Unexplored 2: The Wayfarer's Legacy

Unexplored 2 has potential, but right now the adventure's unreliable and storytelling's seriously flawed.

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Unexplored 2: The Wayfarer's Legacy is a genre-bending RPG with a table-top feel, offering a procedurally generated open-world and strategic exploration challenges. The game features a rich narrative, award-winning soundtrack, and beautiful art style, with a learning curve that offers systemic depth and rewarding gameplay. It also includes a wide range of difficulty modifiers, allowing you to customize your experience.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

Reviews

61%

Audience ScoreBased on 446 reviews

gameplay60 positive mentions

stability57 negative mentions

The game features beautiful visuals and a captivating art style that enhances the exploration experience.
The procedural generation creates a dynamic world that feels alive, with unique quests and encounters that change with each playthrough.
The game encourages strategic planning and resource management, making each decision impactful and rewarding.

The game suffers from numerous bugs and glitches that can disrupt gameplay and lead to frustrating experiences.
Combat is often unbalanced and not rewarding, leading players to avoid it rather than engage, which can feel counterintuitive.
The learning curve is steep, with a lack of clear guidance on mechanics and objectives, making it difficult for new players to understand how to progress.

gameplay
205 mentions
29 % positive mentions
66 % neutral mentions
5 % negative mentions
The gameplay of this title is characterized by a mix of innovative mechanics and frustrating bugs, leading to a varied player experience. While many appreciate the depth and complexity of systems like skill checks and procedural generation, others find the mechanics obtuse and the frequent loading screens detract from immersion. Overall, the game offers a rich exploration experience with a steep learning curve, but it remains in a state of flux as developers continue to refine and expand its features.
- “The game at its best is a lovely D&D-esque experience, full of beautiful visuals, satisfying gameplay loops, and audio I can only describe as 'delicious'.”
- “Exploration is super satisfying, the procedural generation successfully creates unique and organic places, lots of interesting mechanics.”
- “This game is mechanically deep and constantly surprising.”
- “Every mechanic of this game is bothersome, keeping me in a state of worry constantly.”
- “Add to that the fact that every time you explore an area from the overworld map, it 'generates' the area and 'builds' it, a process that takes close to a minute easily, and it's easy to see why I'm spending more time in loading screens than actual gameplay between crashes.”
- “The likelihood of a full game completion without significant gameplay bugs is almost zero.”
story
163 mentions
17 % positive mentions
81 % neutral mentions
2 % negative mentions
The game's story is primarily procedural, offering a unique but often shallow narrative experience that relies heavily on lore rather than crafted plotlines. While players can engage in a multi-generational quest to destroy a magical artifact, the randomness of world generation can lead to frustrating bugs and a lack of coherent storytelling. Many reviewers express a desire for deeper character interactions and more compelling quests, suggesting that the game could greatly benefit from a more structured narrative akin to titles like The Witcher 3.
- “This game is really unique and tries to push the boundaries of what procedural generation can do in terms of dynamic storytelling and giving the player a true sense of exploration.”
- “A very unique game, certainly not for everyone, but if you like games with a story where you feel your choices have significant impact, and you really do not know what will come next, this game is a treat.”
- “It takes you through a deep story that is not easy but rewards those who play, lose, and learn.”
- “I'd say it is great role playing from the adventure aspect, though shallow currently in the story and relationships aspect, relying mostly on lore.”
- “Another problem with the game is that you can't just experience the entirety of the story in one world; there are elementals/masks that are not unlockable due to the world generation limits.”
- “Well, judging by the story that was revealed to me during my time playing, it clearly isn't trying to tell me a masterpiece.”
graphics
86 mentions
55 % positive mentions
41 % neutral mentions
5 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their beautiful, imaginative art style, often compared to cell-shaded environments reminiscent of comic artist Moebius and the game Sable. While some users note minor bugs and performance issues, the overall aesthetic is described as gorgeous and engaging, contributing significantly to the immersive experience. However, a few reviews express dissatisfaction with the graphics, labeling them as ugly or overly abstract, indicating a divide in player opinions.
- “All this is done within a very pretty and imaginative cel-shaded graphics environment, somewhat reminiscent of the open-world game Sable, or the comic artist Moebius.”
- “Unexplored 2 has some of the most beautiful visuals and environments I have ever seen in a game, especially in an indie game.”
- “The graphics are legitimately gorgeous.”
- “Ultra boring with ugly graphics and convoluted gameplay.”
- “The graphics style is based on only a few colors and has too much contrast.”
- “Graphics still very abstract; in 2D it is acceptable, in 3D much less so.”
stability
59 mentions
5 % positive mentions
-2 % neutral mentions
97 % negative mentions
The game is widely reported to be very buggy, with frequent glitches that can disrupt gameplay and even lead to game-breaking issues, such as save file corruption. While some players find the charm in its imperfections and appreciate the developers' responsiveness to patches, others express frustration with the instability, making it challenging to fully enjoy the experience. Overall, it requires a degree of patience from players willing to navigate its current state.
- “The game runs great on Steam Deck; I played it 99% on it.”
- “The stability on the Steam Deck is impressive, allowing for a seamless gaming experience.”
- “I experienced no crashes or bugs while playing, which speaks volumes about the game's stability.”
- “When I first tried it, I loved the game but found the frequent glitches greatly impeded gameplay.”
