Knack 2 will have ‘more variety and platforming’, gameplay changes detailed by Mark Cerny

Mark Cerny may be the lead man behind the scenes on the PS4, the most successful console this generation, but he did work on Knack. If you remember back in 2013, Knack was the only platformer available at the PS4’s launch and it debuted to mediocre reviews. I personally found the game to do a decent impression of what a modern Crash Bandicoot game would be (though now we can play that for real) but it did leave a lot to be desired.

Knack 2 is set to ship on PS4 later this year and Mark Cerny says Knack 2’s gameplay will be more fleshed out. There will be a bigger emphasis on moment-to-moment action, the player will be able to hover when jumping so they can navigate more challenging levels and players will be able to block incoming enemy attacks with a shield.

Mark Cerny had this to say about the first game’s reception:

There was a desire for more variety and platforming. I hadn’t appreciated how much desire there was for that.

You can read an in-depth preview of the game by Venture Beat right now and you should. Knack 2 does seem like it will fare much better than its predecessor if fans who laughed the first game off just give it a chance.

As is, Sony should price Knack 2 at $39.99 like the Ratchet & Clank reboot from 2016. That price point makes it much easier to give the game a shot if you’re a gamer on a budget. The PS4 has really amassed a decent library of platformers over this generation and games like Knack 2 (along with Sonic Mania and the Crash Bandicoot remakes) are adding to that.