Very few mobile titles have had as great a success as Jetpack Joyride. Alongside Temple Run, Jetpack Joyride was responsible for the exploding popularity of the endless runner subgenre in 2011, and it has so far been ported to more platforms than its fans can imagine. While the hype for endless runner games has died down in recent years, it didn't stop developer Halfbrick Studios from revisiting Jetpack Joyride and deciding to make a sequel for it. Now, nearly 11 years after the release of the original game, Jetpack Joyride 2 is finally ready to steal the spotlight.
Interestingly, this might not be the first time fans have heard about Jetpack Joyride 2, especially since Halfbrick went to soft-launch the game in select regions more than a year ago. But in February 2022, the Australian studio decided to pull Jetpack Joyride 2 from both Google Play and the App Store, saying that the game had entered a new closed phase of development for an indefinite period. Fast-forward to last week, Jetpack Joyride 2 was finally released globally, but this time as an exclusive offering for Apple Arcade subscribers.
Being a sequel, Jetpack Joyride 2 brings many changes to its predecessor while still maintaining the core side-scrolling formula that made the original game very popular back in the day. Players still control protagonist Barry Streakfries as he moves from left to right while avoiding obstacles, but Barry now also has the ability to shoot enemies with a vast selection of weaponry as he flies around on each level.
The biggest change that Halfbrick made to Jetpack Joyride 2 is dropping its endless runner mechanics and moving to a story-driven experience. Unlike the original game, Jetpack Joyride 2 features levels, boss fights, and even an ending. Surviving for as long as possible is no longer the primary goal, as players will be trying to get to a certain distance or hit a certain score threshold in individual levels in Jetpack Joyride 2.
Being an Apple Arcade exclusive also means that players won't be faced with any microtransactions or ads in Jetpack Joyride 2. This essentially means that progression will flow naturally, and that the game will provide zero chance for players to take any kind of shortcut by spending real money. Typically, Apple Arcade games will also be updated with new content from time to time, and with the move to level-based gameplay, Jetpack Joyride 2 certainly has room to grow in the future.
Jetpack Joyride 2 is now available on Apple Arcade.