Reviews

• 

  bittercup

  May 12, 2022

  As a fan of the original Phantasmagoria I was surprised I had never played the sequel. It did not disappoint! The acting was really good all around and I felt very involved with Curtis and his co-workers. The puzzles were satisfying and the game dynamics made it really fun & immersive (checking and replying to emails, typing passwords & chatting with coworkers). The story line was intriguing and descended into absolute madness, which, in my opinion, made the game all the more entertaining. The cut scenes featured lots of gore and sex and the 90's charm is apparent throughout. If you love point & clicks and you like Phantasmagoria - get this game and enjoy yourself!
• 

  H

  Aug 30, 2016

  I heard that, Curtis.
• 

  Broheim

  Aug 30, 2016

  The game plays exactly as I remember it. No issues. Fits widescreens. Just launch the game and you are good to go. Make Sierra great again!
• 

  Furry Gamer

  Nov 10, 2016

  A favorite adventure game of mine! I had to convert my copy into the DOS version in order to get it to run, and it was kind of unstable, but I was able to beat it in the end, and loved it. Later I wanted to play it once more, but was unable to get my copy to work again. I am ecstatic that it has made its' way onto steam allowing me to once again experience this twisted story line. My only real complaint is with the climax, either ending, bad or good. Both are dissatisfying not really rapping up the story all to clear which is a real shame since the story is really good. In the end it still ranks high on my list. Maybe one day Phantasmagoria 3 could surface... I can only dream.
• 

  anja.wassermann

  Dec 5, 2016

  I played the first game because it was on sale and the story is not really original and I had no sympathy for the protagonist. But this game: It's so much better than the first one and very original. The acting is still a bit cheesy and the effects are outdated, but I was entertained and scared at some points. It made me think which part of the game was reality or did it just happen in Curtis head. I have a soft spot for adventure games and fmv and this is a classic I could tick of my list. I don't regret buying it. It's a bit short though I would have liked more options to explore and places and objects to interact. It's not really point and click you just search for the next object that makes progress. A lot of it is trial an error. But if you like old games give it a go. =)
• 

  citizeninsane99

  Dec 18, 2016

  Glad to see this game on Steam. Beat it back in the 90's and beat it again yesterday. Fun game, good story, likeable charecters. Only complaint, near the end of the game - "final puzzle" game crashes over and over at a certian part, depending on how you choose to play.. Just be sure to save often.
• 

  Antar

  Feb 20, 2017

  If you are considering getting this for nostalgia reasons (whether you played it back then or not), I recommend it. The game runs questionably on modern PCs, it was barely playable on my Windows 10, the sound quality and controls being the biggest problems. But it WAS playable in the end. I never played Phantasmagoria (1 or 2) back in the day, but I vividly remember reading about them in PC gaming magazines (yeah, we had those back then), and they did somehow stuck in my mind. I'm glad to have the chance to finally play them! The acting is quite ok I would say, it is the shallow writting that brings Phantasmagoria 2 to the "so bad it's hillarious" category, imo. I finished it together with my friend over quite a few sessions, and there was lots of hillarious or "WTF" moments.
• 

