BRUTAL JOHN 2 Review Summary

Packed with easter eggs, a fun core, and a huge arsenal, but poor difficulty and weapon balance plus shaky visuals hold it back.

Abundant easter eggs and secrets: A large number of reviews highlight the game's many easter eggs, secrets, and references, often noting the fun of hunting for them. This is a major recurring theme across multiple clusters.

Game is fun and enjoyable: Players consistently describe the game as fun, smooth, and charming, with many calling it an awesome and enjoyable experience from start to finish. The positive tone is widespread and detailed.

Large and diverse arsenal: The game offers a huge variety of weapons, from classic 90s guns to crazier options, with each feeling unique and useful. The weapon wheel and alt-fire modes add to the depth.

Weapons feel great to use: Players consistently praise the feel of the weapons, noting they are well-made, diverse, and satisfying to shoot. The impact and sound effects contribute to the positive experience.

Great level design: Level design is praised for being good, interesting, and well-crafted, with clear direction and variety. Players appreciate the flow and the integration of easter eggs into levels.

Difficulty balance is poor: The game is often described as too easy on normal and medium difficulties, while hard mode is tedious and poorly balanced, with enemies becoming bullet sponges and ammo starvation. Bosses also have inconsistent difficulty spikes.

Weapon balance is off: Many weapons are considered terrible, weak, or derivative, with some like the minigun and sniper rifle being useless. The shotgun is overpowered at close range, while rocket launchers and plasma guns feel weak, leading to unbalanced gameplay.

Graphics and visuals are problematic: The graphics are criticized for being harsh on the eyes, ugly, and outdated, with lighting issues causing visual fatigue and motion sickness. The aesthetic fails to capture the intended retro feel and is often described as buttery or bad.

Gameplay becomes repetitive: The gameplay loop is criticized for being repetitive and lacking depth, with a focus on nonstop action that leads to boredom. The lack of strategic layers and dynamic levels makes the game feel dull and monotonous.

Ammo scarcity frustrates players: Multiple clusters highlight that ammo is too scarce, especially in later levels and during boss fights, forcing melee combat and making the game frustrating. This is a common complaint across many reviews.

Boomer shooter genre: The game is consistently described as a boomer shooter, a retro-style first-person shooter reminiscent of classic titles like Doom, Serious Sam, and Duke Nukem. This genre classification is the most frequent theme across reviews.

Old-school vibes: The game evokes a strong sense of nostalgia with its retro setting and old-school design. It is seen as a throwback to the late 90s era of shooters.

Optimization generally praised: Multiple reviewers report smooth performance, technical stability, and top-notch performance, with one noting excellent optimization on Steam Deck and another confirming the game runs on weak hardware.

FPS problems resolved: One reviewer encountered an FPS problem that was later resolved, indicating that some issues may be fixable through updates or settings adjustments.

Worth the money: Many reviewers state the game is worth its price, with some saying it's worth it at full price. The game is considered a good value purchase, especially for fans of the genre.

Great for Duke Nukem fans: Fans of Duke Nukem 3D will find this game particularly appealing, especially those who wanted more after playing the classic. It captures the spirit and humor of that era of shooters.

Mixed recommendations: Some reviewers give lukewarm or conditional recommendations, saying the game is so-so or that most people should skip it. These reviews suggest it may not appeal to everyone.

Manage expectations: Some reviewers advise not entering the game with high expectations, as it's a small team's first work. The game is fun but may not be challenging or have deep mechanics.

Community fair range: $8.00 - $12.00.

Game completion: 6.0h.

Story completion: 6.0h.

Session length: 0.3h.

The game starts with some friction but becomes more enjoyable as players progress and master its mechanics, though a minority find it repetitive or tedious later.

Friction: early to mid game balance issues; initial lack of understanding (needs figuring out).

Unlock drivers: player mastery of mechanics; improving enemy variety.

Nostalgic Boomer Shooter Veteran: Explores secrets, appreciates level design, uses all weapons, enjoys kicking enemies. Motivation: Relive the classic 90s FPS experience with interactive levels, secrets, and cheesy humor. Stance: buy.

High-Speed Action Enthusiast: Aggressive, fast, uses quick weapon switching, rushes through enemies. Motivation: Adrenaline-fueled fast combat and weapon switching. Stance: buy.

Cautious Recommender: Plays through content, looks for secrets, but notes flaws and lack of content. Motivation: Enjoy the humor and old-school vibes while evaluating value and completeness. Stance: sale.

Across the provided Windows hardware cohorts, players report positive performance with the game running well, including good optimization on lower VRAM systems.

Windows <8GB VRAM: positive. A 6GB VRAM user praised the excellent optimization, noting the game runs well even on lower-end hardware.

Windows 12-15GB VRAM: positive. A 16GB VRAM user described the game as a great FPS, indicating strong performance on this hardware tier.

Windows 8-11GB VRAM: positive. An 11GB VRAM user gave a positive recommendation, with no performance complaints reported.

Comparisons to Duke Nukem: The game is frequently compared to Duke Nukem 3D and Duke Nukem Forever, with reviewers noting similarities in gameplay, humor, and style. Some see it as a tribute or successor to the Duke Nukem franchise.

Comparisons to Serious Sam: Reviewers often compare the game to Serious Sam, particularly for its wave-based enemies and over-the-top action. Some note it is not as dynamic as Serious Sam, but the comparison is common.

Early Access incomplete game: Many reviewers note the game is in Early Access, with content still being added and balance changes expected. The full release is planned for early 2026, and the game is about 70% complete with 12 levels.

Nostalgic 90s shooter tribute: The game is seen as a love letter to 90s shooters like Duke Nukem, Doom, and Shadow Warrior, evoking nostalgia for the golden era of the genre. It is described as a tribute to classic 90s shooters.

Low price point: The game is sold at a very low price, especially during Early Access, which is noted as a positive by reviewers. This makes it accessible to players.