Cyber Manhunt 2: New World | PC Early Access Review

I admit that I’m a somewhat snoopy person. If I meet someone new, I take a casual look at their social media profiles to get an idea of what they’re like. It’s a bad habit, but it did make me extremely intrigued in Aluba Studio’s Cyber Manhunt 2: New World. The premise of the plot was too interesting for me to resist, and I’m glad I fell for the temptation. This is a highly polished gem that I can’t recommend highly enough.

Just a Little Look-See

You are an older model of an AI assistant that is suddenly rebooted by a higher-up of Titan Tech. She tasks you with finding the truth in several cases, no matter what lengths you have to take. These assignments include looking up keywords on the in-game Internet and hacking into victims and suspects’ Toothbook (the game’s predominant social media platform) and email accounts, their chat messaging systems, and even their phones. You then search through their text exchanges, articles, and photos to glean important information to figure out what is true and what is false.

Each of the four cases available in the Early Access version of Cyber Manhunt 2: New World are complex, dark, and have plenty of twists and turns. I became so enthralled with each chapter that I completely lost track of time with each play session. It was a thrilling seven hour journey that left me hungry for the two remaining chapters that will be in the final release.

Task Manager

Cyber Manhunt 2: New World’s gameplay is very simple, despite being about hacking. You simply comb through the text and photos in the game and important information such as passwords and names are automatically added to your character profiles after you discover and click on them. You can drag names and keywords into the in-game browser and database to find accounts and crack security measures. There are some mini-games that diverge from this pattern, but they’re still very simple to complete. You often just have to click on the correct answer or drag items to a certain location.

There was a particularly brilliant moment in the game that simultaneously scared me and made me admire the developer’s creativity.  I felt a little paranoid afterwards, which I’m positive is the reaction that was intended to be evoked. I’ll leave this as a surprise, but don’t be too alarmed if you play this game and an event happens. 

Briefly speaking about the graphics and dialogue, they’re all-around excellent. I didn’t catch any typos whatsoever in my playthrough, which is impressive with the amount of writing there is in this game. The visuals are simple yet clean, with characters appearing to be hand-drawn. The voice-acting is also solid when it’s utilized. 

The Final Verdict

Cyber Manhunt 2: New World is a captivating, narratively-driven hacking game. It keeps the controls simple and accessible so that players of any skill set can partake in its thrills and chills. I honestly can’t complain about anything in this Early Access version. I’m thoroughly impressed with the level of creativity and polish Aluba Studio has put into their game already. I’m hungrily awaiting those final two chapters to further get my detective senses tingling. You also don’t need to have played the first game to enjoy this entry (I did purchase it to support the devs immediately after rolling credits, though). It’s currently available on Steam for $9.99 but the price will increase when the final version releases. This is one game that you can’t miss if it sounds in any way up your alley.  

To hear me talk more about Cyber Manhunt 2: New World, be sure to listen to the May 22, 2024 episode of The Gaming Outsider podcast around the 1:06:48 time stamp.

This review is based on a PC Early Access copy of Cyber Manhunt 2: New World provided by Jesus Fabre for coverage purposes. It is exclusive to this platform.