There is a genre SteamWorld afraid to deal with? Starting life as an RTS in SteamWorld Tower Defense, Image & Form’s long-running anthology series has been in space, the Wild West, and even takes the form of a fairy tale. And while Dig, the Metroidvania-style series, is probably the most popular, many have a soft spot for the 2015 3DS hit SteamWorld Heist.
Returning to the franchise’s strategic roots, SteamWorld Heist is a side-turning strategy game that takes the unique aesthetic and humor of the SteamWorld series and combines them with gunfights and bullets. We loved it and the Ultimate Edition on Switch is a breeze. We didn’t expect Heist to return anyway, but nine years later, SteamWorld Heist II is almost here. We got a chance to try out the PC version of the game at Summer Game Fest, and we can already tell that it’s a well-oiled machine that fans will love and newcomers can jump into as well.
SteamWorld Heist II is all about steampunk sailors this time, and the new environment is also the biggest change in the game. Your base of operations is your submarine, and this is where your entire crew (read: playable characters) gathers. You can talk to them, find out what to do next, and then go on your next adventure from there – just like in the first game.
When you get behind the wheel of a ship – a luxury computer terminal – you have the chance to explore a huge open world on the high seas. Most of it just involves steering your ship around the water, following the map to find the next heist, or just exploring. The part of the game we played was right before the middle of the game so we got some instructions from producer Petter Magnusson who told us to go north for our first mission and then head west for more exploration along with the second mission.
The point is that we have so careless because the map was much bigger than we expected. The game guides you to your next destination, but sailing the big blue seas is really fun and we noticed a lot of small details on the islands. Small umbrella and beach towel; metal fragments in some stones; and lots of crates with items and currency inside.
However, our needy floundering got us into some trouble – an enemy ship firing at us. Ship combat simply involves retaliating by using guns, attacking the enemy ship, or running away. It’s basic but adds flavor to the whole world and really brings the seafaring theme to life. We were surprised every time the enemy caught sight of us.
Finally we got to our first mission where we were once again introduced to the SteamWorld Heist fight. We chose two different characters – Daisy, the sniper, and Crowbar, the flanker. Daisy specializes in taking out enemies from a distance, while Crowbar is fast and can get close to an enemy. Each mission lets you choose who to take with you, but when you succeed, your fighters will need to rest, so you’ll need to drop them off at a nearby tavern to re-energize.
Once we jumped in, we had to get to the back of the facility and take out the leader. The gameplay is basically the same as the original SteamWorld Heist, but this level had a lot more challenges for us. There was a timer that, if it ran out, would signal waves of enemies coming out to cause us trouble. Another problem was the automatic weapons at the top of some rooms – we could take them out, but they were also quite dangerous.
One thing that stood out was the layout of the stage we played on. The level quickly split into two paths that, while both led to the same ending, allowed us to split up our team to focus on either keeping enemies busy or speeding to the objective. There are also items and loot to collect along the way, and depending on how much you collect, you can improve your ranking and get better rewards. The layout of each stage is vital to mastering these excellent bounces, and every time we managed to bounce bullets off the wall, we felt really good.
Once we got to the end of the stage, but that wasn’t the end of things. We had to go back; to our surprise we actually failed and both our units were destroyed. Fortunately, SteamWorld Heist II gives you one free replay per level and loads from an autosave during a mission. This gave us a chance to change our focus from photographing everything in sight to getting out of there.
Of course, you can’t just move as you want, as movement also takes up action points that need to be attacked or defended. Choosing the right place to hide your characters or deciding whether to defeat the enemy first is a risk you have to consider. But using Crowe’s special skill – which allows them to teleport further distances – meant we could sneak up on enemies and take them out.
Each individual character has their own unique special skill. Daisy’s dramatically increases shot accuracy and provides a very clear shot line so we could almost guarantee a hit. Combining these character skills with a robust and improved class system expands the amount of customization available and is something we can watch for hours.
We already mentioned the sniper and defender, but we also got to play with the boomer, an explosive class that deals damage in areas, and the engineer, a healing and debuffing class that can also take two hits per turn. These classes are tied to your character’s weapon – changing from a rifle to a shotgun, for example, would change that character’s class from a sniper to a defender. And it also gives this character access to additional skills.
Completing missions earns you wheels, which you can spend to unlock new skills. And those default class abilities are always available if you unlock them, even if you change weapons. We haven’t had much of a chance to play with it, but we’ve spent time looking at the skill table and each class for each character. Giving fragile characters healing abilities or fast characters to melee seems like an easy win at first, but the further you get into the game things can get too dangerous. Fortunately, you can respect your characters whenever you want.
However, there are a few lingering questions we have for SteamWorld Heist II ahead of its launch in just over a month. The game looks absolutely stunning on PC, with beautiful visuals and fantastically smooth performance – we’d like to think the Switch won’t struggle too much. The last game in the series, SteamWorld Build, was certainly a hit on the Switch, but it was a fully 3D city builder hybrid. So that sliver of doubt is always with us, but we’re hoping for Heist II.
Second, is Heist what SteamWorld fans want right now? It’s been a tough year for Image & Form and Thunderful, with the latter announcing that SteamWorld Build sales fell “a little behind expectations” and development on a new SteamWorld game, Headhunter, halted. SteamWorld Dig 2 came out seven years ago and fans are desperate for a third dive into the depths. Given the promise, charm and fun of SteamWorld Heist II’s first few hours, we hope the franchise can get back on its feet and that fans will show up and be ready to celebrate.