Posted by So E3 is already on the horizon, and it seems that Bethesda, having some big plans this year, wanted to go ahead and get some of its smaller announcements out of the way. To wit: Rage 2 got an official announcement as well as some flashy new trailers. If you’re a fan of 2016’s Doom, you might find it interesting, as Rage 2 seems to be channeling Id Software’s revitalized classic more than its predecessor. There’s a definite sense that the game is leaning into the original’s more zany elements, and trying to emulate that “Mutant Bash TV” attitude that was once a smaller part of the original’s more serious and grim story.
The game’s new tone, especially in the live action teaser, is best described as “wacky.” There’s lots of colors, over the top action, and very excited actors mugging for the camera. The actual gameplay trailer is a little more grounded, touching on some of the original game’s darker elements, but it’s still far more explosive and chaotic than the original. For the best contrast, compare the original game’s release date announcement to the gameplay trailer for Rage 2. The former focuses heavily on the world and story of the game, with the exciting action reserved as a punctuation towards the end, while the latter is all about the action, with the exposition being little more than a brief explanation for why everyone is about to start smacking each other.
It’s an interesting shift, and while it wasn’t something I expected, it isn’t really surprising either. The first Rage was a decent game with some impressive tech for the time, but it didn’t resonate with audiences all that well, and probably wasn’t as successful as Bethesda hoped. Not to say the game wasn’t interesting, it had some solid gameplay structures, and the animation work was exceptional for its time, and still stands out today; but it was also pretty repetitive and had a rather cliche story that didn’t go anywhere until the very end, where it screeched to a halt on an abrupt cliffhanger. All that might go some way to explaining why we haven’t heard anything about this soon-to-be series until almost eight years later, and with at least one attempt at Rage 2 scrapped beforehand, it seems that Doom will be Id Software’s model for the sequel.
This somewhat unexpected change in tone isn’t an unwelcome one, Rage certainly could’ve been livelier, but personally, I’m not sure it’s necessarily what the original game needed. It was a solid experience, built on a strong core, that needed a more interesting story and a more cohesive world. Instead it seems we’re getting Doom: Wasteland Edition, and while I’m sure it’ll be fun, I can’t help but wonder if the game will lose some of it’s original flavor, or potential uniqueness by moving closer to an already-established template. People often complain about games becoming homogenized, and while those complaints are sometimes unfair; when it comes to situations like these, I feel that there were different directions to go in that could’ve offered a little more variety in the gaming market. We already have Doom, right? Do we really need a sandier version of it?
Regardless, this is admittedly speculation on my part, and it’s entirely possible that Rage 2 manages to capture the spirit of its predecessor while also taking some inspiration from more successful titles. On the other hand, it’s entirely possible that people don’t want another game like the original Rage, and would rather see the same IP and aesthetic in a more familiar gameplay loop. We won’t know until 2019. Until then, we’ll have wait to see what else Rage 2 has to throw at us, besides wingsticks I suppose.