Monster Jam Steel Titans was originally released in 2019, and despite being as niche as a niche game could be, I ended up enjoying up way more than expected. Considering the limited appeal and scope you would expect from a monster truck game, it had some nice ideas, such as an open world full of secret items to collect. It also had a control scheme that was much easier to deal with than the one featured in its direct competitor, Nacon’s Monster Truck Championship. Its sequel, Monster Jam Steel Titans 2, is coming out less than two years later. When I first heard of it, I thought it was a bit too soon for a sequel, but maybe Rainbow Studios and THQ Nordic had some cards up their sleeve.

My biggest complaint about the previous Monster Jam Steel Titans was its framerate, which would quickly plummet if too many trucks showed up onscreen at any given moment. This is the best thing I can say about Monster Jam Steel Titans 2: despite running at only 30fps (which isn’t exactly a big deal considering those trucks are quite slow), its framerate is locked, running smoothly both on PS4 and PS5. Pop-ins aren’t as frequent as before as well. All in all, Monster Jam Steel Titans 2 is a more polished experience than its predecessor… but that’s the only thing that truly differentiates it from its 2019 counterpart.

The rest of the game is pretty similar to its predecessor. The cup format is the same. The gameplay is identical. Even though the performance has been improved, the graphics are pretty much identical to what the original Steel Titans offered. There are new songs in here, but they follow the same style featured in the original 2019 game. Just like before, they’re pretty good, but you’ll barely be able to listen to them while racing due to the trucks’ engines being loud as all hell.

There is a brand new open world to explore, and just as before, the game will gradually open new areas for you to explore the more championships you win. Honestly though, I don’t think this new “Camp Crushmore” map is as well-designed as its predecessor. Some of its areas feel way too much like a simple Unreal asset mashup and the collectible location isn’t as well thought out as before. I do like the inclusion of some extra races and additional levels accessible via the open world, however.

The only proper new inclusions in Monster Jam Steel Titans 2 are a few new stadiums (they all look the same, but hardcore fans will swear that they’re different from each other), some brand new licensed trucks (including a Bakugan truck, for some weird reason), and a few uneventful events. All of those could have easily been released as an expansion pack of small DLC packs for the original Monster Jam Steel Titans game and nobody would have complained.

Don’t get me wrong, when compared to other monster truck simulators out in the market, Monster Jam Steel Titans 2 is still miles ahead of its competition in terms of performance, gameplay, and overall amount of content. The problem is that there isn’t a lot of new content included in here to justify its existence as a full-fledged, pricey sequel. If you’re a monster truck fan, don’t worry, it’s more of what you already love, and the handful of new trucks and stadiums will probably be enough to warrant a purchase. If not, you might just stick to the original Monster Jam Steel Titans, which offers almost the same amount of content and can probably be bought at a discount nowadays.

 

Graphics: 7.5 Despite looking very similar to its predecessor, Monster Jam Steel Titans 2 runs at a much steadier framerate.	Gameplay: 7.5 The camera feels a tad bit wonky this time around, but all in all, it’s the same great trick system and handling from before.
Sound: 7.0 Just as before, a good collection of rock tunes you’ll basically only going to listen to while outside of races, as they’re overshadowed by loud (but realistic) engine noises.	Fun Factor: 6.5 There aren’t many new features to justify the existence of this sequel, but it’s still the best monster truck simulator available in the market.
Final Verdict: 7.0

Monster Jam Steel Titans 2 is available now on PS4, Xbox One, PC, and Switch.

Reviewed on PS4.

A copy of Monster Jam Steel Titans 2 was provided by the publisher.