Here are some mid-budget, slightly less mainstream games that pack a punch.
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0:00 Intro
0:15 Number 10
2:02 Number 9
3:45 Number 8
4:37 Number 7
6:04 Number 6
7:34 Number 5
9:00 Number 4
10:43 Number 3
11:59 Number 2
13:17 Number 1
10 - Evil West 9 - Outcast - A New Beginning 8 - The Thaumaturge 7 - Trine 5 6 - Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden 5 - Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew 4 - My Time at Sandrock 3 - Chorus 2 - Kena: Bridge of Spirits 1 - Metal: Hellsinger
here is the list : 10.Evil West 0:19 9.Outcast 2:04 8.The Thaumaturge 3:45 7.Trine 5: A Clockwork Conspiracy 4:37 6.Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden 6:04 5.Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew 7:34 4. my time at sandrock 9:00 3.Chorus 10:43 2.kena bridge of spirits 11:59 1.Metal: Hellsinger 13:17
Thanks
Thanks, I don’t know why they can’t just include the names of the games in the video or just list them in the description at least lmao
@@gagalover2k10so that you watch the video and their short reviews on the games
Thanks i looking for number 8 :)
Single player story mode/campaign gamers meet here 👇🏾
Single player 🔥🎮
Yep 🙌
Here 🙌
Here
Here there and everywhere
Indie and double A been doing better then most triple A games
Persona?
Facts
Yeah, gaming is changing I feel like. The big companies are just too big to find success. Too many people detached from the communities they are in.
sales wise triple A has actually smashed everyone. but retaining those players to keep feeding them micro transactions has been hard. oh well everyone still payed $70 for the game in the first place so
@@johnmarkson1998 I meant gaming wise not sells but yea I understand what u mean
Dont be fooled by kena's cute pixar aesthetic. That game is BRUTAL.
That final boss was way more difficult than I could ever have expected
The Aesthetic was created to respect the wishes of the Balinese tribe from where the story, art style and music derive from. Everything was signed off by the Tribe before release. The game was only made possible, with the high production values at least, because Sony financed it, so it probably would likely have been an isometric dungeon crawler and not a real time 3D adventure if not for Sony picking up the bill, they did the same with Stray too.
Couldn't play it coz I got too used to face buttons being mapped to attack prompts. Couldnt remap the controls so dropped the game
Absolutely! I started it expecting a fun chill game. Ended up googling boss strategies as if I was playing a souls game!
The final boss is harder than some of the bosses from Dark Souls 3.💀
I'm so happy you brought up Evil West. It feels like a modern day version of a good 2000s game, in the best way possible. It feels like a high-caliber spiritual successor to Darkwatch on the PS2.
and superior Xbox
Yeah that's the game i played and couldn't remember Darkwatch !!
Van Helsing ps2 was better.
Same with the story, it really felt like watching an early 2000 blockbuster like Van Helsing or the mummy, just pure cheesy and fun entertainment, it knows what it is and embraces it. We really need more stories like this again, instead of this "notice me netflix san" or "modern audience" crap
Kena: Bridge of spirits is one of my favorite games of all time. Beautiful graphics, smooth and well tuned gameplay, and amazing PIXAR level cutscenes. The story is very effective and emotionally moving. Really a shame it got overlooked by some.
Hi Falcon, it's folks
Kena is a trojan horse of difficulty. The appearance and music will mislead you into thinking you're playing some old cutesy ps2 platformer action game, and then it will kick your ass. Over and over. Lol. Beautiful looking and sounding game though.
It sound like Cuphead trojan
It's not as brutal as Cuphead, but yeah it'll push your buttons until you learn how to use your skills to your advantage.
Second that😂
Ghost Runner 2 is one that really caught me off guard with how good it was. Definitely a great example of a lower-dev-cost AA game (maybe even single A cost).
Rimworld or Prison Architect (before Paradox bought it). Easily two of the most fun games in last 20 or so years, especially if you consider that you can mod the hell out of Rimworld if it ever gets stale.
I found it pretty meh, i mean it looks great but for a game that revolves around movement, it plays a lot like Doom, as in it completely lacks fluidity, each movement technique is disjointed and often leaves you feeling as though your character is intentionally going slower than what they're clearly capable of doing. I mean, you can dash at supersonic speed but your sprint is about the same speed as a 5 year old on a tricycle.
