Indie developer GalaxyTrail made their debut in 2014 with the Kickstarter-funded PC title called Freedom Planet, which was a throwback to 16-bit action platformers. I got the chance to review the game’s Wii U port back in August, and found it to be a very well-done amalgamation of classic mechanics and clever level design. Now, GalaxyTrail has announced their next project in the form of Freedom Planet 2, which will look to enhance and refine the original’s mechanics and presentation in numerous ways.
Players will once again take control of the trio of heroines from before (Lilac, Carol and Milla), and face off against a new villainess named Merga, an ancient water dragon released from her prison due to the events of the first game. Both the returning and new characters have been redesigned with more realistic proportions and more detailed sprites, which GalaxyTrail cites as a move to get away from the heavy Sonic the Hedgehog inspirations in the previous title and give the Freedom Planet franchise a more distinct visual identity. The game’s first trailer is a good showcase of that, as despite not displaying any gameplay, it shows a hand-drawn cutscene that blows its predecessor’s visuals out of the water.
New gameplay mechanics include a flexible difficulty system unlocked via in-game collectibles that will allow for factors like the default amount of lives and your character’s attack power to be lowered or raised as you see fit, as well as a guarding mechanic and the ability to respawn right where you die.
Fans will have to wait a bit to get their hands on the complete version, as GalaxyTrail’s current goal is to release a beta by mid-2017 and finish development at an unknown time afterwards. The game will make its debut on home computers first, but the developer has indicated plans to eventually port it to other consoles.
We will continue to post more news on Freedom Planet 2 as it becomes available, but for now, hit the comments section and let us know if you’re looking forward to this one.
