DreadOut 2 varies-with-device

Third-person survival horror game

The unique smartphone ghost-hunting gameplay is back with DreadoOut 2. This game, developed by Digital Happiness, is the sequel to the popular survival horror game, DreadOut. In this game, the great serpent Blorong has been awakened, and it is up to teenage schoolgirl Linda to stop it from destroying mankind. Armed with her smartphone, she will go on a dark adventurewithin the DreadOut realm.

Same old story

Much like the first installment, DreadOut 2 stars Indonesian teen Linda Melinda, a girl with a special affinity for the supernatural. If you are not familiar with the first game, you can still catch up to it. DreadOut 2 has a special video that will give you the story to get you up to speed.

However, prepare to be frustrated as storytelling isn't the strongest suit of this game. While the plot is serviceable enough, the quality of the writing is subpar. The game—descriptive text and dialogues—is riddled with jarring grammatical errors and poorly-worded sentences, effectively robbing the story and character any sort of potential charm.

Luckily, DreadOut 2 managed to counterbalance its poorly-written storyline with an enjoyable mix of actionand adventure. There are two types of missions in the game. The first one is to banish ghosts by snapping pictures of them using Linda's phone. The other one is fighting supernatural entities using melee weapons, usually an ax. But, despite its honest attempt to become a true horror game, DreadOut 2 isn't spooky. It employs more hack-n-slash gameplay with its gory simplicity.

Sightseeing around DreadOut

In addition to ghost and zombie-hunting, DreadOut 2 lets you occasionally roam the city before you set out to a new location. In this aspect, the game's design truly shines. The game is thoroughly pleasant to look at, from the lively shop-laden streets to sleepy little villages and the misty mountains. The developers pulled out all the stops in creating a great environmental design.

Even some of the game's dungeon-like areas—such as the mansion cellar or the abandoned hotel—comes with a great graphic design. Although there is nothing much going on, unlike in the city, the entire game has a rock-solid presentation and atmosphere. On a side note, exploring the city is worth doing, especially if you are a completionist. The game offers minor collectibles and optional quests that you can take.

Another buggy game

Like its predecessor, DreadOut 2 is not a perfect game. But, by far, the most disappointing aspect of the game is its abundance of critical bugs. It feels as though it is an unpolished early release. There are lots of locked areas that should have been opened. Some NPCs also pop up out of nowhere and essentially break some side quests.

Another thing is that there are boss fights where the ghosts can move surprisingly fast and can even enter walls. Worse, they can reappear anywhere, regardless of where you last saw them. If that alone is not enough, they can also attack fast that you only have a split-second to react.

The worst part of all these is the fact that DreadOut 2 uses a checkpoint system. There are no manual saves. If you run into a campaign-ending bug, you will be stuck with it.

Would have been worth playing

If it weren't for its myriad of bug issues, DreadOut 2 would have been a recommended game. At the core, it is a charming and enjoyable action-adventure game with different types of gameplay and a solid atmosphere. It is a legitimately fun game if it works. However, as it is, the game has an avalanche of technical problems that need patching up before it can be at par with other popular survival horror games.

This program is Windows 11 compatible.