Pulpy exploration adventure Curious Expedition 2 leaves early access this month

Curious Expedition 2, developer Maschinen-Mensch’s 19th-century rogue-like exploration sequel, is leaving Steam Early Access and launching in its version 1.0 guise on 28th January.

Likes its predecessor, Curious Expedition 2 casts players as late 19th century explorers, packing them off to distant climes – in this case, a series of mysterious, storm-shrouded islands in the Atlantic ocean – in search of daring adventure and priceless treasure.

In gameplay terms, that manifests as an unusual, but effective, blend of strategy – requiring players to manage their limited resources in order to survive and stave off madness as they make explore each mission’s procedurally generated map – alongside trading, dice-based combat, and enjoyably pulpy choose-your-own-adventure-style narrative vignettes.

So far, so similar to the original game, but Curious Expedition 2 expands on its predecessor’s engaging core in a variety of interesting ways. There are new expedition types, for instance, introducing different completion objectives for missions; there’s more meaningful customization for party members; there are new combat mechanics, enemies, and biomes, different Explorer Clubs to align with – each with their own mission focus and rewards – even online challenges. And it’s all gathered up into a more structured, narrative-driven campaign.

Maschinen-Mensch says Curious Expedition 2’s Version 1.0 release will bring polish improvements, balance adjustments, and bug fixes (as well as the likes of achievements and trading cards) to the already substantial early access release when it you come to steam on 28th January. The team also notes that launch day won’t mark the end of development and that it’s already working on additional content updates to be launched in the months ahead.