Attack on Titan 2 does a really good job of letting you create your own character and slash through titans while retelling the story of the hit anime. Learning to master the 3D Maneuver Gear in combat is fun but the new depiction of the story’s content is the real appeal.

This is a sequel to the first Attack on Titan game, Attack on Titan: Wings of Freedom, but it includes that content and continues into the events of season 2. You do not have to play Attack on Titan 1 to pick up Attack on Titan 2. It only adds more to an actually pretty good anime game.

Beware: This article will contain MAJOR spoilers for the first two seasons of Attack on Titan.

7 The Biggest Change: You

Before anything else, the inclusion of your custom character is the biggest change from the content of the anime. You’re one of the heroes, a friend to the other members of the survey corps, and someone that everybody relies on to get the job done. Although you get portrayed as a side character for the sake of the story, you do most of the heavy lifting in combat.

As such, you will often get to see the story from the point of view of your completely new Survey Corps soldier. Sometimes you will switch to what Eren is doing or get a glimpse at Mikasa, but for the majority of the game, you see the events from your perspective.

6 Training Camp

Attack on Titan 2 goes more in-depth on the activity of the cast while in the Training Corps. This is done to work as a tutorial for the player but it also gives you the chance to get more attached to the characters in the setting. It’s fun to see this take on Attack on Titan combat, as well.

Through ranked training drills and character dialogue, you get to see some more of the characters’ personalities. It also further establishes how skilled Mikasa and Reiner are in comparison to the rest of the group. It adds content that isn’t in the original story but fun to see and quite immersive.

5 The Friendship System Vs. Friendships

Attack on Titan 2 has a friendship system where you can talk to major characters and gain in-game bonuses for it. You can get some filler content and extra bond experience if you choose the proper response. In return, you can gain character traits or stat boosts to equip.

The biggest impact of the friendship system isn’t the combat benefits that you acquire. It’s the connection to the characters. These small interactions partnered with their personalities and actions in the story allow the player to feel more connected with the cast. This is probably done to crush your spirits when a majority of them meet a gruesome fate.

4 Additional Fights

The game makes sure to take every opportunity it can to include some gameplay. This results in creating fights that weren’t previously included in the anime. Opportunities in which characters are too scared to move or are outnumbered and strategically retreat aren’t presented in the same way as before. This results in extended invasions or combat opportunities that weren’t previously there.

For example, the second coming of the Colossal Titan and the Female Titan fights are extended. The newly graduated Survey Corps members fight off the titan invasion instead of cowering and you later have to escort them after their gas runs out. Jean comes out of his slump earlier than usual and you get to use him as a support. This is extended throughout the game to seize every chance that your character can get to show off their skills.

3 Levi’s Introduction

In the anime, Levi is seen for mere seconds before his proper introduction. You get very brief but well-scripted scenes that show his coarse demeanor with a hint of empathy and respect for his subordinates. Levi’s introduction in the game, however, takes a different approach to his characterization.

During the second appearance of the Colossal Titan, Levi and his allies show up and meet with the player character. From there, you get to see the full strength of Levi as you’re able to use him as a support. You make easy work of the remaining titans in the walls and it serves to only give more credit to his reputation as humanity’s strongest warrior.

2 None Of The Finer Details

The game does not cover every detail of the story. If your character isn’t present, you will most likely not get to watch those events. As a whole, the game does a good job of inserting your character into the right place at the right time, but you’re still going to be missing some content.

Attack on Titan, especially later in the story, relies on the small and subtle details to sell the messages of the story or leave a heavy impact. Even the anime content has some issues with presenting all of the available information from the manga. Although the game works as solid supplemental content, the dismissal of some of those finer details hurts some of the overall experience. Those small details add up.

1 The RBA/Warrior Trio

As the main antagonists of this portion of the story, the RBA trio is given a lot of priority in Attack on Titan 2. Once again, this will contain Major Spoilers for Attack on Titan up until the end of Season 2.

The Warrior Trio - consisting of Reiner, Bertolt, and Annie - takes full advantage of the friendship system to get close to your character. Just like they did to Eren and the rest of the 104th Training Corps cadets, they betray you after blending in and pretending to befriend everyone. They’re closer than ever before and it only makes the reveal all the more painful once you find out about the truth.

Fans who are already familiar with the twists of Attack on Titan will gain some enjoyment from paying close attention to their dialogue. It hints towards the eventual reveal with small interactions amongst the trio. Anyone who despises the group will have their blood boil as they befriend you throughout the course of the game.

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