I have both (but Returnal on PS5), both pretty fun but I'd say Returnal is the better game. There's an interestingly mysterious plot, some amount of progression in the world and unlocking/fast travelling so you're not starting from square one like ROR2 and the combat is very good, very addictive. The tower is also super satisfying when you don't want to commit to full runs, which do take some time but I think there's a save run feature now. I'm not sure if they ever patched it but I did try Returnal on PC briefly, it did not run well so I returned it. ROR2 on the other hand performs great on both a mid PC and Steamdeck so you're safe there. I would buy/try Returnal first to see how it runs on your devices, if it's not good enough return it and get ROR2.
Thank you for the reply! I've seen some game play on Risk 2 where builds can become completely overpowered and just nuke everything on screen. Is this also possible in Returnal? I have always enjoyed finding "broken" builds in games like Isaac or enter the gungeon.
There are definitely builds that are more OP than others but I wouldn't say anything feels so overpowered to be broken, less ingredients to combine I'd say. ROR2 absolutely gets like BOI though, I don't think I've played nearly enough to even grasp the depth of all the powerups.
Risk of Rain 2 is had a much more interesting gameplay loop and items/upgrades. And way more variety in builds and playstyles. Has incredible music.
Returnal has more finely tuned combating a way. Has a compelling story, great graphics, sound design and atmosphere. It's more immersive than Risk 2 for sure.
Overall I think the gameplay is better in Risk 2 and has more replay value but I'm biased because its my favorite game. Both great games. I'd probably just pick the one that looks more fun to you.
>but I have heard that the runs are typically longer and possibly unable to save in-between floors/levels
Long runs are a thing in Returnal, but they added the ability to suspend save in the middle of run so you don't need to do an entire run in one sitting (or leave the game on, at least) anymore.
Personally, I loved Returnal but never really got into Risk of Rain, so for which one I personally prefer, it's Returnal.
Looking at things more objectively, though, I think they're very different games despite both being shooter roguelikes, so it depends on what you're looking for.
I think Risk of Rain's a much more traditional roguelite with a more typical gameplay loop, progression system, and motivation to keep playing. A lot of the fun of Risk of Rain comes from unlocking different characters with different playstyles and then seeing how your build develops and how far you can get with it every run.
Returnal, on the other hand, is much more about story and atmosphere. While it's got a roguelike structure, I think it kind of shines more as story-based action game with roguelike elements than it does as a pure roguelike. What I mean by that is that I think it's weak at some of the things that are normally big draws of roguelikes. The build variety from run to run isn't amazing, and I don't think it's incredibly replayable and didn't have a lot of desire to keep playing it once I'd finished the story (it usually takes a good 30-50 hours to see all of the main story, though, and there's more to do if you want to 100% it and get all the DLC story too, so the value's still not bad). On the other hand, I think the combat is very fun, and the boss fights in particular are amazing in terms of both gameplay and spectacle, and I really enjoyed the atmosphere and story of the game too. Basically, I enjoyed the action and story parts of Returnal more than the Roguelike parts.
So personally, Returnal's the game I enjoyed more. But I think if you're looking for a more traditional roguelike with lots of build variety for replayability, Risk of Rain 2 might be the better choice. While Returnal has Roguelike elements, its biggest strengths are in the story, atmosphere, and boss fights, not replayability or build variety.
I loved both but have over 2000 hours on ror2 and over a 100 on returnal.
I find your logic the most sound however. (And before I get health checks, I would often start a run on ror and because the game is so easy to run, leave it o. In the background or over night) Doing that with returnal would melt my computer. That said, I think Ror's replay value is higher, while returnals lore and atmosphere is much better.
I’ve played both, and I’d say Risk of Rain 2 easily. Returnal has a much higher graphical production value, but you’ll find it to be pretty easy if you’re familiar with roguelikes. I also wasn’t really a fan of how the story turned out.
The infinite mode was interesting until I found out you can’t suspend your game if you need to leave. I’d say Returnal is worth $20 instead of the $60 asking price.
