Out of all the announcements made at the Xbox Games Showcase, Grounded 2 is one of the most promising titles coming later this year. So it’s time to get shrunk again as new adventures await in your native backyard, where a variety of bugs and insects are ready to tense things up. The developers, Obsidian Entertainment, have shaken hands with Eidos Montreal to add new and exciting features to keep you engaged throughout.
But did you know why Obsidian decided to create a sequel, while they could have updated the original game? According to the Executive Producer of this game, there were some technical reasons why they couldn’t update Grounded 1 any longer. They thought it would be easier to narrate their ideas in a sequel instead of an unwanted expansion.
Obsidian decided to level up with Grounded 2 in their own way
The main reason why the developers are launching Grounded 2 is that they had a desire to tell a new story. It wouldn’t have made much sense to expand the original game as it concluded perfectly at the end. Hence, to showcase a new tale for the gamers, a sequel was developed with co-creators Eidos Montreal.
In an interview with IGN, Marcus Morgan, the Executive Producer of this game, gave answers to several questions that technically justified why an expansion for Grounded 1 wasn’t possible. When asked why create a sequel and not continually update Grounded 1, Morgan answered:
Thing number one was, we started Grounded 1 on the original Xbox One. And we were running out of room to actually physically get things into the game. And so if we wanted to add any more content, we actually would’ve had a hard load to expand the game. And that ruined the concept of being really immersed and really being in this continuous space.
The developers couldn’t afford to expand Grounded 1 as it was already running out of space. Adding more things would have made it difficult production-wise, ultimately ruining the experience for the players. A lot of new things that were supposed to be added in the prequel weren’t compatible with the environment.
For example, the developers have prototyped several creatures for the original game; however, they didn’t design the space to match the style of play. With new creatures, several things change, including the space of traversal, the distance between points of interest, etc.
Marcus Morgan was humble enough to accept that they didn’t think it over. That being said, they decided to create a full-blown sequel for the fans, promising a fun experience like in the first game. It seems like the developers aren’t looking to slow down when it comes to impressing the players.
Everything we know about Grounded 2 so far
Grounded 2 carries the soul of its predecessor by promising a fun experience with friends. Once you are shrunk, you will find yourself in a familiar man-made environment that is filled with adversaries, both friendly and hostile.
The most requested feature has not made it in Grounded 2, as you can finally mount bugs to travel across the map. However, you will have to hatch and raise them to eventually ride them. Your insect pets are going to be your best friends, not only during travel but also in combat. You can command them whenever you need to attack the foes on the pitch.
You and your friends can select various character types, all having their respective unique abilities. Based on your play style, you can choose a specific character and utilize its ability to get past all the challenges. Hopefully, this game will manage to live up to the hype that was created since its early rumors.
Grounded 2 is all set for a release in July 2025, on platforms like Xbox Series X and Series S, and PC via Steam. If you have Steam Early Access or an Xbox Game Pass, you can play the game early on July 29, 2025.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
