Shrek 2 Remastered Gets Mixed Steam Reviews Over Epic Account Co-Op
Far Far Away now requires a second login.
The return to Far Far Away is off to a bumpy start. Aspyr's Shrek 2 Remastered launched on November 10, and its Steam reviews were sitting at "Mixed" a day later, with about 46% of 389 reviews positive, according to GamesRadar.
The remaster brings back the 2004 Shrek 2 game, which a lot of players remember as one of the best movie tie-in games of its era. That nostalgia is a big part of why the complaints are so loud this week. Aspyr has handled plenty of remasters before, including the Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection and the Tomb Raider I-III Remastered trilogy, and GamesRadar says this reaction is gentler than Battlefront's but rougher than Tomb Raider's.
Why is Shrek 2 Remastered getting mixed reviews?
The biggest complaint is co-op. Players say the Steam version asks you to link an Epic Games account if you want to play co-op online, according to TheGamer. Co-op is one of the main reasons people loved the original, so putting it behind another account has frustrated a lot of fans.
Other reviews point to cutscenes that don't run at the new resolution and sometimes end before characters finish talking. Players have also called out missing settings, rough mouse and keyboard support and local co-op problems.
Did Aspyr use AI textures in Shrek 2 Remastered?
There's no proof of that right now. Some Steam reviewers suspect AI-generated textures because they feel the game doesn't look much better than the PS2 version, but GamesRadar notes there's no technical evidence yet. Aspyr hasn't addressed the claim publicly.
So far, the only sign Aspyr has seen the complaints is a reply on X that pointed an upset player to its support ticket site, per TheGamer.
Where can you play Shrek 2 Remastered?
The remaster is out on PC through Steam, plus PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2 and Nintendo Switch, according to Gematsu. The reviews above are only from Steam, so the console versions may have a different story.
As an Amazon Associate, Church of Nerds earns from qualifying purchases. Buying through the Amazon links in this post supports the site at no extra cost to you.
My read is that Aspyr can still fix most of this. Cutscene bugs and missing settings are patch problems, and dropping the Epic account requirement for Steam co-op would win back a lot of goodwill fast. The original Shrek 2 game earned its fans by being surprisingly fun with friends, and the remaster needs to protect that above everything else. (Fairy Godmother would never ship it like this.)
Did you play the original Shrek 2 game? Tell us in the comments.
