I played Spirit of the North back when it first released in 2019. I had said at that time that I might go back and replay it to obtain all the shaman staffs to see if it unlocked a different ending, but I never did revisit it. While I had enjoyed the game, its myriad of bugs and frustrating controls deterred me from returning to it. Although, I did like the game and respected Infuse Studio set out to do with it, so I was pleasantly surprised when I heard of a sequel in the works. I’m thrilled to announce that Spirit of the North 2 has improved upon the original in just about every way.

Once again, you play as a fox who is imbued with divine powers. Surprisingly, these don’t come into play until well into the game, but I’ll touch more on that later. Much like the first game, there is no dialogue, and much of the story is delivered piecemeal through scrolls found scattered all around the land. I will say though, that the mysteries of what happened long ago and how the guardians of the various tribes were corrupted by the evil Bear guardian are vastly more interesting than the meager narrative of the first game.

The treacherous leader of the Bear Tribe.

One of the biggest differences between the first game and Spirit of the North 2, is the size. Spirit of the North 2 is a massive game when compared to the first, which only took about five to six hours to complete. At the time of writing, I’ve already sunk in over fifteen hours and I still haven’t come close to discovering everything.

Even more amazing is just how completely addicting the exploration is in Spirit of the North 2. I haven’t been this hooked by exploration since Skyrim or Shadow of the Colossus, which is saying something. While the first game felt like a slow burn and a bit of a slog at times, this game handles its mysteries and curious locations so well that I find it hard to stop playing. This is one game I know I’ll complete 100%, not just because i want to know the full extent of the story, but also because i want to experience everything this game has to offer.

These Snake Shrines are hidden all across the land and offer rewards.

The gameplay has improved quite a bit in several areas. First, while yes, the fox still swims slowly whenever they’re in water, it’s not as agonizingly slow. Even better is that they got rid of the shaking off animation every time the fox emerges from any body of water. Also, and this is probably my favorite Quality of Life improvement to the game, the stamina bar has been removed. Now you can run to your foxy heart’s content without running out of stamina and trudge along like you’re wading through molasses until it refills. This is exceedingly important because of just how much running you’ll be doing across the vast landscapes on your travels.

Like in the first game, your fox will be able to unlock new Spirit Powers as you play. That said, they’re not exactly the same as before, making Spirit of the North 2 feel even more fresh and establishes its own separate identity. Some of the new powers involve your fox’s new constant companion, a clever raven. The raven can help by scouting out valuable loot, lore scrolls, and even help the fox glide across long distances. The raven is a wonderful addition to the game and overall gameplay, and helps to develop an even more emotional tie to the events of the game.

Finding shamans’ missing artifacts brings their souls peace.

Now I do have a few issues with the game. First, a lot of the inconsistencies with controls (especially with jumping) are still present here. Second, there are still instances where you’ll either clip into the environment and get trapped, or fall through the map altogether.

Third, while there are a few portals you can use to travel between major land masses, as well as fox dens that are your safe haven where you can rest and store gems that you can warp to, there’s not much else in the way of fast traveling. This might sound a bit nitpicky, but I’m not exaggerating when I say the map is huge, not to mention that several locations can only be entered after obtaining items from other areas and brought to a main door. Going back and forth to retrieve specific items is the only time that the game’s pacing feels a bit tedious, and having more fast travel options would have done a lot to rectify this.

Portals are few and far between and are one of the only means of fast travel

Now I will say that for the most part, Spirit of the North 2 is a very leisurely and casual experience, with no worldly combat to stress over. That said, there are several bosses you’ll have to face. These come in the form of the animal guardians who have been corrupted by the Bear guardian’s blight. The boss battles aren’t combat-focused, though. Instead, they’re puzzle based, with our fox protagonist having to rely on evading enemy attacks, traps, and figuring out how to best subdue the rampaging guardian. Even though there’s no direct combat, the boss battles feel epic in nature, nonetheless.

Cleansing corruption from the spirit guardians restores their souls.

As far as the graphics go, Spirit of the North 2 is a bit of a mixed bag. Admittedly, most of the landscapes and sweeping cinematic cutscenes are stunning, without a doubt. The variety in nature and terrain in this game is impressive, and often on full display when sprinting across the fens, beaches, and forests.

Surprisingly, the biggest graphical hit is with the two protagonists. The fox’s fur and raven’s feathers are stiff and segmented, my like what you’d find in a game from a couple generations ago. This isn’t as noticeable when you’re trekking across the land, but whenever there’s a close-up, it sticks out like a sore thumb. There are also pretty frequent struggles with framerate and pop-ins, but nothing so egregious that it hinders the gameplay.

No, I’m not flying, I’m falling through the map.

The sound design is incredible. The ambient sounds of all the various life around you help to fully immerse you in the world. Composer Pav Gekko delivers a soundtrack that is simply sublime, adding to the sense of wonder, apprehension, and grandiose moments whenever it’s called for. 

I cannot stress enough just how much I enjoy Spirit of the North 2. It takes the all the strongest elements of the first game and builds upon them, while simultaneously eliminating the aspects that didn’t work as well before. It’s not without its share of flaws, but those are easily overlooked in favor the remarkable, wondrous adventure that lies before you. You don’t need to have played the first to enjoy Spirit of the North 2, so I would highly recommend this to anyone who is looking for their next mellow, exploration-based, puzzle game. Spirit of the North 2 is truly a diamond in the rough.

 Spirit of the North 2 is available now on PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox one, and Xbox Series X|S.

Reviewed on PlayStation5.

A copy of Spirit of the North 2 was provided by the publisher.