The new terrain makes playing Temple Run 2 worth it

It’s been a while since Imangi launched its beloved Temple Run game and despite the fact that it’s still a lot of fun to play, lets face it – the game was at the repetitive boring stage where the only challenge you faced was figuring if you had the requisite concentration powers to break your last, impossibly high score. So in that sense, Temple Run 2 could not have come at a better time. Available for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch (sorry folks, no Android release as yet), Temple Run 2 manages to walk that fine line between being familiar and unfamiliar. This largely means that although you know what to do in theory, the new terrain and graphics manage to throw up enough surprises to make the game really challenging. [caption id=“attachment_592016” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Screenshot from the game[/caption] These are some of our first impressions of the game: What’s different? Well in a word everything. But these are the most striking: * The terrain Unlike the original Temple Run which was mostly on flat terrain, Temple Run 2 has mountains, valleys, rushing rivers and a whole new range of obstacles to navigate. The coolest feature by far is your new ability to leap from impossible heights by sliding down a rope, Tarzan style. Also jump over ominous looking spiked logs, duck under jets of fire and avoid remnants of red bricked walls that are strewn across the path. The path constantly takes you by surprise and can be almost impossibly difficult at times. You’re going to have a tough time, especially if you are used to the older version of the game. Most disconcerting is a complete dead end which more than often causes you to jump off a cliff. The good thing about it though, is that it doesn’t seem to be as repetitive as the older version of the game. It might still be too early to tell though, since we’ve all been getting increasingly familiar with the game and finding it less difficult with every try. What is the same however, are the controls for Guy Dangerous. You’re still swiping to duck, jump and turn left and right. * Power-ups In addition to the coins you collect in Temple Run, the game also includes gems, which you can use to cheat death and buy a whole new range of upgrades for your character. These include ‘powerups’ and ‘abilities’. Abilities include the familiar upgrades to coin value, coin magnet and boost (of speed), and some new abilities like ‘shield’ and ‘pick up spawn’. ‘Shield’ seems to work a lot like ‘invisibility’ in the game’s original avatar, but we have no clue as to what ‘pick up spawn’ is as yet. (And no, we don’t have enough coins to buy it yet) Powerups are like upgrades on steroids and require payment in gems and lots of coins. You also need to fulfill certain criteria like unlocking more characters before you can access them. * Graphics The graphics in Temple Run were always a triumph of the game, and this new incarnation of it does not disappoint. In addition to the actual running path where you can see sunlight play on water and fly through mist as you jump, the ‘scenery’ and background graphics are beautifully detailed. Oh and there is a new monster. The demon monkeys in the original game all seem to have morphed into a large chest thumping demon gorilla. * The characters Old favorite “Guy Dangerous” is still the default character in this game, but all the others like the weird bearded old man and the football player are gone. Now you have red headed Scarlett Fox, Barry Bones and the impractically fashionable Karma Lee instead. (Seriously, how do you run, jump and duck in that outfit?) Is it as addictive as the original Temple run? On first impression, yes. It’s definitely challenging enough for you to want to keep going back and playing it, especially since you keep dying gruesome deaths just when you think you have got the hang of it. Those powerups also look really inviting and we don’t see anyone giving up till they’ve got a chance to at least try a few. The only criticism we have is that the changes are all cosmetic and Imangi has not really explored ways to evolve the game further in terms of control and gameplay. But then again, Imangi did have a winning formula with the premise of the game, and if it ain’t broke… why fix it?