Knack 2 Reviews: 11 Critical Reactions You Need To Know

9. The Story Is Totally Forgettable

"The story is brand spanking new, but it’s just as un-engaging as the plot in the first game... Most of it plays out in cutscenes in which the dialogue is mainly perfunctory, containing none of the sparkle from Pixar films this game obviously wishes to ape. There are a couple of twists and turns, but they’re telegraphed pretty plainly. In short, the plot’s mainly a framework upon which to hang rather uninspired levels." - Gamesradar

"The story...[is] atrocious. No cliche is left alone; all are dragged into the sunlight, screaming for mercy. The dialog comes at me like a 1930s sci-fi short. Villains actually rock back their heads and declare that you are about to "meet your doom." If it's supposed to be ironic, it's not ironic enough, especially for a generation of kids saturated in irony... The whole story feels like it was written by a bunch of scientists who crammed "The Hero With a Thousand Faces" and binge-watched Spielberg movies." - Polygon

"The cast of largely uninteresting characters is wrapped into a story that would be at home in a second-rate Saturday morning kids cartoon. It’s a tale of High Goblins and city-devouring robots, ancient technologies and revenge plans… with some painfully awkward adolescent romantic tension tossed in for good measure. By the end the stakes are suitably high and you’ll become invested simply because, well, you’re ten hours in now, but it’s not good." - IGN

The plot was absolutely one of the worst and least-memorable things about the original game, and in this regard, it seems that Knack 2 is unfortunately consistent.

Granted, platformers as a genre typically aren't great when it comes to rustling up engaging narratives, but critics say it's especially clear that nobody really cared about fashioning a remotely intriguing one for Knack 2.

If you liked the first game enough to bother with this sequel, you're probably not in it for the story, but even so, given that this follow-up is improved in so many other areas, it's a shame that the plot is still a dreadful bore.