The Sinking City 2: The Lovecraftian Horror Game You Never Knew You Needed

by

Summary

  • Frogwares has the ability to address technical faults from The Sinking City for a more polished experience in the second game.
  • The sequel will lean more into modern third-person survival-horror with greater emphasis on combat in smaller game spaces.
  • Frogwares looks to refine The Sinking City 2‘s overall performance by utilizing Unreal Engine 5 and accounting for lessons learned in the time since the original.

Frogwares, the developer often associated with their long-running Sherlock Holmes series, ventured into uncharted territories in 2019 with The Sinking City. While maintaining certain narrative and detective elements, this game veered from previous projects by being an open-world Lovecraftian horror title emphasizing survival and shooting aspects. Coming soon is the sequel, The Sinking City 2, which Frogwares plans to release later this year.

The trailer for “The Sinking City 2” was unveiled in March, and its estimated release is set for 2025, although an exact date has yet to be disclosed. The original game showcased some commendable features, and the thought of Frogwares returning to the murky depths for a sequel piques interest. However, the first installment had its share of technical glitches and performance issues. From what we know about “The Sinking City 2” so far, it seems that the upcoming sequel will hopefully deliver an enhanced experience in terms of those problem areas.

Following the game’s launch, Frogwares found itself entangled in a complex legal dispute concerning The Sinking City. Eventually, they managed to secure exclusive rights to develop and distribute the intellectual property.

The Sinking City 2 is Set to Shore Up One of the Original’s Biggest Shortcomings

The Sinking City Was a Somewhat Uneven Voyage

At that point, “The Sinking City” stood out as one of Frogwares’ most challenging endeavors. With its success from the “Sherlock Holmes” series behind it, venturing into a broader universe and survival-horror genre brought about some growing difficulties. Despite receiving accolades for its storytelling and setting, these features were marred by occasional technical issues like frame rate drops and sudden appearance of assets. Additionally, the shooting mechanics sometimes felt awkward due to questionable hit detection and unclear enemy responses.

While some flaws in the game “The Sinking City” can be understood given Frogwares’ status as a smaller, independent studio without AAA budgets and resources, it’s clear that their effort was heartfelt and they got many things right when it comes to creating a Lovecraft-inspired video game. However, the final product sometimes felt uneven, and “The Sinking City” is often viewed as a rough diamond that could have benefited from more polish to create a smoother experience overall.

The Sinking City 2 May Show That a Rising Tide Lifts All Boats

The Sinking City 2 will have some significant differences compared to the first:

  • Leaning more into modern third-person survival-horror
  • Greater emphasis on combat
  • More boss fights
  • Smaller, semi-open world
  • Switching to Unreal Engine 5

The initial four elements draw inspiration from recent hit games such as “Alan Wake 2”, “Resident Evil 4 remake”, and “Silent Hill 2 remake”. By incorporating similar design strategies effectively, these titles have paved the way for success. If “The Sinking City 2” adopts these elements, it could be on a similar trajectory. Frogwares also mentions that Unreal Engine 5 will enable them to capitalize on the advancements the engine offers. As Unreal Engine 5 becomes more widespread in the gaming industry over future generations, developers are likely to continuously discover innovative ways to maximize its potential, continually improving and integrating its capabilities to create even more impressive and stable games.

Frogwares intends to make adjustments and improvements on their previous work to create a smoother experience for “The Sinking City 2”. They are taking into account the lessons they’ve learned since the original game, as well as leveraging the capabilities of Unreal Engine 5, which sets them up nicely to iron out the bumps in the first game and produce a sequel that is more refined and impressive overall.

Read More

2025-01-23 17:04