Mortal Shell 2 Review: See If the Bigger Soulslike Is Worth Your Time
The original Mortal Shell stood out in 2020 because it kept the Soulslike formula small and focused. That made the sequel's push toward a larger action RPG feel risky. Bigger isn't always better, but this time the extra size works. This Mortal Shell 2 review finds a sequel that's stronger in most meaningful ways, even with technical flaws, confusing paths, and weak late-game balance.
The 25-to-30-hour campaign expands the setting, shell roster, weapons, build systems, and exploration structure. It keeps the grim mood and body-swapping premise that gave the first game its identity. Some rough edges remain, but the sequel gives you more reasons to experiment and more strange places worth finding.
Mortal Shell 2 Review: Shell-Swapping Has More Bite
You play as the Harbinger, a sinewy creature that can inhabit the bodies of dead warriors. Each shell gives you a new identity, set of traits, and combat style. When a shell takes too much damage, you are thrown from the body and get one chance to fight your way back inside.
That last-stand mechanic remains one of the series' best ideas. The sequel doubles the number of available shells, with only a few returning faces joining a mostly new cast. A ferocious cannibal and an armor-clad alien show how strange the roster can become while still fitting the game's grim setting.
The main story is cryptic and hard to follow, but the individual character stories are more grounded. Their personal histories add human detail to a cast made up of corpses, monsters, and former criminals. The shells now feel different because of what they do, not only because of how they look.
Active Shell Abilities Make Builds More Distinct
The first game placed much of each shell's identity in passive skills unlocked through a progression chart. Those passives return in greater numbers, but the chart is cleaner and easier to follow. The major upgrade comes from active abilities that change how each shell behaves during a fight.
Tiel, for example, can use the shadow stab to close distance and strike from an unexpected angle. Eredrim can wear down enemies through a more punishing style of attack. These skills encourage you to switch shells and try new rhythms instead of settling on one body for the entire campaign.
Some abilities still feel unreliable. Skills that involve movement, distance, or auto-targeting can miss their mark, and Tiel's shadow stab occasionally failed without a clear reason. Even so, the added abilities make shell choice matter far more than it did before.
You can also refund shell upgrades and spend the points again at no cost. That makes testing builds easy. If an enemy relies on fire attacks and burn effects, investing in Laslo's fireproof armor can turn a bad matchup into a manageable one. The downside appears late in the game, when focused upgrades and free respecs let you remove a boss's best advantage while growing stronger overall.
More Weapons and Resolve Reward Aggressive Play
Mortal Shell 2 includes eight main melee weapons and eight ranged sidearms. Fast weapons can stack debuffs but may lack damage or stopping power. Slower options offer range and strength, though some take so long to swing that enemies have time to prepare a counterattack.
Weapons with strong ring attacks worked best for opening fights. A well-timed alpha strike can remove a threat before a group gets moving. This approach matters because even common enemies can punish a missed attack.
The control scheme creates friction. Running and auto-targeting both use analog-stick clicks, and those actions can feel unreliable at the worst times. The combat is usually sound, but these small control problems can turn a clean plan into a messy exchange.
Stamina has been removed, so you can swing without waiting for a meter to refill. Resolve replaces it as the resource for ranged attacks, shell abilities, and other special actions. Melee attacks build resolve, which pushes you to stay close and remain active before spending it on a powerful skill or ranged opener.
Resolve fills at a steady pace without upgrades. You rarely feel locked out of your best tools, provided you keep landing safe melee hits. Build the meter during the early part of an encounter, then spend it when a strong ability can end the fight faster.
Defensive Seals Let You Choose Your Risk
The sequel offers several seals that work as different types of shields. One brings back hardening, the signature defense that helped the original game stand apart from other Soulslikes. It lets you absorb an attack at the right moment and creates a reliable answer to dangerous swings.
Other seals offer a standard block with a timed parry. A parry-only seal allows faster executions but leaves you open to harsher punishment when your timing fails. Since you can change seals at will, the system acts like an informal difficulty choice. Hardening suits careful players, while parry-focused options reward confidence and sharp reactions.