The chapter titles should definitely include the game title.
yeah wtf
I agree but they probably did it so you can’t just scroll through it without watching
@@Deadlyvoltage3 Yet, I did so anyway.
Indeed
Kena's a great game. It plays well and looks beautiful, plus it doesn't overstay its welcome. Definitely worth a shot.
Possibly unpopular opinion but I wasn't a fan, it felt so stiff to play. I appreciate it's a much lower budget/smaller studio game but being a huge Souls fan I couldn't get into it. Maybe I'll give it another go in future.
@@MossXM There are always games that don't click. God of War was one for me, I gave it two chances before deciding the combat just didn't work for me and decided I should stop trying and play something that does work for me. There are enough options nowadays. Kena is one of the better ones, but that doesn't automatically means it works for everyone, even if you are fan of the genre. I played a lot of souls & soulslikes, but there are a few more popular indy/aa ones which I also gave up on, but did like Kena and had no problem with the combat myself.
It felt pretty half-baked to me. Fun for sure, though
I finished it in 3 sessions. It's definitely a good game that doesn't overstay.
@@MossXMI felt the same way at first...I think it's because your character has a much wider turning radius than in Souls games, and it just feels awkward if you are used to the the movement from Souls games...I got over pretty quickly though...Once you get most of your abilities the combat becomes pretty smooth and fun...
Thank you for mentioning My Time At Sandrock - it's become of my favorite games after buying it on a whim and I think more people need to hear about how great it is! The gameplay loop is incredibly addicting, the characters range from wonderfully weird to so, so lovable and the story is very well written and at times far more serious than one would expect from what many consider a 'cozy game' - the aforementioned twistssss especially. Pathea (the studio behind the game) is still actively creating content for the game, updates regularly and is very involved with the fanbase via multiple social media platforms (like Discord for example). There's so much love and care and passion stuffed into Sandrock, it's practically dripping from the screen while playing. Seriously, I cannot recommend this game enough.
I want a Kena Bridge of Spirits sequel man, Ember Lab's does amazing work, Majora's Mask A Terrible Fate was amazing so to see that kind of animation prowess in a game was fantastic, i really wish there was more that we could experience from the team at Ember Lab's, incredible stuff
I so agree kena 2 would be amazing! Let's keep our fingers crossed 🤞
Same here!! I feel like I lost a part of myself in Kena’s World and I need some closure. Something just didn’t seem completely finished in the end. There are still questions to be answered!
Kena 2 ASAP!!! PLEASE
Absolutely loved Kena when I played it. Story is great, environments are beautiful and fun to explore, and the combat can be surprisingly challenging at times. A must play for all fans of adventure games.
Vampyr. Best atmosphere in a game. Fun gameplay and interesting story. Also pretty cool how your decisions can make the game very difficult or how you can become OP.
My Time at Sandrock is truly incredible
The sequel is even better.
@@Joreel Sandrock is the sequel right?
Kena is such a good game, insane graphics. Need more games like that
I wouldn't say insane lol but defo a decent game
Why? No one even bought it.
@hotpockets69 it sold over 600k units so I'm pretty sure people bought it lol
@@graygray2444 600k isn't a lot...
@hotpockets69 not bad for an indie game
I think the plaque tale series fit in this category really well
Those relatively unknown video games about good dental hygiene.😁
Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice i feel like is another game in that category. sequel is coming soon as well
The plaque tale? Is that a game about a dental hygienist?
Requiem was pushing AAA
Dentist Simulator, make it happen developers!
I looked over Kenya for ages, HUGE mistake, played it at the start of the year and it is such a fun game.
And it also has an interesting ng+ where they changed things up similar to what ds2 did
How long is it ? Is it a sandbox experience?
@@gagalover2k10 It is not very long, quality over quantity, and there are some side paths but it is mainly lineair.
@@gagalover2k10 It's a linear 3rd person adventure game of around 10 hours, typically. It goes on sale so far at £16 and sometimes £12.49 so wait for a sale. You won't be disappointed unless you absolutely need a huge open environment to explore. The game is gorgeous and the traversal broken up with some light platforming and Pikmin style puzzles and the story which comes from Balinese folklore is well presented with adaptions of Bali's tribal music well composed running alongside the adventure.
