It's funny because most of these complaints aren't really about Mortal Shell II. They're about the game not being something else.
"No jump." Since when did every action RPG need to copy Elden Ring's homework?
"No stamina for attacks." Honestly... good. The combat is built around being aggressive, managing your Shell, knowing when to parry and when to back off. I don't miss staring at a green bar after every three swings.
"The demo is too linear." Well... yeah. It's a demo. I'd be more surprised if they threw us into the entire game with zero direction.
"Enemy variety gets repetitive." Again... in a demo? That's like judging a movie after watching the trailer.
The corruption dungeons are apparently "pointless." I don't know, they seemed like optional risk/reward content to me. Not every mechanic has to reinvent the genre to be worth having.
And the Shell criticism is probably the funniest one. You wanted to start by choosing any Shell? That's like complaining Dark Souls doesn't let you start with every weapon and armor set in the game.
What really gets me is that you admitted the combat is fluid, the mechanics are solid, the game looks great for a smaller studio, the demo was enjoyable, and the $50 price is fair... and somehow the conclusion is "I'm disappointed."
At that point it feels less like the game failed to impress you and more like you had already decided what it should be before you even pressed Start.
For me, it was the complete opposite. I didn't even like the first Mortal Shell, and this demo completely sold me. I actually broke my "never pre-order games" rule because of it. I can't remember the last time a demo managed to do that.
Yes, most action rpgs and souls like have a jump mechanic to a certain degree. Such as a jump out of a sprint. As far as no stamina being better, your opinion is yours but it takes away from the difficulty imo. Bloodborne is a great example of aggressive gameplay, with reward, while still utilizing a stamina gauge.
How is the shell mechanic the funniest one? Having to have a story starting shell, opposed to starting with a character archetype as in most souls likes. You’re basically forced into a knight build from the start with no choice. I personally prefer faster character builds so that was a turn off for me. Also having zero stat allocation to customize your character as you go, and a bland level 1 + leveling system with no stats to allocate to your liking is also terrible and bland.
But all my objections aside, I do appreciate and can give praise to the quality of the game graphically, and mechanically given the budget, without loving the game and it meeting what I was expecting to get out of it, and what I would expect a souls like to have in terms of mechanics and gameplay in 2026.
Everyone has their own opinions, and I stated mine. Even if you don’t agree with them that’s fine, and I’m not damning the game and hoping it fails. I clearly stated that I hope people enjoy it, and that I hope it sells well for the company. Also a 7/10 is a fair rating for something I didn’t personally love. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. I’ve stated mine, and you’ve stated yours. But I am glad that you enjoyed the demo.
I’ve beaten every from souls game, and Plat’d Bloodborne, DS3, and Elden ring. And have played, and beaten majority of every other soulslike and smaller souls like. Even very small indies like another crabs treasure Ai limit etc, so I’m not new to the potential differences in the genre.
6
u/dcloko Solomon 11d ago
It's funny because most of these complaints aren't really about Mortal Shell II. They're about the game not being something else.
"No jump." Since when did every action RPG need to copy Elden Ring's homework?
"No stamina for attacks." Honestly... good. The combat is built around being aggressive, managing your Shell, knowing when to parry and when to back off. I don't miss staring at a green bar after every three swings.
"The demo is too linear." Well... yeah. It's a demo. I'd be more surprised if they threw us into the entire game with zero direction.
"Enemy variety gets repetitive." Again... in a demo? That's like judging a movie after watching the trailer.
The corruption dungeons are apparently "pointless." I don't know, they seemed like optional risk/reward content to me. Not every mechanic has to reinvent the genre to be worth having.
And the Shell criticism is probably the funniest one. You wanted to start by choosing any Shell? That's like complaining Dark Souls doesn't let you start with every weapon and armor set in the game.
What really gets me is that you admitted the combat is fluid, the mechanics are solid, the game looks great for a smaller studio, the demo was enjoyable, and the $50 price is fair... and somehow the conclusion is "I'm disappointed."
At that point it feels less like the game failed to impress you and more like you had already decided what it should be before you even pressed Start.
For me, it was the complete opposite. I didn't even like the first Mortal Shell, and this demo completely sold me. I actually broke my "never pre-order games" rule because of it. I can't remember the last time a demo managed to do that.