Rocks are a primitive weapon in warfare and always have been. Yet, those who know of their potential also know that rocks can be the decisive factor in any fight. Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder makes sure people realize that by being a sequel to the hit original back in 2011. We here at Honey’s Anime got our own copy of Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder and were quite pleased to relive the greatness of rock-based combat once again in this amazingly fun tower defense geared title. However, was our experience perfect or does this rock have a few cracks? Find out in our full Nintendo Switch review of Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder down below!

Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder is a tower defense game with one simple theme…slam rocks into each other to win. Players control a giant boulder and run it head first into the enemy. As you play, you’ll relive various eras and periods from the renaissance to Egyptian and many others! Play either solo in a lengthy single player story mode or go online to fight against others!

War is fought in numerous ways. Some battles are fought with guns and large cannons. Other wars have warriors using close handed weapons to engage in bloody combat. In Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder war is fought with giant rocks with faces! Take control of various historical figures and launch boulders at your enemy stronghold with ferocity and skill. Shatter whatever defenses they throw at you and show them your rocks are a lot bigger than theirs!

Tower defense games were a big genre back in the early 2000s because they were simple time wasters. People could invest either ten minutes or less into a good tower defense title and then go back to doing what they needed to. Even today, tower defense-based games—while not as popular—still tend to be relevant with those who need bite sized gaming experiences every once in a while. Rock of Ages is a perfect example of a tower defense-like game that was widely popular despite being quite…strange. Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder is the sequel to this quirky title and we got to play it for the Nintendo Switch when it released. Is Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder worth your Nintendo Switch space or should you avoid it like a rock in the road? Besides getting ready for a lot of rock puns, let’s judge Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder in our full review!

Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder is largely unchanged from the original title. Players assume the control of historical figures—Napoleon and Ramses to name a few—and engage in warfare with one another. However, unlike the real-world historical battles, Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder has players use giant boulders with silly faces and launch them into their opponent’s stronghold. The first player to destroy the enemy’s base and literally crush their competition is the victor and that is the brunt of Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder.

What makes Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder work though—despite its extremely simplicity—is how the game takes tower defense and makes it more action orientated and strategic. When you guide your boulder—or when your enemy launches one at you—you’re in control to either avoid defense hastily made and/or maneuver around map hazards that change depending on the period you’re in. On some maps, you’ll need to jump over giant holes or roll your ball on ship platforms to avoid dangerous water pits. Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder constantly has you making quick on the fly actions and that is what keeps its simplicity from ever becoming mind numbing. Thinking of how to avoid a well-made barricade from the enemy or how to set up your own is a fun element to Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder and gets only better the further in you get.

Aside from a single player element, Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder also has multiplayer and that is where things really rock hard. Players can either go 1 vs 1 against others with custom settings on or they can go 2 vs 2 where teams try to help destroy the enemy together. Either option is a blast and we had the most fun in multiplayer as the AI can only do so much versus a creative human player who might make defenses that literally put you in between a rock and a hard place. Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder seems almost perfect, but there are a few issues and one of them is more noticeable on the Nintendo Switch version.

While the Nintendo Switch isn’t a strong console—though some games prove otherwise—we’ve come to appreciate how developers handle the console’s weaker elements, especially in handheld mode. Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder suffers when in portable mode unfortunately due to some pretty bad visuals that make the battlefield look blurry and—at times—extremely low rez. While the comedic cutscenes still look solid and we don’t expect Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder to win the best graphics of the year award, while in docked mode, the difference in visuals is night and day. Our other minor gripe is Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder is very much like the original only with minor changes and different maps. Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder isn’t expensive—it’s actually quite cheap—but it could have been an add on given the amount it adds versus being a whole different entry in the now series.

Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder is mostly unchanged and that isn’t a bad thing for such a simple game like this. Yes, you might just be guiding giant rocks towards one end of a map but the strategy comes from dealing with enemy defenses and getting your boulder to that enemy base in the best way possible. The Nintendo Switch version makes Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder portable for some good tower defense on the go but it shows weakness due to some blurry visuals and overall weaker graphics when in handheld mode. If you can overlook that minor issue though, Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder is a solid title for any Switch owner and shows that reinventing the wheel—or the rock in this case—doesn’t always need to be done with a simple formula. Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder is a fun game that is at an excellent price tag making it a must buy for fans of the original or fans of tower defense games.

Maybe not much has changed with Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder, but that doesn’t mean you won’t enjoy this rocking title. We loved the simple gameplay and even more loved the comedy element. Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder is a necessary title for fans—and even newcomers—and gets our seal of approval without a doubt in our hearts! Are you thinking of buying Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder? Comment below to let us know why or why not! For more game, anime and manga related articles, be sure to keep stuck to our amazing hive here at Honey’s Anime!