So far in 2019, one of the emerging trends of the year has been a steady release schedule for The Wacky, Colorful Post-Apocalyptic Shooter. In February it was kicked off withFar Cry New Dawn, and nowRAGE 2will be coming up this May with its own take on what a “fun” post-apocalypse can look like. And while there has beena playful rivalry betweenRAGE 2and the other titles it happens to share some similarities with(including this past weekend’sreveal ofBorderlands 3),RAGE 2still seems like it will have plenty to offer players with its gleeful post-apocalypse through fast gunplay and a huge world to explore.
During PAX East 2019 in Boston, I got to go hands-on withRAGE 2and spend some time inside its colorful wasteland for about 20 minutes or so of gameplay. In the grand scheme of things, that’s not a whole lot of time in a game that seems like it will be big (at least from what I saw on the world map), but it at least gave me a sense of what to expect fromRAGE 2as far as gameplay and how its open-world feels.
[pullquote]“RAGE 2really feels in a lot of ways like two distinct experiences between its fast-paced, first-person shooting combat and its more exploratory, open-world segments."[/pullquote]
For some context, I had only ever played a few hours ofthe originalRAGEback when it first debuted, so I’m coming toRAGE 2largely new to the series. However, given the nearly eight-year-long gap since the original’s release, I mostly got the sense thatRAGE 2will seem easily accessible to those that may not have played the original (but probably with some nods for series' fans that have stuck with it).
From what I played from the game at PAX East,RAGE 2really feels in a lot of ways like two distinct experiences between its fast-paced, first-person shooting combat and its more exploratory, open-world segments. Much like a blend of 2016’sDOOMand the open-world titles that Avalanche Studios has delivered over the years (such as theJust Causeseries), on paper it sounds like a match made in heaven, but at certain points I wasn’t quite sure that everything was working together for me as intended.
[pullquote]“I could tell thatRAGE 2seems like it will give players a lot of options in how you may approach situations."[/pullquote]
Coming in part from developer id Software,RAGE 2clearly seems to have taken some of its DNA from 2016’sDOOMby enveloping its gameplay with shooting that’s all about speed and mobility.RAGE 2is certainly no different as you can largely zip around areas and wail on baddies with a barrage of guns and special powers, but the more open structure is something that I felt that I needed more time to really get a grasp of it.
In the beginning of the demo, I experienced this the most when I tried to complete a few objectives that mostly revolved around combat, such as taking out a sentry turret and some enemy scavengers out in the wilderness. With so many weapons and powers at my disposal, I could tell thatRAGE 2seems like it will give players a lot of options in how you can approach situations. But being thrown into the middle of things without an understanding of how all these powers and abilities worked (and especially how they all worked together) sometimes felt a little overwhelming.
[pullquote]“Being thrown into the middle of things without an understanding of how all these powers and abilities worked sometimes felt a little overwhelming."[/pullquote]
This was also compounded with the fact that I just didn’t quite have a feel yet for how to successfully utilize the environment inRAGE 2during combat encounters compared to what I experienced fromDOOM. Given thatDOOMmostly took place in contained, linear areas, it was much easier to get a feel for the game’s aggressive tone and gameplay because it was always pushing the player forward. By comparison inRAGE 2, there were moments in gunfights that I felt a bit more like a sitting duck due to having a lack of cover or options to properly engage, leading me to scramble for a way out of an overwhelming situation.
Granted, this is all just coming from a brief slice ofRAGE 2where I (presumably) was put into a section that was later in the game, and I imagine that playing the full game from the beginning will give a better sense of the flow of combat and traversal. ThoughRAGE 2had the excitement and punchiness that I (and so many others) liked from 2016’sDOOMwhen it came to the actual shooting, I think I just need more time with it down the line to see how it all plays out in a bigger, more open setting.
[pullquote]“The vehicular combat pretty much came to me immediately, and I had a blast driving out in the world and taking on objectives."[/pullquote]
But in the second portion of the demo where I took to the road with a vehicle, that’s when I really felt thatRAGE 2started to click for me. Specifically, that feeling came in when I embarked on a Convoy mission, where I was tasked with taking out a roaming caravan of enemy vehicles with my vehicle’s gatling guns and missiles. This not only involved staying on track behind the vehicles and trying to take them out one-by-one, but also dodging incoming lasers and explosives trying to throw me off-road, making for an exciting car chase sequence in trueMad Maxfashion.
That shouldn’t exactly come as a surprise given that Avalanche Studios–the makers of 2015’sMad Maxvideo game–are co-developing the project with id Software, but it especially feels that the promise of that game is being delivered even more effectively here inRAGE 2when it comes to vehicular combat and encounters. The vehicular combat pretty much came to me immediately, and I had a blast driving out in the world and taking on objectives, especially when it came to the vehicle’s mobility and weaponry.
[pullquote]“RAGE 2seems like it is on the right track to take players on a thrilling ride."[/pullquote]
While the combat and open-world structure feel like solid culminations of what id Software and Avalanche Studios have been known for, one of the more surprising elements of the demo to me were the amount of different areas and environments that players could explore. Given that the originalRAGEwas mostly composed of desert areas, for the majority of my time inRAGE 2I instead saw lush rainforests and jungles, with the green of the trees contrasting vividly against the pink waypoint markers that were guiding me to my next objective.RAGE 2’s use of color is certainly a nice touch that helps it to stand out from other post-apocalyptic titles, and I’m curious to see just how varied that its biomes are in terms of design.
From the brief amount of time that I spent withRAGE 2at PAX East, I came away excited by the potential of its more light-hearted take on the post-apocalyptic. By trading in the doom-and-gloom of the end of the world and making it a little more zany and wild,RAGE 2seems like it will offer high octane fun in a world that is packed with challenges. Though I need to get a better feel for how it will adapt fast-pacedDOOM-style combat in a much larger setting, so farRAGE 2seems like it is on the right track to take players on a thrilling ride.
RAGE 2will release for PS4, Xbox One, and PC on June 25, 2025. If you’re looking to hop on the crazy post-apocalyptic ride,you can pre-order the game now over on Amazon.
