‘Two Point Campus’ offers evolution, not revolution

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Finally, I’m benefitting from the world’s seemingly-endless appetite for nostalgia for the good ol’ days. 25 years after Theme Hospital was released, and four years after Two Point Campus takes players back to the world of Two Point County, this time tasked with building a chain of new universities in plots adjacent to the previously-dysfunctional hospitals you’ve finished renovating.

I recently played through an early build of the first two levels of the game. Freshleigh Meadows is a cut-down tutorial stage, while the Rome-inspired Piazza Lanatra is the second area players can expect to access. With the Update your settings here, then reload the page to see it.

Universities are also a lot less of a gold mine for zany jokes compared to a cartoonish hospital. Sure, there are still menu gags and amusing radio commentary, but there are just less things to poke fun at in a campus setting. The weirdest thing I’ve seen so far is trainee chefs cooking a burger the size of an SUV in a slightly bigger skillet. It’s a far cry from unscrewing a lightbulb sticking out of someone’s neck when they’re suffering from “lightheadedness.”

Campus’ sense of scale has shifted fairly significantly, too, and Hospital players may find the bigger rooms are more of a challenge. While you could build a serviceable clinic out of just 3×3-sized rooms, the default area in Campus is closer to 5×5. There’s a lot more stuff to cram into each room, too, with a more maximalist sense of design compared to the last game. I suspect it’s because of those Hospital players their hospital Two Point Campus will debut on PC, Mac, PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox Game Pass and Nintendo Switch on August 9th, 2022.