Revenge of the Savage Planet is a funky, funny adventure trapped in a frustratingly unstable wrapper
If Journey to the Savage Planet was the quirky cult hit that came out of nowhere with its satirical punch, absurd humor, and unexpectedly tight Metroidvania design, Revenge of the Savage Planet is its bold, cartoonishly chaotic sequel that swings for the stars… only to be shot down by the reality of undercooked console performance.
I really adored the first game. Its first-person exploration, offbeat humor, and slapstick flair—I went into the sequel both excited and skeptical. The move to a third-person perspective felt like a weird departure at first, almost like the game was losing its unique flavor. But it turns out, that change works better than expected, and in some ways, it even enhances the experience. The shift allows the team's excellent animation work to shine front and center. Watching your goofy little explorer dash, leap, belly-flop, and slap his way through alien fauna is just plain fun. It gives the whole game a comedic physicality that feels both intentional and perfectly in line with the series' tone.
Narratively, Revenge of the Savage Planet is a continuation of the original's sharp satire on corporate greed and the disposable nature of space explorers. You once again find yourself stranded on an alien planet after a crash landing, greeted by two immediate emails—one welcoming you to the corporation's latest venture, and the other promptly firing you due to budget cuts. It's a hilarious one-two punch that sets the tone for the rest of the game.
With no help coming, your mission becomes simple: build the NuFlorida settlement from the ground up. Whether solo or in co-op, this means scavenging the planet(s) for resources, capturing and researching alien lifeforms, constructing buildings, and unlocking tools that let you dig deeper into the galaxy's secrets. It's a fun premise that leans heavily on the same irreverent corporate propaganda vibes that made the first game such a memorable romp. Expect another round of wacky in-universe commercials and emails full of toilet humor and thinly veiled jabs at capitalism. If that's your jam, this game delivers in spades.
Gameplay-wise, Revenge of the Savage Planet keeps its core intact while expanding in some smart directions. The alien worlds you explore are fairly large, open-ended playgrounds teeming with collectibles — from stamina and health upgrades to blueprints for new tools and goofy cosmetics. Some of these items are hidden behind clever little puzzles or traversal challenges, while others require specific upgrades to access.
This is where the Metroidvania design kicks in. You'll frequently come across spots you can't reach yet — obstacles that clearly taunt you until you return with the right tool or ability. And when you do get that shiny new gadget, the world opens up. Sure, you'll be backtracking like crazy, but not in a bad way. It's satisfying to revisit areas and finally snag that upgrade or uncover a hidden cave you spotted hours earlier.
Tool progression is a bit slow at first, though. You won't be doing much beyond basic exploration until you start unlocking things like a grappling hook, different goo types like lava which you can use to melt through ice, bombs to explode through walls, and other special tools. Once the game hits its stride, however, it becomes a much more compelling loop. Find new zones, capture weird creatures, return to base, research them to get more tools, repeat. Co-op adds a nice layer of fun too. Running around with a friend, slapping aliens together, and laughing at the sheer ridiculousness of what's happening on screen.
That said, some of the systems feel unnecessarily clunky. For instance, you need to return to your home base to research new creatures or print tools on the 3D printer. Why can't you just do that from anywhere? It breaks the flow and makes the whole settlement-building aspect feel a bit tedious. And then there's the respawn system. Die on an alien planet and you're kicked back to your home base, forced to endure a loading screen before you can return to the action. It's not game-breaking, but it's annoying—especially when you're mid-mission and just trying to get back to where you were. I also had a big issue with navigating the menus. My DualSense controllers has a tiny bit of stick drift, but I don't think that was the main isue that made navigating the menus so infuriatingly annoying, even when I tried to use the D-pad.
If there's one thing Revenge of the Savage Planet nails, it's presentation. The alien planets are gorgeous, rendered in a vibrant, stylized art style that looks like Pixar meets Adult Swim. Lush jungles, weird floating islands, bioluminescent caves—all bursting with color and personality. The creatures you meet (and slap) are equally delightful, ranging from dopey little racoon-things to infuriating baboons that seem designed purely to drive you insane.
The animations bring everything to life in such a goofy, slapstick way that it's hard not to smile while playing. Your character's exaggerated movements, the over-the-top reactions of aliens when they get zapped or slapped, and the sheer absurdity of the whole thing — it's comedy gold. The same goes for the sound design, very solid. I loved the dry and condescending quips from my flying drone companion. The music adds to the sense of whimsical chaos. And the alien creatures make the kind of guttural, squeaky noises that you'd expect from a Saturday morning cartoon directed by someone on a sugar high.
Unfortunately, none of that matters much when the game struggles to run properly. Let's be clear: Revenge of the Savage Planet runs terribly on PS5. Despite being on hardware that's clearly capable of so much more, it's locked at 30fps, and even then, it struggles to maintain that. Frame rate drops are constant — sometimes minor, often times brutal. Add in loading screens, input latency, and occasional bugs, and you're looking at a game that feels like it wasn't even tested on console.
This is the biggest disappointment by far. The game's charm and solid mechanics are constantly overshadowed by technical issues. It's hard to immerse yourself in a vibrant alien world when the screen stutters every time you look around. It's a shame, because you can tell the game wants to be smooth and playful. But the jank kills the vibe.
Yes, it's in Early Access, and yes, things might improve with future updates. But for now, on PS5 and I guess the same would be on Xbox Series X, it's just not worth it. If you're really curious, maybe give it a go via GamePass and see if you can stomach the rough ride. Otherwise, wait. There's a good game here, but it's buried under a pile of performance issues that seriously affect the experience. If you loved the first game as much as I did, there's a lot here to appreciate — but you'll need to be very forgiving of the technical shortcomings. Unfortunately at this point in time, I can't recommend this game on consoles. PC might be a different story, but I don't know that. Thanks for reading!
The game was reviewed on a PS5 via a promo copy provided by PR. Revenge of the Savage Planet is available on PS5, Xbox Series and PC.
