Stoner Games score: 9/10
Remnant 2 is literally my favorite Soulslike of all time. Give me a gun I can customize, enemies I can make bleed and a build that helps keep me alive, and apparently I will keep volunteering for more punishment. 😂
I'm giving it a 9/10. The weapons, atmosphere, story and co-op adventures made this one special for me. My biggest complaint? Trying to communicate with other players through emotes when I had entire sentences to say, fam.
Remnant 2 combat: Soulslike pressure with guns
I wish more Soulslike games would explore this combination. I like having firearms and meaningful ways to modify them while still needing to learn how a fight works. The weapons and attributes gave me reasons to experiment instead of treating every new piece of equipment as another thing to toss into storage.
There were moments when the controls felt a little stiff to me. Some of that was getting used to the game's timing and movement. I enjoyed the gameplay enough to keep learning, but that initial feeling is worth mentioning rather than pretending everything clicked immediately.
For the basic setup, Gunfire Games describes Remnant II as a mix of ranged and melee combat that can be played solo or with two other players. Exploration, branching quests and puzzles are a big part of the experience alongside the fighting.
Weapons, armor and abilities: a simple build breakdown
If you're new to Remnant 2, here's the short version of what you're working with. These are the game's equipment categories, not a list of every item I personally used.
- Weapons: You carry a long gun, a handgun and a melee weapon. Think rifles and shotguns, sidearms, and close-range weapons such as blades or hammers. Many guns accept interchangeable weapon mods; some special weapons have fixed mods. Mutators add another layer of weapon customization.
- Gear and clothing: Armor covers your head, body, legs and hands. Protection matters, but so does weight and how it affects mobility. An amulet and up to four rings help shape your build. Your relic supplies healing or another survival effect, depending on which one you equip.
- Abilities: Archetypes provide active skills, passive perks and traits. You can combine two archetypes, with the primary one supplying its Prime Perk. You equip one skill from each active archetype; skills use cooldowns, while weapon mods use mod power.
That leaves room for different approaches: ranged damage, healing and support, close-range survival, summons or status effects. The point isn't to memorize every option before you start. It's to understand what your equipment does and build around the way you actually enjoy playing.
My bleed build: let them hurt while I keep going
My favorite effects are the ones that make enemies bleed, paired with health recovery that helps keep me in the fight. That's what I call my bleed build. If they're losing life while I'm getting some back, we have reached an arrangement I can appreciate. 😏
One useful distinction: bleed damage does not automatically heal you. The recovery comes from other effects in the build. Every bleeding weapon doesn't come with a free refill of your health bar, so the combination matters.
Co-op made the puzzles more fun, but I needed a microphone
I was genuinely glad to have help from other players. Remnant 2 could feel like a giant puzzle, and teaming up with people who already understood it let me keep moving without turning every obstacle into another YouTube tutorial. Sometimes I want to play the game, not enroll in a course about how to play the game. LOL.
That's why the communication limitation frustrated me so much. In my co-op sessions, I had no built-in voice or text chat to explain what I wanted. What kind of co-op game has me standing there with an opinion and a collection of emotes? 😂
I don't know why the developers made that choice, so I won't pretend to know their reasoning. I just know what I wanted as a player: a straightforward way to talk to the people helping me through these worlds.
The worlds and characters kept me curious
I thought the story and cinematics were amazing. The worlds gave me reasons to look around, and the characters made the journey more memorable than a simple sequence of fights.
The horned Pan in Yaesha particularly amused me. Their word for humans and outsiders is paxultek. I had it in my notes as “pixeltec,” and honestly, part of the fun was just saying the word. Pixeltec. Paxultek. Either way, fam, I was entertained. 😂
If you enjoy personal reviews about learning difficult games, our Hades II review explores another very different game that kept me coming back after getting knocked down.
Steam value, expansions and why I still want more
I caught a Steam sale for about $25 that included Remnant 2, its expansions and Remnant: From the Ashes. That was my purchase experience, not a promise that the same bundle or price is available now. For what I got out of it, I was very happy with that deal.
The three Remnant II expansions are The Awakened King, The Forgotten Kingdom and The Dark Horizon. Even with that content, I honestly wish there were more. I hope this franchise keeps going.
I'd also love an easier, more integrated way to enjoy community-made additions. There is already a Remnant II community on Nexus Mods. Community mods and official support are different things, but I love the idea of players finding more ways to keep a favorite game interesting.
If it had the voice chat I wanted and a regular flow of new content like the experience I look for in Destiny 2, I could honestly see myself playing it every day. I know that's my wish list rather than a promised update plan.
Final verdict: my favorite Soulslike, with one loud complaint
Remnant 2 gave me weapons I wanted to experiment with, a bleed-focused playstyle I loved, worlds worth exploring and co-op help I truly appreciated. The occasional stiffness didn't outweigh what the combat, story and cinematics did right for me.
The communication gap is still the thing I wish I could change. When a game makes me want to spend this much time with other players, I want to be able to talk to them.
Final Stoner Games score: 9/10. I love this game, and I want more of it. Preferably with a microphone next time. 🐯🎮💯
Optional story spoilers: Clementine and The Awakened King
Spoiler warning: This section discusses reaching Clementine and a character choice in The Awakened King DLC. Skip it if you want to discover those moments yourself.
I finally caught up with Clementine, and looking back at everything I had to get through, I was so glad other players were there to help. I honestly felt like I wouldn't have made it to her on my own. Their familiarity with the obstacles made a huge difference to my experience.
Then there was the One True King, the “mad King” in my notes, and Nimue. I always chose to go after the King rather than kill her. But in someone else's game, they chose to kill the goddess, and I had to express my displeasure through a series of emotes.
No voice chat. No text chat. Just me attempting to deliver an entire moral objection through body language. LMAO. 😂
That choice concerns Nimue's fate; killing her doesn't remove the later confrontation with the King.
Original editorial illustrations are artistic interpretations, not official screenshots or records of the reviewer's exact equipment. Gameplay opinions and purchase experience are firsthand; supporting game details were checked against developer information and reference sources.