Compare Moonlighter 2: The Endless Vault vs CONTROL Resonant

The ending is a major weak spot for one detailed critique, with the built-up drama and emotion falling away at the conclusion.

Dylan's guilt, childhood trauma, bond with Jesse, and search for redemption produce some of the game's most affecting scenes. Several critics describe moments that hit harder emotionally than they expected from a Control sequel.

The isometric viewpoint keeps fights readable even when enemies begin to crowd the screen.

The camera and targeting can struggle when arenas get crowded or fights move vertically. Mis-targeted attacks and awkward framing around large or airborne enemies are recurring frustrations.

The story gives its cast some witty moments, but one player found it difficult to become attached to the characters.

Dylan's growth from damaged FBC test subject to a more self-directed person lands strongly, and his evolving relationships give the story a clear emotional spine.

Turning carefully prepared relics into large profits is deeply satisfying, but expensive upgrades and numerous money sinks can make early progress feel tight or overextended.

Upgrade materials are criticized for being overcomplicated and awkwardly distributed, making some desired upgrades harder to complete than the rest of the progression system suggests they should be.

Lighter movement, clearer attacks, and the new 3D combat presentation make the moment-to-moment action feel more immersive.

One critic found repeated combat and progression interruptions strong enough to pull attention away from the world and story, reducing immersion despite the striking setting.

The main experience can comfortably run into the mid-20-hour range or longer, while completion goals and endless modes can push total playtime toward 40-50 hours without exhausting players who enjoy the loop.

The roughly 25-to-40-plus-hour scale gives the world room to breathe, but the campaign can outlast the combat system's depth. Late repetition makes the length feel excessive for some players.

The node-based dungeon structure sacrifices some of the free exploration returning players liked in the original. A few players want more room discovery and environmental puzzles.

Exploration is a major draw thanks to vertical movement, hidden routes, bespoke side stories, and dense environmental storytelling. Confusing entrances and map limitations occasionally turn discovery into circling the same blocks.

The sequel adds meaningful new systems, but some players feel its modern roguelite structure borrows too heavily from genre conventions and lacks the first game's distinctive identity.

Even skeptical critics repeatedly call the game singular. Its collision of character-action combat, non-Euclidean Manhattan, paranormal comedy, and art-house spectacle gives it an identity few other open-world games resemble.

The dungeon-run, loot, sell, and upgrade cycle is the game's biggest success. It repeatedly produces a strong 'one more run' pull even for players who notice grind or story weaknesses.

The combat-exploration loop can be exciting once a build comes together, but repetition is a persistent concern. Several critics felt the same encounter rhythm and combo patterns wore thin well before the campaign ended.

Enemy patterns become learnable, but at least one player found some attacks unexpectedly hard to read until those behaviors were memorized.

Enemy behavior draws a sharp complaint for leaning on hectic pressure rather than convincing intelligence, making some fights feel artificially chaotic.

Being able to warp back to Tresna at any point is a welcome convenience that lets players bank loot instead of being forced into a bad fight.

Requiring physical fast-travel points can be inconvenient, but it also nudges players to stay in the world and stumble into side content rather than teleporting past it.

The villagers can be charming, but the supporting cast is uneven; one critique says many residents feel defined mainly by their transactions with Will.

Zoe is the standout supporting character, with her radio banter and evolving bond with Dylan giving the journey warmth. Some sources find that relationship rushed or uneven, but the supporting cast is usually viewed positively.

Enemy variety is a consistent combat strength, with distinct visual designs, behaviors, and world-specific opponents keeping encounters interesting.

The roster has memorable supernatural designs and multiple factions, but ordinary encounters can still feel repetitive. Reused archetypes and endless smaller enemies weaken the sense of variety over time.

The alternation between intense dungeon runs and calmer selling sessions creates a strong rhythm. Long loading and a weaker final third can undermine that pacing later on.

Pacing is a recurring weakness: the opening can be slow, progression sometimes stalls the story, and several late sections drag. Other sources find the game accelerates impressively once it opens up.

Some bugs remain in the full release, but they were not severe enough to erase the overall enjoyment for the player who highlighted them.