Who knew there'd be a game named after the country Kenya? It was beautiful and fun. Only played a little bit of it. Will complete it one day.
Glad hellsinger is getting mentioned. I loved this game.
The soundtrack was so good
I've never heard of the game, but I think I heard Mikael Stanne of Dark Tranquillity in this clip and I am a huge DT fan so I will definitely check this out.
Same. I played both the standard version and x/s on gamepass cause it was just that fun.
@@FrankyDG Yes, as well as the lead singers from Trivium, Lamb Of God, Arch Enemy, System of a Down, Soilwork, Black Crown Initiate, Jinjer, and Refused (who are "Samurai" in Cyberpunk)
that soad reveal when you unlock the final chapter is pure hype
The story of Chorus was definitely weird, and I’m not really on board with it, but the gameplay is super tight. I love a good dogfighting game, such as Ace Combat and Everspace as mentioned. I loved Chorus. I’ve recently put over 50 hours into Everspace 2, and they have a lot of positive similarities.
Is this the same as Chorvs? I bought that but haven't played
@@AnomieDomine Yes, same thing. Title art uses the “Roman U” instead, do you get Chorvs, like how Belarus is written as Belarvs at the end of NCIS episodes. I don’t remember exactly the circumstances, but it’s something like both letters were used interchangeably, or U didn’t originally exist, or something like that. Regardless if you check the system info, it’s listed as Chorus.
@@terrivel11 Thanks for responding. I actually own it on at least one platform but based on the title art I always thought it was more of an abstract rhythm game
Evil West is my top reason I'm glad I'm subbed to Gameranx, because it still is the only place (in my life) I've seen or heard it brought up, and I LOVED it. Anyone who's a fan of bad ass action and cheesy 80s style story & dialogue, should definitely check it out.
Can you please type out the name of #8? I cannot understand "Thaw Materge?" I really prefer it when you have the game titles in the chapters.
It's called "The Thamaturge"
Agreed - or I wish they would put a caption with the name and platforms like they do for the upcoming game lists.
I know, I was about to ask the same thing
It's based on the weird thaumaturgy
had the same problem
I spent about 8 hours playing Evil West on Game Pass and I would definitely recommend it. Kind of like Bullet Storm mixed with a God of War. Levels are very linear but there is a lot of opportunity for mixing things up in combat: Combos, finishers, knocking enemies off cliffs, impaling them on the environment, blowing them up, hitting their weak spots, etc. I played it on hard difficulty and I think that is the way it was meant to be played.
For me the gameplay was just too repetitive.
I freakin loved it! I actually think its linearity is a strength because it puts a stronger emphasis on combat.
I tried it but couldn't push through the opening hour
Can’t believe you forgot to mention the absolutely gut wrenching storytelling in Kena. My mom called when I was playing towards the end of the first act with the siblings (iykyk), and when I had to explain that the reason I answered the phone sobbing and gave her a panic attack was because of a video game, I genuinely think she considered disowning me.
Are we talking Maes Hughes Funeral levels of gut wrenching? Or ending of Your Lie In April levels of gut wrenching?
It’s okay. You can have me.
I'm playing outcast right now, and it is such a beautiful world to explore. Gliding through the jungle trees with that relaxing music in the background is such a nice feeling.
Chorus is such a good game. While the interactions between the protagonist and ship is a bit awkward, the combat and fast-paced action is so fun and the side quests have substance and are worth it.
Kenna is such an underrated game
Yes love that game 👌
Yeah, sure. Keep telling yourself that.
It’s so freaking good, I cannot believe it never got more hype
Kena is amazing from start to finish. And it's a gorgeous looking game.
FACTZZZ!!
Love the videos! But just a suggestion to the editor, instead of putting number 1-10 when you click pause or touch the screen you should put the name of the game then "#1" would be nice just incase you want to skim through the video but still see what the title of the game is . Keep up the great work guys!
I was a day one buyer of Kena bridge of spirits. I highly recommend that game.
