Game images by RAWG
Grounded 2
Obsidian Entertainment
About This Game
Super ReviewGrounded 2 is a cooperative survival adventure that shrinks players into a vast, dangerous backyard, emphasizing creative base-building and teamwork. While offering rewarding exploration and crafting, parents should be aware of fantasy violence against insects and mild horror elements from the oversized creatures. It's a premium game with optional cosmetic purchases, best enjoyed collaboratively.
Super Review
Parent verdict
Grounded 2 is a good choice for families seeking a cooperative adventure with a strong emphasis on survival and creativity. Its core loop of gathering, crafting, and building encourages strategic thinking and collaboration, especially in multiplayer. The main tradeoff for parents involves navigating the game's fantasy violence and occasional unsettling moments, which might require discussion with younger players. Overall, it’s a robust experience that works best with clear communication and shared play.
What players actually do
- Players explore a giant backyard environment, discovering new areas and uncovering secrets (exploration, spatial reasoning).
- Players gather diverse resources like grass, sap, and insect parts to craft essential tools, weapons, armor, and base structures (resource management, planning, goal setting).
- Players build and customize elaborate bases, from simple shelters to complex multi-story structures, to protect themselves from environmental threats and hostile creatures (creativity, engineering, problem-solving).
- Players engage in combat against various hostile insects and creatures using crafted weapons, requiring strategic positioning and understanding enemy patterns (tactical thinking, reflexes).
- Players cooperate with up to three friends to survive, sharing resources, defending bases, and tackling challenges together (teamwork, communication, social skills).
Where it shines
- The extensive base-building and customization systems allow players significant creative freedom to design and personalize their shelters and gear, fostering imaginative expression.
- Strong cooperative multiplayer where working with friends is essential for survival, promoting effective teamwork, strategic planning, and clear communication among players.
- The unique premise of being miniaturized in an oversized backyard provides a fresh perspective, encouraging problem-solving and resource management in a highly engaging environment.
- Rideable insect mounts called 'Buggies' offer a fun and efficient way for players to traverse the large world and gather resources, adding a dynamic layer to exploration.
Parent watch-outs
- Combat involves fantasy violence against various insects and creatures, featuring cries of pain, frightening sounds, and spurting bodily fluids (yellow for insects, red for humans).
- Elements of horror are present due to the intimidating nature of the oversized environment, the sudden appearance of large creatures, and occasional jump scares, which can be unsettling.
- Multiplayer is invite-only via platform friends lists, but like all online play, it carries an inherent social risk due to potential interactions or exposure to unknown content if not properly managed.
Family rules worth setting
- Set clear time limits for play sessions, especially given the game's open-ended survival loops and resource gathering focus.
- Discuss and establish rules for multiplayer, such as only playing with pre-approved friends or family members.
- Talk about how players feel about the scary elements or combat intensity, particularly for younger children, and offer to play together to mitigate fears.
Talk about this
- How did you and your friends work together to build your base or defeat a difficult creature? What worked well, and what could you improve next time?
- The game involves surviving in a dangerous environment. What lessons about planning, resourcefulness, or adapting to challenges can you take from your experience?
- How do the creatures look and sound when they're attacking? Does anything in the game feel scary or intense, and how do you handle those moments?
Play style
Grounded 2 features an open-ended survival loop, where players spend sessions gathering, crafting, building, and exploring. The difficulty can be adjusted, but the core gameplay involves managing hunger, thirst, and hostile encounters. Multiplayer is a significant component, encouraging cooperative play and communication, though it can also be played solo. Younger or less experienced players might need help with resource management, complex crafting recipes, or navigating combat encounters.
Score Breakdown
Positive Aspects
Risk Factors
Why this rating
Educational Value
2/5While not explicitly designed for education, the game implicitly promotes problem-solving, strategic thinking, and resource management through its survival mechanics. The cooperative play also encourages teamwork and communication, though direct academic learning is limited, hence the score of 2.
Addictive Monetization
1/5Grounded 2 is a premium purchase with no explicit daily rewards, battle passes, or aggressive 'fear of missing out' mechanics. While there are optional cosmetic bundles, these are clearly identified and do not impact gameplay, resulting in a low addictive monetization score of 1.
Creativity
4/5The game strongly encourages creativity through its robust base-building system, allowing players to design and construct intricate structures from collected materials. Players can also customize their gear and tools, providing ample opportunities for personalization and imaginative expression, earning a score of 4.
Pro-Social
4/5Grounded 2's cooperative multiplayer is a cornerstone of its design, requiring players to work together, share resources, and communicate effectively to survive. This strong emphasis on teamwork and mutual support in overcoming challenges contributes to a high pro-social score of 4.
Content Intensity
2/5The game features combat against various insects with cries of pain and spurting bodily fluids (yellow for insects, red for humans), which can be unsettling. Elements of horror, including jump scares and intimidating creatures in the oversized environment, contribute to a moderate content intensity score of 2.
Negatives
- •Combat involves fantasy violence against insects and creatures, including cries of pain and spurting bodily fluids.
- •Elements of horror are present due to the intimidating nature of the oversized environment and creatures.
- •While offering optional cosmetic bundles, the game is a premium purchase.
Positives
- •Offers extensive base-building and customization options for player gear and tools, promoting creative expression.
- •Strong cooperative multiplayer where working with friends is essential for survival, fostering teamwork and communication.
- •Gameplay encourages problem-solving and resource management in a unique, oversized environment.
- •Features rideable insect mounts for fun traversal and resource gathering.
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Official Ratings
No official ratings available.
Age Fit
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