Technical bugs are not portrayed as constant, but the glitches that do appear can be disruptive, including enemies getting stuck, traversal oddities, and occasional postgame or loading issues.

Potion progression feels overly restrictive to one returning player because basic capacity must be slowly unlocked through a skill tree.

The skill tree supports multiple builds and can be satisfying to optimize, yet several critics find its apparent depth overstated or its upgrades less transformative than the sprawling layout suggests.

Biomes are visually distinct and full of personality, with different regional looks and combat spaces helping the 3D presentation feel substantial.

Manhattan is packed with strange signage, abandoned interiors, warped streets, and small physical details that reinforce the setting, though some sewers, warehouses, and city blocks repeat too visibly.

The story works as a light framework for the systems and has some strong opening ideas, but several players find it thin or secondary. The ending receives especially sharp criticism for losing momentum and payoff.

The story is broadly praised for Dylan's redemption arc, surreal set pieces, and powerful character moments, but the central plot is less consistently loved. Some critics find the overarching tale, finale, or emotional transitions weaker than its best individual scenes.

Combat is one of the sequel's clearest strengths: fast, responsive, and satisfying, with stronger build variety and combo flow. A few players still find it either overly brutal or somewhat shallow compared with specialist roguelites.

Combat is responsive, aggressive, and capable of spectacular build-driven highs, but opinion splits sharply on its staying power. The strongest criticism targets repetitive strings, damage-spongy enemies, and a system that can feel shallower over a long campaign.

Challenge is highly context-dependent: some find normal mode punishing, others find later runs too easy, and several praise the risk-reward once they learn the systems. The wide difficulty selection helps smooth those differences.

The default difficulty is one of the most disputed elements, especially in the opening hours and against tanky late bosses. Better builds and extensive Assist Mode settings help, but progression walls can still feel abrupt.

Dialogue is often witty and occasionally singled out as genuinely great, adding charm even when the broader story remains light.

Dialogue is uneven: the best exchanges give Dylan and Zoe warmth and personality, while snarky banter and some overt thematic writing can feel forced.

The game continues introducing different challenges and surprises as the Vault advances, helping objectives feel less static.

The best missions keep escalating into strange, memorable scenarios, giving the campaign a strong sense of surprise beyond standard combat objectives.

The four main weapon styles feel distinct and satisfying, with clear strengths and tradeoffs. Some players want a wider selection, and a few builds can feel overpowered.

Weapon forms offer different rhythms and build possibilities, but critics disagree on how meaningfully those choices change combat. Some forms feel expressive, while others seem like variations on the same basic loop.

Challenge runs, endless modes, and New Game Plus give dedicated players plenty to pursue after the main story. The main caveat is that some of this endgame can feel like more of the same gold grind.

The postgame gives completion-minded players room to keep exploring, finish side stories, refine builds, and chase remaining discoveries after the main campaign.

Frame-rate stability is one of the main technical concerns, especially on Switch 2 and Steam Deck. Docked Switch 2 can be stable, and a later patch reportedly brought dungeon combat much closer to a consistent 60fps.

Performance is generally smooth on stronger hardware and PS5 Pro, while base-console stress scenes and Steam Deck play can show dips or compromises. The overall picture is solid rather than flawless.

Relic quality, curses, status effects, and dedicated material storage turn loot into a strategic system rather than simple collection. This is one of the sequel's most praised upgrades.

Loot and world rewards can make exploration satisfying, especially when discoveries feed upgrades, but some reward placement and generic material boxes feel less thoughtfully integrated.

The move to 3D brings higher-quality character and weapon animations, with exaggerated swings and readable motion that add personality.

Movement and combat animation generally look polished and energetic, with finishers and traversal selling Dylan's speed and force. A few rough character-animation moments keep it from being uniformly pristine.

Character interactions can be witty, charming, and well written, but the prose supports a deliberately light story rather than a deep narrative.

The writing is strongest when it balances human vulnerability, bureaucratic absurdity, and strange lore. Some dialogue and thematic beats are less elegant, but the overall character and world writing earns substantial praise.

Enemy sets, relic rules, perks, and gameplay modes provide strong variety early on, but the three-biome structure can wear thin when the campaign asks for repeated runs.

