Survival horror Psychological horror Stealth horror

The Evil Within 2

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Go back into a dream world built from minds to save your daughter.

Platforms: PC, PlayStation, Xbox
Price: Paid
Rated: Very Positive on Steam (92% of 31,082 reviews); Metacritic 80 for the PC version
Players: 1
Controls: Gamepad or mouse and keyboard; third-person aiming, crouch to sneak, crafting from the menu.
Made by: Tango Gameworks
Released: 2017

Get it on Steam PlayStation Store Xbox Official site

What frightens Sebastian Castellanos goes back into STEM to find his daughter and finds the town of Union torn apart: the Lost roam the streets, a photographer freezes his victims in moments of death and calls it art, and the town itself twists and breaks around you while you scrape together ammunition and hide.
Content: gore, blood, violence, body horror, jumpscares, strong language.

The Evil Within 2 is a 2017 survival horror game from Tango Gameworks. Detective Sebastian Castellanos enters STEM, a shared dream world shaped by minds, to rescue his daughter Lily, and must sneak, scavenge and fight through the broken town of Union while killers turn it into their own nightmare.

About The Evil Within 2

The Evil Within 2 was made by Tango Gameworks, the studio founded by Resident Evil creator Shinji Mikami, and published by Bethesda in October 2017 for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. It follows The Evil Within, but explains its world well enough for a new player.

Sebastian Castellanos, a former detective, has lost his family. Then the shadowy organisation Mobius tells him his daughter Lily is alive, used as the core of STEM, a machine that links minds into one shared world. STEM's town of Union has fallen apart, and Sebastian has to go in to get her out.

Union is more open than the first game: you explore neighbourhoods freely, find side stories and supplies, and decide whether to fight, sneak or run. Ammunition is scarce, so you craft bullets, bolts and traps from scavenged parts, and use safe houses to rest, upgrade and drink coffee. Between the open areas come tightly built nightmare sequences where rooms and streets twist into new shapes.

Its horror mixes grotesque monsters with human villains, such as a photographer who freezes his victims at the moment of death. It suits players who liked Resident Evil 4 and want a darker, stranger story, with more freedom in how they survive.

How to play The Evil Within 2

Explore Union's neighbourhoods and follow the radio signals to clues and supplies.
Sneak through grass and shadows and take enemies down quietly from behind when you can.
Gather parts and craft ammunition, bolts and healing items at workbenches or in the field.
Rest and upgrade at safe houses, and use green gel to improve Sebastian's skills.
Push through the story's set nightmare chapters, where the world bends around you.

Screenshots

The Evil Within 2 screenshot: a victim frozen mid-air in a spray of blood before a camera on a tripod

The Evil Within 2 screenshot: Sebastian walks through Union at night under a giant glowing eye in the sky

The Evil Within 2 screenshot: Sebastian fires a crossbow bolt at a creature in an overgrown street

The Evil Within 2 screenshot: Sebastian aims a shotgun at a creature with a camera for a head

The Evil Within 2 screenshot: Sebastian checks a radio communicator beside a shadowy child figure in the street

Tips

Explore side areas: they hold most of the parts and ammunition you will need later.
Prefer stealth kills early on; they cost nothing.
Throw bottles to pull enemies away from your path.
Upgrade stealth and health skills first if you are low on ammunition.