10 Video Game Sequels That Made The Original Even Better

5. Psychonauts 2

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Double Fine

Just shy of two decades waiting for the sequel to this cult classic platformer, and by god it was worth it.

Psychonauts originally had a very cut-and-dry story, which considering the wait for the sequel, left Psychonauts fans at least better off than Beyond Good & Evil fans. And since the game sold like garbage, we had to make peace with never getting one. But lo and behold, Double Fine finally came through.

Psychonauts 2 dives a lot deeper into main character Raz's family, giving players an almost uncomfortably honest look at Raz and his lineage's history. This is combined with more emotionally mature storytelling, which stands in stark contrast to the dark-as-pitch comedy of the original. Raz faces consequences this time for just barging into a person's mind without permission, after which he begins asking for consent from the people he's helping.

Rather than act as a criticism of the first game, 2 positions itself more as a continuation of a specific character arc. The story of 1 leads directly into 2, with the characters growing and changing accordingly.

It may have taken multiple console generations, but Psychonauts 2 is one of the most natural feeling sequels in all of gaming.

Contributor
Contributor

John Tibbetts is a novelist in theory, a Whatculture contributor in practice, and a nerd all around who loves talking about movies, TV, anime, and video games more than he loves breathing. Which might be a problem in the long term, but eh, who can think that far ahead?