I Expect You To Die 2: The Spy and the Liar [VR]

My first hour with I Expect You To Die 2 was spent being poisoned by a sandwich, skewered by a crossbow, and exploded by a cigar I really should have left alone. Each death resets the level, and the game does not apologize for that. What it does instead is make every restart feel like a fair rematch rather than a punishment, because the puzzle logic is consistent and the environments are packed with enough detail to reward close observation on each run.

The core loop is essentially an escape room transplanted into a seated VR body. You play as Agent Phoenix, a spy the villainous Zoraxis corporation believes is dead, which gives you cover to go undercover across six missions. Each one drops you into a distinct location, from the backstage of a theatre to a private jet to a Zoraxis base, and tasks you with goals that range from protecting dignitaries to disarming bombs to outfoxing a smugly charming celebrity villain voiced by Wil Wheaton. You never walk anywhere. Instead, telekinesis handles reach, letting you grab, drag, rotate, throw, and crucially freeze objects mid-air when you need both hands free. The freeze mechanic in particular opens up some satisfying multi-step solutions where timing and spatial thinking replace brute force.

Where the game genuinely excels is environmental craft. The six locales are dense with reactive detail: ropes that seem to puff dust, radios playing in-world music, drawers that open just enough to hint at a hidden object inside. That density is what makes the puzzles feel earned rather than arbitrary. You are never randomly guessing. You are observing, remembering, and connecting things the level planted in front of you from the start. The overarching story across all six levels is tighter than the first game, with a proper arc and a conclusion that lands, helped along by writing that stays wry without becoming exhausting.