If you thought the 11-year wait for GTA 6 was bad, or the ever increasing gap between Skyrim and The Elder Scrolls 6 is getting you down, at least you haven’t had to wait as long as platformer fans have for Beyond the Ice Palace 2. Well, today their pain is finally relieved. The Metroidvania sequel has just dropped on PC, 37 years on from the release of the first game all the way back in 1988.
If you know about the original Beyond The Ice Palace, then I applaud either your memory or your platform game knowledge. Released in the same era as Metroid and Castlevania’s debut, it was nowhere near as highly regarded as its iconic rivals, but it still held a special place in the hearts of many who owned systems like the Commodore 64 and the ZX Spectrum. Beyond the Ice Palace 2 looks to honor it more than three decades later as a Metroidvania that can go toe to toe with the modern day big hitters, but retain some if its retro roots.
In this long-awaited sequel, you play as the Cursed King, who finds himself dethroned and his kingdom corrupted and crumbling. It’s your job to fight back against the force that has taken over – and the many, many enormous boss creatures under its control. Calling back to the original, you must once again hunt for fragments of ‘celestial arrows’ which can bring back your power and rid you of your curse.
At the centre of combat, traversal, and puzzle solving are the metal chains you wield. These chains once bound you as a prisoner, but now the tables have turned and you can use them to explore your kingdom to find hidden secrets and whip enemies into oblivion.
Beyond the Ice Palace 2 is out right now for PC players on Steam and the Epic Games Store. On both storefronts, there’s currently an introductory 10% discount until Monday, March 24, making it just $17.99 / £15.29.
For more platforming thrills, check out our comprehensive list of the best Metroidvania games. Or if you want to simply find a gripping new adventure regardless of genre, our best single-player games guide is full of them.
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