While I generally prefer the more dynamic and quirky level designs from V1, I appreciate the direction in V2 and the visuals, animations, scripts, and acting have continued to prove to be of the highest quality.
What V2 levels lacks in design/colour they make up for in ambiance and atmosphere. Righteous Stand, Convocation of Decay, and Hunger in the Dark exemplify this best. The use of light/dark is very effective with the no-holds-barred smattering of the Northerner’s victims creating an effective sense of immersion. The recent addition of rat-ogre growls when passing the pens in Into the Nest was a master stroke that makes that specific section an accomplishment in gaming design and it reinforces Into the Nest as my favourite level in the game.
While I don’t care for the washed out greens and glib pastels we often see in V2, I appreciate that they add to the sickly miasmatic vibe one would expect from a Nurglite invasion. That said, I do hope we get some more variaty/vibrancy of colour in future content.
I would like to see levels have more dynamic verticality, akin to the type we see in V1. The Wizard’s Tower is probably the best example but all levels effectively employ a variety of different verticalities there and, when not dynamic, they take advantage of the static verticality to expand the story (eg. the team discussing the state of the city as they ride an elevator). Righteous Stand takes a stab at this vis a vis the murder room with the hanging corpses but it’s a lil immersion breaking that no one comments on it and that there’s no music change to reinforce how messed up the situation is.