- “But eventually, the many game-breaking bugs or glitches will either brick your save or kill a super far-in character, and you'll sour on the game and it'll ruin the experience.”
- “It's still buggy as hell, but oh my do I love it.”
music
28 mentions
64 % positive mentions
25 % neutral mentions
11 % negative mentions
The music and sound design in the game have received widespread praise for their quality and ability to enhance the overall atmosphere, with many reviewers highlighting the beautiful soundtrack and its fitting integration with the game's themes. The visual and auditory elements are described as aesthetically pleasing, contributing significantly to the game's appeal, despite some criticisms regarding content depth and technical issues. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a standout feature that elevates the gaming experience.
- “Amazing game, very cool concept, great soundtrack.”
- “The music and the visuals are absolutely beautiful, and that the game is an indie game is actually insane to me.”
- “While I really liked what the game was going for (music, world-building, art style, LOTR influence), ultimately, like other reviewers said, the game just doesn't respect your time.”
- “The music and sound design also deserve more than a mention for drawing you in.”
- “The music and the visuals are absolutely beautiful, and the fact that the game is an indie game is actually insane to me.”
optimization
22 mentions
9 % positive mentions
77 % neutral mentions
14 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has received significant criticism, with players experiencing severe performance issues even on high-end systems. Many report lag spikes during exploration and loading, leading to frustrating gameplay and audio problems. While the game itself is praised for its charm and potential, the current optimization shortcomings prevent a positive recommendation until improvements are made.
- “The one thing, the only thing I have to gripe about is the optimization of the game itself.”
- “Hopefully the game gets optimized a bit more for the future because it really is a charming game that I want to play more of.”
- “On the performance side: I've got myself a high-end gaming PC and the game doesn't give a damn about that.”
- “I don't know if it has something to do with my setup or some of the stuff I am doing while playing, but after around 1-2 hours into a new save slot (the game provides you with 3 slots), the performance starts to tank, like a lot.”
- “Unfortunately, there are some persistent performance hiccups while traveling on the overworld, and loading into those levels, and can make that experience feel disjointed and awkward.”
grinding
17 mentions
12 % positive mentions
12 % neutral mentions
76 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that while some players find the game slow and chill, many others describe the grinding aspect as tedious and frustrating, often feeling like a chore with minimal rewards. The travel and trading mechanics are particularly criticized for being cumbersome and time-consuming, leading to a sense of tedium throughout the gameplay experience.
- “The game is slow and chill, but not grindy or tiring (to me).”
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “My final issue is that the traveling events are all tedious and annoying.”
- “It's tedious suffering with little reward.”
- “The game pads the in between with encounters (just speed through them) and hunts (just a grind), and trading is slow and cumbersome; I'm talking minutes here, it becomes so tedious.”
atmosphere
12 mentions
83 % positive mentions
8 % neutral mentions
8 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its phenomenal world-building, gorgeous art style, and immersive music, creating a captivating experience that encourages exploration and discovery. Players particularly enjoy the tension and intrigue of navigating dark areas with limited visibility, enhancing the sense of adventure. Overall, the atmosphere is described as charming and rich in lore, making it a compelling choice for fans of fantasy exploration.
- “The atmosphere is phenomenal, and I love trying to figure out how this world works.”
- “If you are interested in games with charm, atmosphere, cool lore, or just the concept of traveling in a fantasy world like in The Fellowship of the Ring, I would highly encourage getting this game.”
- “In terms of atmosphere, this game really shined in those areas where I did not have a clear picture of what was ahead of me, and this was largely because the areas were completely dark, requiring torches or other light sources.”
replayability
10 mentions
30 % positive mentions
40 % neutral mentions
30 % negative mentions
The game offers significant replayability due to its dynamic world and diverse gameplay options, allowing players to experience unique stories with each playthrough. However, some players find certain elements, like the randomized dungeons, lacking in substance, which can detract from the overall desire to replay. Overall, those who enjoy the game are likely to find it highly replayable and engaging.
- “The world feels different every time (because it is ;) ) but with all the ways you can play this game, it makes for an easily replayable experience.”
- “And if it is for you... you're going to have an absolute blast in a game with lots of replay value and content.”
- “This makes the game replayable and creates a world and a story that you probably only ever played.”
- “The world feels different every time, but with all the ways you can play this game, it makes for an easily replayable experience.”
- “This makes the game replayable and creates a world and a story that probably only you ever played.”
- “So there is replay value even if you finish the game once.”
character development
2 mentions
0 % positive mentions
-50 % neutral mentions
150 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that the character development in the game falls short of expectations for a typical RPG, with many users expressing disappointment in its depth and complexity.
- “It calls itself an 'RPG', but character development is not even close to what you'd expect from typical RPGs.”
- “The character development is severely lacking, making it hard to feel invested in the story.”
- “There is little to no meaningful character progression, which is disappointing for an RPG.”
humor
2 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
Players appreciate the game's humor, highlighting its funny interactions that complement the intense combat and interesting map generation, creating an engaging and entertaining experience.
- “Intense combat, interesting map generation, stealth, and funny interactions - the game had it all!”