Side stories, altered objects, puzzles, bosses, and strange one-off scenarios keep the world varied, though a layer of repeated activities and combat encounters can feel like busywork.

The core package can feel polished and absorbing on PS5, but aliasing and technical roughness on Switch 2 keep the presentation from feeling uniformly finished.

The game generally feels polished for its scale, but scattered technical hiccups, stuck enemies, audio cuts, and other small scuffs prevent it from feeling immaculate.

There are many meaningful ways to improve Will, the shop, inventory, and weapons, but the volume of upgrade paths can cause choice paralysis and some expensive upgrades feel too subtle.

Upgrades provide plenty of specialization on paper, but restrictive respecs, material requirements, and number-focused improvements can make the system feel cumbersome or less transformative than expected.

The colorful sci-fi/fantasy blend creates a sweeping, epic atmosphere that helps each region feel distinct.

The sequel keeps Control's uncanny blend of cosmic dread, bureaucratic absurdity, and offbeat humor alive across Manhattan. A minority feel the broader city setting dilutes some of the Oldest House's concentrated unease.

Difficulty choices are a clear strength, with easier settings making the shop-and-dungeon loop more approachable and hardcore modes available for players who want higher stakes.

Assist Mode is a major strength, with granular sliders and presets that can soften damage, dodge timing, resource pressure, and other difficulty spikes. It gives story-focused players unusually fine control over the experience.

The cel-shaded 3D makeover is widely praised as colorful, charming, and a natural evolution, though a minority still miss the first game's whimsical pixel art.

The warped Manhattan, Patterning effects, impossible architecture, and surreal set pieces are among the game's clearest triumphs. Its visual identity is repeatedly described as bold, gorgeous, and unlike almost anything else in the genre.

The sequel's shop, combat, relic, and progression systems interlock unusually well, giving a simple premise much more depth than it first appears to have.

The strongest mechanical moments come from combining traversal, gravity shifts, powers, combat, and environmental ideas in ways that feel purpose-built for this world.

Movement is generally lighter, tighter, and more responsive than before, though one player wishes the dodge came out a little faster.

Traversal is one of the game's most consistently celebrated strengths. Double jumps, air dashes, hovering, grappling, and gravity shifting make moving through Manhattan fast, expressive, and frequently exhilarating.

Across formats, the game is repeatedly described as fun, addictive, and difficult to put down, even by players who have clear complaints about repetition or story.

Most sources found the game highly enjoyable once its systems open up, especially when traversal, powers, and side quests click together. A few harsher takes found the repetitive combat too intrusive to sustain that fun.

Rather than simply polishing the original, the sequel meaningfully rethinks its structure with 3D combat, relic puzzles, and deeper run-based systems.

The sequel earns broad credit for refusing to repeat the original: its melee focus, warped open zones, gravity traversal, and structural experimentation feel unusually bold for a major sequel.

Permanent upgrades, run perks, shop growth, and Vault milestones create a deep progression loop that is hard to put down. Early costs and the sheer number of paths can sometimes slow momentum or cause choice paralysis.

Zone leveling, skill points, powers, and build choices often make exploration feel purposeful and Dylan's growth tangible. Criticism focuses on opaque power-level tracking, restrictive respecs, and progression that can become busywork.

The sequel generally preserves Moonlighter's defining shop-and-dungeon identity while modernizing it, but the magnitude of the changes may alienate players who specifically wanted more of the original structure.

Despite changing protagonist, setting, and combat style, the sequel usually retains Control's strange humor, paranormal logic, lore, and visual identity. A smaller group feels the open-world structure leaves too much of the original's magic behind.

The overall 3D presentation is widely considered attractive and modern, although Switch 2 image clarity and larger-screen presentation draw some criticism.

The game is widely praised as a visual showcase, especially for lighting, surreal geometry, and dense effects. Lower-end modes can introduce softness, artifacting, or weaker lighting that undercuts that presentation.

Late progression is a recurring concern: repeated gold targets and revisiting the same dungeons can make the second half feel grindy even when smaller upgrades keep progress moving.

One critical take finds progression too dependent on repeating activities and combat to keep pace with enemy scaling, turning advancement into unwanted grind.

