Guacamelee 2 is an amazing sequel to the first game. However, it does do some serious stumbling in other areas that keep it from reaching the true heights the series can achieve.

The Good: The writing, art direction and moment-to-moment gameplay are still brilliant. They even beefed up the chicken form to be more than a reason to squeeze through small pathways. It was also awesome to see how they worked in the previous characters and fan reaction to the first game. Then there are all the awesome easter eggs they've scattered in the game! It's really a love letter to video games. Runs like a dream on the Steam Deck.

The Bad: The controls can still be finicky, especially when you add the chicken form into the mix and now you've gotta hit your controller like a stenographer playing the game as it progresses. I honestly don't know why it didn't get more forgiving than the first one. There are also weird difficulty spikes. The devs will absolutely rake you over the coals for $400 then you'll fight a boss who dies to a kitten sneezing in their direction.

The Ugly: This game *fetishizes* one-hit deaths. It's criminal. By about the halfway mark of the game, the environment can kill you in one hit, enemies can kill you in one hit and enemies that explode anywhere on the screen can kill you in one hit. Then you get to the challenge levels and you just want to rip your face off as you're trying to pull off twitch platforming with Juan and literally a fraction of a second will cause you to lose. On *numerous* occasions Juan has refused to jump, attack, react, etc. despite clearly hitting the button. I've never felt so gaslit by a video game before. The challenge levels themselves aren't really fun - they're frustrating. I'm assuming that's a chicken/egg thing given the controls.

But for all the criticisms I have, I couldn't put the game down. If you're not a crazy completionist, this game is an easy recommend at any price. If you are a crazy completionist, just be aware that it can be a little bit frustrating when deaths aren't in your control - literally.