Jetpack Joyride 2 (pre-release also known as Jetpack Joyride 2: Bullet Rush) is a sequel to the original Jetpack Joyride and the fourth mainline title in the Barry Steakfries series, developed and published by Halfbrick Studios. The sequel was first teased in Jetpack Joyride Shorts, "Level 2". It was soft launched in Canada, Australia and New Zealand on February 26, 2021. The full version of the game was released in August of 2022 exclusively on Apple Arcade, with official plans to release it on Android in 2025/2026 after the contract with Apple expires.[1]
Plot[]
The game takes place sometime after the events of the original Barry Steakfries trilogy (Age of Zombies, Monster Dash, Jetpack Joyride) and Jetpack Joyride Shorts.
Legitimate Research staff is tired of Barry Steakfries breaking into the lab and decide to do something about it. Professor Brains invents a set of robots known as Guardbots to serve as a security measure. However, Barry finds a solution by shooting at them with the Pistol he had around. Joined by Betty Beefpies and with support from Craig, Barry fights off many of the Legitimate Research robots and defeats Professor Brains once again. After defeating him, however, Barry finds himself entering a Subterranean Labyrinth, another laboratory lead by one of Brains' fellow villains, Minertaur. From there, Barry, Betty, and Craig travel through the laboratories and defeat other Really Bad Corp villains: Mik, Queen V, Red Photon, and Nixie.
Gameplay[]
Like the original, Jetpack Joyride 2 is played by tapping and holding the screen to make Barry fly upwards and descend once let go. Unlike the original, Barry has a life bar, allowing him to take a few hits before being knocked out. Sometimes during gameplay, a waves of Guardbots will appear, who will aim at Barry. When this happens, he takes out a Pistol and starts firing at the straight line. In this sections, Barry has to destroy all of the Guardbots or dodge them until they leave. When defeated, Guardbots may occasionally drop Coin, XP or Health pickups, all of which will automatically fly towards Barry. As the level progresses, Obstacles will start doing more damage, while Guardbots become more resistant to bullets.
Occasionally, Powerup Tokens and Vehicle Tokens will spawn. The former give Barry Power-Ups, while the latter work similarly to the Vehicle Pickups from the original game. This game's Vehicles can be earned by leveling up, while Powerups are earned through Research.
While this game still shares many elements of an endless runner, the game has a set of levels for the player to complete. The goal is to score enough points. After reaching the required amount, players have to battle a Boss, specific to the level. As the player progresses, the Score goals become bigger and harder to achieve. To score points more easily, the player has to unlock Cores and upgrade the Jetpack's Health and Attack stats, increasing Barry's resistance and gun-power.
Arcade Mode is also a separate mode, where players can play different mini-games and collect rewards. In version 1.11.10, a Boss Rush mode as added, where players can fight all 36 bosses through Arcade Mode. It can be unlocked once and has leaderboards.
Development[]
The game was first revealed publicly on February 26, 2021. The same day, the game had a soft-launch in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, with several updates being published over the course of 2021. The game was originally planned for global release in September that year.[2][3]
On February 10, 2022, it was announced on Halfbrick's socials that Jetpack Joyride 2 has entered a new closed phase of development for an indefinite period and the game was removed from the app stores on February 28, 2022. This meant that the game was no longer available to download, although it would continue to work for those players with the game previously installed on their devices. The game didn't have a planned release date scheduled due to big changes to the core gameplay.[4] On August 2, 2022 It was announced to arrive on Apple Arcade on August 19. The game no longer supports in-app purchases or ads, and a variety of new content has been added.[5]
Trivia[]
- Jetpack Joyride 2 is the second game in the series to be on Apple Arcade, the other being Jetpack Joyride+.
References[]
- ↑ Halfbrick Fireside | PAX Aus 2023 with Shaniel Deo and Sue Swinburne via YouTube, originally broadcasted on Twitch on October 7, 2023 - "Two years; give it two years. If I could do it any sooner, I would, but contractually, my hands are tied. That was a really tough decision to make... to put that on one platform, cause we knew that we would upset our Android fans. And I think, looking back, would we have done that again? No, not right now. Probably not. And the plan is to not do that with any of our future games. So, sorry Android fans, but two years from now, JJ2 on your devices."
- ↑ "Jetpack Joyride 2: Bullet Rush" out for download on selected countries, Reddit post by gameboy367 - "I messaged them and they said global launch will be on September. You could try emailing them if your country is scheduled earlier."
- ↑ Why after 10 years of Jetpack Joyride, now is the right time for a sequel, interview with Halfbrick's product manager Jason Maundrell, PocketGamer.biz - "Regarding the global release date: I'm afraid it's still too early to give you a concrete answer. I can tell you that the team is working very hard every day to bring the game that all fans want as soon as possible. But it would be great if it coincided with Jetpack Joyride's 10th anniversary, don't you think?"
- ↑ Jetpack Joyride on Twitter - "Jetpack Joyride 2 has entered a new closed phase of development for an indefinite period and the game has been removed from the Google Play and App Store as of February 28, 2022. The team has worked hard thanks to the tireless feedback from players and especially the active community on Jetpack Joyride's Discord. We would like to thank the players of the Jetpack Joyride community for their support and patience, and we can't wait to see you soon!"
- ↑ Jetpack Joyride 2🚀Pre-Register NOW! by Halfbrick Studios via YouTube
| Barry Steakfries series | |
|---|---|
| Main Series |
Age of Zombies · Monster Dash · Jetpack Joyride (releases) · Jetpack Joyride 2 (Demo Version) · Age of Zombies 2 |
| Spin-offs |
Jetpack Joyride India Exclusive · Jetpack Joyride Test Labs · Jetpack Joyride Racing |
| Web Series |
Barry Steakfries Rock Operas · Barry Vlog · Jetpack Joyride Shorts · The Ballad of Barry Steakfries |
| Printed Media |
Dynamite Fruit Ninja · Barry Steakfries (Comic book) · The Art of Halfbrick |
| Other Media |
Jetpack Joyride Stickers · Jetpack Joyride (Board game) · Halfbrick Beyond · Halfbrick+ |
| Crossovers |
Fragger · Fruit Ninja · Raskulls · Minecraft · Star Skater · Dan The Man · Magic Brick Wars · Battle Racing Stars · Fruit Ninja 2 · Halfbrick Sports: Football |