Grounded 2

Grounded 2
Developers
PublisherBethesda Softworks
DirectorsChris Parker
Justin Vazquez
ProducerMiles Winzeler
Designers
  • Henri Durocher
  • Vincent Lavallée
  • Chris Ractliffe
ArtistNatasha Bouchard
WriterStéfanie Jolin
ComposerFinishing Move Inc.
SeriesGrounded
EngineUnreal Engine 5
Platforms
Release
2027
  • early access; Windows, Xbox Series X/S
  • July 29, 2025
  • early access; PlayStation 5
  • August 11, 2026
GenresSurvival, action-adventure
ModesSingle-player, multiplayer

Grounded 2 is a 2027 survival action-adventure video game developed by Eidos-Montréal and Obsidian Entertainment and published by Bethesda Softworks. A sequel to Grounded (2022), the game was announced during the Xbox Games Showcase in June 2025 and entered early access on July 29, 2025, for Windows and Xbox Series X/S through Steam Early Access and Xbox Game Preview, respectively. An early access version for PlayStation 5 followed on August 11, 2026, with the game's full release scheduled for 2027.

Continuing the core premise of the first game, Grounded 2 follows miniaturized teenagers who must survive in an oversized environment by gathering resources, crafting tools and equipment, building bases, and fighting insects and other creatures. The sequel is set in Brookhollow Park, a larger setting than the backyard of the original game.

Gameplay

Grounded 2 is a survival game that can be played from a first-person perspective or third-person perspective. Players explore Brookhollow Park, gather materials, craft weapons, armor, and tools, and build shelters and other structures while defending themselves from hostile creatures.

As in the first game, progression is tied to improved equipment and access to new areas and resources. New features introduced in the sequel include rideable insect mounts known as "Buggies" and the "Omni-Tool", which combines multiple gathering and repair functions into a single tool. The game also adds revised movement and combat options, including dodging.

The game supports both single-player and cooperative multiplayer.

Synopsis

Grounded 2 is set in 1992, two years after the events of the first game, and again follows the four original teenagers after they are shrunk. The story is set in Brookhollow Park and involves renewed activity connected to Ominent, the corporation featured in the first game.

Development

Grounded 2 was co-developed by Obsidian Entertainment and Eidos-Montréal. According to the developers, rideable insect mounts were one of the most requested additions after the first game and became a major reason for developing a sequel rather than trying to retrofit the mechanic into the original.

Creative director Justin Vazquez said that the design of the mounts, known as Buggies, and the design of Brookhollow Park had to be developed together, while game director Chris Parker said balancing traversal and combat around mounted and on-foot play was a major development challenge. Obsidian also said that technical limitations influenced the decision to create a new game rather than continue expanding the first title.

Early access

Announced during the Xbox Games Showcase in June 2025, Grounded 2 was released on July 29, 2025, through both Xbox Game Preview and Steam Early Access. It was also made available at launch to subscribers of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass.

The early access version includes the larger Brookhollow Park setting, Buggies, new combat options, and the Omni-Tool, with additional updates planned during development. Developers described early access as a way to gather player feedback and identify problems that could be addressed before the full release.

Post-launch updates during early access included the Hairy and Scary update in September 2025, which added the tarantula boss AXL and related equipment, Toxic Tangle in January 2026, which introduced the Garden area, the Ladybug Buggy, and new gear and creatures, Beat the Heat in April 2026, which introduced the Sinkhole Anthill area, the boss King Dozer, a Black Soldier Ant Buggy, and additional progression systems, Into the Abyss in August 2026, introducing the Skunk Pond area and underwater gameplay, and the amphibious Toe Biter buggy., and Rot and Ruins in October 2026, introducing the Woodpile area, the boss Centipede, a Potato Beetle Buggy, and additional quality of life update, such as base and world painting system, SCA.B 2 themes.

Within two weeks of release, the game had reached more than 3 million players. It was later nominated for Best Early Access Game at the Golden Joystick Awards in 2025.

Announced during Summer Games Fest in June 2026, Grounded 2 will release on August 11, 2026 for PlayStation 5 alongside the Into the Abyss update. With latest 'Rot and Ruin' update, Obsidian was announced that the game will gone version 1.0 with full release set in 2027.

Reception

Pre-release and early-access coverage generally described Grounded 2 as a larger and more streamlined follow-up to the first game. Critics highlighted Brookhollow Park, the Buggy system, and the Omni-Tool as notable additions to the formula.

In its review in progress, GameSpot wrote that the sequel established "a much stronger foundation for the future", while noting that some features and content from the original game were not yet present in the early-access build. PC Gamer praised the game's world design and quality-of-life changes, particularly the Omni-Tool and mounted traversal, though it also noted that the game was still in an early-access state.

References

  1. 1 2 Valentine, Rebekah (10 June 2025). "Grounded 2 Exists Because Obsidian Was 'Running Out of Room' in Grounded 1". IGN. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Schofield, Shyla (8 June 2025). "Grounded 2: Bigger, Bolder, and Back in Game Preview". Xbox Wire. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Schofield, Shyla (16 July 2025). "Grounded 2 (Game Preview) Lands July 29 – Here's What You Need to Know". Xbox Wire. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  4. 1 2 Betts, Emma-Jane (12 March 2026). "Grounded 2: Everything you need to know about Obsidian's Early Access survival game". GamesRadar+. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Delaney, Mark (31 July 2025). "Grounded 2 Review In Progress – Little, Big Planet". GameSpot. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Brown, Fraser (29 July 2025). "Grounded 2, even in early access, is one of the best survival games I've ever played". PC Gamer. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Kerr, Chris (5 September 2025). "Grounded 2 exists because players really wanted to ride bugs". Game Developer. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  8. ↑ Spurr, Megan (15 July 2025). "Coming to Game Pass: Grounded 2 (Game Preview), Wuchang: Fallen Feathers, Farming Simulator 25, and More". Xbox Wire. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  9. ↑ Schofield, Shyla (30 September 2025). "Grounded 2's Hairy and Scary Update Crawls Onto Your Screens Today". Xbox Wire. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  10. ↑ Schoefield, Shyla (27 January 2026). "Grounded 2 Update: The Toxic Tangle – Available Now". Xbox Wire.
  11. ↑ Partis, Danielle (14 April 2026). "Beat the Heat Update: How Obsidian Built King Dozer – Grounded 2's Biggest Boss Yet". Xbox Wire. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  12. ↑ Schofield, Shyla (August 11, 2026). "Dive Beneath the Surface in Grounded 2's Biggest Update Yet: Into the Abyss".
  13. 1 2 Schoefield, Shyla (20 October 2026). "Grounded 2: 100 Reasons to Run in the Rot and Ruin Update". Xbox Wire.
  14. ↑ Watts, Steve (13 August 2025). "Grounded 2 Reaches Major Player Milestone". GameSpot. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  15. ↑ "All the Golden Joystick Awards 2025 winners revealed". GamesRadar+. 20 November 2025. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  16. ↑ Romano, Sal (June 5, 2026). "Grounded 2 Early Access coming to PS5 on August 11 alongside 'Into the Abyss' update". Gematsu. Retrieved June 6, 2026.

Notes

  1. ↑ Xbox Game Studios published the early access release until 2026, when Obsidian was restructured under Bethesda.