High on Life 2, the latest sci-fi shooter from Squanch Games, is out this week. Like its predecessor, it comes jam-packed with a metric ton of adult jokes. If you’re curious whether the humor is for you, here’s a taste: there’s a Jeffrey Epstein joke within the first five minutes of the game.
Some context is necessary here: The sequel picks up when 2022’s High on Life ends. Following the events of that game, the main character has become a very successful bounty hunter. You’re caught up to speed on what exactly happened between games in an opening montage that doubles as a clever tutorial. You’ll learn to run and jump during your time as a participant in a Wipeout-style competition show, reacquaint yourself with your grapple during a chase sequence, and relearn how to shoot in a battle with an enormous alien.
You’ll also get a refresher on how to perform melee kills with your old pal Knifey, a bloodthirsty talking knife. In a quick tutorial section, you come face-to-face with different bounties you’ve killed between games. You can melee them immediately in rapid succession, but each one will ramble on a bit about their crimes if you let them talk.
One of the targets, a human trafficker in a world where people are basically drugs for aliens, has accepted his fate. He starts blabbing about how he always knew this day would come because he’s a really bad guy. But at least he’s not, you know…
“So, you’ve finally found me! Go ahead, make it quick!” he says. “Don’t feel bad! I’m a human dealer! I knew it would come to this one day! Five years trafficking humans on the black market is a good run! But when you think about it, I’m not as bad as, like, Jeffrey Epstein or whatever! I might be a trafficker, but it was not for sex stuff, so don’t think of me as quite that bad!”
It’s kind of remarkable… in a sobering way. Given how long games take to develop, cultural references tend to be out of fashion by the time the game actually releases. (That gag is followed up by a cryptocurrency rug pull joke that’s very much of its time.) The Jeffrey Epstein saga, on the other hand, has not only remained a relevant story since the first High on Life game, but it’s front-page news today. Last November, the United States Congress passed the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which would require the public release of all files pertaining to Epstein, the wealthy financier who was linked to a now-infamous sex trafficking operation that allegedly served a web of celebrities and politicians. Fallout from the files, which have yet to be released in full, has started to lead to consequences for some of the people named in documents. In October, Buckingham Palace announced that it would strip all of Prince Andrew’s royal titles due to his connection with Epstein.
Against all odds, High on Life 2‘s cheeky reference remains timely. Just this week, members of the United States Congress finally got their chance to review the unredacted files, albeit only from computers physically at the Department of Justice. That led Democratic Representative Jamie Raskin to allege that President Donald Trump is referenced in the files “more than a million times.”
High on Life 2 launches on Feb. 13 for PlayStation 5, Windows PC, and Xbox Series X.