If you play Kena Bridge of Spirits, it'll break your spirit with its difficulty, then smash your heart with the story, I think it's a crime that there's no sequel for this game, it's no joke of a game, I had an easier time fighting Elden Ring bosses than the bosses in this game (You can't cheese the bosses in this game), the first boss alone killed me so many times that I got hooked on the game so bad and ignored all of my other games to focus my muscle memory and reaction time, but the real challenge is to not cry or stop your heart from bleeding because of the story, it's right there with Mircale in Cell Number 7, Hachiko, and The Steve Irwin Story.
Really? I had the opposite experience - I enjoyed fighting the bosses in Kena - and for me it wasn’t too hard (except that boss in the trees and the one in the mountain) - but the game was just so enjoyable and compelling that I just HAD to learn how to overcome the bosses and see it to the end. Unlocking the world is also satisfying… and the spirits that come with their own history and stories -- it’s almost like being in a dream that somehow continues across a couple nights. Kena is definitely my soul game -- it’s weird how it just makes you feel like a better person playing it.
@@theanimaster it is enjoyable, hard things can be enjoyable (that's what she said) but after it offered me a greater difficulty and tried the said difficulty, nearly shit myself. Again, I had an easier time dealing with Elden ring bosses because I cheese them to the full extent, in Kena, no cheesing anyone there.
If you liked kena, i HIGHLY recommend Asterigos. Its similar combat but with more weapons and gear choice. It also has an interconnected world, backtracking for secrets, and hidden side quests like dark souls!
Thanks for taking time to write this comment and recommend an awesome game. I just went to watch it's gameplay after finishing this video , but then I couldn't also resist myself from coming back here and saying thanks to you.
Just platinum evil west last week . And must say it was surprisingly a hit!!!
Banishers is a masterpiece, criminally overlooked. I truly can't recommend it enough
Completely agreed. Game was phenomenal from start to finish, so fun to explore and open up new areas. That game was freaking, perfect and the writing dialogue and story next level
@@maxtalbert8519 Any game to recommend to a fellow enjoyer of Banishers?
It's good but I just hate how you can't jump over 2 inches of ledge or something blocking you.
Surprised RoboCop : Rouge City isn't on here
Need to stop wearing make-up before he makes the list.
Kena Bridge of Spirits is a must play especially if you like difficult games with good combat, It’s basically if Pixar made a Soulslike. I might be wrong but it’s also the Devs first game too, before that they made Pixar style animated short films, which is pretty obvious in the art style and cutscenes.
I dont think the words "Boring empty starfields" were used accidentally lol
Exactly. Started looking for this comment the moment I heard it.
What a pathetic grasp at straws
Kena is just so beautiful & a really great game. I cannot wait to see what Ember Lab does next.
Glad Kena is getting some love again. Its an incredible game. Some of the bosses are brutally hard. Specifically on Expert+ Settings.
Evil West looks a little like Darkwatch, which was a very cool PS2 Weird Western from the early 2000s.
I was starting to think I was the only one who remembers that game. Was starting to think I dreamt it up.
Nice thanks for that memory! I completely forgot that one!
That's the one, I knew it reminded me of something haha
*and superior Xbox
Evil west is absolutely brilliant!!! It's so so good, finished it twice on Xbox series x it's basically god of war with van helseng.... Just buy this game it's soooooo good. Stick with it past the first two hours definitely, there's alot to love.
Now hold up. The weapon customization is one of the best parts of Outcast 2, besides the incredible traversal. This is a baller list though. Quality games all around. Now this is a list from someone who plays indie games for real! There's a bunch more worth checking out too. Asterigos Curse of the Stars, Tchia, Atlas Fallen, En Garde...
Looks like Outcast at 2:38 - 2:47 is what Anthem *should’ve* been.
@@whitewolf3051 Yup. Outcast 2 has peak traversal.
Kena Bridge of Spirits is so much fun. I just played it last month for the first time. The perfect game to play after a 100+ jrpg like Persona 3R
Evil West was so refreshing. Just keep moving forward shooting vampires in a western setting. I'm sold.
Evil West felt like a spiritual successor to the Van Helsing game from the 2000s. Both take the gameplay and mechanics of the God of War games from their respective eras and both are way more fun then they have any right to be!
Van Helsing didn't take any gameplay or mechanics from the PS2 ear God of War games. It came out like a year before the first God of War game. Evil West is like a mix DarkWatch "PS2" and the current God of War "2018-2022" games.
