Infinity Blade 2 Review - Searching for the Worker

The original Infinity Blade was a game that showed the world that even on mobile devices incredible graphics, sound, and gameplay could be found. Epic Games, known for the Unreal Engine, used it to power the second installment of the series. Just like the first, incredible graphics are key, with gorgeous locations and battles to be fought. The story continues from the original games as you play as Siris, a warrior who (depending on how you played the previous game) defeated or joined the God King. If you have an iOS device, this game is worth every freakin' cent you pay for it! Here's our Infinity Blade 2 Review.

Infinity Blade 2 - Graphics

Normally, we start our reviews off with gameplay...but Infinity Blade 2 is such a graphically astonishing game to be had on a smartphone, that there's no way we can pass up talking about it first! You start out the game with Siris and Isa speaking about why Siris is at Saydhi's Estate. You are faced with a staircase leading to a large oriental-themed fortress. As you fight your way to the deathless "boss", you are greeted with fantastic architectural and environmental visuals.

No matter where you are in the game, you will be greeted by a view that is rarely seen on mobile devices. The first game looked good and was a decent-sized world, but Infinity Blade II is even bigger, with a massive castle to explore, instead of the linear path that took you to the God King. As you play through the game, make sure you enjoy the view!

Infinity Blade 2 - Gameplay

The gameplay of Infinity Blade 2 is simple, yet elegant. A lot of games after the original Infinity Blade came out to have replicated the style of gameplay due to its popularity. With the ability to block (touch shield in the middle of the screen), dodge (tap the bottom left of the screen), and parry (swipe towards the direction your enemy is attacking from), you control the battles with quick reflexes and timing. If you time things right you can get a powerful stab in, as well as complete combos for massive damage. You can also use magic, for those enemies that are just too hard to take down, using swiping patterns to cast particular bits of magic depending on what you have equipped.

As you complete battles, you have the ability to complete "challenges" such as "Perform 3 perfect parries" in order to get more exp to level up, or even more loot! As you level up, you can (like before), increase your health, defense, block, and magic with each level. Weapons and armor, which you can buy with the gold littered around the game world and from battles, also have exp to be earned, becoming slightly stronger when mastered. Equip gems that you buy or receive from battles to augment them even further!

I especially like the two new styles of gameplay in the Infinity Blade sequel. Previously, you only had the option of sword and shield, but two whole new playing styles have been added to mix things up. You of course have your standard sword and shield, but can now have the option to use dual blades or a heavy weapon, suiting whatever playstyle you may like! In addition to the new play styles, Chair has augmented the game even further. Adding more dynamic enemy patterns, which make the game much less boring, was a great change to the already great game, as well as the ability for enemies to use magic against you!

Infinity Blade 2 - Audio

The first game had a great soundtrack to it, and Infinity Blade 2 managed to one-up it with a great soundtrack on top of sound effects, and a group of voice actors that bring all of the important characters to life! The music does a great job setting ambiance as you explore the castle, and background as you fight for your (unending) life!

Infinity Blade 2 - Story and Content

The story in the first game was nice but short. Infinity Blade 2 continues where you left off with Siris after defeating (or joining) the God King and taking the Infinity Blade. You start out at Saydhi's Estate, seeking answers as to where the Worker of Secrets can be found. After a brief cutscene, you find out he is at the Vault of Tears...which is where the majority of the game is played. The Vault of Tears is a massive fortress where you must defeat Thane, then three blood sentinels (bosses). There's more after that, but we wouldn't want to ruin anything for you!

The sequel has a ton more content than the first, with large (non-linear) areas to explore, more weapons and armor, as well as more gold and potions hidden(ish) around the fortress. Chair (the developer) even has lots of content planned for post-release! At the time of this writing, three updates have been released. The first, Clashmob, allows for players to take on challenges with others via Facebook for more gold and equipment, 24 new items in all. In the same update, a new gem forge system allows players to create gems.

The second update, called Vault of Tears, added new areas (and maps) as well as weapons and items. The clashmob and gem forge were also revised. The final update, called "Skycages", added a new area as well as items and weapons! The clashmob feature pits you with other players to complete challenges to unlock powerful weapons via Facebook once completed, as well as earn bonuses by sharing and tweeting when it's complete.

Infinity Blade 2 - The Verdict

The original game was good, but Infinity Blade 2 was even better. With all new playstyles, tons of equipment, and a much larger game location to explore, the game is much larger and more enjoyable than the first (which was still great, don't get me wrong!). Add in the all-new features such as clashmob and gem forge on top of a much more expanded story with full voice acting, and the game is an all-around great game. With the New Game+ mode after you complete the game on top of the expansive amount of content you get for the low price point, this game is worth every penny you spend on it.

This review was originally published on 09-19-2013. While care has been taken to update the piece to reflect our modern style guidelines, some of the information may be out of date. We've left pieces like this as they were to reflect the original authors' opinions, and for historical context.