Two Point Hospital Review - Theme Hospital's Spiritual Sequel
Exactly what you dreamed it would be.
Rating: ★★★★½
Platform: Nintendo Switch (copy provided by Sega)
The latest in a long line of indie games restoring the classics of yesteryear, Two Point Hospital is every bit the Theme Hospital revival you want it to be, and a perfect continuation of where Bullfrog left off.
Thankfully, and as a mark of authenticity right out the gate, the game is helmed by original Theme Hospital devs Mark Wembley and Gary Carr, who served as producer and lead artist, respectively.
The result is a game you can tell the pair have been dying to get out there for decades - a hilarious, passion-filled project with real intent, and a desire to revisit a game formula millions of us once loved. Though presentation is top notch, let's start with the one thing that could've undone it all: Controls.
On Switch they're sublime; an intuitive hybrid of mini-menus to create items, rooms and micromanage wayward staff members, with a neat breakdown of everything from wages to hiring and diagnosis management. If you want to play a surface level version of the experience, by all means. But if you also want to delve into balancing the books down to specific percentiles, that's there too.
You can tweak individual jobs WITHIN a role, so if a doctor specialises in diagnosis but tends to fall down in psychiatry, lock them to the GP's office and they'll never leave.
The developers really have thought of everything, and Two Point goes WAY deeper than Theme Hospital ever did.
The amount of staff that can take breaks per job criteria, how much they're paid, how much you charge for individual procedures - all can be toggled and micromanaged on the fly. You can even unlock customised trims and uniform options, once you have enough money.
Speaking of which, Two Point Hospital splits its funds in two: The regular currency used to purchase rooms, items and staff, and "Kudosh", a premium currency doled out for mission goals, career goals and completing dynamic challenges that pop up from time to time.
It's this second amount that governs the extra fancy unlocks for your hospital and its rooms. Want to have patterned carpets, an arcade machine, better benches and deluxe trophy cabinets? It all comes from Kudosh, carrying over from one hospital to the next.
All this lets you rake in the dough, building bigger hospitals with better qualified staff, to unlock better items with Kudosh, to do it all over again.
This latter system and the gameplay loops within are where the real genius lies.
Because you're managing an "institute" that owns multiple hospitals, Two Point employs an Overcooked-style overworld. Dive into one zone and create a facility, then after at least one of three stars is obtained, you can move on. Stay though, and you can experiment with price fluctuations, challenges and land expansion - all earning Kudosh; all giving you experience for the next main step.
This micro and macro progression really made me fall in love with Two Point Hospital.
There's such a satisfying loop to hospital management; curing diseases and watching the hilarious animations play out, mixed with the wider knowledge that your institute is growing constantly in the background that brings it all together.
Thankfully, though many newer indies have scratched the old school itch with a dogged reliance on tradition, Two Point Studio being comprised of ex-Bullfrog creatives makes this the sequel you've been waiting for.