Tar Stones Add More Build Options
Tar stones slot into shells and weapons to add stats, temporary effects, or new attacks. They can raise damage, improve critical-hit chance, add elemental power, or unlock moves such as a greatsword spin and bullet rain. These effects make equipment feel more personal without forcing one correct build.
The system has limits. Many tar stones only fit certain weapons, so choosing where to spend upgrade materials matters. Some useful stones appear early, and flashy new abilities may not be worth the resolve cost compared with your regular attacks.
Pick a weapon before investing heavily in its tar stones. A debuff effect suits a quick weapon, while a wide attack works better on a slower tool meant to control groups. Chasing the most dramatic effect can leave you with a setup that looks better than it plays.
Fallgrim Turns Exploration Into the Main Attraction
The first game placed a central hub beside three routes, each leading to a dungeon and boss. The sequel expands that idea into a huge connected region filled with twisted plants, bleached mountains, ruined kingdoms, caves, and hidden paths. Six gates sit around the edges, with each one leading to a major dungeon and a new threat.
Fallgrim constantly pulls you away from your goal. A distant shape, a fading cave path, or a strange structure can raise enough questions to change your route. Altars can create small combat golems for rewards, while travel gates send you across the map to far-off areas.
Misty doorways lead to compact dungeons that offer short, self-contained challenges. Beacons act as bonfire-style checkpoints, appearing as jagged spikes that cut through the ground like rotten teeth. Walking from a narrow corridor into an open night sky captures the setting's eerie design, even when the areas lack the clever puzzles found in the best exploration games.
The map helps, but it doesn't solve every problem. There is no strong pin or note system, so it is easy to forget an interesting path after several distractions. Early areas can also look too similar, though unique landmarks make them easier to learn than the first game's locations. Use those landmarks as mental checkpoints and return to missed paths after clearing nearby objectives.
Grotesque Enemies Give the Setting Its Personality
Fallgrim is dangerous because almost any group can kill an inattentive player. Ironclad knights, crazed cultists, and exploding bats all demand respect. A missed swing can leave you surrounded, and the game is quick to punish careless attacks.
The creature designs push past familiar Dark Souls influence and into stranger, more unsettling territory. The shell roster feels coherent despite its wild variety, while the smaller character stories give the cast more human weight. That contrast helps the grim setting feel lived in rather than being a collection of random horrors.
Bosses deliver some of the game's strongest images. A small knight and a bog witch riding in a flaming wheelchair are hard to forget. Their fights don't always match their visual impact, and late bosses can feel weak when respecs, targeted defenses, and grinding remove their main strengths.
Mortal Shell 2 Review Verdict: A Stronger, Stranger Soulslike
The move toward a larger action RPG mostly succeeds. Active shell skills give the cast more personality, the expanded weapon list supports more attack styles, and tar stones make room for creative builds. Fallgrim provides a strong reason to test those builds because every side path may hide a shell, weapon, upgrade, or new threat.
Technical problems still get in the way. Running and auto-targeting can feel awkward, some shell abilities miss without warning, and the map needs better marking tools. The late-game challenge also suffers because upgrades can be refunded freely, letting you counter bosses with little long-term cost.
Players who enjoy Soulslikes, dark fantasy settings, dangerous exploration, and unusual equipment will find plenty to like here. Those who want precise controls, clear navigation, and perfectly tuned final bosses may leave less satisfied.
Conclusion
Mortal Shell 2 proves that a bigger sequel can keep its personality. The shells are more distinct, the combat gives you more meaningful choices, and Fallgrim rewards curiosity with a dense mix of dungeons, gates, caves, and hidden routes.
Its rough controls, awkward map tools, inconsistent ability targeting, and soft late-game balance keep it from reaching its full potential. Still, Mortal Shell 2 is a stronger and more ambitious Soulslike, carried by its grotesque setting, flexible builds, strange weapons, and rewarding exploration. If those strengths match what you want from the genre, Fallgrim is worth entering.
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