I’ve recently been playing through the Sam & Max series for the first time in the form of Skunkape’s remastered versions of the games on PS4. For those who haven’t, check out my review of the first season’s remaster. Today, we will dive into the second season, Sam & Max: Beyond Time and Space Remastered. How does the series fare in its second outing? Let’s find out!
Some Noticeable Improvements Over Season One
The second season has five episodes instead of six, like season one. Other than that, the gameplay is largely similar. These are point-and-click adventures that star freelance police, one of whom is a dog and the other is a rabbit (though he often refers to himself as a lagomorph).
Much like season one, Sam & Max: Beyond Time and Space Remastered has the two characters taking on a unique case in each of the five episodes, with several elements carrying through the entire season. One of my issues with the first season was that the overarching story took a backseat until the end, with the final villain reveal being relatively out of left field.
This is still the case in season two, with many payoffs not happening until the last two episodes. That being said, there’s more continuity between each episode regarding character development and running jokes that carry through the season.
Given the season’s title, I expected the episodes to be set in other worlds or dimensions. While the promised elements of “Beyond Time and Space” do come through in certain ways, the season remains surprisingly grounded in reality until the last two episodes.
Given how strange and whacky the first season was, I expected the second season to up the ante. Instead, it feels like a minor upgrade instead of the leap I expected. That being said, the changes for the better here are noticeable and appreciated.
For starters, the puzzles in the second season are much easier to follow in terms of their logic and overall flow. The first season tended to fall into the trap of all classic point-and-click adventures where the answer to certain conundrums felt detached from the game’s reality.
Ultimately, Sam & Max: Beyond Time and Space Remastered feels like it’s playing things too safe. It’s a noticeable upgrade from the first season in several ways, particularly in the story and gameplay departments, but it feels more like a season 1.5 than a full evolution.
Excellent Presentation and Remastered Visuals
Regarding presentation, developer Skunkape again brings out the best in this second season. From the upbeat music to the polished and vibrant visuals, fans of the first season will again be happy to see the faithful remasters continue with this second set of five episodes.
The transfer to the controller also lands perfectly fine here as well. Using the right stick to select interactive items while having the option to highlight everything with L1, combined with a simple inventory system, makes this play great on PlayStation.
I’m looking forward to discussing the third and final season’s remaster shortly, as I can say that it addresses some of the qualms I had with the season playing things too safe. That’s, of course, a review for another time.
For fans of the original season’s remaster, Sam & Max: Beyond Time and Space Remastered maintains the same level of quality, but don’t expect it to transform the formula or blow you away with its promises of other worlds (at least, not in the first few episodes).
Final Score: 8.0/10
Review code provided by the publisher
Article by – Bradley Ramsey
Insert date – 8/29/2024