The best thing I can say about my first few hours with I Expect You To Die 2 is that it's just more I Expect You To Die. Schell Games’ classic secret agent VR puzzler still holds up, and while the sequel has its fair share of fresh ideas, the fact that relatively little has changed between them is a testament to the quality of the series’ design and execution. I’ve only seen the first three missions, but it’s clear IEYTD2 has every bit of the charm, style, and exceptional puzzles as the original.
I Expect You To Die came out in 2016, which is practically ancient history in VR years. It used a unique control scheme that allowed you to grab and move items at a distance so that you could sit in one place and interact with the whole environment. While holding objects, whether in your hand or with your telekinesis, you can also freeze them in the air. IEYTD doesn’t have an inventory system like a traditional point-and-click adventure would, so leaving objects in suspended animation around you is the best way to keep them handy for later use.
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VR control methods have been refined by many studios over the years, but it’s interesting to note that no one else ever really copied IEYTD’s control scheme. In the sequel, the controls function the exact same way as they did in the original. It might not be completely intuitive to new users, but I think Schell Games’ was really ahead of its time with these controls. Once you get the hang of them, it becomes effortless to grab objects, pull open drawers at a distance, and freeze things in convenient positions so that you can use them later. You’ll have to try it for yourself to see what I’m talking about, but I feel like when IEYTD2 comes out, a lot of VR developers might stop and take a second look at how expertly this series handles the controls, because I don’t see why more VR games haven’t utilized this scheme.
But control schemes are just a means to an end. What makes IEYTD2 fun is its complex and clever puzzles. The game picks up right where the previous one left off during the continued shadow war between The Agency and Zoraxis. Each mission takes you to a unique location where you’ll have completely different objectives. In the first level, for example, your job is to thwart an assination attempt while pretending to be a stagehand controlling the lights and curtain during a play. You won’t know who the assassin is or how they plan to attack at first, so all you can do is go through the motions of being a stagehand until you have more information. Eventually, the method becomes clear and you’ll have only a limited amount of time to creatively figure out how to stop it. The game quickly shifts from puzzler to action game with little warning, making this first intro mission incredibly exciting and dynamic.
As the story unfolds and Zoraxis’s global plot comes into focus, the locations and objectives stick closely to the needs of the story. While the original game also told a continuous story, the missions in the sequel seem even more interconnected this time around. Every level takes you one step closer to unraveling the game's mysteries in a pretty compelling way.
That story-forward approach to puzzle design is what makes IEYTD so captivating, but it can also feel a bit obtuse at times, especially in the sequel. Where in the original it was almost always very clear what your goal was, the sequel isn’t afraid to let go of your hand and let you figure things out for yourself. The second mission really stands out because it starts off as nothing more than a ride on a private plane. It isn’t until you discover that your inflight meal has been poisoned that you realize that you’re in imminent danger. That isn’t the only booby trap on the plane either, and you’re bound to be killed by several more as you look for…something you can do that won’t kill you. It feels strange at times to not know what your goal is, but once you start messing with stuff the full picture does eventually come into focus.
This is going to sound weird, but I kind of started to resent getting killed in I Expect You To Die 2. The booby traps are sometimes at odds with the exploration and experimentation inherent to a puzzle game like this, and I often felt like I was being punished for simply trying to figure out what I’m supposed to do next. IEYTD is at its best when it throws you a ticking time bomb and forces you to scramble to try to disarm with the available tools and information you have, but IEYTD has a few too many hidden traps that kill you suddenly and, frankly unfairly. Give me a room slowly filling with gas any day, but I don’t appreciate getting blown up when I open an unmarked door, especially when the solution is to open the door right above it. I don’t want to have to start the entire puzzle over because I got memed, even though I learned to avoid it the next time. It’s not ruining the experience for me by any stretch, but as someone that doesn’t love redoing the same thing over and over, I did get a bit frustrated about it few times.
I’ve only seen the first three missions so, thankfully, I’ve still got a lot of IEYTD2 ahead of me. Overall, I’m really impressed with the sequel and the sheer amount of variety it offers. It isn’t necessarily “bigger and better” like a lot of sequels try to be. It’s just more of a good thing, and sometimes that’s exactly what a sequel should be.
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