Deemo II is a Rhythm Game by Rayark, developers of Cytus, Sdorica, and VOEZ. It is the sequel to Deemo, and released on January 13, 2022 for iOS and Android, which was also Rayark's 10th anniversary.
Like its predecessor, rhythm gameplay consists of tapping, dragging, and now holding notes as they approach the "judgment line" at the bottom of the screen. Unlike its predecessor, the rest of the game places a lot more emphasis on character interaction, limited-time events, and exploring different locations. In addition, there is a new Rewards Pass system called the Arcanum, which rewards players with currency, collectibles, and new songs.
Deemo II takes place in a world plagued by a phenomenon called the Hollow Rain, which is a never-ending rainfall that causes any creature who touches it to turn into white flower petals and eventually disappear in a process known as "blooming." You play as Echo, a girl who bloomed and somehow came back to life, as she explores Central Station and searches for signs of The Composer, a mysterious being who created and abandoned the world, leaving behind magical song charts that can clear the Hollow Rain and a Guardian named Deemo.
Deemo II contains examples of:
- Aerith and Bob: Character names include Isaac, Gordon, Theresa, Dixit, and Lorf.
- Art Shift: The songs' artwork can vary wildly, due to many different artists being involved.
- Back from the Dead: Echo was brought back to life after she bloomed, and a large part of her character motivation is wanting to find out why.
- Big Damn Heroes: Deemo saves Echo from being punched out by Takeshi.
- Company Cross References:
- You can find a sign for Mandora Farm and a mandora napping on a box in the Platform.
- 45 VOEZ Cafe, located in the Café area, is a reference to the real-life VOEZ Café located at No. 45 Dongxing Rd in Taipei.
- Connected All Along: The one section of Chapter 4 reveals that May is in fact the piano instructor to Alice, the protagonist of the previous Deemo game, as shown in a letter sent by Alice, wishing her teacher well in her health.
- Continuity Nod:
- There is a poster of Alice and the first game's Deemo on a column in the Platform.
- A stuffed plush resembling Mirai can be found at the general store in the Lobby.
- A doll of the Masked Lady and graffiti of Alice and the first game's Deemo can be found in the Secret Workshop.
- Dull Surprise: The Station Master suffers from this, as discussed in one of his collectibles.
- Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": The Station Master, Barista, and Burger Master are only known by their titles.
- Floating Water: The Play Music interface features floating drops of rain.
- Flower Motifs: The logo itself is stylized with flowers, blooming involves someone turning into flower petals, and a lot of the song art features flowers in some form.
- Freemium Timer: Radiance, which takes 2 hours to regenerate, is a variant. You can still play songs if you have 0 Radiance, but your Repair Progress will increase much more slowly. If you're impatient, however, you can buy coffee from the store that will restore 5 points of Radiance.
- Gray Rain of Depression: The perpetual Hollow Rain, which sets up the downcast mood of the game and is a major plot point.
- Harder Than Hard: The Expert-difficulty song charts.
- Hiroshima as a Unit of Measure: One of the bulletin board posts states that the Piano Room is the height of 9 Station Masters.
- Idle Animation: Echo has a few when you're not controlling her, like kneeling down to touch something on the ground and trying to brush petals out of her hair.
- Ironic Name: Hope is incredibly cynical and pessimistic, offering to tell Echo about the times she was ostracized and bluntly stating that she thinks Echo will get rained on and bloom after leaving the station.
- Magic Music: Playing Central Station's piano helps clear the Hollow Rain and unlock new areas.
- Microtransactions: You can buy various types of currency, collectibles, and outfits for Echo and Deemo with real money. The Premium Arcanum, which costs $19.99 and gives you access to more collectibles and 20 exclusive songs, also counts as this.
- Murder Water: The Hollow Rain, which causes people to bloom. This is shown in graphic detail in a cutscene, where Echo desperately tries (and fails) to save someone who is blooming right in front of her. You can find the pile of petals they leave behind on the balcony.
- Never Say "Die": Justified. Death by Hollow Rain, which is the only cause of death discussed in the game, is referred to as blooming.
- Occidental Otaku: Tempura, who talks in Gratuitous Japanese.Tempura: It's ii desu ne! Everyone is sugoi desu ne~
- Rearrange the Song: Several song packs feature piano arrangements of songs from Rayark's previous rhythm games, like Altale, Platinum, Anchor, DRG, Hyouryu, Light up my LOVE!!, and wilt.
- Rewards Pass: The Central Station Arcanum. After collecting Stars through normal gameplay, you can exchange them for crystals, shells, collectibles, event tickets, and songs. The Premium Arcanum, which has to be purchased separately, will give you exclusive character skins and songs and more currency.
- Shout-Out: The 2022 Monsoon Season announcement says to "Bless those rains down in Central Station!!"
- Unlockable Difficulty Levels: The expert-level song charts can only be acquired through events.
