On July 28, 2020, Obsidian Entertainment unleashed a brand-new video game IP onto the world called Grounded via early access, before launching the full version on September 27, 2022.
This open-world survival game, inspired by classic Disney movies like 'Honey, I Shrunk the Kids!' and 'A Bug's Life', had you play as kids shrunk down to the size of insects and explore the back garden to find a way to get to normal without getting eaten by the local bugs.
Grounded was a huge success as it garnered over 13 million players on Xbox and PC alone, while receiving highly positive reviews from critics (including a favorable 4/5 review score from us at Windows Central).
Three years later, Obsidian made an appearance at the Xbox Game Showcase 2025 event to announce that this game will be getting a sequel in the form of Grounded 2.
This sequel aims to expand on all aspects that made the first game great by adding new environments, tools, and bugs to discover. Plus, it will also incorporate new gameplay mechanics like being able to raise and ride friendly bugs called 'Buggies'.
I personally haven't played the original game due to being obsessed with Monster Hunter at the time. But the idea of raising and riding ants into battle against scorpions sounds way too good to pass up.
So, I can't wait to play this upcoming Xbox title/upcoming PC title when it launches on early access via Xbox and PC later this July.
Here's everything you need to know about Grounded 2.
When is the release date for Grounded 2?
When is the release date for Grounded 2?
Grounded 2 will be released in early access on July 29, 2025. The full version of Grounded 2 will be released at a later date.
Grounded 2 will be released on July 29, 2025, via early access on Steam's Early Access program and Xbox Game Preview. This early access version of the game will let players explore a small portion of the new Brookhollow Park and try out the new Buggie system.
While playing the early access build, players will be able to leave feedback for the developers to help them refine Grounded 2's final launch build, which will be announced at a later date.
When is Grounded 2 up for Preorder and what is its price?
When is Grounded 2 up for Preorder and what is its price?
Grounded 2 is not available for pre-order, and its pricing is not revealed.
As Grounded 2 will be launching in early access form, the game is not available for preorders, and its price tag has not been revealed as of yet. This means you can only wishlist the game as of right now before its early access release.
When the full version of Grounded 2 gets announced, perhaps we shall see its MSRP by then or shortly afterwards.
What Bugs and Buggies will Grounded 2 have?
What Bugs and Buggies will Grounded 2 have?
Grounded 2 will feature a variety of returning bugs like ants, spiders, bees, and ladybugs, while also including new ones like the scorpion, caterpillar, and butterfly.
The friendly Buggies shown off so far include ants and spiders.
The original Grounded had a ton of enemy bugs to encounter, and Grounded 2 will be no different. From what's seen so far, we can expect bugs like ants, spiders, ladybugs, praying mantises, stinkbugs, roaches, and bees to return.
Grounded 2 will also be adding new insects into the mix for players to combat. The newcomers so far include scorpions, caterpillars, snails and butterflies.
However, not all bugs will be enemies this time around as Grounded 2 will allow you to raise, befriend, and even ride friendly bugs called 'Buggies'. So far, it's been confirmed that players will be able to obtain Fire Ants and Orb-weaver Spiders as Buddies.
According to our Summer Game Fest 2025 preview of Grounded 2, each Buggy will have unique abilities to use while on the field. Fire Ant Buggies can call for Worker Ants to aid them in battle, while Orb-weaver Spiders can roar to stun enemies.
What will the gameplay and story be like in Grounded 2?
What will the gameplay and story be like in Grounded 2?
Grounded 2's story focuses on the kids from the previous game, shrunken down once again and trapped in Brookhollow Park.
The gameplay will have players exploring the Park, gathering resources to build shelters, foraging for food and water, and building gear to defend themselves from insects.
The story of Grounded 2 takes place two years after the events of the original Grounded.
The teenagers from the first game, Peter "Pete" Boggs, Maxwell "Max" Smalls, Willow Branch, and Ally "Hoops" Nguyen, along with their friends BURG.L the robot and Dr. Wendell Tully, were attending a ceremony in Brookhollow Park.
This ceremony was commemorating the teens' efforts in exposing the illegal human experiments conducted by Dalton Schmector of the Omniment corporation.
During the ceremony, a mysterious explosion occurrs out of nowhere and shinks the teens down to insect-size again, with Dr. Tully and BURG.L nowhere to be found.
Now our heroes must call upon their survival skills once again to survive the hostile wildlife of Brookhollow Park, find out what happened to their friends, and get back to normal size before they're bug food.
Like the first game, Grounded 2 is an open-world survival adventure that can be played solo or in 4-player online co-op.
Players need to scour the land for resources to build bases to take shelter in from hostile lifeforms, forage for food and water to keep healthy, and craft weapons and armor to defend themselves against the giant bugs looking to eat them.
Players can use dirt, rocks and plants as crafting materials or use body parts from the bugs they kill to craft special gear with unique passive abilities to help them become stronger in battle.
What's new from the original Grounded?
What's new from the original Grounded?
Grounded 2 will have new friendly bugs called 'Buggies', a world 3 times bigger than the previous, and a mysterious new enemy lurking in the shadows.
Grounded 2 will a variety of new features to differentiate from its predecessor like new bugs, gameplay mechanics, environments, and more.
The biggest new gameplay feature so far is the new, aforementioned 'Buggy' system, which will allow players to raise insects and befriend them so they can ride them into battle or get over precarious obstacles.
Also, Grounded 2's new Brookhollow Park will be much bigger than the backyard from the previous game, which more diverse biomes and secrets to uncover.
During early access, players will have access to 20% of Brookhollow Park, which Obsidian has stated to be just as big as the final build of Grounded 1's world.
By the time Grounded 2 leaves early access, Obsidian says that the full version of Brookhollow Park will be three times bigger than the backyard from Grounded 1, which is nuts considering how big the first game was.
Another new aspect of Grounded 2 that Obsidian is keeping quiet about is the presence of a mysterious new enemy lurking in the shadows.
Nothing is currently known about this entity other than the fact it leaves menacing graffiti and Obsidian says that this being will be stalking the player the further they delve into the story.
Could this be an agent of the Omniment corperation sent to silence the teens for exposing their experiments or could this be an entirely new force being altogether? We will have to explore Brookhollow Park to find out.
What platforms will Grounded 2 be released on?
What platforms will Grounded 2 be released on?
Grounded 2 will be released on Xbox Series X|S and PC via Windows and Steam. The game will also be available on Xbox Game Pass (day one), Xbox Play Anywhere, PC Game Pass, Xbox Cloud Gaming.
Grounded 2 is currently slated to release on Xbox Series X|S and PC via Windows and Steam.
As Grounded 2 is a first-party Xbox title, it will also be available on Xbox Game Pass, Xbox Play Anywhere, PC Game Pass, and Xbox Cloud Gaming on the day the early access build releases.
It also worth noting that Grounded 2 may release on other platforms like PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch 2 at some point. This is because after the original Grounded's full version released in 2022, it eventually ported itself over to PlayStation and Nintendo hardware on April 16, 2024.
So it's highly likely that Grounded 2 will follow suit after that game's final launch build releases sometime in the future for Xbox and PC.
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