GRIME II

While GRIME 2 could play it safe and be a carbon copy of its predecessor, it decides to employ the very mechanic it puts forth, borrowing, but also building. Creating an experience you cannot miss.

90%Game Brain Score

gameplay, story

stability, optimization

92% User Score Based on 514 reviews

Critic Score 85%Based on 5 reviews

Platforms

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About

GRIME II is a single player role playing game with a fantasy theme. It was developed by Clover Bite and was released on March 31, 2026. It received positive reviews from critics and very positive reviews from players.

Become a stealer of forms in GRIME II, the sequel to 2021's acclaimed action-adventure metroidvania. You are a Formless - an art mimic, absorbing creatures and summoning molds in their shape. Venture into a new and mysterious land in the GRIME universe, where danger and wonder await around every corner. Use your surroundings in tandem with your summoned molds to overcome deadly enemies and epic b…

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92%

Audience ScoreBased on 514 reviews

gameplay45 positive mentions

stability33 negative mentions

Exceptional combat system with satisfying, skill-based parrying and diverse weapon choices.
Beautiful, unique art direction coupled with an outstanding, evocative soundtrack.
Large, intricate world with rewarding exploration, creative platforming, and memorable boss fights.

Frequent bugs and technical issues including inconsistent platforming mechanics and occasional softlocks.
Runbacks to checkpoints can be tedious due to sparse save points and one-way map areas.
The difficulty and platforming sections may feel overly punishing or frustrating to some players.

