The Talos Principle 2 Hands-Off Preview (PS5)

The Talos Principle was originally released in 2014 developed by Croteam, and published by Devolver Digital. The premise of the game is simple; you as the player are tasked by your “creator” to solve puzzles and unravel the deep mysteries of the world you inhabit. In doing so, you begin to contextualize the world for yourself. Set in non-linear levels, you’re faced with choices to either obey your commands or find your own path to existence. Upon release, the game was met with universal acclaim, achieving 9 out of 10 on average from critics. Nine years later, Croteam is working on the follow-up, The Talos Principle 2, which is billed as the studio’s most ambitious project to date. The game will have more open areas to explore, feature new mechanics for solving puzzles, and go deeper into the intellectual depths of what it means to be human. If you have been looking forward to experiencing yet another philosophical puzzler, then The Talos Principle 2 looks to be just the ticket.

The Story Of Talos 2

The first game took place in a Virtual Simulation, with humankind having been wiped out due to mass extinction brought from severe climate change. Artificial Intelligence, also known as Robots has been created to continue the legacy of humans. In retracing the steps of those who came before us, the game explored the question of what it means to be human. Is it based on biology or does it go beyond what was passed down in hereditary?

1000 years later, you wake up as a different robot in the same process: to continue the human legacy. Upon awakening, you are presented in a gathering to celebrate your birth. Soon it becomes interrupted by a discourse of events that will propel you to explore the island to find out the source of the disruption. You’ll be presented with beautiful landscapes, and human architecture that express the cultures of humans. The vistas and landmarks you come across will leave you absolutely stunned.

Progressing through the beautifully diverse world, you as the player will find yourself reflecting on humanity, the expression of culture, and the significance of life. Unfortunately, the powers that be don’t want robots to think this way. You are the 1000th and final robot to be created. Nobody else will come after you. The robots want to contain human history. In limiting the reproduction of more robots, they are writing the wrongs to prevent extinction like humans before them. Contrary to this belief, there are robots that want to explore the cosmos, understand the universe they live in, and discover their purpose of existence. However, the commanding robots disagree with this stance as they believe history will repeat itself. In pursuit of understanding what it means to be alive, you are faced with two options again: Do you follow the commands of your caretakers, or follow your desires to find your purpose on your own path?

More Expansive & Intelligent

As you explore the island, you will notice right away how large the areas are compared to the first game. This is due to the team’s goal of greatly expanding the world so that you may explore and discover at your leisure. Meanwhile, puzzles are part of the robot’s culture and heritage, and it’s through these that robots express themselves and deliver information. In solving these riddles, more insight into the game’s narrative open up to you.

Some puzzles can be skipped by finding what is called a ‘decryption key,’ which is a gold floating triangle-like object hidden within the environment. If you find it you may skip the puzzle if it is proving too difficult for you to solve. Each area is comprised of optional and main puzzles to solve. The main ones are called gold puzzles, and solving these will progress the story, while conquering the optional puzzles will reward you with more lore to soak up.

As you solve puzzles, new mechanics are introduced. As per the image above, Talos 2 introduces the RGB converter, a laser connecting module that although present in the first game, works very differently. By connecting the converter to the colored laser modules, you can add multiple lasers into one converter, connecting to multiple sources to solve the puzzle. If there is a specific colored laser you need, you must find creative ways to combine the colors of lasers to convert them into the color needed. A great addition to these mechanics are portals, which will allow you to connect lasers to hard-to-reach areas.

Another addition to the game is the milestone system, a digital slab on the ground that tells you where to go and where the next puzzle is. There are more great additions to the game, which we won’t spoil here.

The Core Of Talos 2’s Design

The design philosophy behind The Talos Principle 2 is inspired by “design by subtraction”, where you take as much away from the player for a more grounded experience. This allows players to utilize the mechanics the game presents to overcome many challenges and gain a greater appreciation for the world they’re immersed in. With this in mind, the team wanted to build a rich world full of many complex layers that players could dig into. There are many questions to ponder within the narrative, puzzles within puzzles, and many activities that add variety to the puzzle-solving formula. By presenting these complexities, the team wanted to express different philosophical ideas and perspectives. They are especially not forcing anything on the player, but rather inviting them to reflect and ponder everything they experience.

Although the thought of writing their own opinions within the narrative crossed their minds, the team felt the best decision was to create an open narrative and not alienate the player base. When it comes to features, Talos 2 will not have VR support, however, the team hasn’t completely ruled it out. You have the ability to switch between first and third-person perspectives just like in the first game. When asked about DualSense support, the team said that there are no features to be expected. Shame, We are hoping with all these mechanics, the team adds DualSense support for added immersion into this beautifully complex world.

The Talos Principle 2 is expected to launch sometime this year. Recently the team has released a gameplay trailer to fixate your anticipation for this incredible title. Croteam has kindly provided us with an invitation to explore the world of Talos 2 with them and we cannot wait to sink our teeth into the complexities of humanity.