Crashlands 2 Review — Open World Survival Crash

In Crashlands 2, you play as Flux Dabes, returning to the planet Woanope only to be knocked out of the sky by a strange energy beam that leaves you, as the title implies, crashing and stranded in a strange new land. Realizing something unusual is going on, you uncover a corporate conspiracy that’s killing the native life and work alongside friendly and strange aliens to save their stretch of the world.

Crashlands 2 is an open-world crafting RPG. Players take on quests and progress through a consistent linear narrative by freely building their base, gathering resources, and fighting enemies across an open-world map. Much of the game’s progression—whether unlocking new quests or discovering new gear—isn’t tied to the story or a linear path, allowing players to unlock things naturally across multiple areas. This is both really interesting and can be a bit of a pain if you’re eager to move through the story.

See, in Crashlands 2, you’re given free rein over more or less the entire map, mainly gated by stronger enemies or terrain that requires specific tools to pass. While the first few quests are mandatory and give you the gear needed to progress, you can explore however you want and at whatever pace you prefer. You can build anywhere on the map, setting up bases and farms as complex or simple as you want. Many crafting recipes are locked behind NPCs, either through research or questing.

Many of the game’s unique alien characters offer quests, most of which lead to additional quests and aren’t directly tied to the main narrative. These quests usually reward you with new crafting recipes, meaning much of your progression depends on whom you help and when. These NPCs can also research new crafting recipes over time, often requiring you to meet their comfort level first, giving you more incentive to interact with the game’s cast.

Early game progression can feel sluggish, especially when the story sends you into a new area filled with enemies that can one-shot you, getting you stuck in a death loop. Since better weapons, armor, and tools are locked behind optional quests, you may have to spend a lot of time side-questing before you can safely access certain areas. This leads to quest backlogging as you hold on to tasks you aren’t ready to complete. It isn’t the most streamlined way to play, but it certainly encourages you to take full advantage of the open world and explore the quests available to you.

Something I really appreciated about Crashlands 2 was its crafting system. It’s fairly generic at its core—you have recipes at a crafting bench, many of which must be unlocked through exploration, helping the planet’s inhabitants, or research. These all require gathering materials from the environment and then crafting with them. It’s simple and familiar, which isn’t a bad thing and makes it easy for most players to understand.

Where the system gets more interesting, at least to me, is how it rewards crafting the same items repeatedly. Specifically, crafting building pieces like walls, farming plots, or platforms can reward you over time with reduced costs or bonus output. It’s a simple but effective way to make high-volume crafting feel more rewarding, adding a sense of sub-progression that didn’t go unnoticed or unappreciated by this reviewer.

Unfortunately, I didn’t find the combat in Crashlands 2 very interesting. While the game offers multiple ways to interact with it, adding some freedom and personalization to how you play, I found it generally very stat-checky. Enemies stronger than you are simply stronger, and your gear is often the only—or at least main—factor in whether you can safely explore or get one-shot. Most combat, aside from laying traps or using special gadgets, boils down to hitting enemies while avoiding AoE-style attacks. The mechanics don’t need to be more complex, but because success usually depends on whether your gear beats the enemy’s stats, it can feel overly simple.

No review of Crashlands 2 would be complete without mentioning how unique the game feels. The world and its characters feel distinctly alien—something not every sci-fi game achieves. The dialogue follows a consistent trend of quirky comedy. Not every player will enjoy it, but I was a fan. Small details, like your death triggering a wacky flailing inflatable tube man, gave the game personality I couldn’t help but appreciate.

TryHardGuides was provided a PC review code for Crashlands 2. Find more detailed looks at popular and upcoming titles on our Game Reviews page! Crashlands 2 is available on Steam and Google Play.