I absolutely love Kena, the game is perfect in my mind =)
Loved the video. I enjoy AA games a lot. Thank you for giving me a list of games for my backlog.
PLEASE don't ever stop making these types of videos. Often the most ambitious ideas come from these games and they stick with me just as much as AAA games. Def gonna check out a few!
Loved Kena and Hellsinger, gonna give the others on this list a try 👍🏻
You missed the absolute best AA game!! A plague tale requim, soooo damn good it gives naughty dog a run!
Kena - not new, but must play, period. My time at Sandrock (first game of this genre I played) kept me engaged for far longer than I thought it would (about 300 hrs). Not just for the gameloop, but especially for the really good writing (dialogues etc). And yes, there are twistssss. Trine 5 - looks awesome, great co op as well. Metal Hellsinger - wouldn't even touch it with forceps, because thats def not my kind of music. Does Palworld count as a AAA game in your book, or why is it not included here? Other than that - good list, will check out some of these.
Kena is one of my all time favorite games. The writing is PHENOMENAL.
Loved Chorus, really great game.
I was quite surprised when he showed that one. That game is pretty as hell
Loved KENA it reminds me of immortals phoenix rising
Blasphemy
Reminds me of Beyond Good and Evil and Pikmin.
Kena is an excellent game. I played it twice, first on PS4 and later again on PS5 at 60 fps. One of my favorites.
Metal Hellsinger absolutely deserves first place here. I've sunken fifty or so hours into it and have managed to stay top 100 on some of the levels. It is an utter banger.
Evil West is really good but they just won't fix the lvl replay bug.
lazy developers
@@jotarokujo7955 As a completionist I gave up on lvl 3 when I found out they hadn't bothered to fix it since launch
Outcast and kena are fantastic games
Evil West. What a blast. Gow style, Arcade shooter. Loved it. Hope there is a sequel on the way.
I've been playing Metal HellSinger since the Open Beta and I've loved it since my first go and it grew on me the more I played, so needless to say, I bought the Full Game the day it was released, and that year....It was my Game of the Year !! It's an Awesome, Fun and Fast-Paced Shooter that gets your heart rate up, once you've got the hang of it and understand all the mechanics of the weapons and damage buffs to help boost your score etc.....Which is the same with any new game, simply put-in a little time to practice and learn it and you'll see why people are loving this game !! Enjoy People !!
Banisher ghost of new Eden reminds me more of Greedfall
Bruh who is recording these gameplays, missed 3 shots in a row in Hellsinger 😭😭🙏
Chorus definitely worked for me. I don't play flight games in general, but the RPG elements and puzzle dungeons kept me interested all the way through.
Love that you talked about Kena! I also highly recommend Asterigos and Blacktail. Both are excellent indie games with interesting worlds and story.
Shadow Gambit has SBI all over it. It's a shame it tanked their studio but I hope other AA studios learn from that...
Dropped Evil West since twice it's bugged out on me during the Mines part where my character got stuck permanently...
I've discovered half of these on my own and loved them. Problem is SO much to play and finite time to play them... Thanks for the video!
Man, it's been a while since I last played Kena. It was a surprise that I enjoyed it as much as I did, and it certainly ought to get a sequel or two. There's a _lot_ of potential in there for both the story and the developer. It would be a real joy to get to do more with that world. It's _impressively_ solid. Sure, it's got a couple of rough patches (control scheme is a little unintuitive, as I recall, which could create some fake difficulty) but they never really detracted from the experience all that much. Just enough to be noticeable in a "well, that's there" kind of way rather than controller-breakingly infuriating to deal with. It's pretty, the core ideas are really intriguing, and it really does draw you in in a way that's astonishingly kinda rare in modern gaming.
yeah like my budget pc can run modern games
🤫🧏
seriously
Have you tried getting job?
Bro💀😭
I only play AAAAA games.
What a great list. There are 3 games here I will definitely be picking up! Would love to see another list like this down the line.
Yep I couldn't wait to play Evil West. A niche that did not disappoint.
I really liked Kena, but I was very very dissapointed by Evil West. Ugly graphics, interrupted gameplay by jumping, gliding etc and overall not a fun gameplay loop. Gonna give Banishers a try when it's 50% discounted.