  Seedy Vampire

  Feb 26, 2017

  TL;DR: thumbs down is only because the store page is deceptive. The game itself is enjoyable and corny. Not as good as the original, definitely has flaws, but overall still a fun, somewhat disturbing, and rather interesting play. Now for the full review. First and foremost, let's just get this out of the way: the store page for this game contains a bit of false advertising. The screenshots shown are for the Windows version and Steam sells the DOS version, which means that the graphics during cutscenes have interlacing lines, unlike the clear graphics the store page displays, and near as I can tell there is no fixing it. The lines can make it difficult to see sometimes. Some of you might be thinking that graphics problems are small potatoes, and if, like me, you manage to mostly ignore the issue, then more power to you, but it's still a downgrade that went completely unmentioned on the store's page. Unlike the first game, this problem isn't fixable either; your menu gives you no options to mess with the display settings. I cannot in all honesty condone the false advertising behind uploading preview images from an entirely different version of the game. Seriously, do not be fooled, do not buy this version. See if you can track down a Windows version. The false advertising is really the only reason that I gave this game a "Not Recommended." I'm not encouraging you to avoid the game itself, just don't buy it on Steam; get it elsewhere if you can. As for the playthrough, I found it to be both a pleasant and unpleasant surprise. Pleasant, because it was actually better than I was expecting. The characters were each distinctive and unique, though none terribly interesting, but I still found myself sucked into their drama, both everyday and out-of-the-ordinary. A lot of people thought the acting was bad, but I didn't really have a problem with it. There were only a few instances of truly cheesy performing, and they were mercifully brief with characters you almost never have to deal with. The soundtrack to this game is also quite good, I'd even say it's on the same level as the first game. Though they're two vastly different styles, it still does a good job of setting the mood and building an atmosphere. Something you should definitely be aware of before going into this game is that it's very different from the first. It's not a continuation of the same story/characters/environment, it's all entirely new, with only one actor returning for the briefest cameo. Otherwise, this game is completely unrelated to the first. It's also not quite as gorey as the first. There's definitely violence, gore, murder, and all that good stuff, but not as much and not as over-the-top. This game also features nudity and a lot more sexual content than the first, so if that's something that puts you off, just be aware of that going in. Now for the unpleasant surprise: I was not aware when I got this game that nearly none of it takes place in a CG world like its predecessor. It's almost all on real sets, which, in my opinion, makes this world a little less interesting and colorful since there's less room for it to be imaginative. There's also the matter that, when you find out what's really going on, it [i]is[/i] a bit silly. It didn't bother me too much, but I know it was a real problem for others. If you can forgive a little ridiculousness, after all these games are meant to be rather reminiscent of over-the-top gore-iffic B-movies, then you might consider it. Another problem is that oftentimes it's almost irrationally difficult to figure out what you should do next, or how to solve a certain problem. I'm really not sure why this is, either. While the first game was almost too easy for the most part, with some challenges definitely proving trickier than others, this game stays at about the same level of difficulty the whole way through, and it's tough. I found myself caving to frustration and looking at a walkthrough countless times. One minor issue I had was with one puzzle towards the end. Not because it was too difficult, (though it was quite tough) but because it's very buggy. If I took too long on it or clicked too "rapidly" it would crash the whole game and I'd have to start back at my last save. Now, this could just be a compatibility problem; after all I played this on my Windows 10 laptop. I never ran into any other crashes or bugs with the game, so this is a minor nitpick at most. Once I knew the solution I was able to solve the puzzle quickly enough and had no more problems afterwards. However, it was still pretty frustrating, and restarting the game repeatedly on a pattern-based puzzle *did* break the atmosphere and tension, so I'll include this relatively small annoyance anyways in the hopes that maybe someone might respond with a solution to the bug. On a more personal note: as a gaymer myself, I have to give this game mad props for having both a bi protagonist and a gay side character, neither of whom are watered down to tokenism nor played off with stereotypes, but are actually written naturally and earnestly. Their orientations weave organically into the narrative just as any straight person's would. Cheers for the casual representation, Phanta2! Overall, I would say that this game is, at the very least, interesting. I enjoyed it well enough, and would recommend it to fans of the first, as well as fans of other similar games like Harvester. Really, if you're like me and you have a soft spot in your heart for these old, cornball, FMV games, this is one of those I think you should definitely add to your collection. Again, I just can't recommend buying THIS version, the Steam version. So for that, my rating stays negative, even if my opinion regarding the game itself is overall positive. [b]EDIT:[/b] I was informed in a comment on this review (which is now missing for some reason?) that the free, downloadable application scummvm now supports this game. I have yet to figure out how to hook up the Steam version's files with it, but I'm not a tech expert by any means so I'm sure it's possible for someone more experienced in using scummvm to figure it out and make it work. According to the (now mysteriously gone) comment, the GOG version is compatible with scummvm, and using the app prevents the graphics issues with the interlacing screen. Just thought I would add this potential fix for other fans of the game. My Steam rating still remains negative for the deceptive store page.
• 

  slowburn atmospheric

  Jun 28, 2017

  Bondage Clubs, Bad Acting, Murder, Bisexuality and Lovecraftian Body Horror Nonsense
• 

  Baron_Someday

  Jan 28, 2018

  I'd forgotten how infuriating and fun Sierra's Point & Click games were. This is one of the best.
• 

  ImWhiteDynamite

  Mar 19, 2018

  I heard that Curtis!!!!
• 

  Darkstride

  Sep 27, 2018

  B-Movie excellence. Do all of the puzzles make sense? No not really. Do all of the character choices make sense? No, not really. But somehow it all still works. It might not be perfect, but it's definitely campy and fun.
• 

