
  • Windows
  • Xbox One
  • Xbox Series X|S
  • Cloud
  • Play​Station
  • Xbox
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

66%
Audience ScoreBased on 2,577 reviews
story386 positive mentions
optimization88 negative mentions
  • The game features a beautifully crafted open world with plenty of exploration opportunities.
  • Combat mechanics have improved from the first game, making battles more engaging.
  • The story builds on the first Elex, introducing new factions and characters that add depth to the narrative.
  • The game suffers from performance issues and bugs, making it frustrating to play at times.
  • Character models and animations are often criticized for being subpar and unpolished.
  • Many quests become repetitive, focusing heavily on 'kill x enemies' tasks, which can feel tedious.
  • story1,907 mentions

    The story of Elex II has received mixed reviews, with many players noting that it feels like a continuation of the first game but lacks depth and coherence. While some appreciate the engaging side quests and character interactions, the main storyline is often criticized for being repetitive, overly reliant on "kill x enemies" missions, and poorly paced, especially in the later chapters. Overall, while the game offers an expansive world and interesting lore, the execution of the narrative leaves much to be desired, leading to a sense of disconnection and frustration among players.

    • “The story is interesting; I enjoyed it and love the improvements to the crafting over the first game.”
    • “The main quest is enthralling and compels you to want to know more without being too overwhelming, whilst the side quests are both fun and add depth to an already rich, emotional world.”
    • “The game has interesting characters, story, and lore, and I really like that you start off insanely weak to even the smallest of foes, only to become relatively capable by the end.”
    • “The story, albeit a bit contradictive, seems interesting and mostly all right.”
    • “The story itself also lacks much to care about at all.”
    • “The story is a complete snooze fest and the characters have little to no real likeable traits nor do they give you much room to like them due to the horrible voice acting.”
  • graphics427 mentions

    The graphics in Elex 2 have seen some improvements, particularly in environmental detail and water effects, but many players feel they still fall short of modern standards, often describing them as outdated or buggy. While some appreciate the aesthetic and world design, others criticize character models and performance issues, noting that the visuals can detract from immersion due to glitches and low-quality textures. Overall, the graphics are considered a mixed bag, with some enhancements over the original Elex but still lacking the polish expected from contemporary titles.

    • “Visually, it impresses with good graphics that bring its universe to life.”
    • “The graphics are outstanding with an interesting story.”
    • “The graphics have seen some improvements as well, going around on foot or flying is both enjoyable, as you can see the beautiful landscape from above or admire the beautiful scenery from below.”
    • “Then the game starts and the terrible graphics slam you in the face.”
    • “The graphics tend to break here and there, textures become invisible, lighting flaps undecided if something is lit or not; things like that mostly only break the immersion but not the game itself.”
    • “Ugly graphics, terrible performance, shiny awful shader on models, graphics downgrade, shitty as always when Piranha Bytes do... but from 2022 I expect a little bit more changes.”
  • gameplay354 mentions

    The gameplay of Elex II has received mixed reviews, with many players noting improvements over its predecessor, particularly in combat mechanics and the introduction of the jetpack feature, which enhances exploration. However, criticisms persist regarding janky controls, clunky animations, and a lack of polish in various mechanics, leading to a frustrating experience for some. Overall, while the game offers an expansive world and engaging RPG elements, it may not appeal to those seeking refined gameplay or a compelling narrative.

    • “Its open-ended gameplay allows for countless ways to experience the story, ensuring a highly immersive and personalized adventure.”
    • “The graphics aren't the best, but the gameplay is flawless, the dialog is fun and entertaining, and the quests are creative.”
    • “The actual moment-to-moment gameplay is an improvement over the first in every way.”
    • “The gameplay is tedious, the quest design is boring, and the story, if you could call it that, completely uninspired and clichéd in the least.”
    • “Gameplay and plot are so bad you want to cry.”
    • “The entire gameplay is choppy and frankly inconvenient to use.”
  • optimization263 mentions

    The optimization of the game has received overwhelmingly negative feedback, with many players reporting severe performance issues, including significant frame rate drops even on high-end systems. While some users noted improvements with the DirectX 12 update, others experienced new bugs and continued to struggle with poor optimization overall. A few players reported satisfactory performance, but these instances were rare, indicating that the game requires substantial optimization work to meet player expectations.