Relic rules can become convoluted as new biome mechanics stack up, and a misplaced item can be costly. The systems get more enjoyable once bag space and familiarity improve.

The opening can be daunting because movement, builds, enemy pressure, and RPG systems arrive before the combat fully blossoms. Once more tools unlock, the learning curve becomes far more rewarding.

Mechanical onboarding is generally strong, with complex shop systems introduced gradually. Story onboarding is less consistent, and newcomers may miss context in the brief recap.

Newcomers get helpful recap material and can follow the core story without exhaustive Remedyverse knowledge, though the early combat and build systems are not always explained as clearly as they could be.

Environmental hazards and biome-specific objects add welcome tactical options, letting players knock enemies into traps or use stage elements offensively.

Physics, destructible scenery, telekinesis, and gravity manipulation make the environment feel like part of the action rather than a static backdrop.

The Endless Vault objectives work especially well when they double as gameplay goals and narrative milestones, giving progression a clear structure.

Routine world events and chore-like objectives can clash with urgent story beats, making some mission structure feel like open-world padding rather than purposeful adventure.

Quality-of-life improvements such as visible base prices, quick pricing, and easy-to-navigate interfaces make the sequel much smoother to manage than the original.

Progress and power-level information can be buried too deeply in menus, making it harder than necessary to understand whether upgrades are meaningfully changing Dylan's strength.

Tresna's dimensional-nexus concept and varied inhabitants are appealing, but the world does not always inspire attachment. Some returning players also miss the grounded charm of Rynoka.

The FBC's bureaucracy, Manhattan's altered neighborhoods, scattered documents, and small survivor stories deepen the setting at nearly every turn. World-building remains one of the sequel's most dependable strengths.

Backpack management is a standout feature, turning every chest into a spatial puzzle about curses, quality, and value. It is deeply satisfying when mastered, though some players find later combinations too convoluted.

Puzzles can be clever and visually inventive, especially when gravity and perspective are involved, but they also produce some of the game's most confusing or progress-stalling moments.

Effects and small vocalizations keep the world from feeling static even without extensive voice acting.

Hits, metal transformations, spatial ambience, and supernatural effects are repeatedly praised for giving combat and exploration weight. The audio mix helps sell both spectacle and unease.

Bosses can be mechanically richer and fun to fight, but some designs feel weaker than the original and a few invulnerability phases are annoying.

Bosses are visually memorable but mechanically divisive. Some fights are inventive spectacles, while many others are criticized for huge health pools, limited move sets, and late-game battles that turn into endurance tests.

Small side quests are enjoyable and give the town useful optional goals beyond the main Vault progression.

Side quests are a major strength, often delivering the funniest, strangest, and most memorable stories in the game. A smaller layer of repeated tasks and weaker rewards keeps the optional content from being uniformly excellent.

The branching node map clearly communicates routes and rewards, but at least one returning player feels it disconnects the sequel from the exploratory dungeon feel of the first game.

Navigation is one of the most consistent pain points. The flat map, unclear entrances, multi-level spaces, and gravity-bent geometry can leave players lost even when the world itself is visually compelling.

Dungeon runs use a simple node-based structure that is easy to understand and satisfying for players who prefer focused roguelite runs.

Level design is a standout, from folding streets and gravity-shifted city blocks to stranger interior spaces that turn perspective itself into a traversal and puzzle mechanic.

The sparse vocalization is a weak point for one player because Will sounds noticeably younger than expected.

The cast is usually praised for grounding the strange material, especially the supporting performances, but Dylan's delivery is unusually divisive and receives a few pointed complaints.

Shop controls are streamlined and quick-pricing features help, but console inventory management can still feel clumsy when moving many relics individually.

One source specifically criticizes loadout management for making important changes more cumbersome than they need to be during an action-heavy game.

Controls are consistently praised as tight, simple, and responsive, helping both movement and combat feel fair even during demanding fights.

Inputs are consistently praised for immediacy: attacks, dodges, air movement, and cancels respond quickly enough to support the game's fast, aggressive action.

Performance is serviceable on stronger hardware but uneven across platforms, with stutters, frame drops, and loading issues still visible. Post-launch Switch 2 patches show meaningful improvement.