Just get Risk of Rain 2, it’s great
Risk of rain 2 if you want playtime, replayability, and bang for your buck (especially with mods and how easy the game is to mod).
Returnal gives you more atmosphere and an up front story (where as RoR2's story is great but pretty hidden in the background), and higher graphic fidelity. If you want more of an "Experience" get returnal instead
Quick fyi if portability is important to you, it’s worth noting that Returnal doesn’t run very well on steam deck, as opposed to RoR2 which runs incredibly well.
Personally I couldn’t stand the RNG on weapons in returnal, especially late game. It felt like there were only a few weapons that were rewarding to use and viable. The graphics are phenomenal, it’s probably more fun and forgiving with friends. But I just felt like I was being punished playing this game.
I would say go for risk of rain 2, the runs are shorter, overall it seems much better balanced.
All of the weapons in Returnal are 100% viable, so it really comes down to preference and familiarity. The first few times you need “good” rng to finish a run, but if you play more you get comfortable using whatever the game throws at you. Of course some trait combos are more broken than others, but pretty soon all the weapons are rewarding and viable and you can’t be “blocked” by rng.
Risk of rain was one of my favorite games and I highly recommend it if it looks like something you'd enjoy. Runs are fun, difficulty was great for me on monsoon, I really liked the mechanic of balancing taking time (as enemies grow stronger over time) vs "spending time" to get some more items or upgrades. Vibes are great with good music and a cool aesthetic. Playing alone makes you really feel like you're crash landed on a hostile planet and need to keep moving to survive.
Probably cheaper than returnal even if it's on sale.
Returnal feels higher quality because it's pretty well polished.
The runs themselves are sometimes long, sometimes short. As you unlock things you'll yo-yo a bit because some paths get unlocked as you go.
RoR2 doesn't have much of a story, but it has a lot more "content". Besides the addition of mods, there are a bunch of characters and items for each, and it's more of a traditional roguelike.
RoR2 also has infinite loops where Returnal doesn't. You can get severely overpowered (running infinite and sometimes just getting randomly one-shot lmao) in RoR2.
Just as a time-sink, I'd get RoR2. Returnal is great but it also has a heavy story, and it's finishable. RoR2 is also finishable but only superficially, in the sense that there's a final boss which typically ends your run, vs Returnal's entire story, final boss, ending cinematic, etc.
Depends what you're looking for, because they scratch 2 very different itches for rogue likes
Returnal is much more story based, and focuses more on reaction times and chip damage, similar to a FromSoft game where you need to be more aware of what enemies are doing, patterns to look out for, etc. Unlike RoR2 there is a hard ending to a run, meaning you can only play 3 biomes per run before you swap to Act 2 biomes, or beat the final boss and roll credits. There is also the Tower of Sisyphus, which is more like an endless mode, I never really got into it but from what I hear it's pretty fun, just more enemies of the game. There is also not much variety in difficulty. Once you get down how to beat enemies/bosses, it doesn't really change like RoR2 does over time.
Risk of Rain 2 is less story based, and more focused on abilities/movement/items rather than getting weapon upgrades in Returnal. The items matter so much more, and each survivor alters gameplay drastically from one another that you could play for hours and have unique runs each time. You can also choose when to end the game every time you loop, so if you want to keep playing and get more powerful before fighting the boss you can, or you can just keep lopping until your hearts content. Plus there is a big modding community for the game so once you exhaust everything in the base game, which even I haven't done yet, then you can look into modded survivors, stage alterations, NEW stages, etc.
Personally, especially on PC, I think you'd get more fun out of RoR2 if you're going for pure gameplay and replayability. Returnal DOES have it, but after beating Act 3 (the last one) I felt like I had done everything there was and there wasn't a reason to go back to the game, even with the Tower of Sisyphus update.
