It's a fair assessment that Two Point Campus gameplay likely won't be that different from the studio's first major project, Two Point Hospital. After all, both games are in the same genre, featured as part of the same IP, and are designed to deliver a similar sort of sim-lite progression experience.

That, however, does not mean that there's nothing novel about Campus. Quite the contrary, as some early previews suggest massive improvements in social features, NPCs' interpersonal dynamics, and other assorted elements! What we've got for you today is a comprehensive summary of these earliest previews and a look at what you ought to expect from Two Point Studios' second flagship release.

Do be sure to check out our technical summary of Two Point Campus, too! Featuring system requirements, pre-release content, and a bunch of other handy information - especially if you're a newcomer to the franchise.

Pre-order Two Point Campus today!

Two Point Campus Gameplay: What's New About It?

Two Point Hospital has, time and again, made its way into our articles. Sometimes, it's because it's a phenomenal non-violent game, while in other instances, it may just be one of the best possible titles you could play on your vacation. These features - naturally - still fully apply to Two Point Campus as well. Lighting, however, does not (it actually does) strike twice, and Two Point Studios is eager to build upon the foundation set up with Hospital.

To that end, if you expected to get Two Point Hospital with a university flavor... that is sort of what you're getting. Except, deeper, more customizable, and - most importantly - more interesting.

The central conceit upon which Two Point Campus gameplay rests is simple: universities are not just for learning. They're social hotspots, loaded to the brim with all manner of extracurricular activities. Tourist spots, job markets, and so on. They're multitool for social and academic success, and Campus aims to illustrate this notion with all the classiness of a Wallace & Gromit film. Neat stuff!

Whereas Hospital treated them as disease platforms, Campus turns NPCs into actual characters. Instead of having a revolving door installed on your faculty where people come and go at a brisk pace, your students will stick around for a long while, and it makes a huge difference.

Do NPC relationships really play such an important role?

There are two major components to Two Point Campus. The first is - of course - studying. The second, however, is camaraderie. Whether through friendship or courtship, your students will evolve as they complete their three-year courses. They will change and grow into something like actual people. The developers' goal is to truly drive home the feeling of success and loss that comes up whenever a generation of students wraps up their studies. Two Point Campus succeeds in this respect, according to Eurogamer.

Players are tasked with building up and evolving a university in this game. This is accomplished by maintaining a healthy balance between the two aforementioned gameplay pillars. It's not enough to provide ample study opportunities, you see. Instead, your students will only thrive if you inundate them with extracurriculars, too. The gall!

All jokes aside, Two Point Studios seems to have learned what Hospital's biggest flaw was: the lack of character. Not that the game itself had no character. Instead, its NPCs may well have been nameless bots in the end. Campus intends to right that wrong, and in doing so, it seemingly delivers a substantially more involved gameplay loop.

Can eccentricity carry Two Point titles to greatness?

The thing to remember about Two Point productions, of course, is that they're zany. This zaniness isn't going anywhere with Two Point Campus. In fact, the developers are doubling down on it, but in a different way. Whereas Hospital had more than its fair share of illnesses and diseases (which got expanded upon with DLCs), Campus has got themed classes, lesson programs, and study plans.

To that end, Campus will offer classes such as Gastronomy, Visual Normality, and Scientography. In some cases, it might make sense to specialize your faculty in one of these branches. In others, it may be preferable to keep a fair few of them around, letting your own students pick and choose where they go and what they study.

This was, however, an anticipated feature. What wasn't anticipated was the ability to build outside school premises. The faculty is, after all, a big, open area. It'd be a darn shame if players didn't have the ability to plop down benches, trash cans, and a huge array of other visual tidbits to spice things up. The goal, overall, is to deliver real, tangible gameplay upgrades in every area that matters. So far, we've seen some stellar changes, and Campus may well end up completely overshadowing Hospital by the time it's out!

Will Two Point Campus Gameplay Be a Significant Enough Upgrade?

The central question surrounding all the early hype surrounding Two Point Campus isn't "can it work," but "isn't it more of the same" instead. It would've been so easy for Two Point Studios to phone it in and deploy a reskin of Hospital with little more than fluff to show for their efforts. Thankfully, this is not the case. Instead, the developers seem to have a firm grasp on what makes this franchise stand out on the market, as well as on ways to keep it relevant for long bouts of gameplay.

Sure enough, Campus will be familiar to Hospital players. It will, however, be meaningfully different. Early previews are clear about that! Fans of the wacky series have got yet another gem at their hands, just as they did before. The developers are learning, however, and this time it seems like they're really doubling down on their strongest features.

Two Point Campus is currently set to hit the stores on August 9th. We expect a flood of veteran Two Point fans as well as a whole slew of total newbies. The premise is a delight, after all, and the gameplay systems seemingly follow suit. What more could a management fan ask for, really?

Pre-order Two Point Campus today: coming out on August 9th!