Injustice 2 vs. The Surge: Which Should You Buy?

Injustice 2 vs. The Surge

Both Injustice 2 and The Surge were released on the same day and, if you’re a little tight on cash, you might be trying to figure out which game you should buy? Well, we’re here to help by breaking down the story and gameplay elements for both titles to help you make an informed decision.

Injustice 2 is a sequel to Injustice: Gods Among Us, NetherRealm’s collaboration fighting game with DC Comics. The game features a huge cast of characters from the DC universe, along with some new additions like Blue Beetle and Scarecrow. It’s also a direct continuation of the story from the first game, and while the game’s opening hour does give a recap of the events that transpired, the finer plot points might be a little tougher for newcomers to follow.

The Surge is the latest game from Deck13 Interactive, and it’s an action RPG. It takes place in a sci-fi dystopian world that’s been plagued by environmental diseases and a shortage of resources. As a CREO employee on the first day of the job, Warren finds that disaster has struck his workplace, and hostile robots are attacking him. His fellow colleagues have also turned into husks of their former selves, and are now hostile.

Story and World

Injustice 2 takes place in an alternate universe where Superman has become a tyrannical overlord who decides to try to prevent crime by ruthlessly murdering all criminals with no exceptions. A few heroes have joined his cause, but Batman firmly believes that Supes has gone too far. Eventually, Batman is able to imprison him in a special cell that dulls his powers. The story starts proper with Superman in jail, while Batman continues to keep the peace. However, another Earth-threatening evil force in the form of Brainiac soon arrives, and Batman realizes that he might not be able to handle it alone.

The single-player campaign of Injustice 2 is extremely linear, and it’s broken up into a number of chapters where you’ll get to take control of various heroes, not unlike the structure of 2015’s Mortal Kombat X. It’s essentially a series of fully voiced (and very well acted) cutscenes, with fighting game rounds spliced in between. Much like its predecessor and Mortal Kombat X, Injustice 2 is essentially like an action blockbuster movie, except you get to be a part of all the cool action bits.

The Surge is a wholly different beast altogether. Our protagonist Warren is wheelchair-bound, but that quickly changes when he joins up with mega corporation CREO. The company hooks him up with an exo-suit to help him walk again, and he’s just about to start his first day on the job when everything goes awry. When Warren wakes up at his workplace, he finds that the CREO machines have become hostile, and his fellow colleagues are now zombie-like husks that will stop at nothing to kill him.

Frankly, the story of The Surge takes a backseat to its unforgiving action gameplay, which serves as the highlight of this title. Because of how different the genres are, the story pacing of The Surge is also much slower than in Injustice 2.

Gameplay

As a fighting game with a diverse roster, Injustice 2 lets you experiment with all of its characters and learn their moves inside and out. Outside of the single-player campaign, there are also tournaments you can take part in, along with local versus mode that you and a friend can check out together. Of course, there’s also online multiplayer, where you can test your skills against other players, provided you’re willing to try to brave those netcode woes.

Injustice 2 also features a few RPG elements where you get to level up individual characters and even unlock pieces of equipment for them. Your equipment can help to beef up their stats and allow them to reach their full potential. Of course, you can also link your game with the companion app on your smartphone and unlock skins that way.

The Surge is a third-person action RPG that draws a lot of combat inspiration from FromSoftware’s Soulsborne games. You’ll use the shoulder buttons to dodge and attack, and you have to manage your stamina meter as well. Defeating enemies rewards you with Tech Scrap, which is basically experience points that let you level up. However, if you die, you drop your Tech Scrap, and you’ll need to retrieve it by going to the place where you originally died. Die again, and all of that experience is gone for good.

The exploration bits are also very similar to Soulsborne titles. Massive levels are littered with dangerous enemies, item pickups, and satisfying shortcuts that loop you back to the nearest medbay (basically a bonfire, in Souls terms). While there’s no character customization available, The Surge gives you quite a bit of freedom in how you want to build your character. There are different pieces of armor you can attach to your exo-suit, weapon types, and implants that can turn you into either a tank or an agile fighter.

Which Should You Buy?

Ultimately, it really comes down to what kind of game you want to play. If you’re in the mood for a fighting game, then Injustice 2 is an excellent pick for you. But if you’re more into action RPGs with unforgiving challenges as seen in Soulsborne games, The Surge is a no-brainer.

The Surge is available on PS4, Xbox One, and PC, while Injustice 2 is only on PS4 and Xbox One. Choice of platform shouldn’t be much of an issue unless, of course, you only own a PC, in which case, your choice has pretty much already been made for you.

Both games were released on May 16, and are now available on their respective platforms.