Management sims have tended to lean towards industries that inherently involve more chaos. Hospitals and schools are popular choices, and the folks at Two Point Studios are more than familiar with both settings. The pivot to the curated arts is surprising, but what isn’t is just how fun Two Point Museum plays, a continuation of the excellent work displayed in Two Point Hospital and Campus.
After spending about six hours with an early preview build of the game, the confidence grows that the studio has unearthed another potential gem for its growing sim empire. At its core, the gameplay loop is hugely familiar — put together attractions, attract visitors, earn their money, and repeat the process until you are the best in the land.
How that loop changes is what makes Two Point Museum more refreshing. Aspiring curators need to send expeditions from time to time to different locations to locate potential exhibits. This requires staff with different skill sets, and each area has conditions that can affect various things.
Do you choose to embark on a more comprehensive search that requires more money and time, or chance it with a quick survey at the risk of poor quality finds? Random events can also occur during these expeditions, adding to the jeopardy of sending a team out. Whatever happens, you are going to end up with a brand new piece of history, ready to be displayed and fawned upon.
That’s just the first part, with the need to generate buzz being the next item on the agenda. The higher the buzz, the more attractive an item is to the visitors, and the more they will donate when visiting. The best way to do so is to decorate the surrounding area, and when you have several relics from the same theme, like prehistory or even the supernatural, you can already see how everything takes shape. There are also underlying bonuses that can be activated if you pay attention, and can be the difference between a true star attraction and a middling one.
This is where the expanded customisation options of Two Point Museum come into play as well, and those hoping for more ways to make things their own should be very excited. Other than your wallpaper and flooring, the many options for partition walls, archways, and more can allow for unique designs to come to life. That signature humour of the series is also alive and well, as everything from your decorations to the exhibits themselves are not taking things too seriously. Seeing a giant floppy disk as a relic is cheeky fun but also worrying if you actually know what it is in reality.
It is also satisfying to see just how the different themes come to life. Prehistory is more than just about dusty old bones; frozen cavemen and the like require temperature control, amongst other things, to stay pristine, even though it’s fun to see an escaped Neanderthal doing his thing. Marine life adds aquarium elements to get your feet wet in another way, while the supernatural adds in poltergeists and haunted objects to liven things up. The eclectic blend packs plenty of charm, which usually goes a long way.
Beyond the interesting items to gawk at, there is a need for guests to be educated, and while they can glean some knowledge at the start, you will need to conduct proper research to elevate the level of understanding about a particular exhibit. It all contributes to progression as you unlock more knowledge, more decorative options, and even more locations to send expeditions to as your museum grows in size and renown.
Staff thus take on more critical roles in Two Point Museum, with several skills crucial in expeditions and serving the people. Support staff like assistants and janitors are needed to keep things running well in the museum, while experts can give tours and maintain exhibits for posterity. There will also be a need for security to prevent theft and vandalism, especially now that kids are part of the equation. Through it all, players will still be wrestling with staff salary demands and needs, but at least they will feel much more helpful this time around.
At this early stage, the primary worry is how long Two Point Museum can continue to keep players invested and interested. The number of themes will be something to keep an eye on, especially if new elements of play can be introduced at a steady rate. The constant wait for expeditions to be completed can also be an issue, as accomplished players may find themselves twiddling their thumbs in between. It is definitely nice to have extra objectives to chase, though, and the idea of a super museum that contains all sorts of themes is a dream that many curators will likely want to chase.
There is still plenty of time ahead of its release in 2025 on PC and major consoles (PS5 Physical: March 4/PS5, Xbox, and PC Digital: March 5) and the unique positioning of this latest entry in the Two Point franchise is likely to have much to offer. This little taste has certainly gotten our minds buzzed and ready for more, especially as the Digital Explorer Edition provides five-days early access starting on February 28, and that’s certainly not something you can always say about museums.