Be advised that Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew is filled to the brim with DEI and BRIDGE policies. It was made with the "help" of Sweet Baby Inc. If you want to stay away from that, don't support that game.
I guessed that from the first 10sec yeah I’m not buying for sure
Nailed the premise of the video. You don't just miss these types of games, you REGRET missing them.
I been playing Chorus because it was on a great sale last week. It's honestly the best Sci Fi space shooter I've ever played in terms of how fluid and fun the gameplay is.
yeah ill pass on everything here
I’m actually super glad you said that about evil west. I started it the other day and it hadn’t clicked with me yet, going to give it a few more hours
Shout out to Gunfire Games Remnant from the Ashes 1 and 2. (We dont talk about Chronos/Before the ashes other than its lore lol) One of my personal favorite shooter RPG's with fantastic build craft and variety of enemies. Cool lore too
tbh, i wasnt even aware of double aa games existing. i guess i was too busy enjoying indie titles and emulating my classics. however, they certainly look interesting.
The AAs have been more interesting than AAA big budget games lately. 4 worth considering are Kena, Stray, Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice and Plague Tale: Innocence. Those are the 4 that really made people start noticing the AAs, I think it's because the AAs with modern engines and tools can match the presentation of the AAAs while the devs can stick to creating their visions without interference, so a bit like indie devs. Plague Tale is also notable because that firm didn't use 3rd party tech like UE4/5 for their game but instead built their own in house engine from scratch, it'll be interesting to see how they progress, with their own engine they really could grow fast.
I've played Kena about 3 times now, so good.
Love this. Please do more in the future. Really enjoyed Evil West and I’ve added Banishers to my wish list.
I actually backed Sandrock on Kickstarter because I loved My Time at Portia. I agree that it's one of those games you should definitely play to support the developers.
Man Evil West was one hell of a good time !
I loved Kena! I bought it thinking it was a chill game, but those boss fights can get intense. A lot of fun!
Kena is just awesome. I was sold when the PSAccess team did a play through. The dev team does commercial animation (ads) and feature films and they’ve applied that talent to the game. The story is also pretty good - it’s rewarding to say the least, but there are certainly some tear-jerking moments.
Random request, but at the end of each entry, would you guys be able to put a blurb about title and platforms its on? I know you do some of your list videos, but I honestly wish it was on almost all of them so I could find them easier. That's all, great videos! Keep up the good work!
Kena is the best souls game to start with: incredible beautiful, amazing soundtrack, some insane difficult here and there... Nice puzzles and cute creatures are a bonus! 9.5/10
Banishers was a treat to play.
Surprised to see Sandrock! Thank you! I got addicted to this for 2 months straight when it finally came out. The combat is definitely clunky but it was a huuuuge improvement from their previous game title tbh! That was what kept me coming back to it when it was still in EA last year.
Just a reminder that returnal is a AA game and is a complete masterpiece
Everspace 2 is always on my recommendations list. And if you have an ultrawide monitor? My god the game just becomes so much more immersive its insane. And the ship combat is so damn good, plus every location is soooo beautiful in space.
I like how you guys did the timeframes as number 1-10 instead of naming the game. Makes it more fun to watch 💜👍
This list had a lot of bangers on it. I added at least four of these to my wishlist, and even bought Evil West, since it's currently 65% off. Thanks!
I enjoyed Evil West. I'm glad you guys made this video to show that original games still exist.
Thanks for mentioning Evil West, this game is Amazing👌
Chorus was an AMAZING game. Super dynamic and always had something to do.
Chorus is great, but you have to sit still for the story beats, it's easy to skip accidentally. I also appreciate the space setting that doesn't make you feel like you're lost in the void, each place is contained enough to keep from being too lost but open enough to have fun exploring.
Even sitting still didn't always work for me. I'd come to a stop to listen to the banter, then a random encounter would spawn, cutting it off. The gameplay was great, and I didn't mind the story as much as some. But I really wish it would stop interrupting the conversations! Or resume them after the encounter that just spawned is done.
I loved Outcast. It reminded me of 80s and early 90s action films. A bit cheesy, a bit cheeky, pure fun. The exploration felt so free. It reminded me of the time when games didn't feel like a second job. Liked Banisher and Thaumaturge too.
Kena is amazing. Would love a part 2.