Ghostrunner 2

Introduction

Ghostrunner 2 sends cyber ninja Jack back into a post-apocalyptic world of vertical cybercity spires, expanding on the original's high-speed, one-hit-death parkour combat with new skills, a motorcycle riding section, additional game modes and a more developed story. Developed by One More Level and published by 505 Games, it released 26 October 2023 for NZ$56.95. Over two years on, it holds 11,443 Steam reviews sitting at a lifetime Mostly Positive, roughly 80.0%, with recent sentiment running softer at 69% across its most recent 100 English reviews. This review reads a substantial share of both the negative and positive samples, and finds a sequel that genuinely divides its own dedicated fanbase rather than settling into easy consensus either way.

Reviewers who see a genuine, polished upgrade

Start with a real, substantial share of praise this review's sample credits with specificity rather than blanket enthusiasm. Core parkour movement and sword combat still land for many reviewers, who describe well-balanced encounters and improved enemy variety compared to the original. Visuals draw close to universal credit, with the cybercity environments and character designs praised as a step up from an already visually striking first game. Some detailed reviewers, including at least one who went in doubting the sequel could match the original, describe it outright as the better game, citing cleaner combat encounters and new additions like motorcycle sections as genuine fun rather than filler. A specific, useful counterpoint also appears in this review's sample: several reviewers frame Ghostrunner 2 as a more approachable entry point for players who bounced off the original's punishing difficulty, arguing this isn't simply a worse version of the first game but a different balance point that suits a different audience.

Veterans arguing the sequel traded focus for scope

Set against that praise, this review's sample shows an equally substantial, specific counter-argument from series veterans. The most repeated complaint concerns new open-world exploration sections, which reviewers describe as actively undermining the tightly designed, high-flow level structure that made the original distinctive within its genre — Ghostrunner's appeal, several argue, was never about scope but about relentless, uninterrupted momentum, and open sections work against that by design. A new stamina meter limiting movement draws its own pointed, specific criticism as a poor fit for a game built entirely around fast, continuous parkour. Dialogue and hub-world segments compound the pacing complaint, with reviewers describing unskippable narrative breaks that interrupt the flow the original kept famously tight, several using the word "cringe" to describe specific character writing additions.

A real save-system complaint worth flagging

Separate from the design debate, this review's sample includes a specific, concrete technical complaint: at least one detailed reviewer describes losing an entire 15-hour save through a simple menu misclick, with no save-slot system in place to prevent or recover from it. That's a real, avoidable frustration distinct from the broader taste question the rest of this review addresses.

Final Verdict

Ghostrunner 2 succeeds at expanding its predecessor's world and toolset, and a real, substantial share of reviewers — including some skeptics won over — credit it as a genuine, polished improvement. What keeps this from an unqualified recommendation is an equally substantial, specific counter-case from series veterans: that open-world sections, a stamina meter and unskippable dialogue traded away the relentless, tightly focused momentum that made the original distinctive in the first place. This review's own coverage of the first Ghostrunner is worth reading alongside this one for readers deciding between them. For newcomers or players who found the first game's difficulty a barrier, this sequel may be the more welcoming entry point; for veterans who loved Ghostrunner specifically for its unbroken focus, weigh this review's specific complaints before assuming more content automatically means a better sequel.