On the surface, Nocturnal 2 is a very Prince of Persia-ish sequel. In fact, as with its predecessor, it most reminded me of Ubisoft’s seminal 2D platforming series during those moments where you’re sliding down walls or skipping across platforms while avoiding traps. Sadly, the combat doesn’t quite live up to the promise, but we’ll come to that in due course.
In Nocturnal 2 you play Ardeshir, an adventurer who has come to the distinctly Arabian Nights-y city of Ytash, where excessive greed has led to a divine form of punishment that has plunged the dwindling populace into darkness. As wielder of the Enduring Flame, Ardeshir’s job appears to be to light as many torches as possible while fighting whoever he runs into. Refreshingly, Nocturnal 2 isn’t a roguelike or soulslike, really, although it pretends somewhat towards the latter. For example, you refill health and save progress at a special shrine called a Sun Child, which respawns enemies, of course.
The central mechanic to this game though, like the first, is lighting things on fire. Ardeshir’s compulsive pyromania aside, it’s actually necessary to drive back the darkness, and in fact you won’t be able to move on into new areas of the map without committing enough arson. To that end you’ll light torches and braziers, burn wall-hangings and curtains, and conflagrate vines and plants that are otherwise minding their own business. Doing so fills up a little bar, and unlocks certain doors when you clear specific milestones.
Puzzles also tie into the fire mechanic, as you ignite torches which move along special mechanisms when alight, so you have to keep finding your way to them and relighting them as they move away from you along increasingly intricate pathways. To be fair, it is quite a fun and simple set up, which only becomes more complex as the game progresses, littering your surroundings with various death-traps.
Sadly, while the movement and platforming is intuitive and slick, the combat isn’t quite as well-buttered. Some of Ardeshir’s movements feel clunky and unresponsive, and enemy behaviour is inconsistent. They will usually attack right through your combos, which I always despise, and can take a little long to kill for my liking.
A lack of stackable health potions means you have to be on the offensive to refill your heals, while dying will rob you of your accumulated XP, which you need to unlock new skills and abilities. Mostly these come in the form of new combos, or special skills like a double jump that make traversal easier.
That said this is early days, and all I’ve played was a short demo of Nocturnal 2. The atmosphere is suitably grim, while the fire effects are just lovely, and add an air of mysticism to all the swinging, jumping, hacking, and slashing. While it’s not a Metroidvania in the strictest sense, it has that mouth-feel, and progressing by unlocking new moves is a satisfying way to move onwards.
So while it is early, Nocturnal 2 is currently shaping up to be quite a fun adventure. I’m not sure how the combat will improve overall as you unlock new abilities, but what’s here is a sturdy if slightly uninspired framework. Anyone hankering after another desert-themed adventure after last year’s The Rogue Prince of Persia would do well to keep an eye on this one.
Nocturnal 2 by Sunnyside Games is set to release later this year. You can download the demo on Steam here.