    • “I have had zero issues when it comes to performance.”
    • “Also, the recent update introducing DX12 has really improved performance.”
    • “Edit after 45+ hours: it appears that the DirectX 12 update has much improved the game's performance.”
    • “To crown this gem, the game runs horribly poorly even on a 4090 and 7800x3d and piles of fast RAM and storage. With multiple settings turned to low options, I still regularly have the FPS drop from 115+ all the way down to 80, 40, or even 15, and it can stay there quite a while. Often, it's just some region that has the awful performance.”
    • “The first and biggest con is that the game has huge performance problems.”
    • “A very good game but suffers from terrible performance, even on a 3080 12GB with 64GB RAM at 3600MHz and a Ryzen 9 5900X - it needs much more optimization but I doubt the devs will do it.”
  • music107 mentions

    The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it mediocre, bland, and lacking the emotional depth of previous titles by the developers. While some appreciate the ambient quality and the nostalgic reuse of tracks from Elex 1, others criticize it for being repetitive and not fitting the game's atmosphere, leading some to turn it off entirely. Overall, the soundtrack is seen as a significant downgrade compared to earlier works, particularly missing the contributions of composer Kai Rosenkrantz.

    • “The soundtrack and effects are good.”
    • “When you entered the new camp for the first time and you heard the melancholic guitar soundtrack, you felt that.”
    • “The beautiful environment, ambient music & multi-level quests chock-full of twists & turns, or unbelievably short and fun quests, where 'all is not as it appears', is adventurous & fun.”
    • “Mediocre, soulless music.”
    • “The music is annoying and is not synchronized to the story, so I turned it off.”
    • “The music is bland and gets quickly unbearable because it plays continuously, which in an RPG, requiring by definition long game sessions, is always a bad idea.”
  • stability106 mentions

    The game's stability has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting numerous bugs, glitches, and performance issues, including crashes and graphical errors. While some users experienced a relatively bug-free experience, others found the game frustratingly unstable, particularly in terms of combat mechanics and quest interactions. Overall, the game appears to require significant patches and optimizations to improve its stability and performance.

    • “For being a smaller company, and being a Skyrim-like open world game, it's surprisingly bug free.”
    • “Not one crash, not buggy like the good old Gothics and Risens.”
    • “However, the pacing is excellent, the game is unexpectedly bug free, and it's just an all-around improvement on Elex 1.”
    • “The game is pretty frustrating because of the bugs (sometimes you can't move the camera, sometimes your body flips around weirdly, sometimes the game freezes at 75% while loading).”
    • “I had multiple crashes and many times glitches so bad as to create world fall-throughs and game restarts.”
    • “It's a very buggy, janky mess (and I have a high tolerance for so-called 'eurojank') that doesn't live up to the first game.”
  • grinding81 mentions

    The grinding aspect of the game has received significant criticism, with players noting that it becomes excessively tedious, particularly in the late game where quests often revolve around defeating large swarms of enemies. Many reviewers expressed frustration with the pacing and repetitive nature of the quests, which detracted from the overall enjoyment and exploration of the game world. While some appreciated the improved combat mechanics and character progression, the overwhelming grindiness ultimately led to a sense of fatigue and dissatisfaction with the game's narrative and quest design.

    • “The game begins dropping missions that consist of 'go there and kill a swarm of enemies', something that was not hard at all, but grindy, time-consuming and not what I am used to in games from Piranha Bytes.”
    • “So have fun grinding the open world for mobs just like an MMO because most of the side quests give you just a joke amount of experience that they aren't even worth your time.”
    • “The gameplay is tedious, the quest design is boring, and the story, if you could call it that, is completely uninspired and clichéd at the least.”
  • atmosphere68 mentions

    The atmosphere in Elex II is widely praised for its immersive and unique qualities, reminiscent of its predecessor, Elex I. Players appreciate the game's handcrafted open world, multifaceted exploration, and engaging environmental design, although some note that technical issues and unpolished audio can detract from the overall experience. While the atmosphere is a standout feature, opinions vary on the effectiveness of the story and combat, with many emphasizing that the game's strength lies in its world-building and atmospheric immersion.

    • “But what truly separates Elex II from every other RPG is the immersive atmosphere.”
    • “The games by this German studio are so unique in terms of atmosphere and playstyle, they might as well be their own subgenre within ARPGs.”
    • “So, this game really lives from the atmosphere and exploration.”
    • “The game has no atmosphere and no immersion.”
    • “Everything is too loud and not really well integrated, the music doesn't really fit the atmosphere (especially in the ending), the environmental sounds like tapping on metal surfaces also seem rather unpolished.”
    • “In my view, a more focused approach with a smaller world would unleash the unmatched atmosphere of earlier PB games.”
  • humor66 mentions

    The humor in the game is a mixed bag, with some players finding it delightfully funny due to awkward dialogue, unexpected moments, and quirky characters like the protagonist Jax, while others criticize it as janky and inconsistent. Many appreciate the humorous side quests and random interactions that provide comic relief, though some feel that the overall writing and quest design fall short, leading to moments that are unintentionally amusing. Overall, the game offers a blend of intentional and unintentional humor, with standout moments that can evoke genuine laughter amidst its flaws.

