Continuing a long legacy of co-op games with wacky themes, Unrailed 2: Back on Track returned to today's PC Gaming Show to share one of its coolest new features: the "terrain conductor" mode that lets you build your own levels.
When we previously saw Unrailed 2, the team at Indoor Astronaut gave us a look at abilities and different wagons available—and the fact that everyone is an animal, an obvious upgrade over humans—but now we can see just how easy it is to use its level maker mode. Filling the blank canvas with grassy fields, thick groves of trees, and rocky mountain ranges is easy enough that it looks like a sort of voxel-based MS Paint. Being accessible and quick to use is a big plus, regardless of whether you want to create a cool puzzle for your friends or just draw rude pictures out of trees.
One of the examples shown includes a map separated into two halves by mountains, which are in turn bisected by conveyor belts. You can see the players divided across both sides of the ridge trading items by chucking them on the belts while their other half waits like a patient traveler for their construction-supply-luggage. It’s a clever concept, especially when you’re constantly in a rush to lay down more tracks in front of your ever-moving train.
Standard levels in Unrailed 2 utilize procedural generation, so the option to hand create "experiences" for your friends is a welcome touch, though I may regret that statement based on the mood of my fiendish group of friends. Also coming along with the new entry in the series are hats (it's always hats) to wear while you work the day away, branching paths on each playthrough, new and different biomes, rewards and permanent unlocks, boss battles, and a new 8-player versus mode for times when you really want to throw some coal on the train-party fires.
Unrailed 2 will arrive to the station in early access on Steam sometime in 2024.