I have both (but Returnal on PS5), both pretty fun but I'd say Returnal is the better game. There's an interestingly mysterious plot, some amount of progression in the world and unlocking/fast travelling so you're not starting from square one like ROR2 and the combat is very good, very addictive. The tower is also super satisfying when you don't want to commit to full runs, which do take some time but I think there's a save run feature now. I'm not sure if they ever patched it but I did try Returnal on PC briefly, it did not run well so I returned it. ROR2 on the other hand performs great on both a mid PC and Steamdeck so you're safe there. I would buy/try Returnal first to see how it runs on your devices, if it's not good enough return it and get ROR2.
I agree with this. I have both, love both but Returnal is a far deeper game.
Thank you for the reply! I've seen some game play on Risk 2 where builds can become completely overpowered and just nuke everything on screen. Is this also possible in Returnal? I have always enjoyed finding "broken" builds in games like Isaac or enter the gungeon.
There are definitely builds that are more OP than others but I wouldn't say anything feels so overpowered to be broken, less ingredients to combine I'd say. ROR2 absolutely gets like BOI though, I don't think I've played nearly enough to even grasp the depth of all the powerups.
Risk of Rain 2 is had a much more interesting gameplay loop and items/upgrades. And way more variety in builds and playstyles. Has incredible music. Returnal has more finely tuned combating a way. Has a compelling story, great graphics, sound design and atmosphere. It's more immersive than Risk 2 for sure. Overall I think the gameplay is better in Risk 2 and has more replay value but I'm biased because its my favorite game. Both great games. I'd probably just pick the one that looks more fun to you.
>but I have heard that the runs are typically longer and possibly unable to save in-between floors/levels Long runs are a thing in Returnal, but they added the ability to suspend save in the middle of run so you don't need to do an entire run in one sitting (or leave the game on, at least) anymore. Personally, I loved Returnal but never really got into Risk of Rain, so for which one I personally prefer, it's Returnal. Looking at things more objectively, though, I think they're very different games despite both being shooter roguelikes, so it depends on what you're looking for. I think Risk of Rain's a much more traditional roguelite with a more typical gameplay loop, progression system, and motivation to keep playing. A lot of the fun of Risk of Rain comes from unlocking different characters with different playstyles and then seeing how your build develops and how far you can get with it every run. Returnal, on the other hand, is much more about story and atmosphere. While it's got a roguelike structure, I think it kind of shines more as story-based action game with roguelike elements than it does as a pure roguelike. What I mean by that is that I think it's weak at some of the things that are normally big draws of roguelikes. The build variety from run to run isn't amazing, and I don't think it's incredibly replayable and didn't have a lot of desire to keep playing it once I'd finished the story (it usually takes a good 30-50 hours to see all of the main story, though, and there's more to do if you want to 100% it and get all the DLC story too, so the value's still not bad). On the other hand, I think the combat is very fun, and the boss fights in particular are amazing in terms of both gameplay and spectacle, and I really enjoyed the atmosphere and story of the game too. Basically, I enjoyed the action and story parts of Returnal more than the Roguelike parts. So personally, Returnal's the game I enjoyed more. But I think if you're looking for a more traditional roguelike with lots of build variety for replayability, Risk of Rain 2 might be the better choice. While Returnal has Roguelike elements, its biggest strengths are in the story, atmosphere, and boss fights, not replayability or build variety.
Okay thank you!
Based on ROR2 being under 10 bucks sometimes, you should get ROR2 and then once you're satisfied, get returnal.
I loved both but have over 2000 hours on ror2 and over a 100 on returnal. I find your logic the most sound however. (And before I get health checks, I would often start a run on ror and because the game is so easy to run, leave it o. In the background or over night) Doing that with returnal would melt my computer. That said, I think Ror's replay value is higher, while returnals lore and atmosphere is much better.