    • “The game world is peppered with a delightful assortment of funny moments and easter eggs that provide constant surprises and chuckles throughout the journey.”
    • “We continue to follow the story of the grumpy yet super-cool hero Jax, who's got not only a son (and - highly entertaining - arguments with the mother of said little guy about parenting style) but also a good measure of dark humor which serves him just great and makes him a lot more human.”
    • “The animations in many of the cutscenes are so bad it's hilarious.”
  • emotional39 mentions

    Overall, the emotional aspect of the game has been criticized for its lack of depth and connection, with many players feeling that character arcs and dialogue fail to evoke genuine feelings. The disjointed storytelling and poor integration of cutscenes detract from any intended emotional impact, leaving players feeling disconnected from the narrative and characters. While some side quests add richness to the world, the overarching experience is marred by a bland story and uninspired music, resulting in a failure to engage players on an emotional level.

    • “The main quest is enthralling and compels you to want to know more without being too overwhelming, whilst the side quests are both fun and add depth to an already rich, emotional world.”
    • “You had an emotional bond to the characters and to the factions.”
    • “And what the hell did they do to the music with these heartfelt moments.”
    • “The combination of a boring story and brain-dead AI makes the second installment in the Elex universe an overall boring and tedious endeavor.”
    • “For its current price, it's not worth it. Gameplay-wise, it's a boring story... generic... voice acting excellent.”
    • “Boring story and characters, clunky gameplay, bad mission design, very buggy, frequent crashes.”
  • character development33 mentions

    Character development in the game is generally praised for its depth and long-term progression, offering a rewarding "zero to hero" experience, though some players note a lack of late-game upgrades. However, criticisms arise regarding the poor character design and dialogue quality, which detracts from the overall experience. Despite these flaws, many appreciate the improved character development system and the engaging world exploration it supports.

    • “Character development is good, factions great and dialogues surprisingly well-written.”
    • “Character development is long term, profound, difficult, and most rewarding.”
    • “If you're looking for a less than forgiving RPG with depth of story, character development, choices, etc., you really should give the Elex franchise a try.”
    • “The character development suffers significantly due to the terrible dialogue.”
    • “Also, the faces and overall character design look awful.”
    • “The cons are just the same issues that plague Elex I (and before that, every other game of Piranha Bytes studio): animations and character design are not exactly AAA standard, the fights are simple and a bit clunky, visuals in general are a bit flawed.”
  • replayability17 mentions

    Overall, the game's replayability is considered decent to high, with players enjoying the ability to create new characters and explore different factions, each offering unique skills and experiences. However, some users noted that after extensive exploration, the replay value diminishes, particularly if players are not interested in aligning with different factions. Despite some glitches and bugs, the game provides a rich open world and multiple endings that enhance its replayability.

    • “Hours on hours of gameplay and there is replayability within it because of the different routes you can take!”
    • “+ Replay value, as each faction feels different and brings different skills.”
    • “[A living, breathing open world, unlimited replayability with many different endings, no loading screens, even during fast travel, a curious and captivating story.]”
    • “- not a lot of replay value unless you just want to try out aligning to a different faction”
    • “Had some major bugs that got fixed but after exploring the entire map, not much replay value left.”
    • “The game has plenty of fun readily available content, fairly decent replayability, and can be considered a high quality product for its quite affordable price.”
  • monetization4 mentions

    The monetization strategy of the game has been criticized as a blatant cash grab, with players feeling that even discounted prices do not justify the value received. Many users express disappointment, feeling that their investment did not meet expectations and that the developers are prioritizing profit over quality.

    • “The things written above made me realize this was a cash grab even at 50% off the original price. I paid 25 euros and still feel I was robbed.”
    • “Sure, it grabs some attention in some areas, but for the most part, it is just an overpriced cash grab that they are trying to gain to make better looking games and get a new engine.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

60% average critic score

Buy Elex II

Play time

30hMedian play time
37hAverage play time
18-50hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 38 analyzed playthroughs

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