Just this month, the second chapter of the rising indie horror game Poppy Playtime came out on Steam. Unfortunately, the game was riddled with game-breaking bugs, resulting in plenty of complaints from the player base. Aside from this, fans aren’t happy with MOB Games’ pricing for Chapters 1 and 2.
Thus, Poppy Playtime Chapter 2 suffers from mixed reviews on Steam with nearly a third of them being negative. This is in stark contrast to how Poppy Playtime Chapter 1 was received upon launch, with plenty of players praising the indie horror game’s effective scares.
Bugs and Issues Surrounding Poppy Playtime Chapter 2
The biggest problem concerning the game Poppy Playtime Chapter 2 is the performance issues that prevent players from immersing themselves in the game. The most common, of course, are lag spikes that cause a drop in the game’s framerate. There are even some cases where the game refuses to open altogether, prompting players to request refunds. However, for those who can open the game, there are a number of other bugs that detract from the gameplay.
First is the Barry glitch. Barry is a toy cart that the player must use to break through a pathway blocked by wooden boards. The glitch gets Barry stuck in one of the electric-powered gates on the way to the blocked path, restricting the player from moving forward. Another bug causes the game’s audio to cut out after a player death. That said, these specific issues have been addressed by MOB Games.
Unfortunately, there are still more bugs. Some report that the Poppy Playtime GrabPack Hand controls don’t always work as intended, often sticking to places they shouldn’t without retracting. Other players say that the game’s TV screens — those that play the VHS tapes and those in the musical memory game mini-game segment — aren’t displaying what they need to and show only a primarily white screen. These are game-breaking issues that prevent players from progressing through the chapter, requiring them to either restart the game or, worse, tinker with the game files.
Poppy Playtime Chapter 1 Now Free
The buggy launch isn’t where Poppy Playtime’s issues end, unfortunately. Players also aren’t happy with the game’s price points. Poppy Playtime Chapter 1 used to be $4.99 on Steam, but it’s now free following the release of Chapter 2. Alongside the Poppy Playtime NFTs, this move earned plenty of criticism from the fanbase, and they expressed their disappointment on the game’s Steam review section. Making the game free now seemed like a rip-off to those who supported Chapter 1 from the get-go.
As for the price of Poppy Playtime Chapter 2, this, too, garnered plenty of criticism. Poppy Playtime started off as a Kickstarter project, and in its description is the statement: “The game is planned to have multiple chapters. Each chapter would release separately and is planned to cost $4.99.” Many fans of the indie horror game took this negatively, as they felt it was MOB Games going back on its word. Granted, the developer never made any promises about sticking to Poppy Playtime’s originally planned price point, but it certainly doesn’t help in bettering the series’ image.
Overall, Poppy Playtime Chapter 2’s mixed reception is a result of the title’s various issues and MOB Games’ recent decisions concerning pricing, among other things. Reviews might get better once all the bugs and glitches are fixed, though it’s clear that plenty of Poppy Playtime’s original fans are starting to get tired of the controversies. And it’s a shame, given that Poppy Playtime had such a strong start.
Poppy Playtime Chapter 1 is available on Android, iOS, and PC. Chapter 2 is now available on PC.