Mortal Shell II Review

Mortal Shell II has officially emerged from the shadows following its early access window ahead of a global launch, earning praise from critics who hail it as a high-water mark for the Soulslike genre in 2026. Stepping once more into the role of the Harbinger, players are tasked with cleansing the corrupted land of Fallgrim on behalf of a divine force known as the Mether. Rather than marching through a linear sequence of gauntlets, newcomers and veterans alike are treated to a soft reboot that functions effectively as a standalone title. The game sets you loose with minimal hand-holding, handing over the responsibility of charting your own path across interconnected biomes, subterranean passageways, and heavily guarded citadels.

Exploration forms the structural core of the experience, mirroring open-world design philosophies seen in titles like Elden Ring. The world presents dangerous factions, corrupted boss gates, and hidden treasures without imposing a rigid order on progression. Central to this journey is the discovery of eight distinct Shells, inhabitable suits of armor that replace traditional character classes. Each vessel brings unique mechanical traits to the battlefield, ranging from Tiel's shadow-skipping agility to Smert's time-stapping powers. While players can spend limited Glimpses to approximate these locations via Zhirelle's chamber in the Marrow Keep, intrepid adventurers can also stumble upon them organically, such as tracking Tiel's gravestone past the Mushroom Village or locating Proxima inside a shattered beacon beyond the Blackridge Cliffs.

Beyond surface-level traversal, the game's depth reveals itself through intricate dungeon loops and grueling encounters. Reviewers note that mastering the 50-plus-hour campaign requires patience, trial, and error as you untangle the darker machinations operating behind the Mether's massive egg collection.

While early critical reception highlights the expansion into a large-scale action-RPG as a mostly successful gamble, the sheer breadth of Fallgrim introduces its own navigation hurdles. The interconnected transition zones between surface ruins and deep underground networks can occasionally disorient players relying purely on intuition. Even so, the deliberate move toward player-driven discovery ensures that overcoming these dark domains feels earned, cementing the sequel as a notable evolution for a franchise that started as a tight, experimental counter-weight to conventional souls-borne design.