Cover artwork I generate from the game data. I do not use publisher artwork.
Game profile
TimeSplitters 2
Time-traveling mercenaries fight through offbeat eras from the Stone Age to the future, packed with a huge weapon arsenal and plenty of split-screen chaos. The 2002 cult shooter thrives especially on its legendary map editor and silly humor.
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What kind of game this is
At its core this is Shooter / Party, set in a science fiction world. Visually it is leaning into a retro look, and the overall tone stays light and upbeat. The structure is guided rather than open, so you are moved along instead of dropped into a map. It is built around short sessions, which makes it easy to pick up for half an hour.
The difficulty is moderate and fair, demanding attention without punishing you for it. Story exists mostly as background texture rather than a reason to keep going. You can play it with others cooperatively or go head to head. It runs on 2 platforms. It sits in the budget bracket.
What stands out
- Split-screen chaos
- Legendary map editor
- Wacky time periods
This fits you if
- you are after a proper adrenaline rush
- you want your skill measured against other people
- you usually have thirty to sixty minutes and want that to be enough
- you have someone to play with
- you enjoy competing against other players
- you are watching your budget
Look elsewhere if
- you want something that lasts, this is over after 8 hours
- you want something with real weight to it
- you want a game that fills a whole evening in one go
- you want either a pure challenge or pure relaxation, not the middle
What it costs you in time
About 8 hours in total. At two hours per evening that is around 4 evenings, so about a week of casual play.
How the rating ranks
Critics settled on 90 out of 100, which puts it above 85 percent of the 1206 games here and at rank 173 overall. That is a strong score, comfortably above what most releases manage.
For comparison, Shooter averages 81 points across the database, so this one sits 9 points above its own genre. The figure rests on 140 collected ratings.
Released in 2002, which makes it 24 years old. A genuine classic, and worth checking how the version you buy holds up today.
The facts
- Release year
- 2002
- Genres
- Shooter, Party
- Playtime
- approx. 8 hrs.
- Difficulty
- Moderate, fair
- Story weight
- Background flavour
- Play with
- Solo, Co-op, Competitive
- Setting
- Sci-fi, Historical
- Visual style
- Retro
- Price bracket
- Budget
- Platforms
- PlayStation, Xbox
- Critic rating
- 90 / 100
Direct comparison
| Genres | Release year | Playtime | Critic rating | Price bracket |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TimeSplitters 2 | 2002 | approx. 8 hrs. | 90 | Budget |
| ROUNDS | 2021 | approx. 10 hrs. | 84 | Budget |
| Star Wars: Battlefront II | 2005 | approx. 10 hrs. | 76 | Budget |
| Crab Game | 2021 | approx. 5 hrs. | 76 | Free-to-play |
If you liked this, try these
- ROUNDS Shared: Shooter, Party
- Star Wars: Battlefront II Shared: Shooter, Sci-fi
- Crab Game Shared: Shooter, Party, shorter
- Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime Shared: Shooter, Party, Sci-fi, shorter
- Unreal Tournament 2004 Shared: Shooter, Sci-fi, longer
- Fortnite Shared: Shooter, Party, Sci-fi, longer