Summary
- Beyond The Ice Palace 2 has been announced for a 2024 release, inspired by Castlevania and the Metroidvania genre.
- The original game had mixed reviews on level design and difficulty but was praised for the music.
- The new trailer showcases improved combat and exploration features, along with the potential for epic boss battles.
Beyond the Ice Palace 2 has been announced for a 2024 release. Beyond the Ice Palace was released on the Commodore 64 in 1988, two years after the original Castlevania game was released on the NES. Beyond the Ice Palace took inspiration from Castlevania and its sequel appears to continue to take inspiration from the Metroidvania genre that the game helped spawn. Beyond The Ice Palace 2 features combat and traversal reminiscent of popular Steam releases like Hollow Knight.
Reviews of the original Beyond The Ice Palace were mixed. Players were critical of the game's level design and difficulty, highlighting frustrating areas that were too challenging to continue and a lack of variety. Despite its flaws, plenty of gamers enjoyed Beyond The Ice Palace's music. Nowadays, players seem to enjoy that difficulty, and some search for the hardest Metroidvania games to play, trying to find a satisfying balance between punishing and rewarding gameplay.
An announcement trailer shows off Beyond the Ice Palace 2, coming to PS4, PS5, and Steam. Some in-game dialogue is shown in the trailer, highlighting that it has been a long time since the Cursed King, this game's protagonist, was last seen, potentially a reference to a long time between releases. Beyond The Ice Palace 2's trailer showcases the Cursed King using the chains he was imprisoned with to fight off enemies and grapple through obstacles. Players will navigate through the kingdom, unlock secret passages, and take on bosses with intricate appearances. With the emphasis the trailer shows on bosses, fans of the best Metroidvania boss fights may be interested in seeing whether Beyond The Ice Palace 2 is able to deliver a similar experience.
Beyond The Ice Palace Returns 35 Years Later
Compared to its original game, Beyond The Ice Palace 2 appears to be updated significantly to match the standard that newer Metroidvanias have set. Beyond The Ice Palace 2 seems to emphasize the combat while offering players different ways to explore and improve to become ready for the next challenge. The Cursed King appears to have an action-oriented, abrasive personality, mainly shown screaming and fighting. Depending on how much dimension and atmosphere the game delivers with the character, there is a chance he could join the ranks of the best Metroidvania protagonists.
The Metroidvania genre has ballooned in popularity since the 1980s release of Beyond The Ice Palace. The seminal releases in the genre have inspired a wave of indie and AAA games alike. Games like Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown and Hollow Knight are popular modern releases in the genre that take inspiration from the format while making stylistic, tonal, and gameplay changes to distinguish themselves, and Beyond The Ice Palace 2 has a chance to do the same for itself.
- Brand
- Valve
- Original Release Date
- September 12, 2003
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Checkbox: control the expandable behavior of the extra info- Hardware Versions
- Steam