Technical performance is usually strong, particularly on high-end PC hardware and PS5 Pro, with ambitious effects running smoothly in many accounts. Some platforms and heavy scenes still show frame pacing, image-quality, or optimization compromises.

Music reception is mixed: some praise energetic dungeon tracks and cozy town themes, while others find the score forgettable or noticeably weaker than the original.

Music and licensed tracks remain strong and often memorable, but some critics miss a single transcendent set piece on the level of Remedy's most iconic musical moments.

Run variety, permanent upgrades, endless modes, and New Game Plus produce strong replay appeal, with several players still chasing another run dozens of hours in.

Build experimentation, postgame exploration, missed side content, Resonant cycles, and New Game Plus-style interest give enthusiastic players clear reasons to return after the credits.

The mix of campaign length, replayable runs, and post-game content is repeatedly seen as strong value, with the shopkeeping system alone called worth the price of admission.

Positive value comments point to the substantial campaign, side content, replay potential, and localized pricing, making the package feel generous to players already invested in its style.

Aiming the gun with the stick and firing with the trigger feels more natural than the alternative control setup.

The interdimensional setting supports a broader mix of character designs, which is seen as a welcome expansion over the first game.

Tresna's villagers are described as a charming supporting cast that helps make the hub enjoyable to revisit.

One returning player specifically misses the first game's checkpoint-style dungeon mechanics after the sequel's structural overhaul.

Branching dungeon routes create meaningful tradeoffs, with temporary disadvantages and reward choices making path selection feel consequential.

Documents, recordings, hidden reports, and other collectibles make exploration feel worthwhile by feeding the world's mysteries rather than functioning as empty checklist filler.

Crafting can feel underwhelming because many options are different versions rather than clearly better upgrades.

Several players encountered crashes on Switch 2 and PS5, including an earlier progression-blocking boss crash. A later Switch 2 patch report says that major crash problem was fixed.

Facial work is one of the visual weak spots, with some expressions looking stiff or strange compared with the quality of the environments and effects.

Switch 2 handheld play can be enjoyable and visually appealing, but town and crowded-fight slowdowns keep it from being consistently smooth.

DualSense feedback is used effectively to reinforce powers and supernatural moments, adding tactile texture without being treated as a defining feature.

The strangest spaces still generate strong cosmic-horror unease, using impossible geometry, isolation, and paranormal imagery to make exploration feel unsettling.

Large visual indicators, bright colors, and readable telegraphs make combat information easy to parse during action.

Loading is one of the most consistent complaints, particularly on Switch 2. Stage transitions and repeated shop entries can feel long enough to interrupt the game's otherwise strong rhythm.

Documents, recordings, side stories, and environmental details keep the FBC mythology rich, with the best optional material adding texture to Manhattan and the broader paranatural world.

Precision platforming becomes frustrating when gravity changes, tight trajectories, or awkward geometry demand more exact movement than the traversal system comfortably provides.

Selling relics remains distinctive and often extremely satisfying, especially with perks, pricing feedback, and furniture bonuses. Some players find it less engaging or less deep than the expanded dungeon side.

Reality warping, particles, reflections, shadows, and large combat effects create spectacular scenes, though the sheer visual noise can occasionally hurt clarity or expose platform-specific image issues.

The Portuguese localization is received positively overall, including the dub, but the reviewed build had enough missing or inconsistent localized lines to keep it from being fully seamless.

PS5 Pro receives especially strong praise for ray-traced reflections, shadows, reconstruction quality, and a cleaner presentation, while Steam Deck support is notably less convincing.

The zoned Manhattan is admired for feeling hand-crafted, vertical, and distinctly Remedy rather than like a generic checklist map. Still, some critics see bloat, repeated activities, or a loss of the first game's tighter spatial focus.

Spending time improving Tresna provides a satisfying, calmer counterweight to dungeon combat and helps the two halves of the game stay balanced.

Dylan is deliberately awkward and damaged, and most sources warm to his vulnerability, guilt, and dry personality. A vocal minority strongly dislike his writing, voice, or demeanor and would rather have stayed with Jesse.