The new Remnant 2 trailer sealed the deal for me: I've gotta shoot this big purple guy

I was already pretty excited for Remnant 2, but the new Summer Game Fest trailer (below) has sealed my intent to form another co-op posse. And developer Gunfire Games announced today that Remnant 2 will be out at the end of July, so it won't be long.

Just look at the giant smooth purple dude at the end! Now that's a boss. The previous game, Remnant: From the Ashes, also sends players to some odd dimensions, but a certain amount of the strangeness is reliant on unexpected colors in foliage or water. It works and Remnant 2 takes us back to locations like that, but I am glad to see we're going even further afield. Like, space, I guess?

Wherever it is, there are robots. I often find robots to be a boring enemy type, but these ones look pretty characterful—one of them looks like the demon spawn of GLaDOS, more or less.

There's lots of other stuff to call out here: The Matrix Sentinel-looking boss, the chubby mosquito thing, the purple dude I love so much. I kind of don't want to watch any more trailers so I can be surprised, but if you want to know more, the story trailer released yesterday is just an intro to the world. It's also worth checking out the archetype trailers for a better sense of what kind of game it is, and there's a nine-minute-long gameplay video, too.

The first Remnant had its quirks and flaws, but it was quietly great, and I hope Remnant 2 lives up to my expectations. I did get a chance to briefly try it back at GDC, and I liked what I played. If it's like Remnant: From the Ashes, it'll really be best played in co-op with a pair of friends.

On PC, Remnant 2 will release on Steam and the Epic Games Store on July 25. It'll also be available on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S.

Tyler grew up in Silicon Valley during the '80s and '90s, playing games like Zork and Arkanoid on early PCs. He was later captivated by Myst, SimCity, Civilization, Command & Conquer, all the shooters they call "boomer shooters" now, and PS1 classic Bushido Blade (that's right: he had Bleem!). Tyler joined PC Gamer in 2011, and today he's focused on the site's news coverage. His hobbies include amateur boxing and adding to his 1,200-plus hours in Rocket League.