Knight Squad 2 is the sequel to the original Knight Squad game that was released in 2015 and is being developed by a small indie studio by the name of Chainsawesome Games. It is an online, arcade-inspired multiplayer game that is designed to be played with friends. Knight Squad 2 is currently set to release on PC and Xbox One (it will also be playable on Series X) in Q4 2020. Prima Games was able to spend around 30 minutes chatting with developers about the sequel while we tried out the game and some of its different modes. Here’s what we learned during our time with Knight Squad 2.
Personally, I am not a big PC gamer, I spend most of my time playing games on console, which ironically made me the perfect candidate to preview Knight Squad 2. While the game will be available on consoles, my demo was on Steam and little did I know, it was specifically designed with someone like me in mind — a gamer with little experience playing on PC who needed simple controls and focused objectives. Additionally, I was also not familiar with the original game, which was not a barrier to entry.
Knight Squad 2 allows up to 8 players to join an online party and offers them 13 different game modes to choose from. Further, each mode has a variety of variants that the host can tweak to make the experience more chaotic, like max power for the weapons that you pick up or starting off with a horse. All of the game modes are played on a variety of maps that can be viewed on one screen, so with 8 players and things constantly exploding, it’s safe to say the game can get a little chaotic. However, if you spend enough time with it, then it won’t take long to get used to.
Admittedly, I was a little overwhelmed at first, just because there was so much going on. However, the more time I spent with Knight Squad 2, the more comfortable I felt. Further, with so many different game modes, it wasn’t hard to find one that I was familiar and comfortable with. For example, there is a soccer mode, a domination mode, and even a battle royale mode. So if you’ve played online games before, you’ll probably recognize one or more of these modes and will be able to jump right in.
At its core, Knight Squad 2 is a simple game, and that’s okay. Not only is it fun, but the abundance of game modes and variants included make for a really good, chaotic time. It might not be something you go back to every day and play for hours, but it is something that you would want to play with a group of friends on a Saturday night into the wee hours of the morning. Further, while this mode wasn’t available during our demo, developers shared that there will be a tourney mode at launch that picks random game modes and variants for your party, ensuring an even more brilliantly disordered experience.
There were a couple of bugs that popped up during my demo with the developers, specifically with the soccer game mode and when we tried to play in duos. Some of these may have had to do with poor connection on my end, but others seemed to revolve around issues with the specific game mode. However, after talking with the developers about it, I am confident that the majority of these bugs will be hammered out by launch.
If you played the original game, you’ll likely be pleased to know that developers have reworked the keyboard and mouse controls to try to make them more enjoyable. Instead of having to use a couple of different keys like the original, Knight Squad 2 will simply use the W key and the mouse as its sole controls. Further, the sequel will also offer controller support at launch, if you have a setup for that. Additionally, Knight Squad 2 will offer cross-platform play between PC and Xbox and features 3D, modernized graphics.
Knight Squad 2 is meant to be played with others and would be the perfect game for a group of friends, or a family, to play for an hour or two after dinner. It knows what it is, and doesn’t try to be something it’s not, which makes the game an incredibly fun pastime. If you’re like me and have never played the original game, you might be wondering if you’ll be able to get the hang of it. Well, in the words of one of the developers, Knight Squad 2 is designed to be played by anyone from a “5-year-old to a grandma.”