  Seiferslash

  Apr 2, 2019

  I see a lot of reviews that try to compare Phantasmagoria (1) with Phantasmagoria 2. And then the reviewer draws a conclusion that one is better than the other. My take - they share the title and they are both point-n-click adventures. That's about where the similarities end. I think this is why so many critics loved the first and disliked the second. They weren't letting both games stand apart. Phantasmagoria 2's horror is more focused on the cerebral... an analysis of insanity. Although there are a few bloody moments, the story focuses on Curtis' psyche and how it affects his relationships. Because of this, there is a distinct focus on interpersonal exchanges between Curtis and his friends/co-workers. You come to know each character fairly well and it's easy to love some and hate others. The puzzles are fairly straight forward. A few take a little more time to work through. I thoroughly enjoyed the last one, and wish there was more of those in the game. HOWEVER, the game does a very poor job ushering in a new process to solve puzzles. There are two times where the devs expect the player to change the puzzle-solving process that's worked since the beginning. And there is no cue that says, instead of doing A, B, C, and D.... trying doing A+B and C+D. More modern adventure games do a better job of guiding the player toward changing things up, so that the player at least knows a certain approach is possible. I'm a big believer providing a puzzle-solving rule set and then make the puzzles' difficulty moderate to hard. I'm not a big fan of making a silent "rule change", without any warning, half way through the game. That's just lazy game development trying to disguise itself as cleverness. Because this game is the DOS version, there are annoying scan lines through the FMV sequences. These can be removed by tweaking DOSBOX. Just search it on google and you'll find multiple threads explaining the process. The tweaks aren't difficult to employ if you are somewhat computer saavy. The game will never look as good as the Windows 95 version, but at least the scan lines will be gone. There is also a crash bug in the last puzzle, when pressing a particular button with the "lens" out of proper position. Just make sure the lens is not at that position again and you'll be fine. Save often! Overall, I enjoyed Phantasmagoria 2 as much as its predecessor, albeit for different reasons. I recommend giving it a go. If you liked the 90's formula of mixing point-n-click adventures with FMV drama, while dabbing a touch of horror on the side, then you'll probably enjoy Phantasmagoria 2.
• 

  Lain~♡

  Jul 14, 2019

  I HEARD THAT CURTIS
• 

  blake.elink

  Nov 24, 2019

  Its like an interactive movie. Well done. Especially if you're in your 30s you'll love the 90s-ish aspects to it. It's exciting. Great to play with a partner.
• 

  hitman45

  Mar 19, 2020

  Wish they had the Windows version. Lucky for me I still have the 5 CD ROMS in my collection. This unfornately is the DOS version
• 

  lirylecrovyn

  Apr 15, 2020

  Phantasmagoria 2 is by no means a good game. It's a TERRIBLE game with bad acting, a silly plot and nonsensical puzzles. However, I recommend it anyway because it is thoroughly entertaining. Although the actors aren't great, you can get the sense that they're at least enjoying their roles (Paul Warner's actor seems particularly into his villain character). It's all in good cheesy, campy fun and puts a smile on my face every time I start playing.
• 

  Curtis Peng@Schwids_schwans

  Nov 2, 2020

  This is literally the best single-player game I've played in years.
• 

  Banake

  Nov 29, 2020

  Honestly, I liked this one more than the first.
• 

  Mer

  Dec 9, 2020

  My friend and I have recently gone down the rabbit hole of these fmv games. I've learned a lot on the way, and we've both lost even more. With this unique experience however, comes the perfect tool set to judge these games. We started with harvester and there couldn't have been a better game to get our toes wet. 5 hours later we became the kidders we need to be to take on phantasmagoria 1. Harvester's story direction (or lack thereof) really made phantasmagoria 2's story shine through. The acting was mostly good or at least good enough to not take us out of it and the characters were well written. Trevor please email me. Phantasmagoria 2 is nothing like it's predecessor. It starts you as a white dude named curtis but the real main character, blob, is introduced quickly. A story filled with weird physics and entertaining emails, this game will take you on an mindboggling journey. Walkthrough is highly recommended especially at the end where the game crashes if you don't do the puzzle right.. story 7 / 10 a little cheesy but very fun gameplay 5 / 10 sometimes you have to use the same item multiple times on one person and the hint button was removed from phatasmagoria 1 :O value 10 / 10 if you're super bored get some friends on discord and try to work your way through this.... this... you just have to see it for yourself