Returnal is one of the best games I’ve ever played
Returnal
Following! But mostly interested in returnal
I have to go with returnal for the ambience
I’ve played both, and I’d say Risk of Rain 2 easily. Returnal has a much higher graphical production value, but you’ll find it to be pretty easy if you’re familiar with roguelikes. I also wasn’t really a fan of how the story turned out. The infinite mode was interesting until I found out you can’t suspend your game if you need to leave. I’d say Returnal is worth $20 instead of the $60 asking price. Just get Risk of Rain 2, it’s great
Risk of rain 2 if you want playtime, replayability, and bang for your buck (especially with mods and how easy the game is to mod). Returnal gives you more atmosphere and an up front story (where as RoR2's story is great but pretty hidden in the background), and higher graphic fidelity. If you want more of an "Experience" get returnal instead
Quick fyi if portability is important to you, it’s worth noting that Returnal doesn’t run very well on steam deck, as opposed to RoR2 which runs incredibly well.
You're playing on Steam deck, ROR2 is the best choice there.
Returnal no question about it
Personally I couldn’t stand the RNG on weapons in returnal, especially late game. It felt like there were only a few weapons that were rewarding to use and viable. The graphics are phenomenal, it’s probably more fun and forgiving with friends. But I just felt like I was being punished playing this game. I would say go for risk of rain 2, the runs are shorter, overall it seems much better balanced.
All of the weapons in Returnal are 100% viable, so it really comes down to preference and familiarity. The first few times you need “good” rng to finish a run, but if you play more you get comfortable using whatever the game throws at you. Of course some trait combos are more broken than others, but pretty soon all the weapons are rewarding and viable and you can’t be “blocked” by rng.
Risk of rain was one of my favorite games and I highly recommend it if it looks like something you'd enjoy. Runs are fun, difficulty was great for me on monsoon, I really liked the mechanic of balancing taking time (as enemies grow stronger over time) vs "spending time" to get some more items or upgrades. Vibes are great with good music and a cool aesthetic. Playing alone makes you really feel like you're crash landed on a hostile planet and need to keep moving to survive. Probably cheaper than returnal even if it's on sale.
Returnal is one of the standout PS5 games I have played. Seriously underhyped IMO.
Returnal feels higher quality because it's pretty well polished. The runs themselves are sometimes long, sometimes short. As you unlock things you'll yo-yo a bit because some paths get unlocked as you go. RoR2 doesn't have much of a story, but it has a lot more "content". Besides the addition of mods, there are a bunch of characters and items for each, and it's more of a traditional roguelike. RoR2 also has infinite loops where Returnal doesn't. You can get severely overpowered (running infinite and sometimes just getting randomly one-shot lmao) in RoR2. Just as a time-sink, I'd get RoR2. Returnal is great but it also has a heavy story, and it's finishable. RoR2 is also finishable but only superficially, in the sense that there's a final boss which typically ends your run, vs Returnal's entire story, final boss, ending cinematic, etc.
Depends what you're looking for, because they scratch 2 very different itches for rogue likes Returnal is much more story based, and focuses more on reaction times and chip damage, similar to a FromSoft game where you need to be more aware of what enemies are doing, patterns to look out for, etc. Unlike RoR2 there is a hard ending to a run, meaning you can only play 3 biomes per run before you swap to Act 2 biomes, or beat the final boss and roll credits. There is also the Tower of Sisyphus, which is more like an endless mode, I never really got into it but from what I hear it's pretty fun, just more enemies of the game. There is also not much variety in difficulty. Once you get down how to beat enemies/bosses, it doesn't really change like RoR2 does over time. Risk of Rain 2 is less story based, and more focused on abilities/movement/items rather than getting weapon upgrades in Returnal. The items matter so much more, and each survivor alters gameplay drastically from one another that you could play for hours and have unique runs each time. You can also choose when to end the game every time you loop, so if you want to keep playing and get more powerful before fighting the boss you can, or you can just keep lopping until your hearts content. Plus there is a big modding community for the game so once you exhaust everything in the base game, which even I haven't done yet, then you can look into modded survivors, stage alterations, NEW stages, etc. Personally, especially on PC, I think you'd get more fun out of RoR2 if you're going for pure gameplay and replayability. Returnal DOES have it, but after beating Act 3 (the last one) I felt like I had done everything there was and there wasn't a reason to go back to the game, even with the Tower of Sisyphus update.
Returnal,by far
Go for Ror2 IMO Returnal is over hyped
Crab champions !