Monaco 2 Preview: A New 3D Heist Experience

In 2013, the first Monaco arrived just as Xbox Live Arcade was finding its rhythm and players were developing a fresh appetite for inventive, distinctive games outside the enormous budgets and visual polish of triple-A releases. Such titles now vastly outnumber the blockbuster games we recognise today, but back then their ingenuity still felt like a discovery. As Monaco 2 approaches launch, it faces tougher competition, yet creator Andy Schatz is plainly thrilled to return to its criminal action: “If Monaco 1 is about cat and mouse, Monaco 2 is about complexity and creativity.”

Like its predecessor, Monaco 2 centres on carrying out heists. You and a team of characters with contrasting skills must infiltrate a location, take what you need without sounding the alarm, then escape with the goods. Should the alarm go off - and Schatz insists that it will - the experience should remain entertaining. It may even become more enjoyable.

Monaco 2 moves its heists into 3D

The most striking change in Monaco 2 becomes clear as soon as the game begins: it is now fully 3D. The original was essentially a 2D pixel-art game, viewed from above, in which players guided indistinct blocks. It prioritised information over visual flair and could be hard for many players to interpret. Moving into 3D brings dozens of benefits. Characters are now far more visually distinct, while the sequel embraces an art style inspired by Saul Boss, an artist chiefly recognised for designing Alfred Hitchcock film posters.

This move to 3D makes the entire game easier to read and introduces greater verticality. Schatz points to memorable heist films, including the Mission: Impossible sequence in which Tom Cruise’s character hangs from the ceiling while stealing computer data. You will not literally be suspended from a vent, trying to catch sweat rolling down your face, but the aim is to deliver similarly thrilling and high-pressure feelings.

Planning the opera house robbery

Schatz demonstrated a single-player session, although local split-screen and online co-op will also be available, despite not yet being fully explained. Before beginning, he assessed the job by studying a blueprint of the building he was preparing to infiltrate. The assignment involves entering a guarded opera house, planting false rumours in a particular spot, and stealing money during the operation.

He begins the heist with Cosmo and Panzer: a woman wearing a pink dress and her adorable Pomeranian, which can distract guards. After gaining entry, though, he changes to other characters to make use of their particular talents, leaping into a houseplant where the team is supposedly concealed. It is not especially logical, but that is beside the point: Monaco 2 is built around deploying different abilities to handle different jobs.

From there, much of the action involves avoiding guards’ sight lines, monitoring their patrols, collecting useful items found on site, and achieving objectives by any available method. The level is deliberately dense, with a complex arrangement and concealed secrets. The expectation is that repeated runs will make each level more familiar, leaving you better equipped when you return for another heist.

Monaco 2 still lacks a firm release date, and developer Pocketwatch Games is not prepared to discuss platforms beyond PC. Even so, a strong cooperative crime game that is not a shooter has been overdue. Schatz’s presentation suggests that Monaco’s long-awaited sequel will offer a focused, deep version of the heist fantasy.