The original Code Vein nearly slipped under our radar but we’re thankful it didn’t. It was a solid title whose story and combat gave us a lot of entertaining hours although we weren’t too motivated to dive back in for another run owing to a few niggles that forced us to move on to other titles.
But that doesn’t mean that playing through the adventure for the first time didn’t present an experience that was quite impressive. Fast forward to today, and we’re just days away from a sequel that is definitely bigger in both its size and scope. But a bigger game doesn’t necessarily translate to a better one, now, does it?
Thankfully, we think that Bandai Namco is as aware of that particular pitfall as we are. Code Vein 2 feels like a title that might end up among the best of the new year’s best, and perhaps achieve that feat with style. Why do we think so? Join us as we examine what could make this one go above and beyond its predecessor.
Let’s look at what was so good about the original game before we dive into what makes this sequel such a compelling addition to 2026’s lineup of titles. FOr starters, the story and overall premise worked very well to draw us in and keep us invested in the action that unfolded as we played through the game.
There were also the people we met along the way, with each of our companions and other important members of the cast coming with distinct personalities, quirks and compelling backstories that had us wanting to max out our bonds with each of them. It wasn’t just about the rewards we could obtain, although those were solid enough to justify the efforts we would have to put in to achieve a great connection with them.
But we found ourselves genuinely caring about each of our companions, and even found ourselves constantly rotating them out of our party so we could bring a different one along on our missions. Progressing through those missions was also quite organic, although the linear level design was a complaint we’re going to address in just a minute. The level designs were top notch, though, and sucked us into the experience with some truly standing out at the time! The game’s AI did a reasonably good job for players who could not leverage the game’s multiplayer features but there was always room for improvement on that front.
But it wasn’t all perfect. Linearity meant set paths with minor deviations, often ending up in important collectibles, lore drops, or upgrade mats. Some level designs, especially those built around flashbacks that fleshed out our companions, were downright repetitive and had us dreading the chance to find out more about what made our companions tick. It made picking up those important lore drops and revelations an obligatory chore instead of a joyful discovery that gave us more insight into the companions who were such a crucial part of our journey.
Yes, these issues were minor gripes when considered against the backdrop of a very solid experience overall. But they were there and deserve some examination when looking at how Bandai Namco has tried to improve on what made the experience as engaging as it was while trying to address the issues we’ve outlined above. Fortunately, the news is good on both fronts.
For starters, Code Vein II boasts of a much larger, less linear world for players to explore. There’s even a really cool motorcycle for us to zoom around on which we’re looking at as an indication of a map that’s much larger this time around. And with a studio as seasoned as Bandai Namco deciding what to stuff into it, we believe that it could address complaints of linearity right off the bat.
But it’s also an opportunity to spread out lore drops and important discoveries over a wider area instead of having to put us through the flashbacks that we hated so much after the first few times we entered that weird realm and walked along its fixed paths with flashes of our companion’s lives playing out at fixed points. It’s a chance to make discovering more about your party quite unpredictable, and, by extension, interesting and rewarding.
Backing up that new world with a completely new story set in the same universe but with a whole new cast altogether is another fine touch. It lets the game bring new faces to enthrall us while the premise’s scope has been taken up a notch. That’s especially true for the new and improved time travel systems that might let us influence events in the game across timelines in interesting ways.
That’s a flourish that has piqued our curiosity as we can’t wait to test out how the game responds to our actions in the past. It’s also a solid change since despite the first game having elements of time-travel, the sequence of events it presented to us were more or less static, simply waiting for us to hit checkpoints before we learned more about what went on in the world and how those events connected to the adventure we were undertaking.
It was a solid story, yes, but having the chance to influence events in the present is probably going to have many players, ourselves included, diving back in to see how a different course of action leads to different consequences. That’s definitely a win for Code Vein II’s replay value. A new and improved character creation system is going to help make those multiple playthroughs feel unique, a minor gripe we had with the limited options on offer in the first game.
And then there’s the combat, which is among the best features of the original game. With new weapon types joining the roster of destructive tools from the first game, along with new Forma attacks and the potentially devastating skills from party members you meet along the way, the sequel seems primed to make its combat feel fresh but familiar, a balance that could elevate it above the original if it’s implemented well.
There’s also the promise of improved boss designs and animations, which could make taking on the game’s threats feel more organic and smooth in comparison to Code Vein, which is always welcome although we’re going to wait and see if that pans out the way Bandai Namco intended. The same could be said for the new and improved revival mechanic and AI logic. Given that there’s no multiplayer this time around, your AI-controlled companion becomes all the more crucial to success against whatever Bandai Namco is going to throw at us.
While the decision to take multiplayer out of the equation strikes us as risky, the fact that the studio has chosen to take that risk does bode well for Code Vein II’s chances in our book. Taking out a feature that many players would swear by is only going to work if that human teammate can be replaced by a companion that’s effective enough to make players all right with such a drastic change, after all.
We found our companions in the original game a bit too spongy for our taste, the need to constantly get them back on their feet in the heat of battle especially in the early stages of the game being a jarring distraction that threw us off our rhythm on many occasions. It’s going to be interesting to see how that pans out in the new game but given Bandai Namco’s recent successes, it’s quite likely that the studio has indeed managed to find a suitable middle ground that could make Code Vein II’s combat stand out enough to set it apart from other big releases in the year.
Having the option to assimilate your companion for a stat boost is evidence of this, giving players more flexibility in the field and potentially giving talented players a chance to play a lone wolf run with interesting results. Overall, it’s a set of changes that seem primed to make the new game a much better experience than the first one. And given the quality of the franchise’s 2019 outing, that’s definitely saying something.
We’re being carefully optimistic about Code Vein II but a studio as seasoned as Bandai Namco being behind it does make us feel excited to give it a shot. It’s certainly going to have its work cut out for it in a year that’s already bringing some very heavy hitters to our screens in the coming months.
Can Code Vein II stand tall among its peers and manage to go toe to toe with the year’s best releases? That remains to be seen but we believe the odds are stacked in its favor with all of the improvements it’s bringing to the table working well to present an experience that could prove to be a worthy sequel to a great title.
Here’s to hoping that the new game is every bit as memorable as the one that came before it, and to a flying start to a year in which the action-adventure genre seems poised to shine as brightly as it has in the past. As always, we’re going to be diving right in when it releases later this week, and you can be sure that we’re going to give you a solid take on it when we do!
Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.
