Minecraft Dungeons 2 Preview: Gear Up for Another Adventure

Minecraft Dungeons 2 has been officially revealed and is set to be released on September 29 of this year. DualShockers was on hand at Summer Game Fest to go hands-on with the game. Like the first game, Minecraft Dungeons 2 blends the iconic blocky world of Minecraft with action-adventure RPG elements to create a family-friendly experience that can be enjoyed across age groups.

Revealed at Summer Game Fest, you don't have to wait long to pick up Minecraft Dungeons 2, and it's already available for pre-ordering on Steam, Xbox, PlayStation, and Switch at a reasonable price, considering how many games are creeping towards having $100 price tags. As a result, you can look forward to a co-op ARPG that allows up to four players to play together on a local network or online without worrying about a price tag that will take the joy out of what could be the perfect choice for a family game night.

Minecraft Dungeons 2 Polishes the Formula of the First Game

If you've played the first game, you'll find that Minecraft Dungeons 2 isn't trying to reinvent itself. I consider this as a positive aspect in this case, because Minecraft Dungeons was an enjoyable game, so there's no need to make the sequel too different when the formula already works. At least, that seems to be the case from the limited amount of content currently available.

The gameplay mechanics feel smoother than the first game, not like they've been changed, but as if they've been polished and refined based on how gameplay functioned in the original. This makes the controls feel familiar if you've played Minecraft Dungeons, but also fairly standard to other ARPGs.

While Minecraft has a focus on building, Minecraft Dungeons 2 shifts that focus to combat. There are still crafting elements, though. Namely, crafting plays a role in your character's equipment, so you can keep collecting items and resources that allow you to craft stronger gear, making it easier to get through harder dungeons.

Overall, the gameplay is simple enough that both new and younger players can pick it up and enjoy an adventure through unique areas and fight monsters, which is perfect considering that the standard Minecraft game has an audience that skews younger, and Minecraft Dungeons 2 looks like a good way to introduce other game genres using a familiar universe. At the same time, even experienced ARPG players can find joy in the game if you're looking for something less serious where the goal is to really just enjoy yourself, and I say this as someone who has put a concerning number of hours into the Diablo franchise.

The Graphics Are Slick, Smoothing Minecraft's Style

This was also the style in the first Minecraft Dungeons. This graphic style is almost a combination of blocks and smooth textures, but I'm sure I'm not the only one who thinks that it feels odd to play a Minecraft-based game without the commitment to the textures of Minecraft. Instead, Minecraft Dungeons 2 has a style that's block-based, but the textures for the environment in particular seem smoothed over.

It's not an inherently bad style, and I think that it could look nice in an original indie title, but when you have a game as well-known as Minecraft and create a spinoff for it like Minecraft Dungeon 2, there's an expectation that the graphics will be similar. If it was a decision made for the sake of animation and perhaps because the camera angle might work better with the style that's being used, I could understand that, but it does pull you marginally away from the feeling of being in the Minecraft universe.

What to Expect from Minecraft Dungeons 2

It's early to judge what the full experience will be like in the release version, but so far, Minecraft Dungeons 2 is a fun dungeon crawler set in the Minecraft universe that you can play with your friends and family. The gameplay is straightforward, and the combat has a hack-and-slash feeling that's difficult to mess up while being entertaining.

I imagine that it won't end up being too long to beat, as the first game could be completed in about 10 hours, unless you're doing side content, grinding for gear, or playing through multiple difficulties. That's a perfect length for a game that's meant to be played with others, though, as you don't have to figure out a significant time commitment across multiple schedules.

If you're looking for something straightforward and all about having a good time rather than strategy or heavy narratives, then this is going to be a solid choice for you this fall. This is especially true if you have kids and want to spend time with them gaming, as you could essentially carry your team through areas if you need to and are decent at ARPGs. I might not have seen everything Minecraft Dungeons 2 has to offer, but what I have seen points to an experience that's all about having a good time with friends, and I think we all need more of that in our lives.

Released September 29, 2026

Multiplayer Online Co-Op

Cross-Platform Play Partial