The snow-covered ground, blue sky, and blowing flurries are a shift from the dark and alien corridors of the original Axiom Verge. Instead, I am put in control of Indra as soon as her helicopter lands, then set loose to start exploring Antarctica.

This backstory is explained during a brief scroll before I even choose “start game.” Though the story and characters are important to Axiom Verge 2, it isn’t a game that relies on cutscenes and lengthy exposition. So Indra heads south to explore the meaning of the mysterious message. Indra is the founder and CEO of a conglomerate called Globe, and her organization recently inherited a defunct research station on the icy continent. “Come to Antarctica if you wish to see your daughter again.” That’s the message Indra Chaudhari sees when she turns on a prototype ansible – a device capable of faster-than-light communication. After five years of work by solo developer Tom Happ, this prequel/sequel hybrid is almost done, and I played the first few hours of an alpha version to see how the Axiom Verge universe is evolving. A heady sci-fi story and mind-bending meta elements put a contemporary twist on the familiar formula – and with Axiom Verge 2, players are about to learn even more about this series’ unique identity. However Axiom Verge wasn’t a mere imitator it built on a solid foundation with its own signature elements. The original Axiom Verge had a retro aesthetic, a lonely atmosphere, and an array of clever abilities that made the mysterious world a joy to traverse. But of all the projects that contain traces of Metroid DNA, 2015’s Axiom Verge came the closest to reconstructing it. Over the years, countless games have taken inspiration from Nintendo’s classic series, giving gamers an abundance of ways to explore connected maps, earn upgrades, and unearth secret items.

Axiom verge 2 upgrades