Protagonist Beatrix LeBeau lay content sipping her carrot juice while watching the sunset across the Slime Sea. However, not far in the distance, she notices an uncaptained boat making its way toward her dock. Inside the boat is nothing but a mysterious letter written by an unknown sender. The writer begins by commending Beatrix on her slime-ranching feats and lets her know they’ve been watching her for a while. Beatrix becomes enticed by what’s written next in the letter: a promise of new adventure. As is instructed in the note, Beatrix hops in the little boat and sets sail in order to start the next chapter of her journey: the exploration of Rainbow Island. 

This is the basic plot of Monomi Park’s new open-world simulation game Slime Rancher 2, which was released in early access on September 22nd, 2022 for Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store. Although being a sequel, you can still enjoy the game plenty without knowing anything about the plot of the previous installment of the series. 

The main premise of the game relies on exploration, discovery, and wrangling cute, spirited slimes. The more you explore the game’s world, the more slimes you’ll discover. You’re able to keep the slimes you find in corrals back at your home base and give them their favorite types of food. After eating, the slimes will excrete what the game calls a “plort.” You can sell these plorts for money that will help you buy more corrals, upgrades, and other devices to help further your adorable slime tycoon. With the ability to combine two types of slimes together, there are many fun combinations to discover and manage.

Right off the bat, Slime Rancher 2 hits you with its breathtaking soundtrack and vivid visuals. As you explore the colorful world around you, you’re serenaded by the relaxing feel that is the game’s music. There are a total of 36 unique compositions that can be attributed to freelance composer Harry Mack. This new soundtrack does an amazing job of capturing the old Slime Rancher feel. Accompanied by the game’s beautiful environments and wonderful graphics, you’ll find yourself absorbed in the game’s mystical world 

One of the most notable things to me was the game’s in-game tutorial. It starts off by telling you your basic movement controls and other starting mechanics, allowing you to get down the absolute basics. Then, the guiding messages stop fairly abruptly. This gives the player the freedom to explore and discover things at their own pace. Only when you discover something new does a description or tutorial appear for you to see. This was an excellent way for the developers to hammer in the elements of discovery and adventure that the game is founded on.

Even though Slime Rancher 2 is an excellent starting point, as it just released in early access, there is a troubling issue I had found. Although the graphics and soundtrack feel new, the overall progression is basically the exact same as the original Slime Rancher, just with far less content. I can predict with certainty that with time, this issue will be resolved as more updates are being released, but as of right now, it’s too similar to call the gameplay refreshing.

Slime Rancher 2 is an excellent game, and you can have a great time collecting new slimes for your farming utopia, but a positive recommendation boils down to what type of player you are. If you’re a new Slime Rancher fan looking to wrangle some slimes for the first time, go for it! There being far less content than the first game allows you to get the hang of the mechanics and the overall feel of the game before more gets released; you’re able to gradually build your knowledge without getting too overwhelmed as later updates start to come out. And to my veteran slime cowboys, I’d recommend saving your money until a little more content is added for you to enjoy unless you’re a real diehard fan of the series. 

In short, Slime Rancher 2 has an amazing starting point, and I’m excited to see what the developers over at Monomi Park have in store for us in the coming months.

Verdict: 7/10