gameplay
144 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
31%
66%
3%
The gameplay of this metroidvania sequel is praised for its fluid and engaging combat, innovative parry system, and diverse traversal mechanics that enhance platforming challenges. While improvements over the first game include expanded enemy variety, richer movement abilities, and a refined mold system for combat variety, some players noted occasional bugs, input inconsistencies, and an overcomplication of mechanics that may disrupt flow. Overall, the gameplay is considered highly satisfying, mechanically deep, and rewarding for players who invest time mastering its systems, with many deeming it one of the best in the genre despite some technical flaws.
- “Combat is fun and engaging and I can't remember a metroidvania with so many traversal mechanics in it.”
- “The mechanics you learn as you discover them are very fluid, smooth and make platforming a lot of fun; not only do you look very stylish pulling out all the moves, but it also feels insanely good to do as well.”
- “It does an amazing job of taking and improving on the key aspects of the first game that made it such a joy to play and experience: the unbridled creativity and vibrance of the world and creature design, very fluid combat and platforming once you learn the systems, and the slow burn story that culminates in a satisfying ending that serves to build on the world of the first game just enough to answer some questions while raising far bigger ones.”
- “These mechanics have a very niche place in metroidvania-style games, but they were overused here in my humble opinion.”
- “There are some poorly communicated mechanics, minor bugs and moments where the game would just eat inputs like jump or grapple.”
- “On the negative side as I've mentioned the platforming gets worse as the game goes on, with each new mechanic adding new complications; I experienced situations where attempting to utilize some of the mechanics simply didn't work or backfired, as well as sections that felt way too long and complex for their rewards.”
story
94 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
74%
3%
The story in this game is generally considered intriguing, atmospheric, and an improvement in accessibility over the first installment, though some find it less haunting or impactful. It blends subtle environmental storytelling with character-driven narrative, offering lore depth that rewards attentive players but can feel vague or obtuse to others. While many praise the worldbuilding and thematic elements, a few feel the story lacks cohesion or emotional engagement, with some bugs and pacing issues impacting the experience.
- “The story is a mix of character-driven narrative and environmental storytelling which intertwine very successfully along the experience.”
- “It took everything I loved about grime, made it better, and then added a story that I fell in love with even more than the first.”
- “The environments and soundtrack are stunning, the combat flows even better than before with expanded mechanics, the platforming movement is so fluid as it builds up, the story is far more involved, the worldbuilding is expanded upon, and all in all it's just a wonderful game.”
- “The overall story itself is somewhat obtuse, with the ending being a letdown compared to the first game.”
- “The story seems disconnected from the protagonist for most of the game, with most events having happened long before the game's start, and most NPCs treating you as a lapdog to fulfill mostly worthless tasks. A lot of wasted potential with the frails who are very minorly involved in anything at all.”
- “Story is horrible and I just skipped every dialogue.”
music
83 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
33%
The music in the game, composed by Alex Roe, is consistently praised as stunning, atmospheric, and a perfect complement to the world and combat. The soundtrack features distinctive boss themes, evolving motifs, and varied tracks that enhance the game's eerie and immersive experience, often regarded as an exceptional highlight rivaling all-time great scores. Overall, the soundtrack greatly enriches the game's mood, environment, and storytelling, with many users enjoying it both in and outside gameplay.
- “Alex Roe has done it again with the sequel by composing a soundtrack that not only fits the game narratively but also stays with you for days.”
- “The soundtrack Alex Roe, you are an absolute genius, the entire soundtrack of Grime II has been such a pleasure to listen to, and the boss tracks are absolute bangers!”
- “Despite my initial concerns about the shift to a more vivid color palette, Grime II remains an eerie experience that expands upon the original, perfectly combining the psychedelic settings with a superb soundtrack.”
graphics
60 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
55%
40%
5%
The game features a unique and stunning 2.5D art style with gorgeous, atmospheric visuals that enhance its dark, surrealist world, widely praised for its aesthetic appeal and immersive environments. While the graphics are generally smooth and crisp, some users noted occasional optimization issues and minor graphical glitches, especially in late-game sections or on lower-end hardware. Overall, the graphics significantly elevate the experience, complementing the gameplay and narrative effectively.
- “It absolutely sets a new high bar for visuals, art direction, OST, combat, boss design, exploration, build diversity, and platforming.”
- “The artstyle is as beautiful and grotesque as ever with the added benefit of more varied environments (reef is a definite standout, but there are many stunning locations).”
- “Graphics: gorgeous 2.5d backgrounds.”
- “While the game retains the novel aesthetic of the first, it hasn't been nearly refined enough, such that often something that should look uncanny often just looks like an unbaked asset got dropped into the world.”
- “Lowering the graphics settings did nothing so I'll probably wait for a patch before continuing because it's ruining the game for me.”
- “Refunded the game, as it ran shockingly bad and I didn't want to drop the graphics or resolution more than I had already.”
stability
33 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game suffers from numerous bugs and stability issues, including glitches in platforming, controls, boss fights, and performance drops especially in later stages. While these problems can cause occasional frustration and disrupt gameplay, frequent patches and developer updates have improved the experience over time, making it generally playable but still in need of further polish.
- “Just like the first Grime on release, this game is also buggy as hell right now. I encountered a bug where a story boss's HP bar disappeared and the boss died without me doing anything upon entering the arena; another story boss's second phase HP bar was missing the entire time, so I had no idea if I was damaging it before I died. Bosses themselves aren't really challenging—you're more likely to die due to bugs or unresponsive controls than skill issues. One boss is basically a cinema experience where you watch the boss and occasionally react.”
