Monster Train, a 2020 indie hit by Shiny Shoe, is getting a sequel. Monster Train 2 is set to launch this year for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and PC. Ahead of its reveal, Digital Trends went hands on with the sequel, taking its new clans for a spin.
Released in May 2020, Monster Train is a cross between a roguelike, a deckbuilder, and tower defense game that draws inspiration from Slay the Spire. In it, players protect a pyre that’s being delivered to hell via a three-story train by amassing a deck of demons and using them to ward off invading foes. The gameplay loop is all about using cards strategically to fill each floor with monsters that auto attack at the end of a turn. Shiny Shoe followed that up with 2024’s Inkbound, but now it’s returning to Monster Train for a proper sequel.
Monster Train 2 continues the first game’s story, delving into a new story in which angels and demons need to unite to fend off a new threat, Titans. All of that gives Shiny Shoe a good reason to create new clans, which bring a slew of monsters to the sequel. Only two were playable in the demo I tried, though there will be three more in the final version. Banished are fallen angels who have allied with Hell to reclaim Heaven from the Titans, while Pyreborn are fiery demons who take their powers from dragons. When heading out on a run, players pick both a primary clan and an allied clan, allowing them to mix decks.
Those who have played Monster Hunter won’t find many surprises here, as the gameplay loop remains largely unchanged. I’m tossed into a roguelike run where I build up my deck between battles. Fights have me strategically placing units on each train car, paying attention to how I order them to maximize damage when I end my turn. I can help my odds by playing utility cards that either weaken enemies or buff my stats. For instance, Just Cause moves a unit to the front of the line while giving them two points of Valor and upping their armor in the process.
While the gameplay is familiar, there are some new concepts to learn. While Banished cards play with Valor, many cards in the Pyreborn deck are all about stacking Pyregel onto enemies. That’s a substance which increases how much damage an enemy takes per stack. Other units I’ve seen include demons that sneeze Pyregel onto enemies and singing birds that apply buffs to units. Like the first game, cards can also be upgraded at rest stops to create some seriously powerful combinations. In one run, I was obliterating Titan-corrupted foes with a massive meteor that barely cost me any mana to play.
Aside from new cards and enemies, the changes to the formula seem minimal. The roguelike structure is identical to the first game, using the same top down map between battles. There are still pit stops where I can draft cards, upgrade my deck, and resolve brief story events. One standout moment had me meeting up with an engineer who gave me a few choices of how to retool my train car. I picked an upgrade that made it so I could play cards for free in the middle train car. There seems to be more of a focus on the train itself in general, as the demo included a locked Train Depot feature, which will allow players to customize their train.
Though it does feel a bit like a DLC expansion for the first game at the moment, Monster Train 2 looks like it’ll be a reliable sequel for fans of the first. Its new clans should add some more strategic potential to the mix and I’m looking forward to seeing how much I can retool my train in the final version. As someone who went through a pandemic obsession with the original in 2020, I’m ready to ride the same train again.
Monster Train 2 launches later this year for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and PC.