The Game of Life 2 (2020)

A classic and nostalgic board game, The Game of Life 2 is just like real life–it is short, sweet, and you might get paid decently but your taxes are insanely high. It’s a fun game to play with family and friends without having to purchase additional equipment. Plus, bonus points for being easy to understand. Sadly, I found it hard to buy a house. But as I said, this is just like real life.

The Game of Life 2 is a colorful, vibrant, and very competent adaptation of the traditional board title of the same name for the digital universe, with basic mechanics for any type of player to enjoy. However, because it relies heavily on the random factor – something it inherited from the original work – it can frustrate or bore the most experienced.

The Game of Life 2 fails to build meaningfully upon a classic title, instead opting for superfluous DLC and an inflated price point, making for a final product that feels, ironically enough, lifeless and bland.

Even more than Monopoly, The Game of Life is a board game from a bygone era. Once upon a time, the nice, meandering journey through suburban life and expectations thereof that the game depicted was considered a representation of a happy, wholesome life experience, but in 2021 lionising that seems incredibly passe. Sticking a "2" next to the title while not doing much to address this dissonance doesn't paper over the fact that very few people actually want to play The Game of Life these days.

GREAT - The Game of Life 2 takes on the classic board game, and gives it a fresh look with several themes, and some updated and enticing gameplay. With the ability to play any way you like with friends, strangers, or just alone against CPU opponents on your lunch break, the game finds its footing equally with the cartoony graphics, responsive touch controls, and quick game rounds. The Game of Life 2 doesn’t disappoint for really any age group to dive in and see where life takes them.