- “Edit: Forgot to mention the game has pretty obvious optimization issues in late game sections—framedropping, stuttering, and graphic glitches become constant, unlike early to mid game. Controls become clunky during long platforming sections, sometimes forcing you to start over because your character won't grapple, slide, or jump at certain points. Enemies (not bosses) become damage sponges with weird or missing startup animations, so you have to guess or skip them. Platforming gets more aggressive with no recovery invulnerability frames, making damage taken very punishing and unlike other similar games.”
- “[Spoiler] This game is buggy as hell. Everything was fine before the last sculptor boss, but once I got to this boss, pressing jump causes my character to stand still for at least a second before jumping. I tried multiple controllers and restarting the PC, but the problem persists. After beating the boss, platforming is insufferable too—the grapple slide is so unresponsive that sometimes it works fine, and other times it doesn’t grapple properly even when right next to a grapple point.”
optimization
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
60%
25%
Optimization in the game is inconsistent, with many users reporting minor to significant performance issues such as stuttering, frame drops, and lag spikes, especially in later areas and specific zones like boss arenas and hubs. While some players with mid-tier or better PCs experience smooth gameplay, others face frequent frame rate fluctuations and occasional freezing, indicating room for improvement in CPU and overall optimization.
- “Performance is mostly locked at 120 fps.”
- “I have what I consider a mid-tier PC, but the performance on this game is incredible, and graphically it's stunning. I've had zero bugs thus far.”
- “I saw a couple of comments about performance but I personally have had no problems with performance as of now.”
- “Optimization is a bit poor in some areas like the Jagged Forest (especially in the main bosses arena) with the recommended specs for the game.”
- “Edit: forgot to mention that this game has some pretty obvious optimization issues in the late game sections; frame dropping, stuttering, and graphic glitches become constant even though in the early to middle game there’s little to none. Controls become so clunky during long platforming sections that you may have to start over because your character simply refuses to grapple/slide/jump at a certain point.”
- “I started the game at a smooth 144fps but from the second area onwards my FPS was all over the place with horrible stuttering and it even went down to 50 at some point.”
atmosphere
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
44%
37%
19%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its moody, immersive, and artfully crafted world, enhanced by excellent music and strong art direction. While some players preferred the first game's atmosphere, the sequel maintains a dark, compelling tone that deeply engages through its characters, lore, and design. Overall, the atmosphere contributes significantly to the game's acclaimed metroidvania experience.
- “The devs still excelled at what they did best with 1: the world and atmosphere, lore, character design, and music.”
- “I find myself not caring about the world and story in many games, but this game's atmosphere and characters really pulled me in.”
- “What makes this game, at least for me, one of the greats is the art direction, atmosphere, and the music.”
- “The pace and atmosphere lean more towards Dark Souls than a precision platformer, which may feel off for some players.”
- “This game has a very depressing atmosphere, which may not appeal to everyone despite satisfying combat mechanics.”
- “Overall, I preferred the atmosphere of Grime 1 more; this sequel's atmosphere felt lacking even though the art design remains gorgeous.”
grinding
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Grinding in the game is widely described as tedious and frustrating, particularly due to repetitive platforming and excessive backtracking across numerous zones. However, some players found improvements after developer adjustments, making platforming less tedious and exploration slightly more enjoyable, especially when certain grind mechanics provide helpful rewards. Overall, the grinding aspect can significantly detract from the experience for many.
- “There are a total of 18 zones, so a third of the game was left for me and it felt tedious.”
- “Literally every inch of the game has some incredibly tedious, frustrating, unfun aspect to it that just adds up the more you play.”
- “Starting from middle game it starts getting tedious, and near the end it gets really over the top.”
humor
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is a mix of quirky and subtle moments, including amusingly broken enemy hitboxes and a weird, engaging world that blends funny, solemn, and badass elements. It adds charm and emotional depth, keeping players both entertained and invested.
- “Some enemy hitboxes are hilariously broken, killing you from several feet away.”
- “It manages to blend a lot of feelings, being funny at times, badass at others, solemn, and interesting.”
- “The world is just as weird as the first game with a smidge of humor this time and I'm invested in learning about it.”
emotional
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game evokes a deep emotional experience by capturing feelings of loss and vulnerability similar to its predecessor, while delivering a poignant and nuanced narrative exploring themes like artistic integrity, obsession, and despair. Players feel genuine emotional weight through challenging encounters and the rich interactions with the world and its inhabitants.
- “The game’s narrative is incredibly poignant, nuanced, and moving, touching upon themes of artistic integrity, creativity, censorship, obsession, and the feeling of nothing ever being enough. These topics are explored through interactions with the world’s numerous residents as well as observation of the environments themselves.”
- “More impressed that this game made me feel lost like the first one did, even after some expectations of what to expect.”
- “The vast majority of them made me feel true despair when going up against them for the first time, but each defeat led to more knowledge of their move-sets until, eventually, I could nearly go hitless by the time I finally defeated them.”
character development
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The character development in the game is praised for its strong design and integration within a well-crafted world and lore. Players appreciate the enhanced character design compared to the previous installment, contributing to an immersive and engaging experience.
- “The devs still excelled at what they did best with 1: the world and atmosphere, lore, character design, and music.”
- “I like the game's worldbuilding and character design.”
- “Everything I loved about Grime (challenging combat, stunning visuals, cool character design, and satisfying movement to name a few) is stepped up in Grime II.”
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game offers a variety of build options and approaches that enhance replayability compared to its predecessor, though its relatively small size somewhat limits this aspect.
- “Unlike the first game, this one offers many options for builds and different approaches, making it highly replayable despite its size.”