Legend of Grimrock II

Legend of Grimrock II is a direct sequel to the 2012 dungeon crawler, keeping its predecessor's core principles of grid-based movement and real-time combat, but not shying away from expanding the concept significantly. The party of prisoners the player once again assembles at the start of the game is this time shipwrecked near a mysterious island, so for the first time in the series the game opens up beyond the narrow dungeons - forests, coastlines, swamps, villages and other outdoor locations are added, blending naturally with the classic underground complexes full of traps.

Compared to the first game, the world is less linear and offers more freedom in which direction to take and in what order to visit the individual areas; new puzzles based on the surrounding environment and weather have been added, along with expanded crafting of items and potions and a more varied roster of enemies and traps. The core remains the same: a dense atmosphere, the need to carefully map and plan every step, and the feeling that even a seemingly simple room can hide a deadly trap or a hidden shortcut. An optional permadeath mode and manual map drawing are again available for players who want an even rawer experience, closer to the spirit of the games that inspired the series.

Like the first installment, Legend of Grimrock II was released in October 2014 only for computers - Windows, Mac and Linux - and never received any console versions. The series thus remained firmly a PC affair aimed at players who don't mind spending hours drawing a map in a notebook and searching for hidden switches in textures, and it never sought to reach a wider console audience or simplify its controls for a gamepad. Partly because of this, it still holds a reputation today as a game primarily for fans of classic computer RPGs and old-school dungeon crawlers, who appreciate full control over difficulty settings and the absence of any concessions toward console controls or a simplified interface.

Why play it: For a sequel faithful to its computer roots without any concessions toward consoles or gamepads - suited to fans of classic RPGs and dungeon crawlers who like drawing their own map.