Friendsim 2

About

Friendsim 2 is a single player casual role playing game. It was developed by Studio June and was released on April 12, 2022. It received positive reviews from players.

In this episodic visual novel, follow the adventures of MSPA Reader as they return to Alternia once more to save their friends... and realize that nothing is as it seems.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

+12

Skip User Reviews

88%

Audience ScoreBased on 89 reviews

story9 positive mentions

grinding2 negative mentions

The game features excellent writing, voice acting, and a captivating story that expands on the Homestuck universe, making it a must-play for fans.
The art style is refreshing and beautiful, showcasing the dedication and passion of the developers, which enhances the overall experience.
Friendsim 2 offers a unique gameplay experience with meaningful choices that impact the story, providing a level of interactivity that is often lacking in visual novels.

The game suffers from numerous bugs and glitches that can disrupt gameplay, leading to frustration for players trying to progress through the story.
Some character designs and writing choices have been criticized for being inconsistent with the original material, which may alienate long-time fans.
The lack of a volume select feature and unclear puzzles can make the game feel tedious, especially for players who want to revisit specific storylines or characters.

story
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
40%
15%
The game's story is widely praised for its excellent writing, captivating plot, and immersive voice acting, which enhance the overall experience. Players appreciate the meaningful choices and the rich, artistic presentation, although some technical issues, such as errors during key story moments, detract from the experience. Overall, the narrative is engaging and offers significant replayability, making it a standout feature of the game.
- “It has an excellent story, excellent writing, beautiful pieces of art from very talented artists, music that really gets you into the moment, and choices to make that really do feel like they matter.”
- “Absolutely phenomenal story, while some of the gameplay segments can be finicky, the entire product as a whole sparkles like a diamond of love for the original friendsim and pesterquest.”
- “This game has 11 (at the time of writing) chapters of long, interesting gameplay, amazing art, straight up voice-acting, and a wonderful story returning to the world of friendsim, which has been sorely neglected, and the team behind this has likely not seen a cent from their work on an unofficial homestuck game, so give them so much love!”
- “And when I finally did reach volume 7, the story was ruined by constant Ren'Py errors.”
- “The story is a major sticking point for me and the one reason I did not finish the first volume.”
- “Honestly, if this was going to be a story point, it may have been better with a whole new cast of characters you were working with to get your friends off the planet.”
gameplay
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
37%
27%
Gameplay in this title is a mixed bag, with some players praising the interactive mechanics and unique minigames that enhance the experience, while others criticize the lack of depth and reliance on poorly written dialogue typical of visual novels. Despite some finicky segments and a lack of volume control, the overall execution is seen as passionate and dedicated, with high-quality voice acting and engaging storylines that resonate with fans of the original series. While it may not offer extensive player interaction, the gameplay is generally considered more interesting than previous installments.
- “The sections with different gameplay (would you classify all of them as minigames? I don't know) are also well-done and bring something cool and unique to the game.”
- “This game has 11 chapters of long, interesting gameplay, amazing art, straight-up voice acting, and a wonderful story returning to the world of friendsim, which has been sorely neglected.”
- “Gameplay mechanics are interactive and fun for what is basically a visual novel, but I wish there was more independent interaction between the reader and the characters.”
- “As a visual/interactive novel, this doesn't feature any notable gameplay; it's just a lot of clicking through badly written dialogue that would never have been accepted or published in print, which poses the question, 'how did something this badly written end up on Steam?'”
- “Unlike Pesterquest (and presumably Friendsim), Friendsim 2 has no volume select, which forced me to mash through 3 hours worth of gameplay.”
- “- actual, literal gameplay”
music
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
88%
12%
The music in the game has received widespread acclaim, with players praising its ability to enhance the overall experience and immerse them in the story. Many reviews highlight the high quality of the soundtrack and its seamless integration with the voice acting and visuals, contributing to a captivating atmosphere. Overall, the music is considered a standout feature that elevates the game beyond its predecessor.
- “It has an excellent story, excellent writing, beautiful pieces of art from very talented artists, music that really gets you into the moment, and choices to make that really do feel like they matter.”
- “The voice acting was a wonderful surprise, and the music was great.”
- “Now in more seriousness, I am positively surprised that this is a fan continuation, everything is of very high quality, the voice acting is great and really fits the characters, the music is top notch, the gameplay is way more interesting than in Hiveswap: Friendsim and honestly, if they hadn't told me this was not official, I would have thought it was.”
humor
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by a blend of hilarious antics and clever commentary, featuring a variety of comedic elements such as funny scenes and witty dialogue. Players appreciate the integration of humor with deeper societal insights, making the experience both entertaining and thought-provoking. Overall, the game successfully balances lightheartedness with meaningful reflections.
- “In here you keep an array of humorous and mystical artifacts, each one a devastating weapon in the hands of a skilled magician or a cunning prankster.”
- “I'm going to watch it again today, the apple juice scene was so funny.”
- “Lots of funny jokes, genuine introspective commentary into Alternian society that isn't shoehorned in to extend playtime, and is, in fact, expressing the thoughts the developers have on the matters they're trying to address.”
optimization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players recommend disabling voiceovers for characters Galekh and Mallek to enhance game performance, suggesting that this adjustment can lead to a smoother experience.
- “Turning off the voices for Galekh and Mallek significantly improves performance.”
- “The optimization options allow for a smoother gameplay experience, making it easy to customize settings to fit my system.”
- “I appreciate how the game runs efficiently even on lower-end hardware, thanks to the thoughtful optimization.”
graphics
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The graphics are praised for their unique art style and vibrant visuals, which many players adore, though some find certain character designs inconsistent with their original appearances. The overall aesthetic, combined with excellent voice acting and music, contributes positively to the game's appeal.
- “The voice acting is actually phenomenal, and I love the music and visuals used, and the game references are a lot of fun.”
- “Overall good art style; though some characters are wildly different from their original designs and not necessarily for the best.”
- “I absolutely adore and love the art style!”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users find the grinding aspect of visual novels and e-books to be tedious, likening it to a frustratingly slow reading experience where players must click to progress through text, detracting from the enjoyment of the narrative. This repetitive clicking is seen as a significant drawback, especially in the early chapters.
- “Visual novels/e-books are tedious at best... imagine the best novel you ever read, be that Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy or 2001: A Space Odyssey or Twilight (if you have terrible taste in literature), but then translate that to a format where the words dribble out and you have to click your mouse every time you want to read the next sentence, instead of just turning the pages.”
- “That's about it though, just the tedious nature of the trials in chapter one.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users report significant stability issues, particularly in the later chapters of the game, with frequent freezes requiring a forced shutdown via task manager. While initial gameplay was relatively smooth, the experience deteriorates in chapters 4 and 5, leading to frustration.
- “The only drawback is that it's been extremely buggy for me lately.”
- “In the first few chapters I played, I don't recall having any issues, but throughout chapters 4 and 5, I'm experiencing almost constant freezes that force me to end the game using the task manager.”
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game offers high replayability with multiple engaging endings to explore, encouraging players to revisit the captivating story.
- “I'm only a few volumes in as of right now, but this is yet another fantastic game. There are a lot of great endings to explore for replayability right off the bat, and the story is really captivating.”