TechRadar Review Says Minecraft Dungeons 2 Delivers Co-op but Lacks Diablo-Style Progression

The review's central criticism is aggressive level scaling. TechRadar reported that over more than 12 hours needed to beat the story campaign, the reviewer never felt more powerful. New abilities and a variety of weapons were unlocked, but the time required to defeat newly spawned enemies remained near constant. A friend joined toward the end of the playthrough with a level 1 character and effortlessly kept pace with the reviewer's level 40 character through the final encounters. The review said this may be intended to let friends join lobbies without worrying about levels, but it left the reviewer wondering what the point of grinding was.

TechRadar said the game does recreate Minecraft's blocky look expertly, with stylized twists, more expressive lighting and Pixar-like character animations that make the world recognizable but refreshingly new even from a distant isometric perspective. Co-op is otherwise well done. Creating a group with up to three companions is impressively straightforward regardless of where they play, thanks to seamless cross-platform connectivity. Couch co-op is also included, which the review called rare in 2026 and worth praising. The ease of playing with others makes Minecraft Dungeons 2 genuinely worthwhile for younger players, according to the review, but for everyone else everything is too straightforward to appeal.

Enemy variety is sorely lacking, TechRadar said. Minecraft favorites such as Creepers, Zombies, Skeletons and the Chicken Jockey are present, along with the evil grey-skinned Illagers from the first Minecraft Dungeons game. Most enemies function indistinguishably: those with projectile weapons spray arrows from afar, while the rest rush toward the player in a large group. The strategy in every encounter is to mash the attack button and occasionally dodge, even as more powerful Illagers with magic attacks are introduced. Boss fights are equally bland, forcing players to whittle down gigantic health bars for minutes while waves of low-level enemies spawn in; many bosses are repeated throughout the campaign with little variation.

On paper, the review noted, combat has some depth. Players have a melee and ranged attack plus three equipped abilities granted by items they find. Weapon selection is decently varied: scooping shovels and fast-attacking double daggers perform very differently from slow-swinging war hammers or claymores, and a steady trickle of new gear encourages experimentation. Weapons can be upgraded with unlockable enchantments that add small mechanics, such as a lightning strike that triggers at the end of a chain attack. Abilities are powered by a blue soul-meter that fills a little with each defeated foe. TechRadar said the intention appears to be a rhythm alternating between melee, ranged and abilities, but the fundamental problem is that there is no real strategy to any of it. A player could spend ages creating a build with complementary gear, the review added, but there is no real reason to bother when enemy scaling wipes out any real power gain.

The review also criticized the game's world. Much was made of Minecraft Dungeons 2's world in its marketing, and it is much more open than the previous game, but TechRadar would not call it a true open-world. The map is designed like a linear corridor that funnels the player. The review listed boring dialogue among its reasons to avoid the game. Its stated reasons to buy were the lovely art style and seamless co-op experience; its reasons to avoid were aggressive level scaling, shallow and repetitive combat, an underutilized open world and boring dialogue.

Editor's Summary

TechRadar's review says Minecraft Dungeons 2 offers strong art and accessible cross-platform co-op but is held back by aggressive level scaling, repetitive combat, limited enemy variety and an underused world. The game released on September 29, 2026, for PC, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2.